Royal Park Road pub, Royal Park Road - Merrion Centre
... your comments ....
BUSKING TOUR...Joe and Paul took the boys on an impromptu busking tour - playing publicly and outside venues acoustically... the 'shows' generated some excitement about the forthcoming album... They all hitched from London by the M1 and agreed to meet up in the pub near Nottingham Railway Station. The Last Days of the Clash - Vince White pg 226
page updated - June 2000 - began
page updated - April 2020 - redesigned and added too
Royal Park Road pub, Royal Park Road, Leeds
No known audio or video
Merrion Centre
No known audio or video
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Did you go? What do you remember?
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Think they only played a few songs there...
I moved to Leeds from the former G.D.R. to live with my 1st wife and very young daughter.
We went out the day before the picture was taken to some hippy friends' couple house.
We walked through a road called Delph Lane near the spot and in brilliant sunshine saw some very neat looking leather clad punks outside a terraced house drinking beer.
We did not recognise them. When we arrived, the TV was on and Andy Kershaw said that The Clash are busking in Leeds. The next day I took a camera by chance and managed to take the pics.
The Clash or better Joe and Paul and chums played a good half hour set outside the Royal Park Pub in Leeds.
Unfortunately I may not have the negs anymore, but I'll have a tidy up in the next 2 weeks and let you known if I find them.
Tilo - tilohartig[a]yahoo.co.uk
Thanks to Tony White for helping identfy these photograpghs ...PDF
Post by Bruno » Tue 21 Feb, 2012 3:17 pm
Jogon On your outdoor photo, on the low wall behind and to the right of Joe Strummer, there are four people sitting. I'm 99% sure that the fourth one from the left (with the long fringe) is an old mate of mine, Stephen Barber. He's gone on to great things. You could contact him via this link if you wanted to ask if it's him, and if it is, what he remembers about that gig.http://fada.kingston.ac.uk/staff/stephe ... barber.php
Post by Jimmyv » Tue 22 Apr, 2014 2:32 pm
Yes, that's definitely the back terrace and garden of the Royal Park. I'm not sure if the terrace is still there as I haven't been there for years, but there are now flats built where the garden was. thats the back garden at the Royal Park the gig was organised by The Magnificent Seven who put benefit gigs on and invited local talent to play. The Clash just turned up and asked to play. i think there were 100 bands on that day
Post by tnimbus » Sat 08 Apr, 2017 10:28 am
I was cramming for my 2nd year Biochemistry exams in an attic room in Queens Road when I heard these guys walking down the road strumming guitars and looked out the window. Saw some guys heading towards the Royal Park and I went back to cramming & didn't go down the boozer that night.
The pictures above are definitely the back of the Royal Park.
Friends of mine were down there and one of them Donna, pinched Strummer's arse. The University Student paper ran a bit on it and I remember seeing the photos in it - maybe they keep a record....
They stayed with friends of a friend Martin. Story was that Strummer was so hard to get on with he was 'moved' around quite a bit as no one could spend any time with him.
Glad this is on here otherwise I don't think people would believe me when I recall the story.
Postby jesusaubergine » Mon 23 Oct, 2017 3:05 pm
Jogon wrote:
I remember mates saying they'd seen them at the time. But the venues and sheer oddity of it seemed to rule it out and since then I've thought it a Leeds Rock-History Urban-Myth.
There was no multi-band gig going on though it is true The Magnificent 7 did organise such events, there at the Royal Park and many other venues. Fact is, we were allowed to rehearse upstairs and store our gear there in return for playing every thursday. That weekend we had been playing in Manchester friday 3rd and sat 4th. We returned to Leeds to drop the gear off beck at the Royal Park tea-timish.
BMC - Royal Park was Monday, Alarm gig Tuesday.
The [turned up] at the Royal Park - then we turned up unloading our instruments. They grabbed them and played an impromptu set. That's the story. They will have had their own guitars etc somewhere stashed for use later on and they might have gone elsewhere such as the Fav, but that's the story about them at the Royal Park.
There is no date for this - or other recollection - howeve the band played impromtiously so we have included it on this day for no toher reasonthan we only have one other 'busk'!. Any further info would be welcome...
Colin Paylor
I saw them busking at the Merrion Center in Leeds way way back in time ... nipped up to jumbo , bought a Clash single , went back and got it signed by the whole band !
Le Phonographique AKA The Phono - 4 May 2019 ·
34 years ago today The Clash played the Phono in Leeds, so any of this is today's theme. - Facebook: Le Phonographique
Karen Goodgame
Omg! I had so forgotten about that! But yes, now I do. Wow, good times
The Clash playing live in a pub in Leeds, they stunned fans with a... Photos - Getty Images
Prof Karen Sayer - @ProfKarenSayer - 07/05/2014, 06:28
“@GTrombone:
Nice! The Clash busking at the Hyde Park Hotel, Leeds, 6 May, 1983. pic.twitter.com/Dg6EL7rQnk” @shaunwkeaveny good honest toil :)
barbara butterworth - @bbutterw2 - 13/01/2018, 08:43
@prodnose 1. The Clash when they were doing their busking around Leeds ‘83 or ‘84. Walked past the front steps of university as they were tuning up. No one watching at that point. Thought they looked very professional for buskers. Heartbroken when I read about it the next day.
Mark Cranfield
I was there too - even had a beer and a chat with Joe in the York Arms, which was nice!
Neil Coombes
Yes I was there in Leeds Martin Hanson ran over from Henry Price flats - someone threw some red paint on joes jacket outside the Uni and I had a leak next to him in the gents at the Faversham !
Tony White - @tony_white_ - 29 Oct 2011 - @johnrobb77
Straight to Hell? No, Leeds. The Clash busking tour of 1985 (inc archive report from Leeds Other Paper) http://bit.ly/tK6BnW
BBC Radio 6 Music - @BBC6Music - 6 Jan 2012 -
The law won :( RT @SistaLou : #buskerheroes My fella saw The Clash busking outside York Minster in early 80s. they got moved on by the fuzz!
U-U-U-U-Stay at home please - @UtahSaints - 9 Feb 2017 - #ThrowbackThursday
This one time #TheClash rocked up & played at the back of our local pub,The Royal Park #Leeds
Post by Chrism » Tue 17 Jan, 2012 3:58 pm
I remember them in the Fav car park as I was a DJ at The Fav at the time. Didn't take any pix myself but I know a few people there did so there must be some pix laying about in shoe boxes somewhere. I think there were some pix of the Phono gig on the Phono page on facebook, but a lot of stuff got lost or removed when FB did one of it's unannounced upgrades.
Post by Tasa » Mon 20 Feb, 2012 9:28 pm
[Park Royal ] Has someone any photos. That's definitely the back terrace and garden of the Royal Park. I'm not sure if the terrace is still there as I haven't been there for years, but there are now flats built where the garden was.
Post by Bruno » Tue 21 Feb, 2012 3:17 pm
JogonOn your outdoor [Royal Park] photo, on the low wall behind and to the right of Joe Strummer, there are four people sitting. I'm 99% sure that the fourth one from the left (with the long fringe) is an old mate of mine, Stephen Barber. He's gone on to great things. You could contact him via this link if you wanted to ask if it's him, and if it is, what he remembers about that gig.http://fada.kingston.ac.uk/staff/stephe ... barber.php
Post by jesusaubergine » Mon 23 Oct, 2017 3:05 pm
Jogon wrote: I remember mates saying they'd seen them at the time. But the venues and sheer oddity of it seemed to rule it out and since then I've thought it a Leeds Rock-History Urban-Myth.
[Park Royal] There was no multi-band gig going on though it is true The Magnificent 7 did organise such events, there at the Royal Park and many other venues. Fact is, we were allowed to rehearse upstairs and store our gear there in return for playing every thursday. That weekend we had been playing in Manchester friday 3rd and sat 4th. We returned to Leeds to drop the gear off beck at the Royal Park tea-timish. We turned up unloading our instruments. They [asked if they could] use them and played an impromptu set.
Post by tonyodo » Sat 22 Jun, 2019 2:31 pm
I was there - I have some photos - great night busking outside the Union and in the Fav car park
Jimmyv wrote: - Tue 22 Apr, 2014 2:32 pm
Tasa wrote: Jogon wrote: thats the back garden at the Royal Park. the gig was organised by The Magnificent Seven who put benefit gigs on and invited local talent to play. The Clash just turned up and asked to play.
John says: November 4, 2013 at 6:46 am
I saw them on this tour, on a late night National Express from Nottingham to Leeds- it was very exclusive- just me, them jamming at the back and the coach driver. Unfortunately I wasn’t into the Clash much then, so didn’t recognise them. I only realised a few days later when there was a report about them busking outside an Alarm Leeds Uni gig in the Uni newspaper. The Alarm came out to watch apparently.
Lee Mason
I was there too …with you…I saw a similar picture on a documentary once while on a plane to USA!!!
Lee Mason
You can just see the red paint on Band member that they threw from the window..I had a fantastic photo of Joe Strummer covered in red paint must try dig it out!!!
Simon Curtis - 2013
There’s another picture of the night, taken out of a window at Leeds Uni, see if you can spot me...about halfway between top and bottom just in from the left side, got a blue pilot jacket on this time.
Sean McCartney
Oh yes, I remember it well.
Emma Reagan - 2013
And St Johns car park, fantastic !!!
Sean McCartney
Yup, Joe was hammered and banging on about shiny kettles being black on the bottom, and in the process up-ended his pint all over the pavement. Happy days!
Jess Clark
I was a there, it was amazing, and the minster, york arms and st johns, fab memories :)))))))))))))
Colin Paylor
I saw them busking at the Merrion Center in Leeds way way back in time ... nipped up to jumbo , bought a Clash single , went back and got it signed by the whole band !
Graeme Hopson
i remember leaving work early to see them in the york arms.
Glenn Smith
They had to hide in theYork Arm because of the crowds.
Rebecca Goodrich
I took, loads of pics [photos] of the Clash all round York and the Roxy :) those were the days x -
Royal Park Pub & Cellars - 29 January ·
Back in May 1985, punk mega-stars The Clash busked in our old back garden.
Chris Parkin Clash on Parole FB 5 Dec 2012
Back in the 80's I saw the Clash busking outside the Alarm gig at Leeds Uni. Some animal rights protester had lobbed red gloss all over Joe cos they didn't like leather jackets, hmmmm. We were tipped off that it was going to happen by the now famous James Brown (not that one) and were in at the start. I had the pleasure of chatting with Joe in the Faversham afterwards and he gave me a roll up, which I stubbed and selotaped to the Combat Rock poster. Sadly it was lost in a house move years later. I offered them a lift to York the next day but as I only had a Mini Clubman Estate at the time it was a non starter from the off. Happy days indeed.
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