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| Location | 309 Harrow Road, London |
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| Coordinates | 51°31′24″N0°11′52″W / 51.52337°N 0.19784°W |
| Type | Pub |
| Genre(s) | Rock/Punk |
| Opened | 1829 |
| Closed | 2009 |
The Windsor Castle is a former public house on Harrow Road, Maida Vale, London. It was a seminal rock venue throughout the 1960s and 1970s, with notable early performances from The Rolling Stones, The Who and U2. [1] The building is a designated heritage asset. [2]
The Windsor Castle opened on Harrow Road in 1829. It was rebuilt in its current style around 1850, [3] with stucco plaster around the windows, quoins and a castellated parapet. [2]
The Windsor Castle became a music venue in the 1960s. It is renowned for early gigs by the Rolling Stones and The Who. Other bands who played there and who went on to achieve mainstream success include Dr. Feelgood, The Jam, U2 and the Psychedelic Furs [3]
Joe Strummer, later of The Clash, played there a number of times as a member of the 101ers. The Clash song 'Protex Blue' was inspired by the condom vending machine in the pub's toilets. [3]
From the mid 1970s, the entertainment on offer at the Windsor Castle also included exotic dancers and striptease performers who performed in the main pub area. The pub was exceptionally busy at Friday and Sunday lunchtimes when the Windsor Castle turned into a strip pub. In the 21st century, they decided to separate the family pub area from the strip pub area by converting part of the upstairs area of the premises into a strip club in an attempt to increase revenue. [3] [4] This failed and the pub finally closed in 2009. [2]
The building has subsequently been used for office accommodation and short term lodgings. An application to demolish it was rejected in early 2011 and it has been redeveloped. [2]
Pub rock is a subgenre of rock music that emerged in the early to mid-1970s in the United Kingdom. A back-to-basics movement, which incorporated roots rock, pub rock was a reaction against the expensively-recorded and produced progressive rock and flashy glam rock scenes at the time. Although short-lived, pub rock was played live in small traditional venues like pubs and clubs. Since major labels showed no interest in pub rock groups, pub bands sought out independent record labels such as Stiff Records. Indie labels used relatively inexpensive recording processes, so they had a much lower break-even point for a record than a major label.
John Graham Mellor, known professionally as Joe Strummer, was a British singer-songwriter and musician. He was the co-founder, lyricist, rhythm guitarist and co-lead vocalist of punk rock band the Clash, formed in 1976. The Clash's second studio album Give 'Em Enough Rope (1978) reached No. 2 on the UK charts. Soon after, they achieved success in the US, starting with London Calling (1979) and peaking with Combat Rock (1982), which reached No. 7 on the US charts and was certified 2× platinum there. The Clash's explosive political lyrics, musical experimentation, and rebellious attitude had a far-reaching influence on rock music in general, especially alternative rock. Their music incorporated reggae, ska, dub, funk, rap, and rockabilly.
Proto-punk is rock music played mostly by garage bands from the 1960s to mid-1970s that foreshadowed the punk rock movement. The phrase is a retrospective label; the musicians involved were generally not originally associated with each other and came from a variety of backgrounds and styles; together, they anticipated many of punk's musical and thematic attributes.
The 101ers were a pub rock band from the 1970s playing mostly in a rockabilly style, notable as being the band that Joe Strummer left to join The Clash. Formed in London in May 1974, the 101ers made their performing debut on 7 September at the Telegraph pub in Brixton, under the name 'El Huaso and the 101 All Stars'. The name would later be shortened to the '101 All Stars' and finally just the '101ers'. The group played at free festivals such as Stonehenge, and established themselves on the London pub rock circuit prior to the advent of punk.
KOKO is a concert venue and former theatre in Camden Town, London, England.
Antony "Tony" Moore is an English singer-songwriter, musician, radio presenter and music promoter. He was also a member of Iron Maiden. He first became famous in 1986 as keyboard player with the band Cutting Crew, and in 1997 he founded The Kashmir Klub to showcase live music in London.
SFX Hall, sometimes referred to as SFX Theatre or The SFX, was a theatre located on Upper Sherrard Street, in Dublin, Ireland. The venue was named after the St Francis Xavier Hall and constructed in 1957, although a theater had been located on that site since the middle of the 19th century. The theatre served as the national concert hall, a home to the RTÉ Symphony Orchestra, and on occasion, large-scale performances. The venue had a standing capacity of 1000 and hosted pop and rock music concerts until 2001 when the shows were moved to the Ambassador Theatre. In 1982, the Irish band U2 performed three shows at the SFX in support of their album War. At one time the Dublin Theater Festival was housed at the SFX.
The Marquee Club was a music venue in London, England, which opened in 1958 with a range of jazz and skiffle acts. It was a small and relatively cheap club, in the heart of London's West End.
Roderick Charles Smallwood is an English music manager, best known as the co-manager of the British heavy metal band Iron Maiden. With his business partner, Andy Taylor, whom he met while studying at Trinity College, Cambridge, he founded the Sanctuary Records Group in 1979, which became the largest independent record label in the UK and the largest independent music management company in the world until its closure in 2007. Prior to managing Iron Maiden, Smallwood managed Steve Harley & Cockney Rebel.
The Ricky-Tick was an influential 1960s rhythm & blues club in Windsor, Berkshire, England, host to many important acts such as The Rolling Stones, The Who, Jimi Hendrix, Pink Floyd and Cream. It was set up as an R&B venue after founders Philip Hayward and John Mansfield saw the success in early 1962 of the Ealing Club. At the close of the Ricky-Tick Philip Hayward went on to open Pantiles Club & Restaurant in Bagshot, Surrey.
The Crawdaddy Club was a music venue in Richmond, Surrey, England, which opened in 1963. The Rolling Stones were its house band in its first year and were followed by The Yardbirds. Several other notable British blues and rhythm and blues acts also played there.
Paradiso is a Dutch music venue and cultural centre located in Amsterdam.
Elgin Avenue Breakdown is a compilation album by The 101ers, Joe Strummer's band before he joined The Clash. It was released on Andalucía Records in 1981 because of The Clash's popularity but mooted at the time that it was a semi-unofficial release due to Joe Strummer's contractual obligations with CBS. The first 500 copies came with a free poster. Just a few thousand copies were sold. The re-issue by EMI in 2005 has an accompanying booklet with an overview by Allan Jones and detailed notes on each track by Richard Dudanski.
The Half Moon is a public house and music venue in Putney, London. It is one of the city's longest running live music venues, and has hosted live music every night since 1963.
JB's Dudley, usually known simply as JB's, was a nightclub and live music venue located on Castle Hill near the centre of Dudley, West Midlands. Originally opened on a different site in 1969, it claimed to be the longest-running live music venue in the United Kingdom, and hosted early performances by acts such as Dire Straits and U2.
The Elgin is a Grade II listed public house at 96 Ladbroke Grove, London.
The Half Moon is a Grade II* listed public house at 10 Half Moon Lane, Herne Hill, London. It is one of only 270 pubs on the Campaign for Real Ale's National Inventory of Historic Pub Interiors, was frequented by the poet and writer Dylan Thomas, and was a noteworthy live music venue for nearly 50 years, hosting three gigs by U2 in 1980. In 2015, The Half Moon Public House was listed by Southwark Council as an Asset of Community Value, and is described by Nikolaus Pevsner as, "a cheerful corner pub of 1896".
The Dublin Castle is a pub and live music venue in Camden Town, London. It gained prominence as a venue in the late 1970s after the band Madness established a live reputation there. Subsequently, it was an important venue in the early stages of several bands' careers and contributed to the Britpop musical genre. Amy Winehouse was a regular visitor to the pub.
The Bracknell Leisure Centre is a sports and entertainment complex located at Bagshot Road in Bracknell, Berkshire, England. It was particularly popular as a concert venue between the late 1960s and early 1980s hosting bands such as Iron Maiden, U2, Genesis, Free, The Jeff Beck Group, Madness, Thin Lizzy, Traffic, Roxy Music, Status Quo, Captain Beefheart, Dr Feelgood, Wishbone Ash (twice), Stiff Little Fingers, Motorhead, Hawkwind, Stranglers, Groundhogs, Rory Gallagher, Focus and Yes.
The Golden Eagle was a 1930s public house in Birmingham, England, which became known as a venue for live music.
