If you happened to be walking across the sandy beach at Whitburn on a Friday night during the summer of 1969, you may have heard a sound.

But not that of the waves lapping against the shore or the giggling of lovers taking an evening stroll. Instead, you may have heard the distant wailing of an electric guitar, the pounding of a thunderous bass, or the screaming of a man possessed by his rock n' roll demons.

This would have been the Bay Hotel. A small venue with a big sound. Something huge was about to happen in North-East England, and this was just the beginning.

From 1969 to 1974 the best rock bands of their era came to the North East and played their rock n' roll to some of the most enthusiastic audiences they were to ever witness.

And the man who brought these bands to the region? Geoff Docherty - a former doorman who began life at The Bay but went on to promote bands at the Locarno, The City Hall and The Mayfair.

Now the story of his life has been put into print. Thanking him for the music: Rahul Shrivastava.

First of all, what prompted you to write the book?

People are always stopping me in the street and asking me about the bands that I promoted. Then a close friend, Rob Hutchinson, suggested I write a book about my experiences. I could not even operate a word processor back then, so I took a crash course, and started to write it.

Now at the time, Sunderland was not attracting many of the big-name bands. What made you realise there was this niche to be exploited?

Well, music was always popular in the North East, and there was already the famous Club A-Go-Go in Newcastle and the El Cubana club in Sunderland that attracted great bands such as the Spencer Davis Group and the Yardbirds.

I was convinced that if we got them, people would come to see them.

Geoff Docherty's way of thinking

But as the scene started to grow a little bit, and the Beatles and the Stones began to conquer America, a lot of the managers began shipping their bands across the Atlantic because that was where the big bucks were.

Therefore, booking the bands was becoming a lot harder and I think it needed someone to show a bit of determination to get these bands to play up here. I was convinced that if we got them, people would come to see them. That was my way of thinking.

How did you persuade these big-name bands to come and play for you?

One of the first bands I ever booked was Pink Floyd. They were London's biggest underground group at the time, and were a big draw. I paid a visit to their management in London, who were a very friendly bunch. They questioned me about the Bay Hotel and what it was like as a venue.

Momentous occasion: Pink Floyd were on their way to Sunderland!

I assured them that it was a great venue to play, the locals would love them, and that the band would be guaranteed to get paid. The management were convinced, and they said 'Ok, you got them!'

After going back up North and telling people that we had booked Pink Floyd, expectations in Sunderland soared and it was only natural to continue the process and attempt to hire more bands. So our reputation as a serious music venue grew.

Original Led Zeppelin concert poster for The Mayfair

Other times though, it was not so straight forward. Led Zeppelin's manager, Peter Grant, had promised me the group but cancelled at the last minute. Well, I wasn't having this. I made repeated visits to his London offices to confront him, but he was never there.

Once he realised I wasn't going to give up pestering him, he phoned me out of the blue, and said 'Do you still want them?' We ended up staging them three times that year.

You then went on to promote some huge names. Who for you stood out? Who was special?

Country Joe & The Fish was a terrific gig. They were a big name at the time, fresh from playing Woodstock. The atmosphere was brilliant. So many lovely people turned up for that one. The band were great. They played great.

There will be more next time

Rod Stewart on the attendance for a Faces gig

The Who was a fantastic night. Their performance was mesmerizing. We had Pete (Townshend) smashing his guitar, and Keith (Moon) kicking his drums. Sunderland had never seen anything like it. They loved the crowd up here so much, that they came back several times afterwards. A lovely set of lads.

The Faces at the Mayfair were brilliant also. Rod Stewart was at his peak then, young and full of life. He asked me how many people were in that night. I told him 1700. He turned around, and without any hint of arrogance, said 'there will be more next time.' Sure enough, when they next paid us a visit, you couldn't get a ticket for love nor money. It was a 3000 capacity sell out.

And the big-name bands just kept on coming...

The other gig that was a pleasant surprise, was Deep Purple. We had to erect a big stage with scaffolding for all their equipment, and the false wooden floors only helped to improve the sound quality, giving it a big gig atmosphere. And when Deep Purple got on that stage, they rocked the joint. They loved it up there. They didn't want to come off. And the crowd certainly did not want them to come off. I'll never forget it.

You began a long association with the rock band Free. They became the city's adopted band. How did that come about?

Free, who were largely unknown back then, were playing support to Tyrannosaurus Rex, but Marc Bolan and co were late getting to the venue, so I got Free to play a second set. They seized the opportunity and delivered a magical performance.

It was a very sad time, but at least it serves as a warning to other musicians treading a similar path.

Geoff on the demise of Free guitarist Paul Kossoff

They were only about 17 or 18 at the time, but they were incredible. After that, they became huge in the city and we had them back many times. That Sunderland gig was their big break.

Later on, I became close friends with their guitarist Paul Kossoff, and tried to help him overcome his drug problems. He was having a bad time in London, and drug dealers were constantly knocking on his door.

I decided to take him up to Sunderland for a bit of cold turkey. Healthy food and plenty of exercise was what he needed.

Geoff standing on the stairs where he tried to rescue Paul Kossoff's descent into drug abuse.

I made him run up the stairs of my tower block (I lived on the 12th floor!) in an attempt to get him fit and well again. He found it such a struggle, and once he made it to the top, he collapsed in a heap on his bed and fell asleep immediately.

After a while however, he reverted back to his old ways of which he never recovered. It was a very sad time, but at least it serves as a warning to other musicians treading a similar path.

Which artist do you wish you had promoted, but never got round to it?

I always wanted to promote Jeff Beck. I used to live with a guitarist called Mick Grabham (Plastic Penny, Procol Harum), and he used to rave about Jeff and how he wanted to be as good as him, so when I saw Jeff break through with the Yardbirds, I was already aware of his talent.

I did have him booked once, but unfortunately he decided not to do any dates that month, and he cancelled.

We have talked about the drugs and the rock 'n' roll. What about the sex?

When I started, it was the last thing on my mind. But when you are putting on the big name bands, and you have access to all the stars, you had lots of young, attractive girls coming up and asking you who was on the following week. Being a young lad, you would get talking to them, and invite them to an aftershow party. It would just evolve from there. It was like walking into the Garden of Eden.

Humble Pie's Peter Frampton was always popular with the young ladies who frequented the Locarno.

But I was mild compared to some of those band members. That is who these young girls really wanted to meet. When you had a young Free up there strutting their stuff, or Deep Purple, fronted by Ian Gillan, who was a good looking lad, the girls would go wild. Someone like Eric Clapton or Peter Frampton could have just taken their pick.

So how do you feel when you see these venues where you worked being torn down to make way for new developments like nightclubs and bars?

I have to say that it's very sad. It's all about commercialisation. I even signed a petition to prevent the Mayfair from being knocked down, and went on BBC Radio to air my views, but it was not enough.

I stood next to Jimi (Hendrix) at The Speakeasy in London once, but I was far too shy to talk to him.

Geoff is starstuck

I also tried to reopen the Club A-Go-Go with a fellow called Greg Burman, but we could not get the lease.

The Club A-Go-Go was a special place with a special history. They even had Jimi Hendrix play there. He was magic. A master of his guitar.

I stood next to Jimi at The Speakeasy in London once, but I was far too shy to talk to him. I was dying for someone to introduce me to him, but no one did! He should have said hello to me though. We had the same haircut afterall!

What do you think about today's music scene? Are there any modern bands that you listen to these days?

Well there are some good bands out there, but they just aren't getting through. You look at kids telly on a Saturday morning, and its full of these pop stars miming, or you walk into most bars and they are playing dance music. The real musicians are getting stifled.

I like Garbage though. And my mate Peely (John Peel, Radio One DJ) plays a great band called Camera Obscura. I also love The Fall. Excellent group.

Radio One DJ John Peel was a huge fan of the Bay Hotel and became a close friend to Geoff.

The music scene in Sunderland has shown signs of improvement recently though. Bar 36 is very good for live music. John Peel has been playing The Golden Virgins, and of course there are the Futureheads. So there is a scene developing there

So what's next for Geoff Docherty? Are you still involved with music?

Well, I've just started looking after a band from Exeter called The Fondues. We've managed to get them to play several universities.

They are a great bunch of musicians. I first heard them when I was staying at a friend's house in Devon. The girl had a great voice and I wanted to meet the band, so I went down to rehearsals. It all went on from there, really.

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Geoff's memories

Best gigs: - Country Joe & The Fish (Bay Hotel 24/3/69) - The Who (Bay Hotel 28/4/69) - Tyrannosaurus Rex + Free (Bay Hotel 27/6/69) - Deep Purple (Mayfair 31/7/70) - Rod Stewart & The Faces (Mayfair 28/5/71) Worst Gig: - Ginger Baker's Airforce (Locarno 26/3/70) Biggest loss: - Ginger Baker's Airforce (Locarno 26/3/70) Strangest gig: - Radha Krishna Temple (Barnes Hotel 22/5/70) Best moments: - Getting The Who to play the small Bay Hotel - Booking Led Zeppelin three times in one year

The old Bay Hotel on Whitburn seafront, where some of the greatest names in rock music came to entertain the enthusiastic crowds of Wearside.

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Your comments

Harvey I remember going to the Mayfair in Newcastle to see Led Zeppelin just before they made their 4th album (Oct 71). Geoff Doc was wearing a striped rugby shirt. Zeppelin were awesome and played some tunes from albums 2 & 3 and then after 30mins Robert Plant asked us to sit down and chill a bit as they would like to play a new song from their forthcoming album that we wouldn’t of heard before. He then said:- “The next song we’d like to do is called a Stairway To Heaven”. At the end of 15 minutes we weren’t sitting down. A memorable evening and all sorted by Geoff Docherty. gosh willis I WAS AT THE BAY GIG WHEN FREE PLAYED TWO SETS. THIS YEARS GIRL(THE ORIGIONAL VERSION) ALSO PLAYED TWO SETS, UNFORTUNEATELY FOR THEM THE AUDIENCE WERENT QUITE SO RESPONSIVE THE SECOND TIME AROUND, HAVING BEEN BLOWN AWAY BY FREE WHO WERE JUST FABULOUS. THEY CAUSED QUITE A STIR AS THEY WALKED THROUGH THE CROWD FROM THE DRESSING ROOM AT THE BACK OF THE VENUE, IM NOT SURE WE WERE USED TO BANDS DRESSING UP TO PERFORM. AS KOS HIT THE FEEDBACK INTRO TO WALK IN MY SHADOW RODGERS SWUNG THE MIC STAND AND A GREAT LOVE AFFAIR WITH SUNDERLAND BEGAN. ALSO, IF IM NOT MISTAKEN, AND I KNOW IM NOT, I TOOK THE KOS/ RODGERS PHOTOGRAPHS SHOWN ON GEOFFS WEB SITE, AT THE MECCA! Tom OlSSON Does anyone know of the original song running order of the free gig from where they made the live album ?? Paul Beken A fabulous rundown on my "earlier years". No-one ever believed me that I had seen Country Joe and the fish at the By Hotel! Norman Strike Thanks for all those great gigs Geoff.I remember you with a 'Hendrix' hairstle and crushed velvet trousers.Those plastic palm trees,those gorgeous girls in see through flowing white dresses,but most of all,the music.I had my first ever acid trip when a band called Collisseum were playing, and when the sax player stuck 3 instruments in his gob and actually played them I ran out! I also saw Pink Floyd at the Bay,and Tyrannasaurus Rex.My favourites were Principal Edwards Magic Theatre,solely because of the women! My last gig in Sunderland was to see Queen supported by Nutz in 1974,also on acid.Ah,happy daze Charlie Like many of the other contributors I must have been a regular - under age to begin with for the sunday night 'disco' sessions but eventually seeing so many famous and not so famous bands. who remembers the James South Set (Nigel olsson on drums, Technique - ska/reggae, Root 'n Jenny jackson, plastic penny, Mckenna mendelsohn Mainline, Idle race(jeff Lynne to the fore!) Aynsley Dunbar retaliation, Doctor K's blues band to name a few. some great nights of course.