Dirty Stop Out’s Guide to 1970s Coventry – from disco to 2-Tone
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From disco to glam, via prog and all-conquering 2-Tone, or ska-rock, this book is retro gold as it remembers Coventry’s iconic nightlife scene of the time.
There was arguably no decade more important for Coventry’s music scene. The 1970s saw the birth of 2-Tone, which was a welcome distraction from the city’s then collapsing car industry.
Dirty Stop Out’s Guide to 1970s Coventry celebrates the likes of the bands Specials and the Selecter, who lit the blue touchpaper as the scene reverberated across the country and the world.
Author Ruth Cherrington said: “Coventry’s Locarno Ballroom led the way in terms of after-dark entertainment at the start of the 1970s – it already had a decade of entertaining the city’s party-charged hordes under its belt.
"But it wasn’t long before it found itself with competition in the shape of Mr George’s and the City Centre Club, later Tamango’s.”
Prior to the birth of 2-Tone, the city, like much of the country, was gripped by the influence of Saturday Night Fever with pubs galore eager to cash in on the disco craze - the Bear Inn, Golden Cross, Cottage, Climax and Walsgrave were just a few of the venues, giving punters the chance to strut their stuff.
The grand old Coventry Theatre had bands galore with something for everyone.
Local colleges joined in the fun, with the legendary Lanch and Warwick Uni providing music festivals that didn’t end in mud and tears.
And when the pubs and clubs called time for the evening, a take-away was calling in the legendary Parson’s Nose, where even ska stars the Specials could be found tucking into a ‘special’.
Ruth Cherrington has interviewed scores of musicians, DJs, punters, venues owners and more to unveil what publisher Neil Anderson said: “arguably the most comprehensive look at the 1970s we’ve ever produced”.
The book is crammed full of ultra-rare photographs, memorabilia, memories and more.
Dirty Stop Out’s Guide to 1970s Coventry (ISBN no: 978-1-908431-91-2)
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