The Silver Beetles live: Jacaranda Coffee Bar, Liverpool – 30 May 1960
Monday 30 May 1960 | Live
Jacaranda Coffee Bar, Slater Street, Liverpool, England
On Monday 30 May 1960, The Silver Beetles performed at the Jacaranda Coffee Bar in Liverpool — one of around a dozen appearances the group made at the Slater Street venue managed by their early manager, Allan Williams.
The Jacaranda
The Jacaranda — known locally as The Jac — opened in September 1958 on Liverpool’s Slater Street and quickly became a popular destination among local students and the city’s emerging music scene. Allan Williams, who also ran the Blue Angel club, used the Jacaranda as a base for managing local acts.
Williams asked The Silver Beetles to play on Monday nights, when the normal house band — The Royal Caribbean Steel Band — had a night off. The arrangement was informal: the group were paid not in cash, but in beans on toast and Coca-Cola.
Williams would call on them to play at the Jacaranda on occasions when he was unable to secure them bookings elsewhere — a reflection of both the group’s early status and Williams’s pragmatic approach to management.
Paul McCartney on Allan Williams
McCartney recalled Williams warmly in the Anthology:
“Allan Williams ran the Blue Angel and the Jacaranda. He was the little local manager (little in height, that is – a little Welshman with a little high voice – a smashing bloke and a great motivator, though we used to take the mickey out of him).”
— Paul McCartney, Anthology
The Silver Beetles in 1960
By May 1960, the group — then performing as The Silver Beetles — were building their reputation on the Liverpool circuit. The Jacaranda appearances were part of a busy schedule of local gigs that also included the Casbah Coffee Club, Lathom Hall, and the Iron Door Club. Within weeks of this performance, they would embark on their first Scottish tour backing Johnny Gentle, and by August 1960 they would be in Hamburg for the first time.
Key Facts: 30 May 1960
- Venue: Jacaranda Coffee Bar, Slater Street, Liverpool
- Manager: Allan Williams
- Regular slot: Monday nights (when The Royal Caribbean Steel Band had a night off)
- Payment: Beans on toast and Coca-Cola
- Total Jacaranda appearances: Around a dozen
- Venue opened: September 1958
Frequently Asked Questions
What was the Jacaranda Coffee Bar in Liverpool?
A coffee bar on Slater Street, Liverpool, opened in September 1958 and managed by Allan Williams. It was a popular student haunt and an early venue for The Silver Beetles, who played there around a dozen times in 1960.
How much were The Silver Beetles paid at the Jacaranda?
They were not paid in cash — their fee was beans on toast and Coca-Cola. Allan Williams called on them to play on Monday nights when the regular house band, The Royal Caribbean Steel Band, had a night off.
Who was Allan Williams?
Allan Williams was The Beatles’ first manager, a Liverpool-based promoter who also ran the Blue Angel club and the Jacaranda Coffee Bar. He arranged their early Liverpool bookings and their first Hamburg residency in 1960. Paul McCartney described him as “a smashing bloke and a great motivator.”
What was The Royal Caribbean Steel Band?
The regular house band at the Jacaranda Coffee Bar. On Monday nights when they had a night off, Allan Williams would ask The Silver Beetles to fill in.
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