The Edinburgh

Live Music at the Edinburgh in the ‘60s


Built in the mid 19th century as part of a terrace The Edinburgh in the ‘60s was one of several pubs and clubs in the area where live music was performed and enjoyed. Nearby pubs included the “Weavers Arms” (still going), the “Mildmay Tavern” (gone), “The Clarendon” (renamed), Mildmay Park, “The Pegasus”, (now a social club in Green Lanes) and “The Albion” (now flats), Albion Road. It was possible to do a musical pub crawl between each of them - and that’s what a ‘gang’ of us used to do!



I especially liked the Edinburgh. Now known as The Cellars, this was the place for me to meet people, and listen to, watch, learn and play music. It was quite dingy looking at the time. One small bar leading in to a large oblong room. A low stage with a well-used grand piano. A tinny, echoey PA. The smell of urine from the gents’ toilet at the side, that would waft across the audience from time to time. Like most pubs the atmosphere was smoky. The pub was managed by John, an Irishman, who, at the end of the evening, having called an end to the session several times, would eventually shout almost pleadingly in his thin voice “Come on lads, it’s well passed time.”



When I first started going there in the early ‘60s there were two slightly different music sessions: Saturday night and Sunday lunchtime, both run by Phil. A huge cardboard sign hung in the corner window advertising Phil King of the Pops. I never knew whether it was Phil, King of the Pops or Phil King of the Pops. Phil was a large blue suited, bald man who led the band, MC’d and sang.



The Saturday band consisted of rock’n’roller Charlie on the keys, basic but steady Terry on drums and Stan, a diminutive string bass player with a goatee beard who occasionally raised his instrument high into the air during the climax of a song. Phil repertoire was a mixture of 50s-60s pop and Frank Sinatra-type swingers and ballads, which pleased the predominantly white working class audience. Particular songs that have stayed in my memory including: ‘The Turkey Trot’ (gobble, gobble, oo-be, shoo-be, doo-be‘) I Got You Babe’ and a rock version of Galway Bay. There was often a risqué element to some of the songs and that got a laugh from the crowd. The musical diet didn’t appear to change much. You could almost set your watch as to when Phil would perform individual songs. If you asked Phil he would let you sit in or sing a song and as an MC encourage the packed crowd to applaud. A number of acts, including Peters and Lee, usually performed one or two songs.



A jazz session started up Sunday lunchtimes. Unlike many pub jazz sessions at the time the music veered towards modern rather than Trad. There was John on piano, Stan on bass and Martin Guy on drums. Tony, a vibraphone player, and Terry, a guitarist, were amongst others would sit in. The afternoon was again led by Phil who would sing and call up individual players and singers.



Initially, at both sessions, I asked to sit in on drums and as long as I kept time and didn’t muck up the song I could stay for several numbers. As I got into blues singing and harmonica playing, I was invited up to perform songs that most of the crowd had probably never heard of. ‘I Got My Mojo Working’ by Muddy Waters was just one of those songs and it went down a storm – probably because of it’s double meaning!



On reflection the Edinburgh music sessions provided a good grounding at the time for how to play in a group, learning from older more experienced musicians, and how to perform in front of an audience. It was an excellent experience I could not have done without. It was ideal for youngsters like myself wanting to perform – a little like today’s open mic nights.
Roj