The Speakeasy Club, also known as The Speak, was a club situated at 48 Margaret Street,

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

, and served as a late-night meeting place for the music industry from 1966 to June 1978. The club took its name and theme from the

speakeasies A speakeasy, also called a blind pig or blind tiger, is an illicit establishment that sells alcoholic beverages, or a retro style bar that replicates aspects of historical speakeasies. Speakeasy bars came into prominence in the United States ...

of the American

Prohibition era Prohibition is the act or practice of forbidding something by law; more particularly the term refers to the banning of the manufacture, storage (whether in barrels or in bottles), transportation, sale, possession, and consumption of alcoholic be ...

. The club was owned by

Iraq Iraq,; ku, عێراق, translit=Êraq officially the Republic of Iraq, '; ku, کۆماری عێراق, translit=Komarî Êraq is a country in Western Asia. It is bordered by Turkey to the north, Iran to the east, the Persian Gulf and K ...

i-born entrepreneur David Shamoon, along with Blaises and The Revolution Club.

History

On 15 December 1966, when the Speakeasy was re-launched after a fire in early 1966, it was managed by Roy Flynn and later Tony Howard became manager when Flynn moved on, having previously been the main artist booker for The Bryan Morrison Agency and NEMS. The initial house D.J was Mike Vesty who had worked for Blaises. Later Laurie O'Leary, a lifelong friend of the Kray twins and former manager of the Sybillas nightclub in Mayfair, London, became the promoter and publicity manager for the club. Throughout the life of the club Jim Carter-Fea worked on the day to night management and was also associated with the other two Shamoon London clubs.

Clientele

The Speakeasy was frequented by record industry and artist agency executives. It also attracted bands who played for low fees in the hope of being spotted and form the basis of the then emerging British rock scene. The club also attracted international touring bands and established artists.

Musicians

Musicians and bands who played at the club (often after recording sessions) include Elton John,

Cockney Rebel Steve Harley & Cockney Rebel are a British glam rock band from the early 1970s from London. Their music covers a range of styles from pop to progressive rock. Over the years they have had five albums in the UK Albums Chart and twelve singles in ...

The Rolling Stones The Rolling Stones are an English Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1962. Active for six decades, they are one of the most popular and enduring bands of the album era, rock era. In the early 1960s, the Rolling Stones pioneered the g ...

The Crazy World Of Arthur Brown The Crazy World of Arthur Brown are an English rock band formed by singer Arthur Brown in 1967. The original band included Vincent Crane ( Hammond organ and piano), Drachen Theaker (drums), and Nick Greenwood (bass). This early incarnation w ...

, Pink Floyd (who first appeared on 19 September 1967), Arthur Lee and

Love Love encompasses a range of strong and positive emotional and mental states, from the most sublime virtue or good habit, the deepest interpersonal affection, to the simplest pleasure. An example of this range of meanings is that the love o ...

King Crimson King Crimson are a progressive rock band formed in 1968 in London, England. The band draws inspiration from a wide variety of music, incorporating elements of classical, jazz, folk, heavy metal, gamelan, industrial, electronic, experime ...

The Marmalade Marmalade are a Scottish pop rock band originating from the east end of Glasgow, originally formed in 1961 as The Gaylords, and then later billed as Dean Ford and The Gaylords, recording four singles for Columbia (EMI). In 1966 they changed th ...

The Mothers of Invention The Mothers of Invention (also known as The Mothers) was an American rock band from California. Formed in 1964, their work is marked by the use of sonic experimentation, innovative album art, and elaborate live shows. Originally an R&B band ...

(October 1967), Yes, Jimi Hendrix (1966),

David Bowie David Robert Jones (8 January 194710 January 2016), known professionally as David Bowie ( ), was an English singer-songwriter and actor. A leading figure in the music industry, he is regarded as one of the most influential musicians of the ...

, Deep Purple (10 July 1969),

The Velvet Underground The Velvet Underground was an American rock band formed in New York City in 1964. The original line-up consisted of singer/guitarist Lou Reed, multi-instrumentalist John Cale, guitarist Sterling Morrison, and drummer Angus MacLise. MacLise ...

(6 October 1971, Loaded Tour),

Bob Marley Robert Nesta Marley (6 February 1945 – 11 May 1981; baptised in 1980 as Berhane Selassie) was a Jamaican singer, musician, and songwriter. Considered one of the pioneers of reggae, his musical career was marked by fusing elements o ...

(May 1973 Catch a Fire Tour), Jeff Beck,

Reg Isidore Reg Isidore (4 April 1949 – 22 March 2009) was a rock drummer best known for his work with Robin Trower. Isidore was Trower's first drummer and he played on the Robin Trower Band's first two albums ''Twice Removed from Yesterday'' (1973) and '' ...

Ginger Baker Peter Edward "Ginger" Baker (19 August 1939 – 6 October 2019) was an English drummer. His work in the 1960s and 1970s earned him the reputation of "rock's first superstar drummer", for a style that melded jazz and African rhythms and pi ...

, Jan Hammer,

The Gass The Gass was a rock band formed in May 1965 by Robert Tench, Godfrey McLean, and Errol McLean. They were managed by Rik Gunnell and Active Management. The band fused melodies with soul, Latin influences, blues and progressive rock often employ ...

and

Bobby Tench Robert Tench (born 21 September 1944) is a British vocalist, guitarist, sideman, songwriter and arranger. Tench is best known for his work with Freddie King and Van Morrison, as well as being a member of The Jeff Beck Group, Humble Pie, Street ...

Legacy

The Who The Who are an English rock band formed in London in 1964. Their classic lineup consisted of lead singer Roger Daltrey, guitarist and singer Pete Townshend, bass guitarist and singer John Entwistle, and drummer Keith Moon. They are considered ...

refer to the club in their album ''

The Who Sell Out ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the ...

'' ("Speakeasy, drink easy, pull easy") (1967), referencing the club in the "Radio London/Speakeasy/Rotosound Strings" commercial insert for the same album. Elvis Costello mentioned the club in his song "London's Brilliant Parade", included on the album '' Brutal Youth'' (1994).

The Beatles The Beatles were an English rock band, formed in Liverpool in 1960, that comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are regarded as the most influential band of all time and were integral to the developmen ...

also threw a party for

The Monkees The Monkees were an American rock and pop band, formed in Los Angeles in 1966, whose lineup consisted of the American actor/musicians Micky Dolenz, Michael Nesmith and Peter Tork alongside English actor/singer Davy Jones. The group was con ...

during their 1967 visit to

, which later became the basis for the song "

Randy Scouse Git "Randy Scouse Git" is a song written by Micky Dolenz in 1967 and recorded by the Monkees. It was the first song written by Dolenz to be commercially released, and it became a number 2 hit in the UK where it was retitled "Alternate Title" after ...

Notes

External links

Speakeasy Club remembered

Picture of 48 Margaret Street
{{DEFAULTSORT:Speakeasy Club 1966 establishments in England 1978 disestablishments in England Music venues completed in 1966 Rock music venues Former music venues in London Former buildings and structures in the City of Westminster