Withington
has a number of connections with the development of popular
music. One of the key events was the creation of Factory
Records in 1978 operating from 86, Palatine Road. This
meant that members of Factory
bands were
often seen around Withington, and some bands were
Withington-based.
On
15th June 2017, BBC
Music (Radio Manchester) held an
event to celebrate the role of this
building in popular music with an unveiling
of a blue plaque.
 |
 |
In
addition to Factory Records, there was another record label
in Withington, Rabid Records, run from the former Co-op
shop on Cotton Lane, set up by Tosh Ryan, Bruce Mitchell and
Martin Hannett. Bands and artists associated with this label
include The
Buzzcocks, Slaughter and the Dogs, John Cooper Clarke, Ed
Banger and the Nosebleeds and
Jilted John. See the Manchester
Evening News article for more details.
For
details of the history of Factory Records and Rabid Records
and their association
with Withington, see the M20Festival
display.
In
addition to these connections, St. Annes Music Ltd. was a
promotion company located for a period in Kennedy House, 2
Swinbourne Grove, Withington and associated with a number of
bands, including 10cc.,
Manchester
Bands
associated with Withington
Joy
Division
[Image
courtesy moviespicture.org]
New
Order
[Image
courtesy Bonafide magazine bonafidemag.com]
Durutti
Column
10cc
Bibliography
More
details of the music scene in Withington, and in Manchester,
may be found in the following publications:
- Sonic Youth Slept on My Floor: Manchester, Music and More. Dave Haslam. Little, Brown, 2018. Memoirs of the Withington and Manchester music scene 40 years ago.
- Manchester, England: The story of the pop cult city. Dave Haslam. Fourth Estate, 1999.
- Factory: The story of a record label. Mick Middles. Virgin Books, 2009.
- The Hacienda: How not to run a club. Peter Hook. Simon and Schuster UK Ltd., 2009.
- Shake, Rattle and Rain: Popular music making in Manchester 1955-1995. C.P. Lee. hotunpress, 2008.
- When We Were Thin:
Music, Madness and Manchester. C.P.
Lee.Hardinge Simpole
- We Were Strangers. Ed. R.V. Hirst, Confingo Publishing, 2018. A collection of prose pieces inspired by the works of Joy Division.