At the top end of Oldham Street, you find the Comedy Club and the iconic Crown and Kettle public house across on the other side of busy Swan Street. Hundred yards to the left of there is the oldest venue in town, Manchester Band on the Wall, which sits opposite to the Fringe Bar.
Crown and Kettle interior. Image Credit eatmcr.co.uk
The venue was originally opened as the George and Dragon pub in 1803 within a big market area, even in those very early days it had a licence for song and dance. It was located near the old gathering place of ‘New Cross’ where many an Industrial Revolution demonstration took place. The landlord in residence between the 1930’s and 1950’s was a no-nonsense chap called Ernie Tyson who decided to expand the repertoire and created a stage halfway up the wall at the rear of the pub, hence the name of the establishment was formed.
During the 1960’s and 1970’s it sat in the jazz domain before punk hit and the Buzzcocks and Joy Division played early gigs, the latter allegedly signed in blood their recording contract there with Tony H Wilson. The venue is registered as a charity so allows more artistic freedom and its music resides mainly in the roots and soul genre and because of this not one I have visited regularly. To exemplify this musical ethos, Craig Charles has for many years undertaken a monthly DJ residence there.
It is an award-winning establishment and has recently been refurbished, it has an initial bar area as you enter which now has the ability to stage smaller performances with an 80-person capacity. Then to your left there is a step free access into the main music room with an additional balcony overlooking the stage and this area now has an increased capacity of 500 due to an expansion into the adjoining three-storey Cocozza Wood building.
Band on the Wall. Image Credit DesignMyNight.com
One of the seminal and most influential bands of my youth was Husker Du and I was fortunate to see them twice back in the day and at the first gig had a brief chat with the band and I have been playing a lot of their considerable output recently. Post their breakup in 1988 I kept a close eye on the individual output of the members of the band and saw Sugar several times and Bob Mould solo a couple of times.
The drummer Grant Hart was less prolific in his output and toured far less prior to his untimely death in 2017. His passing hit me like a sledgehammer in much the same way Mark Lanegan’s did, perhaps also inciting selfishly the mourning of your past youth!
He was a fabulous drummer with my personal favourite of his art being the thunderous driving rhythm of Husker Du’s ‘New Day Rising’, go on have a listen to it right now! He also released some terrific solo records, particularly the first two ‘Intolerance’ and ‘Good News for the Modern Man’, the initial one being issued via the legendary SST records.
I was therefore excited when I saw the news he was touring in December 2011, so tickets were purchased and off we popped. I was a tad worried when I saw it was just Grant and a backing track machine but surprisingly it worked with him topping up the sound on his guitar.
He had a considerable back catalogue and was inviting requests from the audience, however when one punter somewhat rudely stated ‘you need to play xxxx’, he was met with an instant withering response ‘you need to be on the streets man’! Standout tracks that evening were ‘2541’, ‘The Main’, ‘Never Talking to You Again’, ‘There’s a Girl who Lives on Heaven’s Hill’ and ‘Green Eyes’.
Grant Hart. Image Credit SFGate
My other three attendances were all part of wristband events, the first in May 2018 was to see Desperate Journalist, a decent post punk band from London. At the following years Dot to Dot event, I witnessed part of an excellent set from Kilmarnock’s Fatherson. I very nearly saw them in Edinburgh a few years earlier but was glad to finally catch up with them. My final appearance was in November 2019 to see a local artist called Elysse Mason who reminded me to a degree of Lana Del Rey.