Top Rank Suite
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Top Rank Suite
Top Rank Suite was the name given to a chain of nightclubs in the United Kingdom owned by the Rank Organisation. They were sometimes known as Top Rank Ballrooms. Venues Brighton The Brighton Top Rank Suite opened in October 1965. It was rebranded in 1973 plus referb and called KingsWest. It was refurbished in 1990 and renamed the Event, and then refurbished and renamed Event II in 1996. In 2007 another refurbishment led to it reopening as Oceana (nightclub), Oceana, and later as Pryzm. Cardiff The Cardiff Top Rank Suite opened in 1963 on Queen Street, Cardiff, Queen Street in the centre of the city. It hosted acts such as The Beatles, Led Zeppelin and U2. The Top Rank closed in 1982 but the venue continued under a series of names until the building was demolished in 2005. Croydon The 1960s saw the Top Rank active in Croydon. During the following decade it was rebranded as Cinatra's, which was an equally popular venue for many years. The reputation of the club began to decline i ...
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Nightclub
A nightclub (music club, discothèque, disco club, or simply club) is an entertainment venue during nighttime comprising a dance floor, lightshow, and a stage for live music or a disc jockey (DJ) who plays recorded music. Nightclubs generally restrict access to people in terms of age, attire, personal belongings, and inappropriate behaviors. Nightclubs typically have dress codes to prohibit people wearing informal, indecent, offensive, or gang-related attire from entering. Unlike other entertainment venues, nightclubs are more likely to use bouncers to screen prospective patrons for entry. The busiest nights for a nightclub are Friday and Saturday nights. Most nightclubs cater to a particular music genre or sound for branding effects. Some nightclubs may offer food and beverages (including alcoholic beverages). History Early history In the United States, New York increasingly became the national capital for tourism and entertainment. Grand hotels were built for upsca ...
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Southampton
Southampton () is a port city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. It is located approximately south-west of London and west of Portsmouth. The city forms part of the South Hampshire built-up area, which also covers Portsmouth and the towns of Havant, Waterlooville, Eastleigh, Fareham and Gosport. A major port, and close to the New Forest, it lies at the northernmost point of Southampton Water, at the confluence of the River Test and Itchen, with the River Hamble joining to the south. Southampton is classified as a Medium-Port City . Southampton was the departure point for the and home to 500 of the people who perished on board. The Spitfire was built in the city and Southampton has a strong association with the ''Mayflower'', being the departure point before the vessel was forced to return to Plymouth. In the past century, the city was one of Europe's main ports for ocean liners and more recently, Southampton is known as the home port of some of ...
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Octave (album)
''Octave'' is the ninth album by The Moody Blues, released in 1978, and their first release after a substantial hiatus following the success of the best-selling ''Seventh Sojourn'' in 1972. The album proved to be the last for the group with keyboardist Mike Pinder, who left during the album's sessions and declined an offer to tour with the group. He had just started a new family in California, and found that he was not getting along with his bandmates as he previously had. Pinder would be replaced by former Yes (band), Yes keyboardist Patrick Moraz in time for their 1978-1979 tour, beginning a new era in the band's history. ''Octave'' would also be the final studio album from the band produced by Tony Clarke (record producer), Tony Clarke. The album's title is a musical pun: it references both the notion of an octave; and as a word derived from the Latin ''octavus'' it refers to this being the eighth album with the then-current band configuration (following on from the previous ...
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The Moody Blues
The Moody Blues were an English rock band formed in Birmingham in 1964, initially consisting of keyboardist Mike Pinder, multi-instrumentalist Ray Thomas, guitarist Denny Laine, drummer Graeme Edge and bassist Clint Warwick. The group came to prominence playing rhythm and blues. They made some changes in musicians but settled on a line-up of Pinder, Thomas, Edge, guitarist Justin Hayward and bassist John Lodge, who stayed together for most of the band's "classic era" into the early 1970s. Edge was the group’s sole continuous member throughout their entire history. Their second album, ''Days of Future Passed'', which was released in 1967, was a fusion of rock with classical music which established the band as pioneers in the development of art rock and progressive rock. It has been described as a "landmark" and "one of the first successful concept albums". The group toured extensively through the early 1970s, then took an extended hiatus from 1974 until 1977. Founder Mike Pi ...
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Derek And Clive (Live)
''Derek and Clive (Live)'' is the debut comedy record recorded by Derek and Clive, drunken alter-egos created by comedy duo Peter Cook and Dudley Moore. The double act began as a private joke between the two of them at the Electric Lady Studios, as a way of easing the tension of their 1973 Broadway show ''Good Evening''. Originally, the record was never intended for release, but when bootleg copies of the recordings proved popular, Cook decided there was money to be made and, padding the record out with live material recorded at the Bottom Line in New York City, the album was released in 1976. The record was very nearly called ''Derek and Clive (Dead)''. The sleeve notes give a flavour of the production of the record: "Peter Cook and Dudley Moore were appearing on Broadway in the show "Good Evening" when they first happened upon two brilliant new talents. Derek and Clive were working at the time in the toilets of the British Trade Centre. Cook and Moore were quick to see that ...
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Derek And Clive
Derek and Clive was a double act of comedic characters created by Dudley Moore (Derek) and Peter Cook (Clive) in the 1970s. The performances were captured on the records '' Derek and Clive (Live)'' (1976), '' Derek and Clive Come Again'' (1977), and ''Derek and Clive Ad Nauseam'' (1978), as well as in a film documentary, '' Derek and Clive Get the Horn'' (1979). Upon release, more than 100,000 copies of Derek and Clive (Live) were sold in the United Kingdom. A greatest hits album containing some previously unreleased material, called '' Rude & Rare: The Best of Derek and Clive'', was released in 2011. The characters are foul-mouthed extensions of the earlier characters Pete and Dud. Considered highly offensive by many at the time, the sketches primarily took the form of bizarre, sometime drunken streams of consciousness led by Cook, with interjections from Moore. Memorable moments from the records include Clive claiming that the worst job he ever had was retrieving lobsters fr ...
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Uptown Top Ranking
"Uptown Top Ranking" is a song by Jamaican teenage singers Althea Forrest and Donna Reid, recorded when they were 17 and 18 years old respectively. Released in 1977, the song comprises the girls ad-libbing to deejay track "Three Piece Suit" by Trinity. The lyrics were written by the duo and Errol Thompson. It was produced by Joe Gibbs, using a re-recording of the riddim of the 1967 Alton Ellis song "I'm Still in Love", which had already been re-popularised in the 1970s by Marcia Aitken's cover "I'm Still in Love With You Boy", and "Three Piece Suit" by Trinity, to which "Uptown" was an "answer record".Colin Larkin (1998) ''The Virgin Encyclopedia of Reggae'', Virgin Books, , p.10-11 The record was initially recorded as a joke. It was accidentally played by BBC Radio 1 DJ John Peel resulting in numerous requests for additional plays. With early championing by Peel and a performance on ''Top of the Pops'', it soon became a surprise hit, reaching number one on the UK Singles Ch ...
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Althea & Donna
Althea & Donna were a Jamaican reggae vocal duo, consisting of Althea Rose Forrest and Donna Marie Reid. They are best known for their 1977 single "Uptown Top Ranking", which was a number-one hit in the United Kingdom in 1978. Career The Jamaican teenage singers Althea Forrest and Donna Reid – then 17 and 18 years old respectively – caused a chart surprise when their reggae song "Uptown Top Ranking" became a no. 1 hit in the UK in February 1978. They released the album of the same name in 1978, backed by The Revolutionaries, on the Virgin Records subsidiary Front Line, The album was produced by Karl Pitterson. The duo recorded several more singles with little success.Moskowitz, David V. (2006) ''Caribbean Popular Music: an Encyclopedia of Reggae, Mento, Ska, Rock Steady, and Dancehall'', Greenwood Press, , p. 10-11 In 2001, Caroline Records reissued the full-length ''Uptown Top Ranking''.Prato, GregArtist Biography by Greg Prato, ''Allmusic'', Retrieved 30 July 2014 Discog ...
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Watford
Watford () is a town and borough in Hertfordshire, England, 15 miles northwest of Central London, on the River Colne. Initially a small market town, the Grand Junction Canal encouraged the construction of paper-making mills, print works, and breweries. While industry has declined in Watford, its location near London and transport links has attracted several companies to site their headquarters in the town. Cassiobury Park is a public park that was once the manor estate of the Earls of Essex. The town developed next to the River Colne on land belonging to St Albans Abbey. In the 12th century, a charter was granted allowing a market, and the building of St Mary's Church began. The town grew partly due to travellers going to Berkhamsted Castle and the royal palace at Kings Langley. A mansion was built at Cassiobury in the 16th century. This was partly rebuilt in the 17th century and another country house was built at The Grove. The Grand Junction Canal in 1798 and th ...
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Wales Online
Media Wales Ltd. is a publishing company based in Cardiff, Wales. As of 2009 it was owned by Reach plc (formerly known as the Trinity Mirror Group). It was previously known as the Western Mail & Echo Ltd. History The ''Western Mail'' was founded in 1869 by the 3rd Marquess of Bute as a Conservative newspaper. In 1893, the original building in St. Mary Street was destroyed by fire and a new building was opened also in St Mary Street two years later. In 1928 the Western Mail Ltd amalgamated with David Duncan & Sons, who published the ''South Wales Daily News'' and the ''South Wales Echo'', which was established in 1884. The merged company became Western Mail and Echo Ltd. and because of the merger ''Evening Express'' and ''South Wales Daily'' News closed. In 1960, the newspapers left St Mary Street and moved to Thomson House, Cardiff. On 1 October 2007 Western Mail and Echo Ltd changed its name to Media Wales, and in 2008 Media Wales moved from Thomson House in Havelock Str ...
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Stone The Crows
Stone the Crows were a Scottish blues rock band formed in Glasgow in late 1969. They are remembered for the onstage electrocution of guitarist and founding member Les Harvey. History The band were formed after Maggie Bell was introduced to Les Harvey by his elder brother Alex Harvey. After playing together in the Kinning Park Ramblers, their next band Power was renamed Stone the Crows (after a British/Australian English exclamation of surprise or shock) by Led Zeppelin's manager, Peter Grant. The band was co-managed by Grant and Mark London. London was associated with Lulu as the co-writer of her signature song, "To Sir With Love" and was also married to Lulu's manager, Marion Massey. London had also managed the predecessor band Cartoone, in which Peter Grant had a financial interest and featured Les Harvey on guitar. Original line-up *Maggie Bell, vocals *Les Harvey, guitar *Colin Allen, drums *James Dewar, bass and vocals *John McGinnis, keyboards The band's first t ...
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Swansea
Swansea (; cy, Abertawe ) is a coastal city and the second-largest city of Wales. It forms a principal area, officially known as the City and County of Swansea ( cy, links=no, Dinas a Sir Abertawe). The city is the twenty-fifth largest in the United Kingdom. Located along Swansea Bay in southwest Wales, with the principal area covering the Gower Peninsula, it is part of the Swansea Bay region and part of the historic county of Glamorgan; also the ancient Welsh commote of Gŵyr. The principal area is the second most populous local authority area in Wales with an estimated population of 246,563 in 2020. Swansea, along with Neath and Port Talbot, forms the Swansea Urban Area with a population of 300,352 in 2011. It is also part of the Swansea Bay City Region. During the 19th-century industrial heyday, Swansea was the key centre of the copper-smelting industry, earning the nickname ''Copperopolis''. Etymologies The Welsh name, ''Abertawe'', translates as ''"mouth/es ...
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