The Ealing Jazz Club was a music venue on The Broadway, Ealing, in the west of London. Opened in January 1959, it became London’s first regular R&B venue with a performance by the influential Alexis Korner‘s and Cyril Davies‘s band Blues Incorporated. Situated in a basement opposite Ealing Broadway station, it was reached by descending the narrow steps of the alley that leads to Haven Place, between the tea shop and what at the time was a jewellery shop.
The club is noteworthy as the place where on 24 March 1962 Charlie Watts first met Brian Jones and then, on 7 April 1962, Alexis Korner introduced Mick Jagger and Keith Richards to Brian Jones. Basically the nucleus of the Rolling Stones first came together here! This was also the place where, nearly a year later, the classic line-up of The Rolling Stones, with Charlie Watts on drums, played for the first time in public on Tuesday, 15 January 1963. The Who also played here early on in their career, when they were known as the Detours.
The Ealing Club also played a part in the sound of rock. A Sunday night in 1963 saw the first public performance ever to use the classic ‘loud’ Marshall JTM45 guitar amplifier. The blue plaque that was unveiled to celebrate Alexis Korner and Cyril Davies in March 2012 has long been lost, unfortunately.
Address: 42a The Broadway, London W5 2NP
@Rockandrollogist 