Concorde back

MORE than a few tears were shed when the bulldozers moved in on Brighton's historic Concorde bar.

The makeshift, low-roofed building in Madeira Drive was a symbol of the town's vibrant music scene for 40 years.

Some of the country's top live bands and comedians played there and the venue was the original home of the influential Boutique club, co-founded by Hove pop star Norman Cook.

But in October last year the Concorde was pulled down to make way for the multi-million pound Aquarium Terraces redevelopment.

It marked the end of an era and Cook was among regulars who broke off chunks of wall and floor as souvenirs during a farewell party.

But now the venue is coming back.

Former owner Chris Steward is spending £400,000 redeveloping the Madeira Drive shelter hall, less than half a mile from the original site, as Concorde 2.

The Grade II listed building will be fitted with a stage, a £150,000 sound system and 50ft bar before it hosts its first live bands at the end of October.

Council chiefs have welcomed the scheme, which will see the Victorian building restored and will bring new life to the eastern end of the seafront.

Lead leisure councillor Mike Middleton said: "This will add life to Madeira Drive and will also make it safer."

The council's policy of spending money between the piers to attract investment has been a big success.

For Chris, who has a 50-year lease on the property, it marks a return to the live music scene.

He recently renovated the Albert pub in Trafalgar Street, with major changes including scrapping regular concerts.

He expects Concorde 2 to have a capacity of about 500 and promises a wide-ranging music policy.

Acts already booked include Lee 'Scratch' Perry, blues veterans Peter Green and John Mayall, singer-songwriter Billy Bragg and early rap stars Sugarhill Gang.

There will also be local band nights, all-day jazz and blues sessions and occasional comedy slots.

Chris, 48, said: "You can put together a group of local bands or a comedy night quite quickly. We are leaving the schedule open to some extent.

"We are open to proposals from promoters. I see it as more of a moveable feast than in the past. We won't be tying ourselves down to particular things on particular nights.

"It means we can have someone like John Mayall on a Saturday night, which will sell out but attract an older audience.

"At the weekend everything in Brighton is youth-orientated."

After being a cafe for several years, the shelter hall became a haven for bikers, called the Waterfront, before it closed 18 months ago.

Conditions in the lease include taking responsibility for public toilets on the site and allowing visitors access to the adjacent Victorian lift during the day.

Current work includes repairing stained glass windows, installing new shower and toilet facilities and digging foundations for the stage.

There are also plans to restore the lift to allow customers access to both Marine Parade and seating on an upper terrace.

Brighton and Hove Council's long-term aim is to smarten up the whole of Kemp Town seafront and Concorde 2 will be followed by nightclubs, bars and restaurants when the Aquarium Terraces development opens next year.

Chris believes the venue will offer revellers an alternative to the already-bustling esplanade between the town's two piers.

He said: "We are halfway between the Palace Pier and the Marina, two of Brighton's biggest tourist attractions, with a kind of desert between them. It will be somewhere different for people to go who want to get away from the clubs.

"I look in the music Press and see 30 bands who are touring but aren't coming to Brighton because there isn't the right size venue.

"Bands like Travis can play 1,000 plus capacity venues now, but they would come here because they know Brighton is so important."

Chris also hopes fans of the cramped, thrown-together feel of the old Concorde will warm to its new incarnation.

He said: "In the old days we never put on much of a show because only the people at the front could see anything. It is a case of learning from what was wrong before and building on it.

"There is something about cobbled-together charm but bands expect something professional. We have to built up our reputation again.

"It will be like the Concorde has grown up

a bit."

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