Tony Court-holmes… had my 21st birthday party in there, my god that was a long time ago
hifi club
Circuit Four – The Hi-Fi Club Hastings
photos © Dave Trodd
Harry Randall… Named after the “Watkins Circuit Four” guitar I bought my Watkins Rapier 33 from the guy on left who I’ve forgotten his name so names please!
Harry Randall… Available left handed at an extra 10% very few other options in those days hence Hendrix playing right handed Fenders
Barry French… Saw them play at the Yorkshire Grey. A really good covers band. Their lead guitarist used to play a strange shaped Yamaha guitar.
Mick O’Dowd… Vaguely remember the name and I think I saw them. Any names?
Geoff Evans… Tony Hughes Lead Guitar, Mervyn Ashdown Rhythm Guitar, Cliff Booker Bass Guitar, Keith Baron Drums. At least, those were the original members.
Mick O’Dowd… They played at Grove Road YC in 60’s.Went to school with Cliff Booker & Mervyn Ashdown
Roger King… Mick, not the same people we saw in the mid-60s surely? Can you imagine that hair at Hastings Grammar School? The only one who looks at all like anyone from that line up is the guy on the left, who could at a stretch be Tony Hughes with a beard?
Vox made at Ponswood Industrial Estate, St Leonards-On-Sea 1971 & HIFI Club chat.
supplied by Peter Gladwish. photos by Dave Trodd © Vox. http://www.voxshowroom.com/equipment/index.html
Peter Gladwish… In 1970, Birch-Stolec Industries purchased the VOX name and company, moving their manufacturing facilities from Erith, Kent, to Ponswood Industrial Estate, St Leonards. At the same time, Rick Huxley, former bass guitarist with the Dave Clark Five, joined the company as the Southern Area Sales Executive. This sales brochure was produced for VOX by Berfolt-Holt Design Ltd., St Leonards, where a friend and fellow band member, Cliff Brooker was employed. Now don’t laugh too much but I was asked to ‘pose’ with various musical instruments and equipment, in case viewers were unsure how to use them, I suppose! The photo-shoot took place in the basement of the Hi-Fi Club, High Street, Hastings Old Town and the photographer was Dave Trodd . The club owner is in the photo above( photo 5) but I can’t remember his name. If you know him, or remember him, please let me know. The Hi-Fi Club burned down in allegedly ‘suspicious’ circumstances around 1978. Again, if anyone has any more details, please let me know. You can learn more about the history of VOX on the website link above, where this brochure is featured.
Kevin Burchett… The club owner of the hi fi was aa chap called guy not sure of his surname he used to come to scalliwags with monkey Dave i saw him last year in Morrisons.
Alan Esdaile… This is definitely not Guy. Guy rang the HIFI with his brother. Anyone remember who this is?
Ralph Town… Wish they were still there,I,d take a job on those valves and pcbs
Colin Fox… I had one. You can see it behind me on the right. I seem to remember Rev Stockdale worked there for a while.
Paul Dengate… Vox also had a workshop in Beaconsfield Road.
Caz Simpson… The man in question resembles a man Guy and Dave hired as a bouncer at the club. I thought the brothers were the owners because they lived there and rented rooms to Jack and George.
Peter Gladwish… Clearly, the man in this pic with me was not the owner of the Hi-Fi Club (Guy McFarlane), as I had always thought and no-one seems to know his name. As he was the one who unlocked, plyed us with drinks and was hanging around all day, whilst Dave Trodd arranged the shots, I just assumed he was the boss-man. Thanks anyway for all your contributions. Apparently, Stuart Moir also worked at Vox in Beaconsfield Rd., Colin Fox & Paul Dengate. Anyone else out there with any memories?
Caz Simpson… I saw Guy some years back, he was running a bar in Battle. Sadly I heard Dave died, his wife was a lovely lady who had been a bunny girl. There was a good deal of suspicion about how the club burned down. Guy and Dave had extensive wood panelling carried out to the upstairs living areas which allegedly hid a lot of rot. They tried to sell the club but surveys always brought to light the concealment and sales fell through. I understand the insurance company had strong suspicions regarding the nature of the fire so refused to pay, which is why the gap remains.
Alan Esdaile… was the Vox factory in the Philips building on Ponswood?
Will Cornell… very cool Mason’s shares that address, Alan! Did they make the electric dulcimers for Brian Jones there too?
Talkies HiFi Club High Street Old Town Hastings around 1966
photos: Sue Colebrook-Gentry supplied by Lloyd Johnson
Strand Cafe supplied by Leigh Kennedy – year unknown
Sue Colebrook Gentry… Found this old picture of Lloyd Johnson, Sebastion Keep, Chris & Sid, must be from the sixties outside the old Hi Fi Club, good times.
Lloyd Johnson… I think this was when Alain a French guy had the Hi-Fi in the basement, very early on. he sold the club to Guy a Londoner that moved to Hastings. 1966/67 we’d just finished painting the front of Sid’s Cafe’Talkies’ in the OldTown High St, think the ‘High-Fi’ was in the basement. I think it is 66 as I was in Sweden in 65 and I’m wearing my bottle green corduroy jacket from CUE at Austin Reed where I work at the time. So this was probably a weekend activity, the painting of the Cafe front that is!.. Sadly Sebastian passed away some months back….he was a good friend in my youth . We both moved to London around the same time and Sebastian seemed to know everyone. I remember going to ‘BagOnails’ in Kingly street behind Carnaby st. with him in 67ish to see Jimi Hendrix, Hey! Joe! period…to say we were blown away is an up statement!….
Alan Esdaile… Great photos. Possibly a chemist shop next door?
John Gale… Excellent photos
Linda Day… I remember Sebastian Keep
Mike Waghorne… What was it called in the early 70’s ? I remember going there
Alan Esdaile… It was called Jooks cafe disco
Continental College, Witch Doctor Dance Floor & HiFi Ad – Andre Martin
Andre Martin….The Continental College, was in the old Pitmans College buildings and they ran a Sunday Night Youth Club, a way of getting their resident students to mix with locals, this was first a Jazz Club, but by 1962/3 The Confederates we almost the resident group – Pete Millington for info
The Witch Doctor
The famous Witch Doctor Club floor
Hi-Fi Club
All info & cuttings Andre Palfrey-martin collection
Peter Millington…..I played as a member of The Confederates in both. The Nest Club was at the very end of Trinity St. and is still a coffee house although the music in the Nest Club days was downstairs. The Contenental College had live music for the students (to keep them in rather than mix with the dodgy locals I think) every Sunday afternoon/evening. That would have been in 1962/3- great fun for us starting out with our ambitions to become a big group ha ha
Caz Simpson… Witchdoctor, I’ll never tire is seeing this.
Mick O’Dowd… Remember it Well.
Jane Hartley… was too young, did go to a Christmas party with my mum, Cobweb I think!
Colin Norton… Amazing place! Great atmosphere and crowd!
Hi Fi Club High Street Hastings – front door – who went to the Hi Fi?
supplied by Leigh Kennedy
1968 Advert
Angela Frances Gardner… It was a great place to go after the pubs shut and eating the wonderful Jamaican food at Chico’s on street level before going to the Hifi club. I remember that Lou Reeds song Goodnight Ladies was always played at closing time
Jackie Hersee… I went there
Simon Fraser… I went there. If you breathed you were stone
Ian Watling… It was a great place to hang out, can’t recall many nights but that’s probably because I was having such a great time
John Busbridge… Downstairs from what I remember, I used to go there must have been late sixties or early seventies?
Diane Knight… John, got to be 70’s …I was definitely there !!!
Andy Qunta… Went there many times. I think it was there that I saw Paul Kossoff from Free and John Martyn one night!
Andrew Bantock… I’ve only been here for 32 years so I don’t know why there is a hole where the HiFi used to be.
Jon McCallion… Because they can’t replace it
Colin Bell… It burnt down in ‘mysterious circumstances’…
Jo Turner… Yup
Peter Fairless… Only went there a couple of times at most, very vague memories!
Judy Atkinson… My brother used to go there a lot, Roger Fullbrook, known as Jack, anyone remember him?
Lucy Pappas… I went a few times but it was my sister Dina’s favourite place.
Colin Bell… Many times, me & Caz could tell a few stories….
Nick Webb… Many a night spent there, and if you got to go upstairs you where well in .
Alan Esdaile… Great music, great times. We used to sit in the alcove seat at the bottom of the stairs smoking Disque Bleu and drinking what we could afford. Probably only 14 when I first went there!
Steve Burt… Yep went there wild place.
Lloyd Johnson… i went there in the 60s and helped paint the front of ‘Talkies’ cafe almost next door….Sid ran the cafe!…
Simon Fraser… Never remembered how I got home from there. 1970is
Sue Colebrook-Gentry… I worked there behind the bar from 1967 — 1972 and lived upstairs. Many happy memories. Me and the DJ Jack and a couple of regulars behind the reception upstairs.
Willie Wicking… Went there a few times with older friends but was there the night it burnt down can remember it well was in Wellington Sqaure & after the 5th fire engine went past went to have a look that was a real fire fire brigade had a difficult job must have been around 77 79 can also remember all the hoses across road into boating lake
Diane Knight… Loved the Hi fi …I used to go there with the Alderson crew ( all relocated in oz) ..such great times
Chris Meachen… Had some great nights in there, fabulous place.. Pretty sure it burned down on September 27th in whatever year…
Bernard Goffredo… that was a regular haunt
Lloyd Johnson… I remember Guy and his mate on a silver Vespa GS very early on when they first came down to Hastings during The ‘Mod days’…his mate had an accident and lost a leg, does anyone else remember his friend. He went out with Lis Parrish for a while..I remember Guy talking to Les Martin , who helped run The Pamdor about buying the Hi- Fi from Alain the Frenchman that owned it….that must have been very early on…
Colin Doherty… DJ’d there and lived upstairs for a few very enjoyable years!
HiFi Club – High Street Hastings. 1970/1971 and Jooks Cafe fire
Barry Dyke… I remember all too well The Hi-Fi. Toilets leaking onto the dance floor, etc
Paul Sleet… I remember when the police came in to check on the number of people inside. Everyone crammed into the toilets and when the old bill got downstairs it seemed empty!
Nick Prince… It was called Jooks at the time of the fire! It changed its name 1976-77 time…..
Rosalind Cleave… I used to go there from 1966 !
Matthew Bryant… And now nothing there! Just a gap between Shirley Leaf and Petal and the sweet shop.
Paul Redfearn… Now then, there’s a blast from the past!
supplied by Leigh Kennedy
Leigh Kennedy… October 1 st 1977. mystery surrounded the cause of the blaze but the owner was trying to sell the property at the time . The site has remained as wasteground ever since
Bob Saunders… Now there’s a blast from the past so dark down there spot of underage drinking methinks!
Gavin Martin… The forerunner of The Jenny Lind’s Sunday night vinyl club?
Madeline Joyce Morton… I lived opposite at 62 High St.
Lin Mitchell… Had some great times there
Alan Griffiths.. Now the gap next to Turners?
Fernando Silva…Was a regular customer through 66/67 when studying in St. Leonards only 48 (forty eight) years ago. Great times in Hi-fi with Alain as manager.
John Wilde… Guy and Mungo kept us suitably well oiled. I was on fire every night dancing alone to the best soul and rock tracks. Then upstairs for the after party. Lots of Swedish girls and hornacious longhairs with marching powder chased down with the best afghani. Of course I am telling lies.
Yvonne Cleland… I used to go upstairs at the Hifi, sometimes with Heather Carter! It was exactly like that. smile emoticon
Linda Day… I remember that place
Alan Esdaile… I remember taking over the decks from Jack a few times. He would say I’m just popping upstairs and would disappear for a few hours.
Chris Baker… Goat Curry was amazing! 🙂
Jon McCallion… It’s where I had the audition for Muller.
Tony Court-holmes… had my 21st birthday party there a long time ago
Andre Martin… And you can remember that far back !
Candy Clark… I wish , ha
Tony Davies… I remember the Hi Fi only to well, spent many a happy hour down there. They didn’t have a last order bell, just used to play Lou Reeds ” Goodnight Ladies” track,,,,, good memories.
Chris Meachen… Spent many a hot, crowded evening there myself, back in the day….
Diane Knight… Me too ..forgot the “Goodnight Ladies “bit ..good times !!
Nick Prince… Jooks had already been closed for a month or so prior to the fire. I remember the night it went up well. We lived on the corner of Dudley and Harold Road at the time and the sky was glowing orange. To be honest we all thought it was a repeat of something more serious like the previous years fire in George Street.
The Hi-Fi Club High Street Hastings – Membership cards from John Busbridge
supplied by John Busbridge
John Busbridge… The Hi Fi club membership cards from the late sixties and early seventies. Somewhere I used to frequent in my younger days!
Alan Esdaile… Great days. Members must be over 18! I think I was probably 14 when I first went to the HIFI.
Chris Meachen… Same here, if not a little younger..
Dave Nattress… Used to get in there as I was 18 by then, just, but don’t remember the card membership but that’s it, I don’t remember. Alan you say, “Great Days”, and for sure they were, however, almost always returning to Bexhill from a night out in Hastings – anywhere in Hastings, it was a Great Daze!
Hi-Fi Club, 59 High Street Hastings – 1968
Jon McCallion… Its where Muller got started
Jim Breeds… Nothing worse than unlicensed dancing. Society is doomed once dancing without a license takes hold!
Alan Esdaile… I think before this they probably only had a license for music and not dancing. Mind you, you couldn’t do much dancing, as it was often jammed packed. Always tried to sit in the alcove at the bottom of the stairs, opposite the dj booth.