Rafters (nightclub) explained

Rafters
Address:65, Oxford Street [1] [2]
Location:Manchester, England
Type:Nightclub
Genre:Rock
Opened:Start of the 1970s
Renovated:Renamed to Jilly's in 1983, [3]
Seating Capacity:1,000
Pushpin Map:United Kingdom Manchester
Map Alt:Rafters nightclub at the Manchester map
Pushpin Map Caption:Location in Manchester

Rafters, later known as Jilly's, was a nightclub located in St. James Buildings, Oxford Street, Manchester, England. Some well-known bands played concerts at Rafters in the 1970s and 1980s.

Rob Gretton, who went on to become the manager of Joy Division, worked at Rafters. It featured in the biographical film Control (2007).

History

Rafters opened in Manchester in the 1970s in St James's Buildings in Oxford Street. The schedule generally remained the same: live gigs on Monday and Wednesday nights and a Folk night on Tuesday. By the mid-1970s the venue had become better known by the public and musicians, and leading musical bands began to play there. Following the rise of punk rock in 1976 and 1977, the venue became one of the main places in Manchester for live music. Joy Division performed there and in other Manchester venues such as Rock World.[3]

Numerous new bands played in Rafters in 1977 among them Paul Young of Sad Café and Dougie James. At this time Rob Gretton was one of the DJs at the club and also became a leading figure in the Manchester punk scene. The Stiff Records Test (Chiswick Challenge) organised by Stiff Records took place here on 14 April 1978. The event proved significant in the history of the band Joy Division. Rob Gretton and Tony Wilson of Granada TV were present at the event and saw Joy Division play. Joy Division were the last of 17 bands to play, but made a strong impression on those at the concerts. As Rob Gretton commented: In 1978, the memorable DJ partnership of Colin Curtis and John Grant established the region's leading jazz-funk night at Rafters. The club closed in 1983. In its final years the DJ was Mike Shaft who appeared on Piccadilly Radio with Takin' Care of Business; though he resigned one night after being informed by the management that they felt that 'the club was becoming too black' for them.[4] [5] After that the club was renamed as Jilly's which existed to 1993, after which the club was called Music Box, the site of the Electric Chair club nights, which moved there from The Roadhouse in the late 90s and were hugely influential until they came to an end in 2008.

Concerts

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Places of Interest . Joy Division central. Places in Manchester. 22 February 2010.
  2. Web site: Listed buildings in Manchester by street (O). A-Z of Listed Buildings in Manchester. Manchester City Council. 22 February 2010.
    Oxford Street (east side): …Nos.65 to 95. St. James's Buildings. Grade II. 20.6.88
    .
  3. Web site: Our history. Jilly's Rockworld - home of Manchester's rock & alternative community. 23 February 2010.
  4. https://electrofunkroots.co.uk/mike-shaft
  5. https://electrofunkroots.co.uk/electrospective-event-mike-shaft-interview
  6. Web site: 31st May 1977: Rafters, Manchester. Joy Division Concerts. Joy Division central. 1977 (Warsaw). 22 February 2010.
  7. Web site: 30th June 1977: Rafters, Manchester. Joy Division Concerts. Joy Division central. 1977 (Warsaw). 22 February 2010.
  8. Web site: The Prefects Gig History. punk77.co.uk . 22 February 2010.
  9. Web site: 13th October 1977: Rafters, Manchester. Joy Division Concerts. Joy Division central. 1977 (Warsaw) . 22 February 2010.
  10. Info from So It Goes TV series page
  11. It is not known if there was one concert or two. Web site: ?? December 1977: Rafters, Manchester. Joy Division Concerts. Joy Division central. 1977 (Warsaw) . 22 February 2010.
  12. Web site: 24th November 1977: Rafters, Manchester. Joy Division Concerts. Joy Division central. 1977 (Warsaw) . 22 February 2010.
  13. Web site: 28th March 1978: Rafters, Manchester. Joy Division Concerts. Joy Division central. 1978 (Joy Division) . 22 February 2010.
  14. Web site: 14th April 1978: Rafters, Manchester. Joy Division Concerts. Joy Division central. 1978 (Joy Division) . 22 February 2010.
  15. Info from Joy Division#Early releases
  16. Web site: Dire Straits tour 1978. Tours. Mark Knopfler official site. 13 February 2010. Canada. dead. https://web.archive.org/web/20120909004611/http://www.mark-knopfler.info/tour1978.htm. 9 September 2012.
  17. Info from TGV DVD set page
  18. Info from TG+ DVD set
  19. Web site: 1981 Tour. . 22 February 2010.
  20. Info from The Southern Death Cult album page. Songs named Crow and Faith
  21. Info from Festival of the Tenth Summer page