The City Arms, for the last 20 years a part of the Wetherspoons chain, has been a popular pub in Earlsdon for over 150 years. The current building has stood since 1930 but a 'City Arms' has been on the site since the mid 1800s.
50 years ago the City Arms Folk Club, which attracted some of the country’s most talented musicians to Coventry as well as entertaining a generation of fans, staged its final event. The club first sprang up in 1966 and was initially hosted by Paddy Roberts.
By 1967 it was in the hands of popular musicians Rob Armstrong and Rod Felton who successfully ran this popular club for a good number of years. The pair had already become popular guests at the venue.
The British folk scene of the 1960s and 1970s has a fascinating history. The highs including the discovery of some genuinely wonderful singer songwriters. The lows must have been the endless financial difficulties, that the clubs seemed to be in, required for keeping them going.
The following quotes I collected while researching the Earlsdon club. My apologies for not remembering from where and who:
'Been going to the folk clubs since 1963. First to Coventry - Barry Skinner, The Kerry's, Rod etc – and then Earlsdon. Since 1971 I went to Bedworth and other clubs before they all closed. These included Barwell, Brinklow and Nuneaton. I remember Roddy, Dave Bennett, Barry Skinner, The Gaels, Sneaks Noise, too many to remember'.
'I remember when the Gaels had Owen on fiddle before Brian Patten, do you remember Geoff Smedley and Bennie Christie who were residents at the City Arms?. Benita could down a pint in less than 3 seconds!. And Barry at the Binley Oak, that was the first club I went to, with Roger Bullen who I used to work with'.
'Rod was always involved with the City Arms, his lovely Mum May used to actually 'run' the club, but she did it in Rods name. More or less, Rod and Rob Armstrong were both the residents before they formed the Grunt Band, as was Gentle Touch (Geoff and Benita) and June Tabor was a regular singer there too'.
'There were some top acts at the Earlsdon club. I don't know who actually booked them, but May, Rod's Mother, saw to the financial side of things'.
Finally a very brief history of some of those who appeared the City Arms Folk Club. These were in addition to the local artists who put in an appearance. Regarding the above quote, which mentions the booking of artists, I cant help but think that Rob Armstrong did a lot of the leg work in that department:
1966 – Initially it appeared to be a monthly club. But things soon stepped up and the club became a weekly event. Guests included: Dicken Reed, The Arden Folk, Rod Felton, The Embers, Sandy Denny
1967 – The Hibernian's Folk Group, The Kiandra Group, The Folklores, Mick Stuart
1968 – New Modern Idiot Grunt Band, Sneaks Noise, Mike Chapman, Alex Campbell, Martyn Wyndham Reed
1969 – Martin Windsor, Gilly Darbey, Jasper Carrot, Robin Dransfield, Hamish Imlach
1970 – Shelagh McDonald, Diz Disley, Don Partridge, Colin Scott
1971 - Gothic Horizon, Roger Williamson, Dave Turner, April,
The final club night appears to be when Dando Shaft appeared during September 1971.
Beverley Kutner (Martyn)
At a time when young Teesside folk acts like Megson, Cattle and Cane, The Younguns are reinventing what folk music can be, filling venues around the country, and getting write ups in the Guardian and Independent, the Coventry folkscene is fighting back and celebrating its own historic and dynamic folk culture that has attracted the likes of Joe O'Donnell, Dave Swarbrick and many others to the City and boasts a range of singer songwriters giggling around the country. With Selecter star Pauline Black as patron, Pete Willow is working hard to put Coventry folk on the map!
