Oasis
Sloopys
Yer Father's Moustache

Check out the Gig Diary which has extensive listings of Oasis gigs.

Beat Scene scans:

Number 2 - April 1963
Number 6 - May 13-19, 1963
Number 13 - July 1-7, 1963

"At the time, the owner was Tony Stuart who also owned and resided at Warmingham Grange Country Club down near Sandbach. The Stuarts were nice people who had owned various clubs in and around Manchester, there was another on Plymouth Grove which was more of a ballroomy sort of place. Can't remember the name (Astoria). Tony was proud to have had the Beatles and the Stones at the Oasis.

Me and a guy named Dave Backhouse built a light show of the liquid psychedelic type and we worked at the students union and other such gigs with our Aldis 1000 projectors borrowed from school unofficially of course.

Tony Stuart was very keen to have this lighting effect in Sloopy's and I was installed above the bar facing the stage and I believe that we were the first to do this.

The DJ at Sloopy's was Don Howard (Daffy Don Howard) who was a floor manager at Granada TV and was instumental in bringing lots of celebs in to the club. I remember he worked on Coronation St and Crown Court. We had bands on most weeks from London Attractions, some names to ponder, Sam the Sham, Drifters, Platters, Mack and Katie Kissoon, Ike and Tina Turner.

The band that accompanied most of these was called the Clan from London, not Pete MacLaines Clan. We had Edison Lighthouse who turned out to be 3 members of the Clan and the lead singer who was famous for Rosemary Goes."
Graham Rothwell

" In the early sixties the Oasis, which became the biggest coffee dance club in Manchester,was owned by Hugh Goodwin. Graham and myself managed the club.
We also wrote the first of the flyers which eventually evolved into the Northern Beat Scene mag and which is now a useful reference for the early 60's.

Joyce Rawlings and I are putting the story of the Oasis,the musicians, and those who danced and drank coffee to the sounds of the bands..Little did we know in those days that 40 odd years on we would all become part of Manchester's musical history."

Pauline Clegg

I remember the Oasis, the queues used to be half way up the street before they opened, the staff were great with me though, as I wear a calliper they used to let me in early so I wouldn't have to stand too long. The DJ at the time was called Phil Woodbine but nobody apart from me seems to remember him!  I also remember once, Tony Stuart the then owner showed me a cheque for £800 made out for the Rolling StMost of the above information is incorrect - take it from me I was in the band from its concept until 1964 when by then most of the Olympic events were over. We were never a showband style group and performed very few Presley numbers. David Bowker remembers it well when he said we were a typical Shadows type band. We were initially managed by Bill Fearniough who owned the Klub Koquette in Stockport and later Ric Dixon became our manager. I have an Oasis Beat Scene that puts us together in July 1963 and I can well remember doing a couple of early gigs with Lorraine Gray but in 1964 I decided it was time to move on to greener pastures. So at the tail end of it all Bob Hoath took over on Bass til its end soon after. Much much more to add and will do this at a later date. Many stories to add. ones, he tore it up in front of me as they couldn't make the gig.

Stuart

I saw the Ike and Tina Turner Revue Show I think it was called at the Oasis some time in 1967.

I was 16 and it was the best live soul thing I'd seen up til then, and after the show the Ikettes came out into the club to mix with the audience.

I nearly died when the middle IKETTE - the one who had a broken arm at the time, asked me to dance with her - I WAS IN HEAVEN. I only found out a couple of years ago her name was Rose, when I saw and met PP Arnold at Cheltenham Town Hall and was recalling the night to her. GOLDEN YEARS!!
Martin Sievey (ex Golden Rules)

I worked at Washingtons on Deansgate in 1965. It was a store where people who paid weekly for goods from their homes purchased during the year from the major store in Manchester. Where agents or "tally" men or "collectors" used to go every week to houses all over Manchester to collect money and they, the customers, got issued with a "Chit" for £25-£100 about three times a year to "spend" in the store.

Alan Clarke and Graham Nash (of the Hollies) both worked there just leaving at about the time I started. Alan Clarkes mum used to be the "char lady" there.

I worked in the "boutique" in the basement and sold psycedelic shirts and ties as well a striped hipsters and paisley patterned things. I particularly remember I used to queue up to go into the Oasis club on a Thursday night after work, as we worked until 8pm on that night.

I later managed the club "Rubens" which was situated on the same site as The Oasis and it opened in 1972.

It was owned by 3 people at the same time (an arrangement that never works) and after a particular heated exchange with one of the owners I was told to "piss off", on boxing day 1973, by David Johnson. Colin Burn and another guy Maurice, (Dave's right hand man) were the other two owners.

ITN covered the opening and it was on the 10pm News sometime in the February of 1972. Dahlia Lavi was used to promote the club as she was going out with Colin Burn at the time, but that lasted about as long as he needed the publicity she brought, she left for Germany soon after the opening.

Rubens at the time was the ritzyist club in town, for the well healed entrepeuner type, rivalling but never quite beating "Blinkers" owned by the Demmy brothers on the site of another old club across the town. Rubens had the interior of a boys school used in its decor cost £60,000 then to open and they spent over £30 grand on the sound system, and it also boasted a really bad couple of Rubenesque oil paintings on the wall. A long way from the "old" Oasis decor.

I was asked back after Colin left in the Summer of 1973, but I never went back. David died at 33 a couple of years later. Maurice disapeared and Colin went on to own "Slack Alices" with George Best in 1974. I again like a fool went to work for him and then left shortly afterwards after another disagreement.

A nice guy called Tony Corless owned the restaurant at the side of the Rubens club, but he lost money too and quietly faded from the scene.

I used to go to the Top Ten Club from 1963-4 and saw Jimmy Hendrix, The Nashville Teens, Ike and Tina Turner, amongst others, with Jimmy Saville and Dave Eager both DJing. Later on used to go to Mr Smith's with the polystyrene balls on the dance floor.

I am suprised Geno Washington was not mentioned as part of the Oasis scene, he was nearly always appearing there.

The site of the old Oasis Club and Rubens in Lloyd St was re-vamped in the early 90's and it no longer exists.

Slack Alice's was opened on the same site as the Jazz/Blues club The Cossack Club, owned by "Russian Dave" at the Deansgate end of Bootle St, further down from where the police station is and the building is still standing.

The Mogambo coffee bar on Princess St was the only place in town in 1965 where you could get a "cold" glass of coke and a slice of lemon. "Cool" man!

Bought many of my clothes from "Guys and Dolls" in Oldham St. including a pair of "spats" 1966. What! a twonk.

Bought demo records from Shudehill market and American imports from the "Spinning Disc". Hyme and Addisons in John Dalton St was the best place to buy "Cool" American Soul and blues stuff. Bought the last copy available in 1967 of Billy Stewarts "Summertime" on the Chess label (still got it). They had booths where you took your chosen record and each booth had a danzig record player to take and listen to your record in privacy, before you had to pay the 6/8d or 29/11d or 32/- for the album you wanted. I was earning less than £4 a week. So a lot of money for an album. Twisted Wheel and the Heaven and Hell club other places to remember also

Mike Barlow

In 1964 the Oasis was my favourite club and as a 16/17 year old excitement not experienced before, no doubt due to leaving school and chasing girls. The Rising Sun nearby was the pub of choice - no alchohol on sale in the club. People usually circulated in pairs round the club looking for action.

I remember queuing up Lloyd St and into Albert square waiting for the club to open. When my mate Barry bought an 18cwt van we would just drive up to the entrance, park the van, and try to boogie in, pretending to be in the band. Notable bands I saw included: Screaming Lord Sutch; Temptations; Desmond Decker plus lots of local bands - St Louis Union was amounst the best.

Happy days. 

David Metcalfe

I saw (Little) Stevie Wonder at the Oasis - not sure of the date but I can remember three things aboiut it. First the queses were immense - all the way up the street and nearly into Albert Square. Second that the place was steaming - fantastic music, Stevie playing drums as well as singing and playing the harmonica. Thirdly, I can't forget the way he was handled by his management - dragged onto and off that little stage at the Oasis. You had to feel for the guy - all that talent and pushed about so badly.

Also recall seeing the Birds (British mod band) in January of 1966. I think Ronnie Wood was in the band at that time but Im not sure.

Did anyone else see either of these gigs ? 

Gary Heywood-Everett

Myself and my mate Trev didn't frequent "The Wheel" too often as we were pop fans rather than r'n'b. The Oasis was our choice along with Amigos, The Amber Moon and The Hacienda and we saw some great acts there. Pete Maclain and the Dakotas (who later joined Billy J. Kramer) were the house band. Wayne Fontana and the Jets were also frequent visitors as were Herman's Hermits.I remember we had to queue when The Beatles were on but as we were with our "birds" that night we kept nipping into the Nags Head whilst the girls held our place.

Top overseas acts were The Crickets, Bruce (Hey Baby)Chanel and Delbert Mclinton. The great thing was, none of the girls in the audience used to scream so you could actually hear the artists perform. We usually used to finish the evening off at the late night Wimpey on Oxford Road but one night whilst roaming round the back streets we stumbled across the Cosy Cafe situated near the Oxford Print Works and what a den of iniquity that was.

The clientele was made up of a lot of dodgy characters including a good cross-section of transvestites and some customers used to walk in and go straight upstairs. Never did find out why. Anyway they served up a great door-step bacon butty and there were some great sides on the juke-box.If we had any funds left we would visit the Black Cat nightclub on Hanging Ditch. They also boasted a great juke-box and the occasional artist as well as having strippers.     

Tony Dixon

I can remember Phil Cooper (Phil Woodbine) because we were very good mates. Occassionally I helped him out when he went on holiday and did the record playing until I joined the Army in 1965.

Whilst home on leave from Germany Phil and I went on holiday to Torquay and I met my future wife.

I can recall "Harry the bottle"behind the counter of the coffee bar.Tony Stuart was the main man in those days.
I can still picture the two stages,the ladies "handbag" store/cloakroom.Great days and fantastic people.

John Halford