The Borderline (music venue)

Last updated
The Borderline
Borderline, Soho, W1.jpg
Entrance on Orange Yard (2009)
The Borderline (music venue)
LocationOrange Yard
Manette Street
London, W1D 4JB
Coordinates 51°30′54″N0°07′50″W / 51.514889°N 0.130417°W / 51.514889; -0.130417
Public transit Underground no-text.svg Tottenham Court Road
Capacity 200-300
Opened1985
Closed31 August 2019

The Borderline was a London music venue on the eastern edge of Soho at Orange Yard and Manette St, off Charing Cross Road. Hosting a variety of acts in rock and roots music, the small basement club was a foundational part of the live music scene in the West End from 1985 to 2019.

Contents

History

Founded by Ian Howard and John Northcote in 1985, [1] The Borderline opened in the basement of tex mex restaurant Break for the Border, located at 127-133 Charing Cross Rd. [2] With a small stage and a capacity for 200 to 300, the underground space soon became known for its intimate atmosphere. By the 1990s, the club cemented its reputation as an excellent stop for up-and-coming names in rock and roll. R.E.M., Oasis, Pearl Jam, Blur, Muse, and Counting Crows made appearances relatively early in their careers, [3] as did singer-songwriters such as Sheryl Crow, PJ Harvey, and Jeff Buckley. [4] The venue was also known for hosting figures such as Debbie Harry and Black Francis as they performed their solo work. Later in the decade, The Borderline became an important center for Americana. [5] Townes Van Zandt, Emmylou Harris, Béla Fleck and the Flecktones, Uncle Tupelo, The Jayhawks, The Sadies, Whiskeytown, The Drive-By Truckers, Over the Rhine, Sarah Harmer, and Josh Ritter all played the basement stage.

As the music industry increasingly consolidated, the ownership of The Borderline changed hands several times. In 2003, Vince Power's Mean Fiddler Group added the club to its stable of venues. [6] In 2007, as Mean Fiddler rebranded as Festival Republic, Music and Media Assets (MAMA) acquired the club. [7] As MAMA was absorbed into Live Nation, DHP Family purchased the club in 2016. DHP temporarily closed the venue for extensive refurbishment and reopened the space with a thoroughly revamped décor and an upgraded sound system in March 2017. [8] However, citing rising rents due to ongoing real estate developments in the area, [9] DHP permanently closed the doors of The Borderline in August 2019.

Notable events

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gene Vincent</span> American rock musician (1935–1971)

Vincent Eugene Craddock, known as Gene Vincent, was an American rock and roll musician who pioneered the style of rockabilly. His 1956 top ten hit with his backing band the Blue Caps, "Be-Bop-a-Lula", is considered a significant early example of rockabilly. His chart career was brief, especially in his home country of the US, where he notched three top 40 hits in 1956 and 1957, and never charted in the top 100 again. In the UK, he was a somewhat bigger star, racking up eight top 40 hits from 1956 to 1961.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">London Astoria</span> Former music venue in London, England

The London Astoria was a music venue at 157 Charing Cross Road, in London, England, that operated from 1976 to 2009.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Larry Tee</span> Musical artist

Larry Tee is a Berlin-based DJ, club promoter, and music producer who curated the electroclash scene in New York in the early 2000s, and helped launch the careers of such artists as RuPaul, Scissor Sisters, Fischerspooner, Peaches, W.I.T., and Avenue D. He has written songs for and collaborated with Afrojack, Shontelle, Princess Superstar, Santigold, RuPaul, Sean Garrett, Steve Aoki, and Amanda Lepore.

Festival Republic is a UK music promoter. It was founded as Mean Fiddler Group in 1982 by Irish-born chairman John Vincent Power, as a venue-management and music-promotion group. After the group was taken over by Hamsard Ltd in 2005, the focus became more concentrated on festivals, and in 2007 the venues along with the Mean Fiddler name were sold on, with the remaining company being renamed Festival Republic. Melvin Benn is the current managing director.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Bootleg Beatles</span> Beatles tribute band

The Bootleg Beatles are a Beatles tribute band. They have performed over 4,000 times since their establishment in March 1980.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rock City (venue)</span> Music venue and nightclub located in England

Rock City is a music venue and nightclub located in Nottingham, England. It is owned by venue operator and concert promoter DHP Family.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Deviants (band)</span> British rock band

The Deviants were a British psychedelic rock band originally active from late 1966 to 1969, but later used as a vehicle for the musical work of writer Mick Farren until his death in 2013.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">O2 Forum Kentish Town</span> Concert venue in Kentish Town, London, England

The O2 Forum Kentish Town is a concert venue in Kentish Town, London, England, owned by MAMA & Company and originally built in 1934.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Radio Song</span> 1991 song by R.E.M

"Radio Song" is a song by American rock band R.E.M., released as the fourth single from their seventh album, Out of Time (1991), where it appears as the opening track. Lead singer Michael Stipe once said that he hoped everyone had enough sense of humor to realize that he was "kind of taking the piss of everyone," himself included. Stipe also asked KRS-One, leader of Boogie Down Productions, to contribute to the track. He provides some backing vocals for the track, as well as a closing rap, and appears prominently in the video.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Astoria 2</span> Former nightclub in London, England

The Astoria 2, subsequently known as the LA2 then the Mean Fiddler, was a nightclub at 165 Charing Cross Road in London, England.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Metro Chicago</span> Music venue in Chicago, Illinois, US

Metro is a concert hall in Chicago, Illinois, United States, that plays host to a variety of local, regional and national emerging bands and musicians. The Metro was first opened in 1982. The capacity is 1,100, divided between the main floor and the balcony. The building housing Metro also houses Smart Bar underneath the main venue.

The Jazz Cafe is a music venue in Camden Town, London. It opened in 1990 on the former premises of a branch of Barclays Bank and has had several owners throughout its history as a music venue.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Popscene (club)</span> British indie dance club

Popscene was a UK "indie dance" club of the 1990 Brit Pop movement..

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Ritz (Manchester)</span> Live music venue in Manchester, England

The O2 Ritz (originally known as The Ritz) is a live music venue on Whitworth Street West in Manchester, England. The venue is notable for its sprung dance floor and has a capacity of 1,500.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">O2 Academy Leeds</span>

The O2 Academy Leeds (formerly known as the Town and Country Club) is a music venue situated in Leeds, West Yorkshire, England. It is run by the Academy Music Group, which has other music venues around the UK. The Academy was nominated for the TPi Awards 2010 for the country's favourite venue.

MAMA Festivals is a live music and entertainment company which owns and operates a number of live music venues and festivals in the United Kingdom. Founded in 2005, it has acquired many other venue-holding companies, expanding its reach significantly across England.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Garage (London)</span> Music venue in London, England

The Garage is a live music and club venue in Highbury, North London. It opened in 1993 and has a capacity of 600. The upstairs room, also known as the Grace, has a capacity of 150.

John Vincent Power CBE was an Irish music venue and festival owner, and the founder of Mean Fiddler who lived and operated mainly in London.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Clapham Grand</span> Multi-purpose building in London, England

The Grand is a Grade II listed building on St John's Hill, near Clapham Junction in Battersea, South London. It was designed by Ernest Woodrow and was first opened in 1900 as The New Grand Theatre of Varieties.

<i>Live at the Borderline 1991</i> 2019 live album by Bingo Hand Job

Live at the Borderline 1991 is a 2019 live album released for Record Store Day on April 13. The recording features alternative rock band R.E.M. performing under the pseudonym Bingo Hand Job at a 1991 surprise gig around the release of Out of Time.

References

  1. ↑ "Managers take over Brixton Academy". The Guardian. Press Association. 1 September 2004. Retrieved 14 February 2024.
  2. ↑ "The Borderline". Buildington. Retrieved 14 February 2024.
  3. ↑ Busby, Mattha (13 May 2019). "Live music venue the Borderline to close over rising West End rents". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 14 February 2024.
  4. ↑ Richards, Sam (14 May 2019). "Historic London venue The Borderline to close in August". Uncut. London. Retrieved 14 February 2024.
  5. ↑ Underwood, Mark (25 June 2019). "A Last Hurrah for Barry Marshall-Everitt". Americana UK. Retrieved 14 February 2024.
  6. ↑ Baldock, Lee (3 December 2003). "Mean Fiddler buys Borderline". LSI Online. Eastbourne, UK. Retrieved 14 February 2024.
  7. ↑ Brandle, Lars (13 August 2007). "MAMA plays Mean Fiddler Tune". Billboard. New York. Retrieved 14 February 2024.
  8. ↑ Chapple, Jon (30 May 2016). "DHP Family Buys London Live Venues". IQ Magazine. London. Retrieved 14 February 2024.
  9. ↑ Neicho, Joshua (27 August 2019). "Goodbye Borderline. How will other London music venues survive?". OnLondon. London. Retrieved 14 February 2024.
  10. ↑ "R.E.M.'s heavily bootlegged 'Bingo Hand Job' show gets vinyl Record Store Day release". Slicing Up Eyeballs. 28 February 2019. Retrieved 14 February 2024.
  11. ↑ "Oasis: Cigarettes & Alcohol". IMDb. Retrieved 14 February 2024.
  12. ↑ Kerr, Paul (10 February 2017). "Lowlands and Friends "Play Townes Van Zandt's Last Set"". Americana UK. Retrieved 14 February 2024.
  13. ↑ Weber, Bruce (31 July 2013). "Mick Farren, British Rock 'n' Roll Renaissance Man, Dies at 69". New York Times. New York. Retrieved 14 February 2024.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.