The first academic collection dedicated to the histories, heritage, people and places of popular music in Leeds. It presents critical social and historical case studies exploring Leeds’ music and musical spaces, central players - musicians and music industry figures, and key moments in diverse musical scenes in the city. 36 b/w illus.

List of Figures ix Acknowledgements xi Foreword xiii Jez Willis Introducing Leeds 1 Brett Lashua, Karl Spracklen, Kitty Ross and Paul Thompson   PART 1. PLACES OF LEEDS’ POPULAR MUSIC 13 1. Dance and Drink the Fenton: Fighting for Territory in Leeds’ Culture Wars 15 Rio Goldhammer 2. When Mr Fox Met Kit Calvert, the Maker of Wensleydale Cheese: Constructing Yorkshireness in the Sixties Leeds Folk Scene 31 Karl Spracklen 3. Park Life: When Roundhay Went Pop 43 Peter Mills 4. ‘Everything Is Brilliant in Leeds’: Venues in the Leeds Indie Scene 1992–2012 57 Dan Lomax 5. Noise, Power Electronics and the No-Audience Underground: Place, Performance and Discourse in Leeds’ Experimental Music Scene 70 Theo Gowans, Phil Legard and Dave Procter   PART 2. PEOPLE: LEEDS’ MUSICAL COMMUNITIES AND CULTURAL IDENTITIES 85 6. La-Di-Dah: Some Thoughts on Jake Thackray and British Popular Culture 87 Stephen Wagg 7. Home Is Where the Music Is: Migrants and Belonging in Leeds 102 Jonathan Long 8. A Tale of Two Artists: Thinking Intersectionally About Women and Music in Leeds 117 Beccy Watson 9. Leeds Punk through a Feminist Lens 130 Mallory McGovern 10. Americana and Leeds: Narrating the American South with Northern Grit 144 Dave Robinson   PART 3. HISTORIES OF POPULAR MUSIC IN LEEDS 159 11. Leeds City Varieties in the 1950s and 1960s: Decline, Nudity and Nostalgia in the British Variety Industry 161 Dave Russell 12. The Evolution of DIY Venues as Dancing Spaces in Leeds from the 1940s to 2020s 176 Stuart Moss 13. Music of the Leeds West Indian Carnival 191 Danny Friar 14. Jazz in Leeds, 1940s–50s 205 Michael Meadowcroft   PART 4. POPULAR MUSIC HERITAGE, LEGACIES AND FUTURES 215 15. Sounds of Our City Exhibition: Music and Materiality in Leeds’ Abbey House Museum 217 Kitty Ross and Paul Thompson 16. Where You’re From and Where They’re At: Connecting Voices, Generations and Place to Create a Leeds Hip Hop Archive 235 Sarah Little and Alex Stevenson 17. A Splendid Time is Guaranteed for All: A Psychogeography of Leeds’ Popular Music Heritage 250 Brett Lashua and Paul Thompson 18. Music: Leeds – Supporting a Regionalized Music Sector and Scene 264 Paul Thompson and Sam Nicholls   Conclusion: Putting Popular Music in Leeds ‘On the Map’ 279 Brett Lashua, Paul Thompson, Kitty Ross and Karl Spracklen Notes on Contributors 287 Index 299

Delving into the rich musical history of Leeds with its long tradition of vibrant venues, nightclubs, dance halls, pubs, and other sites of musical entertainment, this is the first scholarly examination of popular music in Leeds. The contributors use the popular music of Leeds to exemplify and inform understandings of broader cultural and urban changes, the social and historical significance of music as mass media; music and migration; music, racialization, and social equity; and industrial decline, deindustrialization, neoliberalism, and the rise of the twenty-four-hour city. Charting moments of stark musical politicization and de-politicization, while also tracing arguments about heritagizing popular music within discussions about music’s place in museums and in the urban economy. This book contributes to debates about why music matters, has mattered, and continues to matter in Leeds and beyond.