Friday,
January 3, 2003 13:57 GMT
Live at The Joiners - backstage |
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| Another
busy night at the Joiners |
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The
Joiners has gone through various changes of management and interior
design over the years , but like any venue of it's kind, it has unique
attributes that music fans love. |
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With
such a range of bands playing, it's no surprise the Joiners has become
a home-from-home for self-confessed live music obsessives - like Winchester
writer Oliver Gray, author of Volume.
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| Oliver
Gray |
As
Oliver puts it: "Within the last 2 years, I've seen David Gray and
Coldplay playing to very small crowds - and you could tell, 'wow,
I'm very privileged to be here'. It's the privilege of seeing such
consistently high quality stuff in an atmosphere that is completely
conducive to the music. The Joiners is all about the music, and nothing
else, and that's what makes it such a special place to be."
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"Welcome
to our front room..."
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...so began the gig from American band Big Dipper, and they're not
the only people to remark on the Joiners' intimate and homely nature.
It
may not have been home to a Southern Beatles, but The Joiners is rightly
referred to as "Southampton’s Cavern Club", And
just like any good music venue, it does have some rather special characteristics.
As
Mint says: "There’s rock music in every brick in the place – it’s
what holding it together!"
Read more about the Early Years of the Joiners.
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| The
famous graffitied dressing room wall |
As
there is no backstage area, the bands have to walk through the crowd
to get to the small stage. And as Oliver Gray says: "It brings ANY
band down to a street level...you feel you have a good relationship
with the band if they've just walked past you and said 'excuse me
mate' on their way to the stage."
The beer might not be the best and the toilets may be prone to the
odd flood, but they are covered in fliers and posters of bands from
the last decade so there is something to distract you from the the
task in hand: "If
you can take a leak surrounded by stickers and posters of bands who
have played there over the last 20 years, that's part of the fun."
says Oliver.
Have
a flick through our Joiners picture gallery
Former frontman of Kula Shaka, Crispian Mills, (now with The Jeevas)
said: "I've
played there twice and they were both excellent gigs. They
create the illusion that there's this cosy dressing room, but on closer
inspection you can see a big pipe from the gents toilet which runs
along the back wall and sometimes leaks! If you can tolerate that
then you'll have a great gig."
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| Richard
Warren |
Echoboy's
Richard Warren has played the Joiners several times: "Everyone
seems to look after us really well here - you don't get that in a
lot of venues. You always get a bit more of a buzz and there's a bit
more tension, in a good way, at a venue that has got a bit of history
- I always think that makes a band play a little better ... it's just
great playing knowing that's where your heroes have been."
Add
your memories and experiences of gigs at Joiners.
Another aspect of the venue that is legendary in music circles is
the graffitied underground 'dressing room'. Bands are invited to leave
their signatures, stickers or logos on the walls. Although some famous
names were painted over by a landlady having a clean-up several years
ago, it still documents some of the up-and-coming names in rock.
Situated in the heart of the St Mary's district of Southampton, the
Joiners' fortunes have ebbed and flowed as much as the community it
is in the midst of. It's witnessed football riots, economic depressions,
battles with breweries but with the current regeneration of the area,
and a dedicated team running the place, its survival continues.
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| The
Joiners' radio on the web |
Along with the sister venue, the Railway Inn in Winchester, the
Joiners has continued promoting touring bands and is now one of
the few local venues regularly showcasing local emerging talent.
And to bring bring a taste of the Joiners atmosphere to a global
audience there is now a web radio station for the sort of music
that is adored by the aficionados who can't imagine life without
the Joiners on St Mary's Street.
More>>
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BBC Southampton Website
Broadcasting House,
Havelock Road,
Southampton
SO14 7PU
(+44) 023 80 374370/1/2
southampton@bbc.co.uk
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