Tuesday 15 December 2009

Pubs need to be live


I am a great fan of live music. I'm not much of a fan of most piped music in pubs. I simply love a great live gig in a good boozer. Sadly this is becoming an increasingly rare occurrence. I have found it difficult to find any advantage of the licence trade of the 2003 licencing act, but it is certain to me that there are plenty of disadvantages. One disadvantage of giving councils overall control of licensing is that they would rather not grant entertainment facility than risk complaints about noise nuisance.

I know several semiprofessional musicians and they have reported a reduction in their ability to get work. We would like to hold more music event's but our communications with the council do not make the effort we need to put in to make it happen worth the payback.

There has been a suggestion that premises that hold less than 100 people should be allowed exemption. Apparently councils are worried that it might result in an increase of noise complaints. Feargal Sharky has hit out at the inward arse covering tactics of the kill joy local councils. I just wish they would take a more can-do attitude rather than running scared in case some anal retentive complains.

The Publican is trying to help out with it's Listen up! campaign. I don't know what we can do, very few of these campaigns seem to make much difference, but even so, I'd like to think something might happen. Legislation these days is working very hard to kill everything that I enjoy.

7 comments:

Velky Al said...

Can you get round it by "organising" for musicians to drop by and use the pub as a practise venue/jam session?

Unknown said...

Al, yes, we do that and it's great when it happens.

The problem is we'd like to advertise and have some of the paid gigs we like to play. Advertising attracts attention of the council who would then stop any event if our ducks aren't in a row.

Without advertising to ensure maximum revenue gigs can't pay.

Anonymous said...

It does surprise me the number of people who have an aversion to noise who choose to live next to a pub. The pub has been there much longer than they have. No one has made them live next to a pub. And the authorities pay far too much attention to their whingeing.

I'm afraid this country is full of little Hitlers and wannabe Quislings. If we had lost in 1940 there would be only too many folk, or indeed volk, who would have loved a culture of grassing on their neighbours, twitching the curtains and trying to tell others how to live their lives.

TBW, I love the London Hotel Nightmare blog Dave. You poor old bumpkin!

Washy

Anonymous said...

TBW = BTW = By the way. Bloody abbreviations!

Leigh said...

I do like live music, and it's rare to find in pubs these days. I've just posted about Ossett Brewery's The Hop, which is a venue opening in Leeds next year that's purpose is to unite 'real ale' and live music. thought it may be of interest.

Sat In A Pub said...

I'm a fan of live music in the pub, although I'm also partial to a well stacked jukebox. Sadly, the warnings sounded about what would happen if councils were granted control of licensing have come true.

Paul E. Bennett said...

Dave, As you will know if you remember me from our New Years stay a few years back, I am all in favour of live music and decent music on jukes as well. However, I think that the Local Authorities should not have the power to prevent live music being played so long as you are up to date with the PRS and do not have it so loud as to be easily heard by your mid-range neighbours. Your closest neighbours are a reasonable distance away so I don't think you would have a problem.

For drop in musicians, having a permanent PA set-up might help out there for those who drop in to jam.

All the Best,

Paul & Jason (and now Annette too).