The Mod Generation

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Cloud 9, Manchester

Did anybody go to Cloud 9, Manchester on a Saturday afternoon in the 1980's? I did and would love to reminisce.

Dave

Tags: 80's, manchester, mod, revival

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Permalink Reply by barrycooder on October 17, 2010 at 8:48
Hi Dave
Yes - spent many of my teenage years hanging around cloud 9 on a Saturday afternoon. Would often leave 10 mins before the end to avoid big fight with lads from spin in !

Looking back amazed that i was allowed and in and more suprisingly could buy beers without being asked for any ID ! Also remember the 'cave' next door where me and my mates would frequently visit to drool over the attractive 'modette' who worked there on a saturday.

Funnily enough - recently was discusssing cloud 9 with a girl from work ( ex skin ) who has lent me a tape compiled by the DJ. Im currently converting into an MP3 and would be happy to post out to any site members. Half way through his set he announces that there are 'chips and burgers' on sale at the bar if anyones hungry !

I remember cloud 9 as a mixture of Mods, Skinheads and Psychobillys with an ecleptic playlist to suit. Each tunes would call a different 'tribe' to the floor :

Israelites / 007 : Desmond Dekker
Wooly Bully : Sam the Sham
Aint nobody here but us chickens : BB King ?
Summer Fun : The Barracudas

Would love to see some old photos if any one has any taken from around this time.

Found this pic on someones facebook page ( hope they wont mind ) taken of the entrance.
I know it was a popular punk hang out also - but has anyone got any images from the Saturday afternoon sessions ?
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Permalink Reply by Chris Cameron on October 17, 2010 at 8:57
I think there are a few on here from either Manchester or the north of England David so I am sure they will put some of their memories on.
Permalink Reply by David Smith on October 19, 2010 at 6:41
Hi Barry and Chris

The modette was called Sara, I remember her well. There is a Cloud 9 Facebook group, complete with memories and pictures http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=35717148707
Permalink Reply by Chris Cameron on October 19, 2010 at 7:22
Good stuff David, im sure it will be well viewed. As far as I know even some of the worst clubs ever devised up here (not Mod one's) have pages on Facebook so there is no reason why it should not work for your Cloud 9 Club. Not that I'm trying to say that Cloud 9 was rubbish because it played sickobilly music or anything ha ha.
Permalink Reply by barrycooder on October 19, 2010 at 21:53
Hi Dave

Thanks for the link. Brilliant ! I cant believe it - 2 of my mates are sat in the background of one of these photos !
It brought a lump to my throat and a tear to my eye ( sentimental old b@stard that i am ! ). Cloud 9 was a real 'coming of age' place for me which i remember with fond memories.

I think the girl was called Sara. She had a great bob cut, was a few years older than usand we thought she was the ultimate in cool. Spent a lot of money on rubbish ties as an excuse to chat to her !

Between us me and my 'crew' made 1 really good mod !

1 of us had some jam shoes,
I had a fishtail -
someone else had a boating blazer !

My own boating blazer was an original oxford boating blazer that i bought off my mates dad. The lapels were huge and my nan kindly altered them for me but it never really fitted right. I also had some tatty bowlers that i nicked from belle vue bowling alley leaving behind my new trainers that my mum had bought me ( got well b)llocked ! )

Also remember trying to turn my old footie boots into jam shoes by taking the studs out and colouring some of thw hite strips in with a magic marker. They sort of looked ok on a dark night !

Agree with Chris that Psychobillys and mods made an unlikley paring ! It often seemed the way that anyone who was 'not a casual' in manchester at that time would end up getting lumped together in the same venue. Spent a lot of time hanging round the pinball machines in afflecks ( Black Knight - split level table ) and drinking brews in Maurices cafe.

Do you remember the 2 old teds that were always there propping up the juke box ? fave tune on there was the classic 'fortune teller' by Benny Spellman.

Thanks again Dave- you ahve made an aging mod very happy ! Offer still stands with the Cloud 9 mix. Let me know ...
Permalink Reply by Chris Cameron on October 20, 2010 at 7:35
You are right about the strange mixs that started occuring after a while Barry. By 1983 up here there was not the same antagonism between the Mods and skins, rockabillys, or punks any more and as the scene dwindled it became common for all the groups to mingle a bit more without fights happening. By the time casuals and psychobillys were around I was starting to get out of the Mod scene, although it took a good while before I could totally detach myself from something I loved so much.
Permalink Reply by barrycooder on October 21, 2010 at 20:35
Read a good article a while ago in 'MOJO' magazine - ( which i tend to buy for the free CDS occasionally ) called 'tribal britain' which summed it up quite well. I guess in the early to mid 80s you had lots of 'left over scenes' that had peaked earlier ( punks, teds, northern, ska etc ) and it made for an interesting mix.

In Manchester ( im sure like any city ) there were definate territories dominated by each tribe which you would frequent or avoid depending on where your loyaltys lie.

For example - cloud 9 ( one of the few mod venues ) was next door to SPIN IN - which was one of the only shops that sold 'hip hop' which was just started to become popular. Less than a minute round the corner was BOOTS where all the punks would sit on the steps drinking cider and sniffing thinners.

It was a good time to be young where buying a particular jacket and pair of shoes would affiliate you with a scene and it just seems that now adays there isnt the same variety or richness in the youth scene. Yes i know i sound just like my dad - and would probably feel differently if i was a teenager now, but am pleased to have lived the times i lived which im sure most of us are.
Permalink Reply by David Smith on October 21, 2010 at 21:32
Barry - thanks for helping getting this thread going. I used to come over from Burnley, in suit/boating blazer and sta-prest and Black US Army parka (from The Cave). Hang around in The Cave till Cloud 9 opened, trying on mohair suits and chatting up Sara. Remember once being in the changing room as the place emptied to go and 'sort out the Casuals'.

Great club, all the mods and scooterists got on, mainly without incident. Happy Days.
Permalink Reply by barrycooder on October 21, 2010 at 22:42
no problem dave - its nice to speak to someone else who remembers these days, and enjoyed the link to the photos !

There is a guy on that facebook page talking about a 'cloud 9 mix' that he has compiled with over 100 songs on it. Do you know where i can get a copy ? There was a SKA track that i have been after for years now that used to get played at cloud 9 and then also at the RITZ on a monday night.

Sounded quite like a Desmond Dekker track ( but not any of the major hits ) and it was so long ago that i dont know if it even exists at all or whether i have sort of invented it in my head. For years i thought it may be a track called 'everybody rude now' by Keith McCarthy.

Eventually located this on a Studio 1 comp album but then played it and was dissapointed that it wasnt the one that i remembered. Do you have any memories of the tunes played at Cloud 9 ( in particular original Ska tracks ? )
Permalink Reply by Paul James Molloy on October 22, 2010 at 11:49
Barry strange that the punks in manchester hung around BOOTS as this was also the case in glasgow, the punks and combat skins hung about outside boots and virgin on union st,so you had to watch yerself there, the casuals had the middle of argyle st , and barras was mod( and sussed skin) territory
Permalink Reply by barrycooder on October 22, 2010 at 21:42
Hi Paul

I knew quite a few punks in Manchester and at the time questioned the appeal of the steps of boots as a place to hang about. They explained that it was a 'political gesture' because by the 80s punk had become a lot more politically focused on topics such as 'animal liberation' etc and the direct action anarchy movement. Band such as conflict would encourage punks to target what were seen as 'unethical businesses' ( such as BOOTS who at the time sold a lot of products tested on animals ). The idea of punks sitting on the steps drinking cider with rats sitting on their shoulders was to deter the average middle class shopper from going entering the store thus effecting business. ( evidently this didnt have much impact as there are still plenty of boots stores and not many punks !! ).

I even heard that conflict would regularly print maps prior to their gigs which would use businesses such as boots, barclays bank ( during the south africa sanctions ), butchers and fur traders as land marks. After the gig when the crowd had been whipped into a suitable frenzy - gangs of charged up punks would follow the map smashing windows and pushing dog sh1t through letter boxes etc.

Whilst not something i ever did i think its sort of poignant of those times when politics were a lot more prevelent in youth culture than they are today.

Bands like the Jam, Specials, Dexys etc also had a lot to say compared to whats about today and i do miss that 'passion' that young people felt that they could, and needed to make a difference ( ther i go sounded horribly old again ! )

When i think back to the late 70s early 80s there seemed to be much more 'protest' in general and i can remember a phase myself of sporting a beret and feeling very much 'angered' in my own misguided way.

Was discussing this with some friends recently who can all recall a period in their youth of thinking that a nuclear war was just around the corner and then the general dispondancy of leaving school with no real prospects of anything.

Anyway - enough of my yakking ! didnt mean this to turn into a dreary political rant as there are other forums for that type of thing.

did i mention that i made jam shoes out of football boots ?
Permalink Reply by barrycooder on October 26, 2010 at 10:15
ATTENTION DAVE SMITH !

http://www.megaupload.com/?d=UM2I60BN

http://www.megaupload.com/?d=E5WN3QJA

As mentioned previously these are links to uploaded files of the cloud 9 tape that i converted to MP3.

Quality not great but then its converted from and old c90 cassette. WARNING : Does contain some psychobilly bits but you can forward these bits on.

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