History
Below is the history of the 100 Club to go to a particular section click the titles below.
THE BEGINNING
THE HUMPHREY LYTTELTON CLUB
THE TRAD BOOM
THE 100 CLUB. BLUES, R'N'B & THE BEAT SCENE
PUNK
AFRICAN JAZZ / TOWNSHIP MUSIC
THE INDIE SCENE
OTHER HIGHLIGHTS
THE BEGINNING []
The 100 Club has been promoting live music on the same premises since 1942. Originally a restaurant called Mack's, live music was first played here when British jazz drummer Victor Feldman's father hired the venue on a regular Sunday night to showcase the talents of his jazz loving sons and their band. The band consisted of Victor, also known as 'kid Krupa' because of his style of playing, and his two brothers Robert (clarinet) and Monty (accordion). They were joined by legendary British jazz man Jimmy Skidmore (tenor sax) for the opening night on 24th October 1942.
To view a list of the people & bands that have played the 100 club over the years, .
Gradually news of this new jazz location became widespread and the premises was visited by a number of American servicemen, as well as Britons who wanted to listen to jazz and to dance. Some of the G.I's were well known as jazz musicians in their own right. An early visitor to the club in those days was forces big band legend Glen Miller, who appeared at the Club around this time accompanied by several members of his famous band including Ray McKinley, Mel Powell and Peanuts Hucko. Of course, this was during World War 2 and quite often as people enjoyed their night out, bombs were raining down all around, but the crowd, safe in the knowledge that the clubs location in the basement of 100 Oxford Street made it a very effective bomb shelter, carried on regardless. Indeed the Feldman's advertising at the time read 'Forget the Doodle bug-Come and Jitterbug-At the Feldman Club'. Soon the likes of Jack Parnell and George Webb were performing on a regular basis and the club started to enjoy its first period of success.
By 1948 the clubs' name had changed to the 'London Jazz Club' and re - introduced the dance music of the era (Jitterbug and Swing) back to the club on Saturdays and Mondays after the Feldmans had changed their musical policy on the regular Sundays to a more modern bebop style. Eventually the Feldmans stopped promoting altogether and the new owners the Wilcox brothers became the next inheritors of this famous address.
THE HUMPHREY LYTTELTON CLUB []
The club's lease changed hands during the 1950's when Lyn Dutton became the new lease holder. Lyn happened to be the agent for Humphrey Lyttelton and decided to name his new club after his hugely popular client. The Humphrey Lyttelton Club scored a major coup in 1956 when the legendary New Orleans band leader and trumpeter Louis Armstrong appeared at the club with his band during a few days break on the British tour he was doing with the Lyttelton band at the time. Other visitors to the club around that time included the great Billie Holliday who came to listen to The Alex Welsh Band featuring Beryl Bryden. During this period the Humphrey Lyttelton band were becoming increasingly popular, a success which was starting to manifest itself in the Hit Parade. In 1958 they had a Top Twenty hit with 'Bad Penny Blues'. Unwittingly for Humph, this became one of the records to kick start the 'Trad Jazz' boom over the next few years. 'Trad' was to become absolutely huge in Britain from 1959 into the early 1960's with the club at its epicentre.
THE TRAD BOOM []
Bands such as Humph's and the Chris Barber Jazz and Blues Band had, prior to this, been playing at the club on a regular basis but had become so huge that they were now concert hall outfits. For example,Chris Barber first played the club in 1954 and by 1956 was too big to play in clubs the size of the Humphrey Lyttelton Club any longer.
So in came the Trad scene which comprised of bands which simply did away with a piano and brought in a banjo to produce the Trad sound. The likes of Acker Bilk, Kenny Ball and Terry Lightfoot all played here during that time. Trad Jazz was the music everyone wanted and bands like Humphrey Lyttelton's with a front line of three saxophones and not a banjo in sight were no longer in fashion. But like all fashions Trad came to an end. Once the Sound of the Mersey and The Beatles in particular started to waft into people's homes the Trad scene began to fall into decline and ended very abruptly. The club briefly changed its name again to 'Jazz Shows' and in 1964 the current proprietor Roger Horton bought a share holding into the club and decided that with the decline of its recent staple diet of Trad now at an end, it would be a good idea to change the club's name again and attract other forms of music outside the jazz umbrella as it was becoming clear that promoting jazz seven days a week was now impossible.
THE 100 CLUB. BLUES, R'N'B & THE BEAT SCENE []
Thus the 100 Club as we know it today was born, and the club's policy to introduce new forms of music was starting to pay off. Chris Barber had for some time now, been bringing to Britain some of the finest Blues artists America had to offer and soon they were treading the boards and wooing the crowds at the 100 Club. Huge names such as Muddy Waters, Little Brother Montgomery, Cousin Joe Pleasant, Albert King, Sunnyland Slim, Otis Span, Jimmy Rushing, Louisiana Red, Bo Diddley, Freddie King and Eddie Taylor were all appearing here, some frequently, alongside their American soul cousins Jackie Wilson and George Jackson. B.B.King famously walked in to the club one evening with his guitar and got up and played alongside Roscoe Gordon who was on the bill that night.
The British Blues and Beat scene was also well represented in this period with Steam Packet featuring Rod Stewart, Long John Baldry and Julie Driscoll appearing, along with Alexis Korner, Brian Knight's Blues by Six, John Mayall's Bluesbreakers and The Animals. Among the Beat bands who played the club at the time were The Who, The Kinks, The Pretty Things and The Spencer Davis Group. Many names that are now world famous. It did not spell the end of jazz though. Instead of the Trad and Swing styles of jazz that were part of the club's infancy, the club were now booking big stars of the U.S. jazz scene such as Bud Freeman, 'Wild' Bill Davison, George Lewis and Earl Hines as well as home grown talent including the famous Alex Welsh Band and the Ken Colyer Band, who were now able to play the 100 Club after the sale of Ken's famous 51 Club in Soho.
The seventies were by now starting to beckon and with it some of the toughest times in the club's history. The Work to Rule policy of the Unions representing unhappy workers of all persuasion during this time and the subsequent three day week were taking money out of people's pockets. The resultant fuel saving code enforced by the government of the time meant that up to three days a week, electricity was automatically switch off from 6.00pm to 9.00pm by the local electricity board. This meant either closure on these nights or later opening hours to try to attract the few customers out there not affected by strife ridden England. There were bright spots, noticeably the appearance of Maynard Ferguson and the success of the live pirate radio broadcasts by Radio London (the first time DJ's had been used at the Club) but by and large it was becoming increasingly difficult to attract customers to the club.
PUNK []
The mood of the nation was, though, about to manifest itself in the biggest music phenomenon since the Mersey Beat, and the 100 club was to become the home of its dissidents. On Monday 20th and Tuesday 21st September 1976 the 100 Club was host to the first ever Punk festival. Seen for the first time, certainly in London, on the 100 Club stage were the Sex Pistols, The Clash, The Damned, Siouxsie & The Banshees the Buzzcocks the Vibrators and Subway Sect. No one outside of a select few had heard of any of the them and all of them were unsigned. The Melody Maker's opening line of its review stated 'The 600 strong line that stretched across two blocks was indisputable evidence that a new decade in rock is about to begin.' It was to be one of the most famous events in the club's history. The Punk festival of '76 also had an enormous effect on music in general. It changed the club's fortunes and its image indefinitely. As no other venue wanted to put on Punk at all, it stayed at the club on and off for the next eight or nine years incorporating its second wave with bands like U.K.Subs, G.B.H., ADX, Peter & the Test Tube Babies, The Exploited and Discharge. The 100 Club is still the spiritual home of the Punk movement.
About this time another much talked about 100 Club event was also taking place. The Saturday lunch time Reggae sessions were becoming the place in London to listen to reggae and acts that played the club during these times included the Equals with Eddie Grant, The Mighty Diamonds and Steel Pulse amongst many others. There was also the Saturday soul club which was a big success and was hosted by Capital Radio's Greg Edwards.
The famous 6T's Northern Soul All Nighter also made its 100 Club debut at this time, in May 1980 to be precise. Organised and Promoted by Northern Soul DJ and Record Collector Ady Croasdell, it is still going today and has included live sets from Soul luminaries such as Doris Troy, Ray Pollard, Barbara Acklan, Tommy Hunt, The Flirtations, Terry Callier Lou Ragland and Tony Middleton and has had famous Northern DJ's like Ian Levene spinning the decks frequently.
AFRICAN JAZZ / TOWNSHIP MUSIC []
As another decade began, yet another form of music was inaugurated into the 100 Club. The introduction of African Jazz or Township Music, predominantly from South Africa, was first initiated by Chris McGregor the British musician who was a champion of the African Jazz scene. His bands The Blue Notes and The Brotherhood of Breath were highly acclaimed and soon it became apparent that Township music was in demand more than just occasionally. Archie Shepp with promoter Julian Bahula
Julian Bahula, the distinguished African drummer, decided to run a regular Friday night featuring authentic African bands. Many of the musicians he employed were political refugees isolated from their South African homeland because of the apartied laws and were members of the outlawed A.N.C. The weekly Friday nights became a whole movement for change and with the pulsating music on offer a whole new genre in the 100 Club's history was born. Great African musicians like Fela Kuti, Marion Makeba and Hugh Masekela appeared on the Friday night bill as did Youssou N'Dour, Thomas Mapfumo, Dudu Pukwana and Spirits Rejoice. It ran for almost ten very successful years until the release of Nelson Mandela, then the change in the political climate in South Africa meant the cause was over.
Red
Holloway and Sonny Stitt |
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The end of the eighties and start of the early nineties brought a renewed interest in jazz with the introduction of the radio station Jazz F.M. Slightly different from previous jazz movements, people were coming out to listen to live progressive and be bop jazz bands supported by jazz DJ's, perhaps because of the popularity of the new radio station. The club booked acts as diverse as Tommy Chase and Richie Cole to Jimmy McGriff and Hank Crawford supported by DJ's like Giles Peterson and Paul Murphy.
THE INDIE SCENE []
1992 was to see the start of the biggest era in popular music at the club since 1976. The club was once again going through a lean spell when a chance phone call from concert promoter, Chris York, inquired whether the club would be interested in showcasing one of his new bands. The band were called Suede and in September 1992 they kicked off the club's successful period in Indie music. Over the next four years Oasis, Kula Shaker, Echobelly, Catatonia, Travis, Embrace, Cornershop, The Aloof, Heavy Stereo and Baby Bird would be just a few of the names to play the club and right up to the present day, the club has seen gigs from Semisonic, Toploader, Muse, Shack, Doves, JJ72, Jo Strummer, Squarepusher, Ocean Colour Scene and The Webb Brothers.
OTHER HIGHLIGHTS []
Interspersed throughout these highlights have been weekly nights dedicated to certain forms of music. The Speakeasy Sunday evening ran for over ten years and showcased the best of British and American Blues and R'n'B. The London Swing Dance Society have been teaching people how to Jitterbug and Jive since 1988 and are still going strong. The Comedy nights have seen Al Murray, Arthur Smith, Rich Hall, Harry Hill, Bill Bailey and Mark Lamarr appear here. Mark has often DJ'd here on other nights too. Jazz has continued to run through these decades of course. During these times Humphrey Lyttelton and Chris Barber have returned frequently along with many of the British jazz names mentioned earlier. Teddy Edwards, Ruby Braff, Eddie 'Lockjaw' Davis, Lee Konitz, Al Casey, Stephane Grappelli, Barney Kessell, Herb Ellis, Charlie Byrd and Teddy Wilson to name but a few, have all appeared from overseas since. Even 'Wild' Bill Davison has returned to play the club as a very old man.
The club has remained special to many people over the years and a lot of well known bands and musicians have come back long after they have met with fame and fortune. Paul Weller, who played here with The Jam during the early Punk days and is a good friend of the club, has returned on numerous occasions to showcase new material. The Rolling Stones and Metallica have used the club for secret warm up shows before world tours and festivals and Kula Shaker came back four years after their first appearance to do a week of shows to launch their second album.
The 100 Club is a legendary venue. It has been home to many different bands of many different styles and its longevity and success over the last 60 years have been down to an open minded music policy and the dedication of its many patrons over those years. There is nowhere else like it in the world.
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