Decca Studios and Klooks Kleek: West Hampstead's Musical Heritage Remembered

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December 1966 – Gig in Shrewsbury (possibly Severn Club), Shropshire then Midnight City, Birmingham (Disc & Music Echo) The Moonlight was also on the small circuit of London clubs that hosted the occasional southern forays by the new wave of Manchester bands. The Dark Circle Room blog has some of the recordings from Joy Division’s Factory by Moonlight gigs (note the spelling mistake in the sleeve notes of the live album).

The Artwoods "Live at Klooks Kleek" was instigated by Mike Raven, a DJ/producer on the short-lived pirate station Radio Atlanta, which had become Radio Caroline South, by the time of the recordings in late 1964. The Artwoods had been so successful as authentic blues purveyors on a dozen interval spots at the club that they stepped up to topping the bill nine times before moving countrywide. The original tapes were transferred to vinyl for availability in June 2016 in the Record Collector magazine's Rare Vinyl series. Keyboard player Jeff Bannister lived in Holmdale Road in 1972. He had worked with Alan Bown in the John Barry Seven who had supported visiting American acts such as Brenda Lee. When Barry disbanded the group in 1965 because of his increasing film work, Jeff joined Alan in the Alan Bown Set. Jeff sang and played organ and piano on the first singles produced by Tony Hatch, and then Jess Roden became the vocalist. When the Alan Bown Set split up in 1970 Jess Roden formed Bronco and Jeff played on their first album. In the mid 70s he joined The O Band and then toured with Charlie Dore and latter Gerry Rafferty. He continued writing songs and played on Joan Jett’s ‘Bad Reputation’. He also wrote the books, The Multichord for All Keyboards, and a history of The Alan Bown Set. Jeff is still performing today as a member of The Swinging Blue Jeans, which originated in Liverpool in the 1960s. In 1968, U.K. four-piece blues band Ten Years After were busy gigging in support of their self-titled debut album — one of the first electric blues albums from Britain, the beginning of a surge of such acts which continue to stand as some of the greatest blues acts of all time on either side of the Atlantic. That list includes Fleetwood Mac, Jethro Tull, Long John Baldry, John Mayall’s Bluesbreakers, Cream, Savoy Brown and those Led Zeppelin guys. November 1966 – Flamingo, Wardour Street, Soho, London (Melody Maker) This may not have happened Photo: City WeekOctober 1967 – At the Union, Manchester with The Waterboard (Manchester Evening News and Chronicle) The Artwoods “Live at Klooks Kleek” was instigated by Mike Raven, a DJ/producer on the short-lived pirate station Radio Atlanta, which had become Radio Caroline South, by the time of the recordings in late 1964. The Artwoods had been so successful as authentic blues purveyors on a dozen interval spots at the club that they stepped up to topping the bill nine times before moving countrywide. The original tapes were transferred to vinyl for availability in June 2016 in the Record Collector magazine’s Rare Vinyl series.

By the beginning of 1964, RnB nights had become so successful that an additional Monday session was introduced. Georgie and the Blue Flames opened on 13 April that year to the usual full house, but Monday nights proved not to be viable, and on 1 April 1965 Thursday became the second club night. Zoot Money who was already on the way to becoming a club legend opened. The last Monday session took place on 26 July 1965. Thursdays endured until November 1969. October 1964 – Klooks Kleek, West Hampstead, London (Geoff Williams research: Decca Studios and Klooks Kleek book) December 1968 – Malvern Winter Gardens, Malvern, Worcestershire with The Basin Street Jump Band (Malvern Gazette) Staff and punters gathered outside the venue on Monday to rally against the move to turn the three floors above the pub into office space and six flats.

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January 1968 – Cheltenham Spa Lounge and Ballroom, Cheltenham, Gloucestershire (Gloucester Citizen) Lemmy’ (Ian Fraser Kilmister) and ‘Philthy’ Phil Taylor, drums, were in Motorhead. Both lived at Tower Mansions during the late 1970s and 1980s. Motorhead was formed in 1975 and they have made twenty albums. Still performing today, Lemmy is the only remaining member of the original band. David Edward Sutch was born at New End Hospital in 1940. His parents William and Annie Emily, lived in two rooms at 241 Fordwych Road. His father, a war reserve police constable, crashed his motorbike and died in September 1941 when David was only ten months old. With no money, his mother, known in the family as ‘Nancy’, moved to a single room in Glengall Road. David went to school at Salusbury Road and then they moved to South Harrow. At the end of the 1950s he first performed at the 2 I’s club. The ‘Savages’ were formed in 1960 and he called himself Screaming Lord Sutch after Screaming Jay Hawkins. His outrageous appearance and performances gained the band publicity. From 1963 he stood in parliamentary elections for the National Teenage Party and founded the Official Monster Raving Loony Party in 1983. He contested over 40 elections with little hope of winning. Depressed after the death of his mother the year before, Sutch committed suicide in 1999. October 1966 – Odeon, Liverpool with The New Animals, Georgie Fame & The Blue Flames, Paul Butterfield Blues Band, Geno Washington & The Ram Jam Band, Eyes of Blue John Mayall brought many future stars through his various bands. He Appeared 33 times and did much to foster interest in blues nationwide.