Nominate High Wycombe music venue for Blue Plaque
As part of BBC Music Day on Friday 9th June 2017, BBC Local Radio are working with The British Plaque Trust to choose a recipient for an official Blue Plaque in each BBC Local Radio station area in England and the Channel Islands.
To quote the BBC website:
The BBC are asking their listeners for nominations for an iconic location or music legend that they feel should receive the honour of an official Blue Plaque.
The British Plaque Trust criteria is to commemorate innovative, influential and successful people who have died. In keeping with this, listeners to BBC Local Radio are asked to nominate singers, musicians, songwriters or producers from any genre of music with a distinct local connection, who are no longer alive. They can also nominate significant locations which are a big part of our musical heritage, for example iconic venues and locations of important events.
So, what about High Wycombe?
Surely The Nag’s Head and/or promoter Ron Watts deserve a nomination?
The story of both The Nag’s Head and Ron Watts are documented elsewhere on this website but if you are looking for a quick summary, Watts, who died in 2016, was instrumental in bringing leading Blues, Rock and Folk artists to the London Road venue in the late 1960’s – including John Lee Hooker, a young Marc Bolan, Status Quo, Jethro Tull and Thin Lizzy. During the early days of Punk, the locally born Watts took the risk to promote the likes of The Sex Pistols, The Damned, The Clash, The Stranglers and The Jam – ALL BEFORE THEY HAD SIGNED RECORD DEALS. All these acts have since become iconic names in the history of the UK and world music.
Meanwhile, Watts, who also promoted at The 100 Club in Oxford Street, has largely gone unrecognised for the part he played in promoting acts that would regularly get turned away from other venues. Ironically, in the same year that Watts died, The Nag’s Head also went the way of many other live music venues – lost to residential development after protests from the local music loving public were ignored. Local councillors seemingly more interested in ticking boxes for housing requirements, rather than providing an outlet for musical creation, inspiration and community based gatherings.
Read more from the links below.
Get your nominations in by midnight 26 February 2017:
Share on social media using #localmusiclegends
http://www.bbc.co.uk/mediacentre/latestnews/2017/music-day-blue-plaques
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-38991904
The local radio station for High Wycombe is BBC Three Counties
Fantastic idea Paul!