Britpop and The Jug Of Ale
A Birmingham pub where many BritPop luminaries and numerous local bands started off is to close this weekend. Emma Brady looks at how The Jug of Ale helped launch bands like Oasis, Ocean Colour Scene and the Verve.
As one of Birmingham’s best known music venues, The Jug of Ale in Moseley has a special place in the hearts of many 20 and 30-somethings, whether it was where they enjoyed their first pint, first fumble or first gig.
While all three go together like warm lager and paper cups at a festival, the news that the Alcester Road pub is being sold to be transformed into an upmarket Indian restaurant has saddened music fans and critics alike.
The Jug of Ale opened just as grunge was making way for BritPop, and early performers included Oasis who played the venue in 1994 for £100 and a crate of lager. A gold disc for their debut album Definitely Maybe still hangs behind the bar.
Home-grown talent like Ocean Colour Scene also took to the small stage in the pub’s upstairs room, which barely contained crowds of 100 or so music fans, and it still pulls in major acts like Editors, Kasabian and Maximo Park.
But as more venues opened across the city, including national chains like Bar Academy and Bar Fly, the finances of staging intimate gigs are proving harder to balance.
Arthur Tapp, a local music promoter who been staging gigs at the Moseley pub since 1992, confessed he was "more than saddened" that the venue is closing this weekend.
Having watched Welsh rockers Super Furry Animals soundcheck and panicked when David Gray spent an hour rehearsing with just an acoustic guitar, Mr Tapp admits he will miss the place.
"I got involved with The Jug just before Brit Pop exploded so we were able to book bands who were on the cusp of becoming big, like Oasis, the Verve, and of course Ocean Colour Scene," he said.
"The impact the Jug of Ale had at the time was massive because there weren’t many pubs putting on gigs at the time, so it quickly became part of gig circuit. Often bands that had performed here would go on to play bigger venues and arena tours, it was an important stepping stone for them.
"Basically it became important for bands to play in Birmingham, to play here, whether they were a local band or not. And it soon became synonymous wit the whole Brit Pop scene."
On Sunday night the pub will have one last hurrah, which will include performances from Misty’s Big Adventure and various other local bands, DJ sets by Editors’ Ed Long and Russell Leetch, plus one or two secret special guests.
Some might say the smoking ban has sounded the death knell for venues like this, but the acrid aroma of cigarette smoke, sweat and stale beer will always be associated with the live music scene. Mr Tapp added: "I used to run a night called Quids In at the Jug where entry was £1 and the beer was £1 a pint, so it was quite studenty, but where else could you see the ’next big thing’ like Editors or Maximo Park for that price?
"But that must be part of the reason why the pub is closing, because you can’t charge £15 a head for this kind of venue, so the finances of staging events for 100 or so people and the costs involved – the band’s fee, their rider, paying the sound guys and so on - no longer add up.
"That said I don’t think Birmingham’s music scene will suffer as there are more venues now than there were in the early 1990s, but I am more than saddened to see the Jug close. It was a special place."
The Jug of Ale’s farewell gig on Sunday kicks off at 6pm, and entry is £5 on the door.
