Footstools Direct delivers to the Cavern Club in Liverpool

With one of the most impressive line-ups of any music venue in the North, world famous artists that have played there include the Rolling Stones, The Yardbirds, The Hollies, The Kinks, Elton John, Black Sabbath and Queen! More recently it’s hosted Adele, Jessie J and the Arctic Monkeys – some amazing names from the music industry.

 Today the Cavern is a popular tourist spot for Liverpool visitors and is open every day from 11am as a live music venue, bar, cafe, restaurant, and souvenir store. 

In February we supplied 96 red seating cubes for customers and patrons visiting the Cavern Club. Our compact branded cube seats offer simple comfort that's ideal for venues such as this, easy and light to move and arrange while offering excellent comfort on a sturdy frame, all handmade at our Yorkshire factory using locally sourced materials.

When the delivery was complete, we were lucky to receive a guided tour of the venue. Originally built in the 1870’s as a warehouse over an underground railway, the sound of trains is still a feature of the Club as they roll into the nearby Lime Street Station. 

Live music is ever present at the Cavern and during our visit an acoustic artist played his own special version of the Beatles classic "All My Loving". It was a day to remember, and the Cavern team were a pleasure to work with.

The History of the Cavern Club

Have a read below for a brief timeline of its history and the key events that made The Cavern Club one of the world’s leading live music venues.

The Cavern Club came into being on Wednesday 16 January 1957, when the doors of the former warehouse cellar venue opened at 10 Mathew Street, Liverpool.  

Richard Starkey (later known as Ringo Starr) is thought to have made his debut at the Cavern Club, playing drums with the Eddie Clayton Skiffle Group. In early 1960 the Beat Music scene in Liverpool exploded and the Cavern Club became the most publicised pop music venue in the world.

Thursday 9th February 1961- The Beatles first performance at the Cavern Club featured John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison, Stuart Sutcliffe with Pete Best on drums.

February 1961- The Beatles soon established themselves as the Cavern Club’s signature act. It became the place where their musical identity was forged and many of their fans maintain the band was at its best during those lunchtime gigs, learning stagecraft through the exchanges with the audience only inches away. The band were always nostalgic about the Cavern.

November 1961- Liverpool businessman Brian Epstein, whose family owned the nearby record store NEMS, visited the Cavern Club for a lunchtime session and saw his first performance by the Beatles. Brian Epstein offered to become the band’s manager and by June 1962 had secured a recording contract for them with Parlophone Records.

 August 1963- This marked the last of 292 performances at the Cavern Club by The Beatles. By 1964 the Beatles had taken America by storm and their phenomenal success gave the Cavern Club a magical status and it was a prestige port of call for a multitude of British bands and recording artists from the USA.

 February 1966-  Despite the Cavern Club’s success it was not a financially secure business and owner Ray McFall was declared bankrupt so the Cavern Club was forced to close. The closure came as a real shock but it quickly attracted two new investors Alf Geoghegan and Joe Davey who set about developing and improving the Cavern Club.

July 1966- The British Prime Minister Harold Wilson officially opened the Cavern Club which had been overhauled and extended to include a new entrance, a souvenir shop, a boutique and a ground floor coffee lounge and eatery, whilst retaining its original basement vaults and atmosphere.

October 1970- Queen appeared at the Cavern Club.

1972- British Rail took ownership of the warehouse block 8-12 Mathew Street which housed the original 1957 cellar vaults of the Cavern Club, the extended cellar area Ray McFall had created in 1964 to provide space for Cavern Sounds Recording Studios, plus the ground floor extensions made for the re-opening in 1966. The plan by British Rail was to clear that part of Mathew Street to build a ventilation shaft for the city’s new underground railway loop.

May 1973- The Cavern Club closed and reopened opposite in new premises at 7-15 Mathew Street.

June 1973- Although the buildings at street level were demolished, the original cellar was not destroyed, only filled in with the rubble from above. The proposed ventilation shaft was never built and the site of the Cavern Club became a rough surface street level storage area for British Rail vehicles before becoming a car park.

December 1980- Britain woke up to the news that John Lennon had been shot dead in New York. In Liverpool, dazed fans gathered in Mathew Street at the site of the original Cavern Club to mourn his loss and leave messages of condolence.

June 1982- It was announced by the project architect David Backhouse, that the plans to excavate and re-open the Cavern Club in its original form would not be possible for structural reasons. Tests had revealed the arches of the old cellar had been too badly damaged during the demolition of the ground floor of the Cavern Club and the warehouses above.

August 1983- Thousands of bricks from the damaged archways of the original cellar area of the Cavern Club went on sale at £5 each, complete with an authentication plate signed by former Cavern Club owner Ray McFall. Proceeds from the sale of the 5000 bricks went to Strawberry Field Children’s home. A further 15,000 bricks from the Cavern site were used on the authentic reconstruction of the Cavern Club within the redevelopment.

December 1989- Following a serious assault on a customer which led to jail sentences for the owners, the Cavern Club lost its licence and was closed by the Licensing Authority. The 80s had proved to be the most turbulent time in the Cavern Club’s roller coaster history.

July 1991- Cavern City Tours re-opened the Cavern Club and continued to provide the disco music which had been so successful under the previous owner.

October 1991- One of the promotions in the summer of 1992 included a young band from Manchester called Oasis. Noel Gallagher later complained that playing the Cavern was a disappointment as it was like a wine bar.

September 1992- Ringo Starr was in Liverpool to film a documentary for the Disney Channel called Going Home and visited the Cavern Club. During the film Ringo winked at the camera and said “This will be a nice surprise for the lads” and then autographed two squares on the iconic stage wall which feature the name of the Beatles and Rory Storm and the Hurricanes. It certainly was a surprise because it wasn’t until six months later when the film was released that anyone knew Ringo had signed the wall.

December 1999- Paul McCartney announced on national TV that he couldn’t think of a better way to rock out the end of the century than with a rock ‘n’ roll party at the Cavern Club. It was reported by the media as the gig of the century. Thousands of fans gathered in Liverpool city centre to watch the concert live on a huge outdoor screen and the concert had an estimated net cast audience of 53 million. A DVD was released – Paul McCartney Live At The Cavern Club.

November 2001- News came that former Beatle George Harrison had died after his long battle with cancer. Tom Robinson paid a special tribute to George that night. The following morning the Cavern Club opened a book of condolence which was signed by over 5000 of George’s fans and admirers.

October 2005- Sheffield band Arctic Monkeys supported by The Little Flames appeared at The Cavern Club. Tickets were £8. At the time the booking had been made the band were just beginning to break. Two weeks after their sell out gig at the Cavern Club their first single was at Number One on the UK singles chart and their debut album became the fastest selling debut album ever for a band in the UK.

January 2011- Adele’s exclusive gig was brought to The Cavern on 5th January 2011 courtesy of Smooth FM and was the perfect way to kick off the Cavern’s year of events.

January 2012- With help from Radio City, Jessie J, played a very intimate gig at the Cavern on 3rd January 2012. Engaging with the stories behind her songs, the number one singer – and artist behind 2011’s biggest selling debut album

April 2012- James McCartney performed a sell-out show at the Cavern Club half a century after father Paul performed at the venue with The Beatles

In 2018 Paul McCartney played the Cavern again

17^th February 2023 Footstools Direct supply 96 Red Cube Seats….