Royston Rose introduces a long-running jazz club in northern Enfield

*The Botany Bay Jazz Club hosts performances twice a month on Tuesdays*

The Bay Jazz Club was formed in the mid-1990s and for the first few years it met weekly on Tuesday nights with the same band performing each time.

In 2000, a change took place with a committee being formed and a different band being invited to play every week. Under the chairmanship of Gordon Rose, a most wonderful character, the club quickly went from strength to strength.

A particular feature of Gordon’s was that whatever the time of year, he always wore a very colourful Hawaiian shirt. Nobody could miss him, and everybody received a great welcome from him. Despite Gordon’s death a few years ago, that warm welcome remains a hallmark of the club.

The primary aim of our club is to provide a mixture of traditional, Dixieland and New Orleans jazz. Over the years the club has proved very popular with musicians and it is fair to say that if there was such a thing as a ‘Premier League’ of jazz clubs, we would certainly be in it!

In keeping with changing trends, a few years ago the club moved from its Tuesday-evening slot to lunchtimes, and this has proved very popular. Another change was to move from a weekly set up to the first and third Tuesdays of the month, with increasing numbers justifying the change.

During the Covid-19 lockdown restrictions and ‘social distancing’ the club was one of the very few to continue operating, as the bands played on the pavilion veranda outside with the audience sitting on the cricket field! This was obviously important for the club finances but also the bands themselves, who formed a queue to come and play.

We always welcome newcomers, and it is not a requirement to be a member to attend. The benefit of membership, however, is that for an annual fee of £17 all members get a reduction of £2 from the standard £14 admission cost. The club boasts a well-stocked bar, with club prices offering another saving to be had. All those attending bring their own lunch and there is much fun to be had by comparing the banquets!

The Bay Jazz Club runs on the first and third Tuesday or each month, from 12.30pm until 3pm, at Botany Bay Cricket Club in East Lodge Lane. For more information:
Visit pid-gen.uk/BayJazzClub

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