The Jacaranda

Serious Beatles fans will know all about The Jacaranda. This bar and gig venue was opened by their first manager Allan Williams in 1958, and was used as a rehearsal space by the band when John Lennon was a student at the Liverpool College of Art.

It was from The Jacaranda that the Silver Beetles, as they were called then, set off in a van for Hamburg, and here that they announced their new name when they came back.

You can see a fragment of a mural by John Lennon and Stuart Sutcliffe on the wall as you go down to the basement. But unlike many venues linked to The Beatles, there’s little else on the walls to signal its major role in their story. This is a bar that looks forwards not back.

In the spirit of its first owner, it’s a place to hear new, up-and-coming local bands. (Though its fame means it can pull in the big names too when it wants to – Bugzy Malone, Becky Hill and the Kaiser Chiefs have all played intimate gigs here before big shows at Liverpool Arena). 

The ground level is the bar, downstairs is the main gig venue, and since 2015, upstairs is the Jacaranda Record Shop which has its own smaller bar. At weekends they hold vinyl listening parties up here with curated cocktails paired to the music. Check the Jacaranda Instagram to see what’s coming up and book a table in advance.

Secondhand and new vinyl is for sale and they don’t mind if you browse while sipping a pint from downstairs. The other notable feature (as if John Lennon’s DIY decorating project wasn’t enough) is the 1948 voice-o-graph – a recording booth that records directly on to vinyl.