The Free Trade Hall
Do you know, I have one of the best jobs in the world! Not only do I get to listen to and play great music on the radio but it’s improved my social life no end. Last Saturday I was DJing at Jewell Bar on Piccadilly in London, then I played a set at Ronnie’s Bar, upstairs at Ronnie Scott’s until 3 in the morning. Next Thursday I’m at the Eileen Hunter album launch at the 606 Club in Chelsea and last night Steve Quirk and I had the most amazing night in Central Manchester.
Steve and I hosted the first Club 43 night in Alto at The Radisson Edwardian Free Trade Hall Hotel on Peter Street.
The whole night was absolutely perfect. The Chef had created a new Creole and Cajun menu exclusively for the evening, the wine was flowing and the fantastic Mark Maclaren Trio provided the perfect aural accompaniment to the evening. Mark provided the vocals and he was joined by both his superb pianist and upright bass player. They thrilled with the perfect mix of both vocal and instrumental mainstream jazz and jazz standards.
The Radisson Edwardian Hotel is inside The Free Trade Hall in Manchester. For many years it was the home of the world famous Halle Orchestra. It very famously kick-started the careers of The Sex Pistols, Manchester’s very own Joy Division (latterly New Order) and played host to world-wide superstars such as Bob Dylan, Dame Shirley Bassey, Bob Hope and Danny Kaye.
Most importantly for Jazz FM though; how can we forget the world famous 1960 Miles Davis album ‘Live at the Free Trade Hall’? What an album!
In my humble opinion, it was probably the most famous music venue in the North of England and second only to London’s Albert Hall in the whole of the UK. So with all that great history and heritage in mind where else in Manchester would be a more suitable venue to re-live the memories of Manchester’s Club 43? For many years Club 43 was one of the premier Jazz venues in the UK and it was rivalled only, but was certainly on a par with Ronnie Scott’s in London. Owner Eric Scriven booked the biggest names in Jazz and in any week you could have been treated to shows from Dexter Gordon, Tubby Hayes and Sonny Rollins. Musicians playing the Free Trade Hall would often come down to jam after work until the early hours of the morning and customers were always treated to shows you would never be seen anywhere else.
Last night Manchester’s leading Jazz Historian Bill Birch delighted us all with amazing photographs, original bill flyers, entry tickets and hosts of other Club 43 memorabilia which all added to the ambiance of the evening.
Steve and I are already looking forward to the next Club 43 night at Alto and it would be great if you could join us next time too. So keep checking back to jazzfm.com and listening to Jazz FM for more information.
– Mike Vitti
