Manchester in the UK is one of the world's great music cities. Home to an eclectic variety of highly influential bands for decades, the city continues to make its mark on the history of modern music. A handful of bands started making a name for Manchester in the 60s, in a wave that was to precede its more notorious music era of the mid to late 70s and 80s. In the 60s, groups such as the Bee Gees, the Hollies, Wayne Fontana and the Mindbenders, Herman's Hermits, and Freddie and the Dreamers headlined the city's clubs and music houses. 10cc and Barclay James Harvest followed later in the early 70s.
Although mostly unknown to younger audiences today, some of these groups topped major charts back in the day. In 1965, Manchester bands Freddie and the Dreamers, Wayne Fontana and the Mindbenders, and Herman's Hermits topped the American Billboard charts, with the latter band even out-selling the soon-to-be-legendary Beatles. The city was so respected by musicologists that it was the BBC's first choice as the host city for the time-honoured Top of the Pops .
The Punk movement began in Manchester, with bands such as the Buzzcocks and the Sex Pistols giving birth to the new hard-sound music era at the Manchester-hosted Granada Television show ‘So It Goes' (with Tony Wilson) and key city venues the Electric Circus and the Lesser Free Trade Hall. Post-punk bands of the late 70s and early 80s – Joy Division (later New Order), the Smiths, and the Fall – followed close on the heels of the Punk movement's greatest bands with a sound still reminiscent of the city's industrial roots.
In the late 80s, in what would become known as the ‘Madchester' scene, bands such as the Happy Mondays, the Inspiral Carpets, Northside and the Stone Roses made their mark on the world. Manchester began losing its influence on the music scene in the years following the Madchester period, although bands such as Oasis, the Verve and Simply Red eventually arose in subsequent years and gained popularity.
Today, Manchester's largest popular music venue is the Manchester Evening News Arena – with a seat capacity of over 20,000, it's the largest arena of its kind in Europe. Other major venues include Manchester Central, Manchester Academy and the Manchester Apollo, with over 30 smaller venues dotting the city and ensuring a thriving musical scene. An area known as the Northern Quarter, the cultural district of the city, is home to many of the top small venues, including Band on the Wall, the Roadhouse and the Night and Day Cafe.
Tourists travelling to the city to go to a concert, or to check out the old haunts of their favourite bands, would do well to find a Manchester bed and breakfast (a good one to book is the Luther King House ) or hotel located near the city centre.
