DUNCAN BARKES: Music Matters: Our great music venues of the past

I found myself going down an internet rabbit hole last week trying to establish if global rockstars R.E.M had ever played a gig in Worthing.

Along the way I came across several excellent websites that have chronicled the live music scene of the past along the coast in glorious detail. One site – garagehangover.com – has a comprehensive list of the acts that went on stage at The Shoreline Club that operated at The Caribbean Hotel in Bognor Regis, and which opened during the Easter Holiday in 1965. A news clipping from 1966 reveals that none other than David Bowie & The Buzz played at the venue.

Portsmouth’s rich live musical heritage is beautifully detailed on a section of a website to be found at michaelcooper.org.uk called The Portsmouth Music Scene. The Tricorn Club, which was part of the now demolished Tricorn Centre, hosted some amazing acts which appeared throughout the 1960s and 1970s and who were often introduced by legendary local DJ Pete Cross. Bands including Roxy Music, Slade, Argent, The Sweet and Thin Lizzy all made appearances,

Do check out the websites for yourself if you love local live music history. And as for R.E.M? It turns out they did perform a gig in Worthing on 29 April 1984. They played live at the now demolished Carioca Club in Eriswell Road.

My musical gem: Last week we heard the devastating news that Dolly Parton had died at the age of eighty. My favourite Dolly story features her song ‘I Will Always Love You’ which was a global hit for the singer Whitney Houston. Elvis Presley wanted to record a version but only if he got a songwriting credit and split of the royalties. The cheek! Dolly declined the demand but later admitted that a version by Elvis would have been worth hearing.

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