The Marquee club has often been defined as "the most important venue in the history of European pop music". Not only for having been witness of the development of the music culture in London during four decades, but also for having been an essential meeting point and a real cradle for some of the most important artists and music scenes. If it was not for the Marquee club maybe many of the legendary rock and pop artists that we know today would have never made it during their hard starting careers and their names would have never shown up in the music business. The club was first opened on April 19th 1958 in London's 165 Oxford Street. During the following years the Marquee became the most important place for the jazz and rhythm & blues scenes in London.
The Marquee club was first opened on April 19th 1958 in 165 Oxford Street, London. During the following years the Marquee became the most important place for the jazz and rhythm & blues scenes in London, where legends like Sonny Boy Williamson, Alexis Korner's Blues Incorporated, and harmonica player Cyril Davies played regulary.
During the 60's a new generation of British rhythm and blues bands, such as the Rolling Stones, John Mayall and the Bluesbreakers, the Yardbirds, and the Animals forged the comming of a new era in pop music at the Marquee. On March 13th 1964 the venue was relocated to it's most famous location in London's Soho at 90 Wardour Street which became a legend in the history of pop and rock music. The Marquee became the most important venue for the emerging British scene and witnessed the birth and rise of some of the most important artists in the 60's and 70's such as Jimi Hendrix, David Bowie, Cream, Pink Floyd, Manfred Mann, the Who, The Nice, Yes, Led Zeppelin, Jethro Tull, King Crimson, Genesis, Moody Blues, and many others. The club was also witness of the birth of all the different music genres born during the last decades of the 20th century, including acid rock, progressive rock, hard rock, and folk rock. During the late 70's and early 80's the Marquee saw the development of the British punk, new wave, synth pop, heavy rock, and neo progressive music scenes, with bands such as the Clash, Ultravox, the Pretenders, the Police, the Cure, Joy Division, the Damned, Generation X, Siouxsie and the Banshees, and the Sex Pistols.