Bower Club (Mottram Road, Stalybridge)

I went to the Wednesday Night Discos around 1968 /1969.

Aimed at those not yet old enough to get into other Clubs, the Bower Club was hugely popular with local 15 - 18 year old’s and for many, like me, it was a great opportunity to enjoy a cheap, mid-week Disco session.

The club played a lot bubblegum music (popular in the late 60s) with a big chunk of Motown, Soul and Reggae and thrown in.

I can remember a DJ (I think he was called Bill) who used to regularly play Otis Redding’s “Amen” at the end of the night, which everybody sang along to.

Memorable records include: - Crazy Elephant - Gimme Good Lovin, Desmond Dekker and the Aces - Israelites and Edwin Starr - 25 miles.

The Bower Club nurtured my desire to be a DJ and having won one of their DJ competitions, I managed to blag my way into a DJ slot on Sunday nights at the Mecca Birdcage in Ashton and later set up my own Mobile Disco, which ran until the early 80s.

Happy Days!

Dave Jones - 27/11/14