The Blues Loft in High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire became a notable blues venue when the UK ‘blues explosion’ took off in late 1967/early 1968. Many of the top blues-rock bands like Fleetwood Mac, Savoy Brown and Jethro Tull performed at the club.
I’ve started a list of acts, taken from the Bucks Free Press newspaper, which advertised gigs from 1968 onwards. Please leave comments with any memories and missing acts.
5 April 1968 – Champion Jack Dupree and Shakey Vick’s Blues Band
12 April 1968 – Savoy Brown Blues Band
19 April 1968 – Chicken Shack
26 April 1968 – Shakey Vick’s Blues Band (Chiswick group who play every Friday)
Bucks Free Press runs story on the club in its 24 April issue, page 2
24 May 1968 – Jethro Tull
31 May 1968 – Dynaflow Blues
7 June 1968 – Shakey Vick’s New Band
14 June 1968 – Doc K’s Blues Band
21 June 1968 – Black Cat Bones
28 June 1968 – Dynaflow Blues
5 July 1968 – Keef Hartley with His Good Good Band
12 July 1968 – Savoy Brown Blues Band and Wild Angels
19 July 1968 – Black Cat Bones
26 July 1968 – Doc K’s Blues Band
2 August 1968 – Bruno’s Blues Band
23 August 1968 – Pegasus
30 August 1968 – Champion Jack Dupree and Bruno’s Blues Band
6 September 1968 – Savoy Brown
13 September 1968 – Black Cat Bones
20 September 1968 – Doc K’s Blues Band
27 September 1968 – Keef Hartley
2 October 1968 – John Dummer Blues Band (Dave Kelly guest)
9 October 1968 – Ian Anderson
18 October 1968 – Steve Miller (Delivery not US band)
23 October 1968 – Doc K’s Blues Band
1 November 1968 – Duster Bennett and Smokey Rice
6 November 1968 – Pegasus (with guests)
8 November 1968 – Curtis Jones and Dynaflow Blues
15 November 1968 – Spirit of John Morgan
22 November 1968 – Bobby Parker and his band
29 November 1968 – Black Cat Bones
6 December 1968 – John Dummer Blues Band and Dave Kelly
13 December 1968 – John Lee’s Groundhogs and Tony McPhee
20 December 1968 – Duster Bennett, Killing Floor, Ian Anderson, Alexis Korner and Mike Raven
27 December 1968 – Savoy Brown
17 January 1969 – Black Cat Bones
24 January 1969 – The Killing Floor
31 January 1969 – Duster Bennett and John Thomas Blues Band
7 February 1969 – Jerome Arnold Band
14 February 1969 – Shakey Vick and Al Jones
21 February 1969 – Blodwyn Pig
28 February 1969 – Fish Hook
5 March 1969 – Freddie King and Steamhammer
21 March 1969 – Alexis Korner Blues Band
28 March 1969 – Jerome Arnold Band
4 April 1969 – The ‘New’ Black Cat Bones
The following gigs are from Time Out unless otherwise noted
11 April 1969 – Pegasus
18 April 1969 – Champion Jack Dupree and Shakey Vick’s Blues Band (Bucks Free Press)
23 April 1969 – Blodwyn Pig
25 April 1969 – Steamhammer (Melody Maker has McKenna Mendelson Mainline)
30 April 1969 – Mike Cooper (Bucks Free Press)
2 May 1969 – Killing Floor
7 May 1969 – Made In Sweden (Bucks Free Press
9 May 1969 – McKenna Mendelson Mainline (from Canada)
14 May 1969 – Lowell Fulson and Steve Miller’s Delivery
16 May 1969 – Keef Hartley (Bucks Free Press)
21 May 1969 – Howlin’ Wolf and John Dummer Blues Band
23 May 1969 – Black Cat Bones
30 May 1969 – Shaky Vic (Bucks Free Press has New Dynaflow Band and John Thomas)
4 June 1969 – Freddie King and The Killing Floor (Bucks Free Press)
6 June 1969 – Savoy Brown
11 June 1969 – Blodwyn Pig
13 June 1969 – Jellybread
18 June 1969 – John Lee Hooker and John Dummer Blues Band
25 June 1969 – Otis Span
27 June 1969 – Jo-Ann Kelly and Brett Marvin & The Thunderbolts (Bucks Free Press)
2 July 1969 – Gordon Smith and Transfusion (Bucks Free Press)
4 July 1969 – Ashkan (Bucks Free Press)
18 July 1969 – Bakerloo
25 July 1969 – Sam Apple Pie
30 July 1969 – Juniors Eyes
1 August 1969 – Spirit of John Morgan
8 August 1969 – Gordon Smith and Errol Dixon’s band The Nighthawks (Bucks Free Press)
15 August 1969 – Liverpool Scene
22 August 1969 – Blodwyn Pig
29 August 1969 – King Crimson
5 September 1969 – Brett Marvin
12 September 1969 – Steamhammer
19 September 1969 – Clouds
26 September 1969 – Juniors Eyes
3 October 1969 – Bakerloo
10 October 1969 – Ashkan
17 October 1969 – East of Eden
24 October 1969 – Howlin Wolf
31 October 1969 – Juke Boy Bonner & The Nighthawks
7 November 1969 – Stone The Crows
14 November 1969 – Skin Alley
21 November 1969 – Mighty Baby
28 November 1969 – Third Ear Band
4 December 1969 – Steamhammer
12 December 1969 – Steamhammer
19 December 1969 – Liverpool Scene
24 December 1969 – John Dummer Blues Band
31 December 1969 – Clark-Hutchinson
2 January 1970 – Juniors Eyes
7 January 1970 – Mott The Hoople
I was at the Howlin’ Wolf gig on 24th October 1969. His backing band was called Junco Partners. The Wolf was a big man!
I was at the 21 May 1969 Howlin’ Wolf gig, when he was backed by the John Dummer Blues Band. Some members of the audience were shouting out for ‘Spoonful’, but he never performed it. I don’t think it was a good idea telling him what to do, but, hey, his performance was wonderful!!!
Many thanks for this totally amazing list. I was there for most of them .I recall during the Jethro Tull performance -I was sitting in the front row of chairs and said to my friend ‘they ought to play ‘Cat’s Squirrel’. He agreed so I said to Ian Anderson ‘ Why don’t you play ‘Cat’s Squirrel ?- my friend back me up’ Ian Anderson said ;’you what?’ he then asked the guitarist if he could play it (of course he could) and the bass player who said ‘yeah’ . So Ian Anderson said ‘because you asked for it ,here it is Cat’s Squirrel’. They then put Cat’s Squirrel on their first album with the footnote ‘We put this on here cos the fans like it’. Glory Days..