Great Britain for music lovers

British cities have been the birthplace of many artists, so visiting them in the name of music becomes almost an obligation. Through the history of bands such as the Beatles, Joy Division, Franz Ferdinand or artists such as Bowie, Adele or Sam Fender, it is possible to discover a fundamental part of the soul of Great Britain. With more and more direct flights from Spain, getting to and discovering the Great Britain of music has never been easier.

Liverpool

This year, Liverpool is even more on everyone’s lips because it will host the final of the Eurovision Song Contest. The Eurofestival, from May 1 to 14, promises to fill its streets with music and celebration.

But the Beatles are the undisputed protagonists in this city, as proven by the statue of the group or Matthew Street, the famous street where the Cavern Club is located, where a statue of John Lennon welcomes you to enjoy music from the first afternoon time. In its surroundings there is also the statue of another famous song star, Eleanor Rigby.

Liverpool have not only cradled Paul, John, Ringo and George, but have also seen other interesting groups come to life and grow. Lovers of 80s music cannot miss the Baltic Triangle, a lively area not far from the Albert Dock, with food and music for all tastes.

London

No trip to Great Britain devoted to music is complete without a visit to London. The capital has been home to many bands and artists and continues to be so to this day. Many remember the days of Swinging London as the heyday of music’s presence in the British capital, but there has been so much more. Let’s take a tour of its essential neighborhoods.

Neighborhoods like Brixton or Primrose Hill have always been linked to the development of what we could define more as a philosophy of life and music than as a passing fad. Vivienne Westwood and her husband Michael McLaren created punk from their irreverent King’s Road boutique, upending Chelsea’s duller, more traditional world.

A possible London musical itinerary can start at Brixton station, the center of Jamaican immigration to London since the 1960s, which brought the rhythm of reggae and a musicality completely different from what was heard in Great Britain at that time. The “joyful rhythm” conquered many from this historical moment to the present day. Brixton Market (The Brixton Village) became a place for impromptu jam sessions, from which the musical project Clash by Joe Strummer, Mick Jones and company arose. Today it is a place that has remained an expression of a colorful community, as diverse as only London communities can be and where music is always present.

From Brixton we went to another London neighborhood that has always been considered alternative and always visited, Camden Town, also associated with music of all kinds. It was Irish immigrants who arrived in London at the turn of the 20th century who brought folk music to the pubs and what were then dance halls, where the new rhythms were all the rage in the 1930s. In the 1960s and 1970s, the streets of Camden welcomed many artists such as Pink Floyd or David Bowie, and they did not stop hosting music from the United States with concerts by celebrities such as Patti Smith or, even before, Jimi Hendrix.

In the 1990s, Camden Town was again the great launching pad for many bands that marked the so-called Brit Pop era, with Oasis and Pulp filling the clubs, or Amy Winehouse, whose presence in Camden is eternal, thanks also to the statue dedicated to him. Just like Brixton, Camden Town’s music energy revolves around the market area, a place dense with creativity, encounter, experimentation and always ready to create something great.

Manchester

There can be no musical journey in Britain that does not lead to the North of England, the true and timeless home of much of Britain’s best music, with Manchester as the mother of much of that music. The “ever vibrant” city is also always on solid ground musically. Here eternally attractive bands such as Joy Division, The Smiths and Oasis saw the light of day, but contemporary and very current musical projects such as The 1975 or Elbow have also come to life. The musical itineraries available in Manchester are many and for all musical tastes.

An itinerary to discover its musical history can only begin in the Northern Quarter of the city. North of Piccadilly Gardens is an area where creativity, art and music come alive every second of the day. Oldham Street is home to vinyl and music memorabilia shops. If what you want is to buy vintage collector’s vinyl, an unavoidable stop is the store on the top floor of Afflecks, the department store that brings together many independent businesses that have sprung up in the heart of Manchester.

But there are two unavoidable stops for any music lover. The first is the Salford Lads Club, where the Smiths of Morrisey, Johnny Marr and company took one of the most famous photos in history. Another famous photo takes us directly to the Eppig Walk bridge, another location for a famous piece of art related to music history and of course Joy Division.

Glasgow

Glasgow is not only the largest city in all of Scotland, but a UNESCO City of Music. All the melodies born in it can serve as inspiration for your visit. The visitor can thus choose between Simple Minds, Primal Scream, Franz Ferdinand or The Fratellis; the softer and indie sounds of Belle and Sebastien, or the gothic atmospheres of Jesus and Mary Chain. Glasgow truly has something for everyone on its music menu, and the city is not short of opportunities to enjoy music at all hours of the day and night. A perfect musical day there could start with meeting musicians like Paolo Nutini or Lewis Capaldi on the main street in the city centre.

The quintessential music venue is one of those places that you imagine to be immense, because of what they have given to the world of music, but which are actually intimate and contained. It’s King Tut’s Wah Wah Hut, a venue where virtually every major artist in the world has passed through… even when they weren’t known. Legend has it that groups such as Biffy Clyro, Travis and The Strokes, among many others, have performed on the King’s Hut stage.

In the city you can do many musical excursions of all kinds, especially to discover areas such as the Music Mile, just around the corner from the King’s Hut, where the Royal Concert Hall is also located, probably a true musical cathedral. In addition, being a UNESCO City of Music means, in fact, also being able to host great concerts of all kinds and world-famous festivals, such as Celtic Connections, the Riverside Festival and TRNSMT, ready to bring electronic music to the city.