Mothers revisited

Legendary Birmingham venue reunion for charity gig.

Mothers in Erdington was once one of the best rock venues on the planet. In May some of the bands that played there in its heyday are to play in a unique fiftieth anniversary gig.

The concert, on 10th May at Sutton Coldfield Town Hall, will be headlined by Soft Machine, with performances from the Groundhogs, Edgar Broughton, Stan Webb’s Chicken Shack and NWOBHM pioneers Quartz. Supporting these classic bands are younger Birmingham psychedelic and progressive bands. The event will also feature a wall of memorabilia and photos, including unique posters.

Enthusiast Dave Gordon, who is passionate about the Birmingham music scene both from the past and currently, is behind the event. It is sponsored by local record shop Psychotron Records and any profits are being donated to the charity Worldwide Cancer Research.

In the late 1960’s a stream of top rock bands played at Mothers, such as Led Zeppelin, Free, Black Sabbath, Canned Heat, Fleetwood Mac and Deep Purple. Pink Floyd even recorded live at the club in 1969 their LP, Ummagumma.

Mothers was only open for three years, but it attracted the best bands around at that time, and the legendary John Peel went to most of the gigs and called it “the best club in Britain”. The club was twice voted the world’s best venue by Billboard magazine.

Worldwide Cancer Research is a charity that funds research into any type of cancer anywhere in the world. They fund projects in the world’s best research institutions and support diverse and unexpected projects.

Psychotron Records is a leading buyer and seller of rare and collectible records. They have been trading for over twenty years and recently opened a shop in Boldmere.

The event is on Friday 10th May from 6pm. Tickets £20 available from www.mothers2.co.uk