Liverpool - Cavern Quarter Tour
Cavern Quarter is a vibrant area in Liverpool, if not to say - its 'heart' - as it goes to music and nightlife. Named after the Cavern Club where The Beatles played in their early career, on numerous occasions, and where they were noticed by their manager, Brian Epstein, thus setting off for the world career, and to influence and change the music and show-business - forever.
Apparently, it is an auspicious point where all the music 'ley lines' of the world are said to be met.
The Cavern Club opened as a jazz club, in 1957 in warehouse cellar used as an air-raid shelter in World War II. In the early 1960s, it became a national and global centre for rock and roll music.
John Lennon with the Quarrymen played there for the first time on 7 August 1957.
The first Beat night was held on 25 May 1960 and featured a performance by Rory Storm and the Hurricanes (which included Ringo Starr as a drummer).
First performance by the Beatles was on 9 February 1961. The last performance was on 3 August 1963, a month after the band recorded "She Loves You". The Beatles made 292 appearances at the club. The Cavern stage was also a host to the Rolling Stones, the Hollies, the Kinks, Elton John, Black Sabbath, Queen, the Who, John Lee Hooker.
The club had to be closed in the 1970s due to construction fragility. The original entrance is a few steps further down. Prior to the Cavern Club's re-opening ceremony in 1984, over 100 musicians from the 1960s Merseybeat era were invited to sign the wall at the back of the Cavern's stage (Middle Photo).
In truth, there are three places on Matthew Street called Cavern.
Left: Entrance to The Cavern Club. In 1991, two friends—schoolteacher Bill Heckle and taxi driver Dave Jones—reopened it, along with George Guinness. They still run the club today and are now the longest-running owners in its history. The club has around 40 live bands performing every week. The Cavern is also used as a tour warm-up venue with semi-secret gigs announced at the last moment. Paul McCartney did this in 2018.
Middle: Entrance to The Cavern Pub. It features many memorabilia from past performances at The Cavern.
Right: Memorial to the original entrance to the Cavern Club in the 1960's
Historically, Mathew Street was the centre of Liverpool's wholesale fruit and vegetable market. The narrow alley, was originally named Mathew Pluckington, a famous Liverpool merchant.
Take a wander down the historic street full of sound and people, where the story of modern music truly began.
The most popular time to come, to see and feel the Beatlemania is in August when the International Beatle Week draws thousands of dedicated fans to the city, from all over the world.
During normal operating hours and days this place is filled with happy-go-lucky people, buskers, and visitors.
The main points of interests for the music fans are Statue of John Lennon, Liverpool Wall of Fame, Beatles Museum and merchandise.
Upper Left: Young John Lennon leans against the brick wall. Come closer and notice there are hundreds of names on each and every brick - names of bands playing over the years at the Cavern Club.
Upper Middle: Liverpool's Wall of Fame features golden disc plaques of acts from Liverpool which have reached number one in the UK Singles Chart since 1952. Dominated by The Beatles, with 17 discs. The sculptor was Rick Myers, who also made dozens of the Liver Bird statues around the city, including the one in the Central Station.
Upper Right: Sculpture by Arthur Dooley entitled "Four Lads Who Shook the World". To be honest, we have no idea behind its meaning; it scares the hell out. Shabby, disgusting, pointless.
Lower Left and Middle: Magical Beatles Museum, in the former warehouse, opened in 20... by.....
Lower Right: The Beatles Shop.
One would expect that the business on Matthew Street and around the Cavern Quarter is thriving. As it goes with businesses - it's volatile. Some have more luck than others. The Cavern cityscape is always changing. You never know what will happen from one year to the other.
Upper Left: The Beatles Official Store
Upper Middle: Festival Food and Drink Grill, a mix of Brazilian food and local music history, over two floors. A collaborative enterprise between owners of the Cavern Club and Bem Brasil restaurant. A faux-festival experience.
Upper Right: Turtle Bay is an alternative for those seeking other genres of music and exotic, Caribbean cousin.
Lower Left: Entrance to Kaisekeller, the name referring to the famous Hamburg club where the Beatles played before returning to Liverpool and making a household name. The Beatles Museum is a new addition, it used to be a John Lennon bar.
Lower Middle and Right: New enterprise since 2019, named after the hit-song, Strawberry Fields replaced a pub and bar which struggled to fill its large space at any time we've been around.
Of course, the main business is the drinking business. Many pubs, bars, nightclubs are squeezed on this tiny area. Some are more important and historic than others.
Upper Left: The Grapes. Here the Four Lads had enjoyed a pint or two after their gigs in nearby Cavern. The pub reopened after a major refurbishment. Many Beatles memorabilia are missing, they supposedly been stolen. The original bench where they used to sit is still there.
Upper Right: The White Star
Lower Left: Rubber Soul
Lower Right: Sgt Peppers
Liverpool has huge Irish diaspora. John Lennon's grandfather migrated from Ireland and settled in the city dock's area. There are many Irish pubs here and in the Cavern Quarter are few as well, but their true provenance has probably a lot to be wished for.
Left: Flanagan's Apple. There is actually a fourth space which some can re-call under the Cavern name. In 1981 in this building the Cavern Mecca was opened, the first Beatles museum. It had a major impact on the birth of Beatles fan-based tourism in Liverpool. Their founders annual Beatles Convention is now part of the Beatles Week Festival. The Cavern Mecca closed in 1984.
The place has some more interesting history. There used to be the Liverpool School of Language, Music, Dream and Fun in the 1970s. The 'school' gave rise to many independent, artistic and bohemian projects: Aunt Twacky’s, the first indie market outside London, rehearsal space for many local bands, or Science Fiction Theatre. The place was legendary for one generation of Liverpudlians.
There is also a sculpture of Carl Gustav Jung head, famous psychoanalyst, with his words carved: "Liverpool is the pool of life".
The building has served the Flanagan’s Apple pub for far longer than it was ever anything else, yet its significance has reached far beyond dreams of many local people and bringing hope and entertainment. After the makeover in 2019, the previous fruit warehouse looks starkly horrible, in our opinion, uninviting and .....
Middle: O'Briens, a little long narrow pub that serves rather local people. You are likely to hear old gamblers shouting at the screen as on the TVs are various horsing racing events during the day. In the evenings there is karaoke with a rather poor sound system. It used to be the Glass Onion. Previous attempts at putting a bar here have seemed to fail.
Right: M'Cooley's, Irish Themed Sports and Live Music Bar, owned by Pub Invest Group, the biggest entertainment company in Liverpool, (owns venues all over the city such as Rewind and the Rubber Soul and few in the Ropewalks area). In 2017 the group decided to knock old bars down to create this completely new venue that spans across two floors with pool tables, big TV screens, with horseracing and football, open mic nights, performances,
often loud and often mediocre tunes. Is it a traditional Irish bar? Hm ...
Have we mentioned there are three places on Matthew Street related to the Cavern name? No, it was four already... Well, to tell you the truth - it is five.
For a couple of years, after the original Cavern Club was closed in 1981, it relocated to the building which is now Eric's club. In its own regard, this is another famous venue on Matthew Street.
There is even a blue plaque marking Eric's importance for taking part in the evolution of punk rock, despite only being open for 4 years. Eric's opened in 1976 and was host to Joy Division, New Order, Sex Pistols, The Clash and loads more.
Turning to Temple Court, there is the oldest building in the area, round warehouse, now the Revolution restaurant. Opposite, a few nightclubs.
Crossing Victoria Street towards a narrow alley, Temple Street, opposite Temple Square, there is another plaque, a reminiscent of the iconic Iron Door club.
Upper Left: Commercial Saleroom Building, fine Victorian architecture with an impressive doorway, now waiting for an investor. It was opened in 1879 for sale of fruits. Now the building is partially occupied over two floors by Maida Vale, live music venue, opened in 2018 by a young but successful company Quantum Leisure Ltd from Sheffield. Its name relates to London’s iconic Maida Vale venue. It supposed to provide a platform for some of Liverpool's new unsigned acts.
The music policy is the Best of British, from the '60s to the '90s, with tributes and cover acts, DJ events and rockaroke.
Upper Right: Iron Door club plaque at 13 Temple Street. The music venue opened in 1960 and closed in 1964. It was the first venue where "Silver Beetles" played on 15 May 1960, having played at Lathom Hall as the 'Silver Beats' the night before. A television performance by The Undertakers was filmed at the Iron Door club in 1963.
Lower Left: Four Chairs of unknown reputation.
Lower Right: Chantilly Beatles Café offers an extensive range of home-cooked food, which are served at good prices.
To be continued
Roxy Ball Room
Bar and games venue opened in 2019. Two floors of the old BHS cafe, in Rainford Square.
It features a nine-hole mini-golf course, four full-size bowling lanes, shuffleboard, ping pong, pool and retro arcade gaming.
Probe Records
Probe Records now operate on School Lane, next to Bluecoat, continues to fly the flag for independent shops to this day. It had occupied various sites in the city, but its famous Button Street store was the unofficial headquarters of Liverpool's punk/new wave scene in the mid to late 1970s. Everything that mainstream stores didn't or wouldn't stock, could be found there.
It's fair to say the old retail ethos of 'the customer is always right' was never part of their philosophy - punters' tastes in music were ruthlessly policed by Probe staff and anything that didn't meet with their approval would be met with an ear-bashing or gales of laughter, before the hapless customer was sent packing to HMV.
The wider public got a taste of the Probe style of customer relations when a former employee, Pete Burns, hit the big time with his group Dead or Alive in the 1980s. His put-downs became legendary.
The nowadays staff are more polite ;)
Apparently, it is an auspicious point where all the music 'ley lines' of the world are said to be met.
The Cavern Club opened as a jazz club, in 1957 in warehouse cellar used as an air-raid shelter in World War II. In the early 1960s, it became a national and global centre for rock and roll music.
John Lennon with the Quarrymen played there for the first time on 7 August 1957.
The first Beat night was held on 25 May 1960 and featured a performance by Rory Storm and the Hurricanes (which included Ringo Starr as a drummer).
First performance by the Beatles was on 9 February 1961. The last performance was on 3 August 1963, a month after the band recorded "She Loves You". The Beatles made 292 appearances at the club. The Cavern stage was also a host to the Rolling Stones, the Hollies, the Kinks, Elton John, Black Sabbath, Queen, the Who, John Lee Hooker.
The club had to be closed in the 1970s due to construction fragility. The original entrance is a few steps further down. Prior to the Cavern Club's re-opening ceremony in 1984, over 100 musicians from the 1960s Merseybeat era were invited to sign the wall at the back of the Cavern's stage (Middle Photo).
In truth, there are three places on Matthew Street called Cavern.
Left: Entrance to The Cavern Club. In 1991, two friends—schoolteacher Bill Heckle and taxi driver Dave Jones—reopened it, along with George Guinness. They still run the club today and are now the longest-running owners in its history. The club has around 40 live bands performing every week. The Cavern is also used as a tour warm-up venue with semi-secret gigs announced at the last moment. Paul McCartney did this in 2018.
Middle: Entrance to The Cavern Pub. It features many memorabilia from past performances at The Cavern.
Right: Memorial to the original entrance to the Cavern Club in the 1960's
Historically, Mathew Street was the centre of Liverpool's wholesale fruit and vegetable market. The narrow alley, was originally named Mathew Pluckington, a famous Liverpool merchant.
Take a wander down the historic street full of sound and people, where the story of modern music truly began.
The most popular time to come, to see and feel the Beatlemania is in August when the International Beatle Week draws thousands of dedicated fans to the city, from all over the world.
During normal operating hours and days this place is filled with happy-go-lucky people, buskers, and visitors.
The main points of interests for the music fans are Statue of John Lennon, Liverpool Wall of Fame, Beatles Museum and merchandise.
Upper Left: Young John Lennon leans against the brick wall. Come closer and notice there are hundreds of names on each and every brick - names of bands playing over the years at the Cavern Club.
Upper Middle: Liverpool's Wall of Fame features golden disc plaques of acts from Liverpool which have reached number one in the UK Singles Chart since 1952. Dominated by The Beatles, with 17 discs. The sculptor was Rick Myers, who also made dozens of the Liver Bird statues around the city, including the one in the Central Station.
Upper Right: Sculpture by Arthur Dooley entitled "Four Lads Who Shook the World". To be honest, we have no idea behind its meaning; it scares the hell out. Shabby, disgusting, pointless.
Lower Left and Middle: Magical Beatles Museum, in the former warehouse, opened in 20... by.....
Lower Right: The Beatles Shop.
One would expect that the business on Matthew Street and around the Cavern Quarter is thriving. As it goes with businesses - it's volatile. Some have more luck than others. The Cavern cityscape is always changing. You never know what will happen from one year to the other.
Upper Left: The Beatles Official Store
Upper Middle: Festival Food and Drink Grill, a mix of Brazilian food and local music history, over two floors. A collaborative enterprise between owners of the Cavern Club and Bem Brasil restaurant. A faux-festival experience.
Upper Right: Turtle Bay is an alternative for those seeking other genres of music and exotic, Caribbean cousin.
Lower Left: Entrance to Kaisekeller, the name referring to the famous Hamburg club where the Beatles played before returning to Liverpool and making a household name. The Beatles Museum is a new addition, it used to be a John Lennon bar.
Lower Middle and Right: New enterprise since 2019, named after the hit-song, Strawberry Fields replaced a pub and bar which struggled to fill its large space at any time we've been around.
Of course, the main business is the drinking business. Many pubs, bars, nightclubs are squeezed on this tiny area. Some are more important and historic than others.
Upper Left: The Grapes. Here the Four Lads had enjoyed a pint or two after their gigs in nearby Cavern. The pub reopened after a major refurbishment. Many Beatles memorabilia are missing, they supposedly been stolen. The original bench where they used to sit is still there.
Upper Right: The White Star
Lower Left: Rubber Soul
Lower Right: Sgt Peppers
Liverpool has huge Irish diaspora. John Lennon's grandfather migrated from Ireland and settled in the city dock's area. There are many Irish pubs here and in the Cavern Quarter are few as well, but their true provenance has probably a lot to be wished for.
Left: Flanagan's Apple. There is actually a fourth space which some can re-call under the Cavern name. In 1981 in this building the Cavern Mecca was opened, the first Beatles museum. It had a major impact on the birth of Beatles fan-based tourism in Liverpool. Their founders annual Beatles Convention is now part of the Beatles Week Festival. The Cavern Mecca closed in 1984.
The place has some more interesting history. There used to be the Liverpool School of Language, Music, Dream and Fun in the 1970s. The 'school' gave rise to many independent, artistic and bohemian projects: Aunt Twacky’s, the first indie market outside London, rehearsal space for many local bands, or Science Fiction Theatre. The place was legendary for one generation of Liverpudlians.
There is also a sculpture of Carl Gustav Jung head, famous psychoanalyst, with his words carved: "Liverpool is the pool of life".
The building has served the Flanagan’s Apple pub for far longer than it was ever anything else, yet its significance has reached far beyond dreams of many local people and bringing hope and entertainment. After the makeover in 2019, the previous fruit warehouse looks starkly horrible, in our opinion, uninviting and .....
Middle: O'Briens, a little long narrow pub that serves rather local people. You are likely to hear old gamblers shouting at the screen as on the TVs are various horsing racing events during the day. In the evenings there is karaoke with a rather poor sound system. It used to be the Glass Onion. Previous attempts at putting a bar here have seemed to fail.
Right: M'Cooley's, Irish Themed Sports and Live Music Bar, owned by Pub Invest Group, the biggest entertainment company in Liverpool, (owns venues all over the city such as Rewind and the Rubber Soul and few in the Ropewalks area). In 2017 the group decided to knock old bars down to create this completely new venue that spans across two floors with pool tables, big TV screens, with horseracing and football, open mic nights, performances,
often loud and often mediocre tunes. Is it a traditional Irish bar? Hm ...
Have we mentioned there are three places on Matthew Street related to the Cavern name? No, it was four already... Well, to tell you the truth - it is five.
For a couple of years, after the original Cavern Club was closed in 1981, it relocated to the building which is now Eric's club. In its own regard, this is another famous venue on Matthew Street.
There is even a blue plaque marking Eric's importance for taking part in the evolution of punk rock, despite only being open for 4 years. Eric's opened in 1976 and was host to Joy Division, New Order, Sex Pistols, The Clash and loads more.
Turning to Temple Court, there is the oldest building in the area, round warehouse, now the Revolution restaurant. Opposite, a few nightclubs.
Crossing Victoria Street towards a narrow alley, Temple Street, opposite Temple Square, there is another plaque, a reminiscent of the iconic Iron Door club.
Upper Left: Commercial Saleroom Building, fine Victorian architecture with an impressive doorway, now waiting for an investor. It was opened in 1879 for sale of fruits. Now the building is partially occupied over two floors by Maida Vale, live music venue, opened in 2018 by a young but successful company Quantum Leisure Ltd from Sheffield. Its name relates to London’s iconic Maida Vale venue. It supposed to provide a platform for some of Liverpool's new unsigned acts.
The music policy is the Best of British, from the '60s to the '90s, with tributes and cover acts, DJ events and rockaroke.
Upper Right: Iron Door club plaque at 13 Temple Street. The music venue opened in 1960 and closed in 1964. It was the first venue where "Silver Beetles" played on 15 May 1960, having played at Lathom Hall as the 'Silver Beats' the night before. A television performance by The Undertakers was filmed at the Iron Door club in 1963.
Lower Left: Four Chairs of unknown reputation.
Lower Right: Chantilly Beatles Café offers an extensive range of home-cooked food, which are served at good prices.
To be continued
Eleanor Rigby Statue
Stanley Street also gains considerable interest from Beatles fans, due to its close proximity to Mathew Street and the Cavern Quarter, and is the location of the statue of Eleanor Rigby, designed by London musician and artist Tommy Steele. The statue is dedicated to "All the lonely people", and was donated to the City of Liverpool in 1982 as a tribute to The Beatles. A hotel called 'The Eleanor Rigby Hotel' is also located here.
Hessy's Music Centre
At the time when The Beatles were performing in Liverpool, Stanley Street was the site of Hessy's Music Centre, one of the city's biggest music retailers. It was here that Mimi Smith, John Lennon's aunt, bought him his first guitar in 1957.
NEMS (North End Music Stores) shop owned by Beatles manager Brian Epstein.
Bar and games venue opened in 2019. Two floors of the old BHS cafe, in Rainford Square.
It features a nine-hole mini-golf course, four full-size bowling lanes, shuffleboard, ping pong, pool and retro arcade gaming.
Probe Records
Probe Records now operate on School Lane, next to Bluecoat, continues to fly the flag for independent shops to this day. It had occupied various sites in the city, but its famous Button Street store was the unofficial headquarters of Liverpool's punk/new wave scene in the mid to late 1970s. Everything that mainstream stores didn't or wouldn't stock, could be found there.
It's fair to say the old retail ethos of 'the customer is always right' was never part of their philosophy - punters' tastes in music were ruthlessly policed by Probe staff and anything that didn't meet with their approval would be met with an ear-bashing or gales of laughter, before the hapless customer was sent packing to HMV.
The wider public got a taste of the Probe style of customer relations when a former employee, Pete Burns, hit the big time with his group Dead or Alive in the 1980s. His put-downs became legendary.
The nowadays staff are more polite ;)