Venue: The Jacaranda
Town: Liverpool, GB

The Jacaranda, also known historically as the Jacaranda Club or affectionately The Jac, is a renowned music venue in Liverpool, closely associated with the rise of the Merseybeat phenomenon in the 1960s. Opened by The Beatles' first manager, Allan Williams, in 1958, it played a key role in launching the band's early careers and provided a stage for local acts like Gerry and the Pacemakers & Rory Storm and The Hurricanes. As the headquarters of Jacaranda Records, the club continues to operate as a live music venue, record store, and bar, maintaining its place in Liverpool's music scene for over 60 years. Local promoter and businessman Allan Williams opened The Jacaranda in September 1958 in a former watch-repair shop at 21 Slater Street, Liverpool. The venue attracted a youthful clientele by offering one of the city's first espresso machines, an American style jukebox, and live music. He named the venue The Jacaranda, after an exotic species of ornamental flowering tree, Jacaranda mimosifolia. The venue quickly became a central spoke of the Liverpool music scene, with Williams' friend and sometime business partner, the Trinidadian calypso singer, songwriter and music promoter Lord Woodbine, occupying a nightly residency slot and providing a focal point for many young local musicians. Described by Williams in The Man Who Gave The Beatles Away as "The Black Hole of Calcutta set to music", The Jacaranda's cramped basement provided the UK with what is considered to be one of its first truly multicultural venues, bringing together a mixed audience of immigrants, bohemians and students to enjoy a blend of musical acts that ranged from calypso and steel drum acts to an emerging generation of rock and roll bands. It was also to become the gateway to international attention for many local artists, with Williams organising a series of tours of Hamburg for several acts including Derry and the Seniors following a successful pathfinding visit by Woodbine in 1960. Among those who