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(soulful harmonica music)

- Down there, the Cavern Club.

The cauldron in which

the right musical
elements regrouped, fused,

and caught the imagination
of the universe.

(lighthearted guitar music)

- [Bob Wooler] Hi there,
all you cave dwellers.

This is Bob Wooler, saying
welcome to the Best of Cellar.

(audience shrieks)

We got the Hi-Fi high
on the lights down low.

So here we go with
the Big Three Show!

(audience cheers)

- [Speaker 1] It was an
atmosphere like none other,

it was hot and sweaty.

- [Speaker 2] It stunk.

The walls were just
dripping with sweat.

- [Speaker 3] It was a
grotty, uncomfortable,

extraordinary place.

By God. It had so much energy.

(upbeat rock music)

* Is she the girl
with the Gaberdine

- [Speaker 4] It was just an
incredibly vibrant atmosphere.

- [Speaker 5] It
was unforgettable.

(fans cheer)

(drums clatter)

(cheerful accordion music)

- From here. Believe it or
not, is where the story begins.

Well, not here,

exactly.

(trumpets blare)

This, Le Caveau de la Huchette,

on the left bank in Paris

was the inspiration for a young
Liverpudlian jazz enthusiast

called Alan Sytner,

who spent a lot of his
youth here in Paris

and dreamt of one day
owning his own jazz club

back in his hometown.

(jazz music)

Here in the Latin quarter,

Le Caveau opened on
the 16th of May, 1947.

It was, and still
is a basement club.

When Sytner saw it,
he was mesmerized.

(upbeat jazz music)

Being near to the Sorbonne,

Le Caveau was an exciting place

where young students could
congregate and listen to jazz.

He recalled being dazzled by it,

and it was all part of the
glamor of Paris after the war.

(swanky jazz music)

(trumpet bellows)

(clarinet squeaks)

(forlorn bluesy music)

* Woke up this
morning, feeling bad

* Thought about the good times

* I once have had

* When I lived in Kansas City

- [Paul] Back home in 1956,

there was little
will post-war glamor.

Alan had started promoting
jazz in the city,

but dreamt of owning his own
jazz bar, like Le Caveau.

- Alan Sytner went to
Paris on a short holiday,

and he came back, and he said

there's a jazz club there,

and that opened
early in the evening.

So people came
straight from work.

They didn't have to go home

and have their tea
and come out again.

You know, he said "We should
have a place like that.

We could even open
at lunchtime."

He said,

"I'd love to find a place
like a basement or something."

- He was inspired by listening
to jazz as a young teenager,

particularly the
music of what was then

known as Dixieland Jazz,
or traditional jazz,

the original jazz.

But quickly, he
became interested

in all forms of jazz music,

of the origins of
the jazz music,

which of course was
the Delta blues,

the Mississippi blues, Gospel,

and improvised,

basically improvised musics.

And he got the whole thing.

He could see it, and he felt it.

- [Paul] Helped by the
generosity of his father

together with 400 pounds from
a mature insurance policy,

Alan had the money
to lease an old,

abandoned fruit cellar
in Mathew street.

With arches,

which were remarkably
similar to that of Le Caveau.

- I remember the flimsy
sheet, colored in

showing what The Cavern
was gonna look like.

And it looked like,

it was like so many
artists' impressions.

It looked, it was like a dream.

It was an artist's dream.

And way ahead of
its time and so on.

And then, and that actually,

that was the determination

to actually make that drawing

into The Cavern.

But he decided to do it.

Once he found the
premises, that was it.

It wasn't, it was
going to happen.

However he did it.

- When we went down
to have a look at it,

it was actually three rooms.

And he said,

"What we need is one big room.

So these walls will
have to come down."

Oh, really, Alan? Yeah.

You know, will that be safe?

"Oh yeah, yeah, yeah."

He said, "I'll get
the sledgehammers,

and I'll get a barrel of ale,

and we'll all go down one night
and knock these walls down."

Which we did.

And I was just thinking
about afterwards.

I mean, you know,
the whole thing

could have come
down on top of us.

(laughing)

- He wasted no time at all
in naming his new venue.

(upbeat jazz music)

The Cavern.

(jazz music continues)

The backdrop of the
stage in the Cavern

was even based on
the work of Mondrian

who resided in Paris,

and whose work was
hugely influential
with French students.

* Well I'm a crazy
mixed up kid

* And I love to
dance like this

- Alan was bringing the
left bank to Liverpool.

* And I love to Rock and Roll

* 'Cause it satisfy my soul

* Well, I love to
jump and shout

- Conditions at The
Cavern were rustic.

He must've been generous.

Young, ambitious,

and with very little
money of his own,

Alan still had a
dream in his heart,

as well as all the arrogance
and determination of youth.

And he was elated
with the atmosphere

the club could generate
when it was full of people,

listening to the music he loved.

* Crazy mixed up world

- The club first
opened its doors

on January the 16th, 1957

Top of the bill that at night

were The Merseysippi Jazz Band,

supported by the
Wall City Jazz Men,

the Ralph Watmough Jazz Band,

and interestingly enough,

the Coney Island Skiffle group,

a precursor to the future.

(Skiffle music)

- And this chap came along,

and said would we like to play

at the opening
night of The Cavern?

Delighted, obviously.

So we came over
from the Whittle,

dragging along tub bases

and washboards and all this.

Right at the top of
Mathew Street, here.

And it was packed solid.

We couldn't move actually.

And we felt quite privileged,

you know, pushing
our way through

with our instruments
and guitars.

Came down the, the steep steps

into the main room

and it was packed and hot.

- My father said,
we'll go to a bar,

a restaurant in the
center of Liverpool.

I was an excuse.

What he wanted to do
was to be in town.

He wanted to,

he wasn't gonna go
into the Cavern.

I think he'd already been
told, "Dad, you're not coming."

You know, you're not
coming into The Cavern.

Don't even think about it.

You know,

we'll let you know
how you get on today.

And as we drove into town,

my father couldn't resist
and we went all the way up.

And as he got near,

there were crowds spilling
out from around Mathew Street.

Nobody had any idea
who would turn up,

how many people would turn up,

what kind of people
would turn up.

They had no idea.

And what happened was

pretty much everybody
from Liverpool University

heard about it and
wanted to go there.

My father, then it didn't
take long for him to catch on.

We were turning people away.

This was definitely the
start of something new.

(upbeat jazz music)

- When Alan opened
the Cavern Club,

he commissioned me to
do the opening poster

and they were pasted up

on the outside of the
walls with flour and water.

(chuckles)

(swanky jazz music)

- Publicity stunts.

That was the only way you
could market something.

With publicity stunts.

Had to be a stunt.

And the stunt was that he
invited the Earl of Wharncliffe.

And the Earl of Wharncliffe
had a jazz band.

I dunno if he could play,

I never, even to this day,

quite understood why

the Earl of Wharncliffe was
such an incredible draw.

I think it's just
'cause he was an Earl.

And he drove a sports car,

drove an Austin Healey.

And he was, no, he was a,

something of a Playboy.

Playboy Aristocrat
with a love of jazz.

And he agreed,

and he didn't turn up.

(trumpet jazz music)

- I said, "When's
the Earl coming?"

He said, "Well, he isn't,
I just used his name."

But he opened a piece of paper.

And he said,

I have to tell you folks

that due to bereavement,

the Earl will not be
with us this evening.

I'm sure you'll all join with me

in sending our condolences.

That was typical Alan.

(swanky jazz music)

- [Paul] After an initial
fanfare of publicity,

post-war Liverpool was a
challenging backdrop for Alan.

Disposable income was scarce.

So indeed, nonexistent.

Jazz was to rule the
roost of The Cavern.

But before long, a new type
of music was about to emerge.

(upbeat rock music)

* Where are you goin' boy

* She's going, tell 'em

* Going down to
Rock Island Line

* The mighty good road

* Yes indeed

* Well

* The Rock Island Line
is mighty good road

* The Rock Island Line,
it's the road to ride

* Yes the Rock Island Line,
it's a mighty good road

* And if you want to ride it

* You gotta ride it
like you find it

* Get your ticket at the station
of the Rock Island Line

- The Liverpool
Rock and Roll scene

really began in the Skiffle era,

which was in the mid-fifties.

It was revived in England
by Lonnie Donegan.

* When you play
the game of life

* You've got trouble

* You've got strife

* Jack of diamonds is
a hard card to find

* Life is like a game of cards
but it's very very hard

* Jack of diamonds is
a hard card to find

- So the first great
influence, amazingly

wasn't American Rock and
Roll, it was (indistinct)

* Girl lost my heart

* Lack of money made us part

* Jack of diamonds is
a hard card to find

* She said life
ain't just a bet

* But I've never won it yet

* Jack of diamonds is
a hard card to find

- Well, what actually
was Skiffle, musically,

it was, it was a mixture, right?

It wasn't one music.

It was a mixture of musics.

In the same way that originally

jazz was not a music.

Jazz was a mixture
of musics, right?

Which went into the cauldron
in the New Orleans area

and emerged gradually as
this thing: Jazz, right?

Same thing with Skiffle.

We had a mixture of influences,

a mixture of types of
songs that all went

into the Skiffle pot.

- We introduced the Liverpool
Skiffle Championship

Wednesday night, when we
did a pure Skiffle program,

and this became so
phenomenally popular

that we would have
20 Skiffle groups

in one evening,

each going on and
doing about one number.

The amazing thing was

that each Skiffle group
had its own following.

So it would probably
bring with it

20 or 30 fans from the district,

the street, the school,
the youth club, whatever,

wherever the group
had been formed.

- [Paul] Impoverished,
aspiring musicians

utilized anything they
could extract sounds from

to make music,

whether it was wash boards,

jugs, or even paper and cone.

- Because you couldn't
run jazz every night

because there wasn't a market,

you needed to expand the market.

So he did accept Skiffle groups

as long as they were,

as long as they were good.

As long as they'd
had to pass a test.

And the answer was the
lunchtime sessions.

You brought your own sandwiches,
you paid half a crown.

And the bands that were playing

were not being paid.

The lunchtime sessions, in
a way, were the start of it.

Because that's where
the other kind of music

crept into The Cavern.

Against Alan's purest ideals.

- [Paul] Skiffle was
perceived as being genteel,

and its improvisation appealed

to many of the jazz aficionados.

So it was understandable
that the two genres

could happily coexist
side-by-side in The Cavern.

This was not the case
with Rock and Roll.

- In Liverpool,

virtually all the Skiffle groups

changed into Rock
and Roll bands.

* Oh the little things
you say and do

* Make me want to
be with you-a-hoo

* Rave on, it's
a crazy feelin'

* And I know it's
got me reelin'

- [Paul] Alan refused
to embrace it,

believing it to be wild,
aggressive, and violent.

And it was certainly
not the scene

that he'd envisaged
for his club.

* Ah-Ah-Ah

* You ain't nothin'
but a hound dog

* Cryin' all the time

- Our mother
absolutely loved Elvis.

We all loved Elvis.

And I remember my mother and
John jiving to Elvis records.

("Hound Dog" by Elvis continues)

when John and Paul met

and became what I
call the dream team,

John was playing banjo chords.

Even when he still
wasn't playing the banjo,

he'd moved onto the guitar
with the banjo chords.

And Paul was playing,

trying to play a
right-handed guitar.

Being lefthanded.

(audience applauds)

- The Quarrymen was
the first group we had,

so called because John went

to a school called Quarry Bank.

And he'd started the group.

And then they asked me in it.

I had a mate of mine,
and we met up with John

and then the guys saw
me play 20 flight rock

and said, "Such a challenge!

He knows all the words."

* Now he's long,
long, long gone

* Now lost John was standin'
by the railroad track

* Waitin' for the freight
train to come back

- [Paul] Nigel Wally
was the tea-chest player

who soon became their
defacto manager.

He got them a paid
gig at The Cavern Club

on the 7th of August, 1957.

By then, Paul McCartney
had joined the band,

but was unable to play
because he was at scout camp.

- I think our manager at
the time was Nige Walley.

And I think he,

he got us a booking
at The Cavern

and we said to Nige,

"We don't really
fancy playing there."

'Cause everybody knew
that was a jazz club.

And John was wanting to
do the oldest number.

So anyway, we got
booked that night.

John had his list out
of what he was gonna do.

One was "Always Shook Up" and,

and I said to John,
"John, you can't do that."

You're going, you know,

you're gonna make an,
you're gonna make an opera.

Or you're gonna get turfed out.

"I'm doing it."

This is on the list.

He usually does a scrap of paper

with his, with his
list on, you know,

which you always used to lose.

You know, where's me song sheet?

You know, gone.

* Long, long gone

Anyway,

the time came that at sort of
halfway through the session,

when "All Shook Up" came on,

and you can hear sort
of shouts from the back.

(imitating crowd)
"What is he doing?"

"Get them off, cut
out that bloody rock!"

(trumpets blare)

- A lot of these, these
amateur bands, young people

got in on the Skiffle,

managed to get a gig on
the, the Skiffle ticket.

But by the time they'd
done a couple of numbers,

the Skiffle had given way

to pure copying of Elvis's
Rock and Roll stuff.

And, and particularly the,
the, the, the black musicians,

Chuck Berry, being one
of the most influential

of them all, actually,

Alan, you really want
people to come in

and copy other people's music?

'Cause jazz is
inventive and creative.

So copying is not,

you can't copy jazz.

If you think about it,
all jazz is improvised.

- [Paul] Sytner was becoming
increasingly frustrated

with his new venture.

He was totally
immersed in jazz music,

both traditional and modern,

but he was blind to the
bigger picture emerging.

He left his father,
Dr. Sytner, in charge.

But he was far too busy,

and still out of pocket

from his son's initial
acquisition of the club.

- Ray McFall was seconded
to The Cavern to,

to check the books.

He fell for the
life, that lifestyle

and came along with a,

with a rescue package.

- [Paul] And that's
how 32 year old McFall

became the new owner of the club

in October, 1959.

Importantly,

he was much more amenable

to the new styles
of music emerging.

(bouncy psychedelic
guitar music)

* When you move in
right up close to me

* That's when I get the
shakes all over me

- Initially he had like
four or five nights of jazz

and one night of rock
because it became so popular.

It, it quickly switched around

to five or six nights of rock

and one night of jazz.

* Yeah, the tremors
in the thigh-bone

- When Ray McFall took over,

it is still a jazz cellar

allowing for Rock and
Roll to be played.

Of course, when I came
in, being so rock-minded,

I'm saying to Ray, this group's,

you should have this
group, Ray, et cetera.

You see.

So eventually it became
identified with one thing,

Rock and Roll.

- The rock bands were
what was the future.

And that's what the
kids really liked.

- [Announcer] Rory Storm
and the Hurricanes.

(fans screaming)

(lighthearted guitar music)

* Well I can tell by the
way that you look at me

* I can tell, pretty baby,
it's so plain to see

- Rory just said to
some obscurities,

"And let's do some
Rock and Roll."

And it was as if we'd
committed a mortal sin.

The dancing stuff,

people started booing.

When we'd finished our set,

we were summoned you
know, to the office

and told that our
fee would be docked

because we played, I think it
was two Rock and Roll tunes.

But that was the
very, very first time

that I know that Rock and Roll

was ever played at The Cavern.

And that was on
that jazz festival.

And that we,

but things soon changed.

You know, the
tables were turned,

because Rock and Roll by then,

it was just becoming
an unstoppable force.

* Well I know you
don't love me

- [Paul] In time,

this Liverpool cellar would
become a training ground

for hundreds of
bands and musicians

that would change the global
face of music and culture.

(fans screaming)

(rock music)

* Sometimes I will

* Then again, I think I won't

- [Paul] Liverpool had long been

the gateway to the new world.

Now it was ideally
situated to receive

the latest sound that
was sweeping America.

And with the post-war
introduction of higher purchase,

youngsters suddenly found
guitars to be more affordable.

* Well I looked at my watch

* It was 9:21

* Without a rock 'n' roll
dance, havin' nothin' but fun

* And we rolled,
reelin' and rockin'

Local teenagers immersed
themselves in this new craze,

forging a new identity,

far removed from
that of their parents

or their grandparents.

By the early sixties,

there were believed to be over
350 beat groups in Liverpool.

* Reelin' and rockin'

* Reelin' and
rockin' and rollin'

* 'til the break of dawn

(fans screaming)

- Well, when we first
went down to The Cavern

to do a gig,

the resident DJ was Bob Wooler.

He was like the master
of ceremonies, so to be.

He'd be on the mic, "Bob
Wooler, DJ at The Cavern.

Now here we have, you know,
Bobby V" and so-and-so whatever.

And he would introduce,
"Ladies and gentlemen."

He did all the DJ stuff, oodles.

Yeah. You know.

(guitar rock music)

- Hi there, all
you cave dwellers.

This is Bob Wooler, saying
welcome to the Best of Cellar.

(audience shrieks)

We got the Hi-Fi high,
and the lights down low.

So here we go with
the Big Three Show!

(audience cheers)

Johnny Butch, the
leader of The Big Three.

He said, "Come on, Bob."

He handed me the
mic, "Say something."

And I said, what?

So I have a little
rhyme in my head.

It was,

remember all you cave dwellers,

that The Cavern is
the best of cellars.

Unbeknown to me, Ray McFall

was standing at the back.

And he said,

"Who's that on the mic?"

I like to think he was impressed

by my d'étoiles coming
across, you know.

- Bob Wooler, he ran the club.

Ray McFall was more or
less like the accountant.

It was Bob Wooler.

When you mention
the Cavern name,

people will say Bob Wooler,

they will not say Ray McFall.

It was Bob Wooler
who told Ray McFall

to have The Beatles,

because they were
almost going bankrupt.

And they were still
putting jazz bands on

where the whole
seal was rocking.

(upbeat rock music)

- That's what it's like here.

Liverpudlians watching
other Liverpudlians,

making the Liverpudlian music.

* See the girl with
the red dress on

* She can shake it
all night long

* Yeah yeah

* Whoa whoa what'd I say

- [Paul] Demand was so high

that Ray had the genius idea

of the legendary
lunchtime sessions

to cater for the young
clerks and shop assistants.

The club was bouncing.

People were skipping school
and losing their jobs

and Ray's investment quickly
appeared to be a wise move.

(rock music)

* What'd I say now

- We used to pester Mr. McFall,

who was the
governor, to do shows

and it, but, there used to
be like a tramp jazz club.

He said, no, I don't wanna
listen to Rock and Roll.

Can't do it.

Anyway. We kept
on Paul McCartney.

He kept on at him.

And he said, okay,
tell you what I'll do.

He can do lunchtime sessions.

He said, yeah, from 12 'til 2.

And then all the kids are
off for an hour's lunch.

You'll come in.

- [Cavern Attendee] From what
I remember, the kids were,

would form a big queue
for the lunchtime session.

It was fantastic atmosphere.

We were all young kids together

and we enjoyed whatever
group that was on.

(rock music continues)

- [Cavern Attendee
2] It was packed.

Used to take me about 10 minutes

to walk about 12 yards.

And if anybody fainted,
they wouldn't fall.

They were held upright by
the density of the crowd,

but it was a
fascinating experience.

Something that you couldn't
wipe from your memory.

- [Paul] The Cavern
even had its own dance.

(upbeat guitar music)

The Cavern Stomp.

* We've got a dance
in Liverpool

* The cats and chicks,
where they think it's cool

* It started off
with just a wrong

* Now they call it
the Cavern Stomp

* Let's go

- [Cavern Attendee 3] The
Cavern was atmosphere.

Which is everything.

You're all part of it.

You knew everybody
there, you know?

So that was a sort
of a great thing.

You know, the, that that's
what made The Cavern unique.

The Cavern's different

from any other place
in the world, almost.

The Cavern wasn't merely a club,

it was a state of mind.

(rock music)

* Take a look at the
trees, how the leaves

- [Paul] From the
cellars of Liverpool

the fresh new
sound was emerging.

Drawing on influences
from near and far,

but still retaining its
own distinct rawness.

Mersey Beat was about to
explode onto the world stage.

And one band in particular was
about to lead the invasion.

(rock music continues)

- [Alistair] One day, Brian
came into NEMS, and he said,

"Alistair, you
remember that band

that we sold all those
records for, the Beatles?"

So I said, yes.

He said, "Well, they're
playing at The Cavern club.

Let's go and see
'em at lunchtime."

So we came, and we
sat at the back.

And we only heard
about five numbers

and they really were awful.

I mean, they were dreadful,

but I noticed my
foot was tapping

and I looked once 'round,
and Brian's was as well.

And at the end,

Paul announced that
they'd like to close

with the number that he
and John had written.

It was called
"Hello, Little Girl."

And I thought, if they can
write songs as good as that,

Brian says, you know, "What
do you think of them?"

And I said, I think they're
absolutely diabolical,

but magic.

Absolutely fabulous.

And outta the
blue, he just said,

"I think I could manage them."

(audience applauding)

(camera shutter clicks)

- [Paul] Brian completely
changed the image of the group,

taking them out of leathers
and putting them into suits,

designed by local
tailor, Beno Dorn.

They were obviously excited
to have a real manager

who promised them
a recording deal.

Epstein even changed the lineup,

replacing Pete Best
with Ringo Starr.

On August 22nd, 1962,

just a few days after
his appointment,

the Beatles were
filmed by Grenada TV

at a lunchtime
session in The Cavern.

(upbeat guitar music)

- [Former Grenada TV
Employee] So, it's 1962.

I was a young trainee
researcher at Grenada TV.

We're doing a, a
number of short films

on contrasts in our region.

And we decided we
should do a music one.

And one of my colleagues
at Grenada said,

I know what this,
I heard these kids

are doing blowing up
a storm in Liverpool.

Why don't you ring up
a man called Epstein

and see what's happening?

So I called Brian.

He said, "Come over."

We met in the Delphi on
a wet Sunday evening.

And then he said, "Come
and meet the boys."

And I went over to
the Cavern Club.

Down those stairs into
that grotty, sweaty place.

And I was absolutely blown away.

I mean,

they were on stage as
I came down the steps

and I thought, what is that?

It was so gut exciting.

It was absolutely astounding.

It's amazing to
me that it remains

the only thing
that was ever done

with the original fab four
in the original Cavern Club.

(rock music)

* I'll pack my bags, hey now

* 'Cause you're the girl now

* You're the best
girl I've ever had

* You know I'm a lonely boy

* As long as I can
feel all right now

* Whoa-Oh-Oh-Oh

* I'm close to you right now

(audience cheers)

- I don't suddenly
jump to world fame.

I can remember riding me
bike down to Penny Lane.

I think I must have
been about 18 or 19.

I heard someone shout me,
(imitates strained groan)

I see this guy
running behind me,

it was McCartney running
along, from Penny Lane up.

"How are you? How are you?"

My gosh, I remember I had
a pair of orange shoes on,

it all stuck in my memory.

"Oh yeah, how are
you doing, Paul?

How's the band?"
You know, oh he says

"We're on the Grenada
TV. We're going great."

- [Paul] The very first gig

that the Beatles
played at The Cavern

had been on February
the 9th, 1961.

Within a whirlwind three years,

and on the very
same date in 1964,

the Beatles headlined on the
Ed Sullivan show in the US.

Watched by 72 million people.

- The day before there wasn't
one single band in America.

And the day after everybody
had a band in the garage,

you know, it was that
sort of, that, that,

that kind of impact immediately.

- [Paul] So thankful
were the band

for the integral role
The Cavern had played

in their rise to fame.

Ray McFall was
invited to join them

on their inaugural
visit to the US.

And within that remarkably
short space of time,

The Beatles had played the club,

a staggering 292 times.

From the dingy, overcrowded,
hot and sweaty basement

emerged many so-called
Mersey Beat bands

who would go on to
become household names.

Brian Epstein also
managed Billy J. Kramer,

Jerry and the Pacemakers,

the foremost, the
Mersey-beats and of course,

our very own Cilla,
who was famously known

for being the cloakroom
girl at The Cavern.

By now, the club was booming

and the very word Liverpool
evoked excitement,

and was synonymous with
cutting-edge style and glamor.

However,

fortunes for both
the city and the club

were about to take an
unfortunate downward turn.

The Beatles last
performance at the club

was in August, 1963.

Once they'd left,
it soon became clear

that the anchor that had
turned the club into profit

had in fact gone for good.

Other bands were signed as a
result of playing The Cavern.

Most notably The Hollies,

a Manchester band who
had replaced The Beatles

during the lunchtime sessions.

- It was damp and wet.

The atmosphere was electrifying

once, once you got rocking.

(The Hollies' rock music)

* Where she stays, love grows

All you wanted to do was play.

You wanted to escape from this,

what we, we would
appear like apprentices

and Northern treadmill.

The grimy North,

we wanted to escape into music

and that's what Rock and
Roll allowed us to do.

(fans screaming)

- [Paul] Once The
Beatles had exploded

onto the international scene,

A and R men descended
on Liverpool

and especially The Cavern

to find the next big thing.

Brian Epstein had
effectively signed up

all of the best Liverpool talent

to his management company.

So there really
wasn't much left.

Ray McFall struggled
to fill the void.

He did give it his
best shot though.

And with that,

The Rolling Stones
made their Cavern debut

on November the 5th, 1963.

Of the legends performed
during this period,

including Americans, Howlin'
Wolf, Big Bill Broonzy,

Memphis Slim, and
Sony Boy Williamson.

(harmonica music)

* Well I'm going
down to Rosie's

* Stop at Fannie Mae's

* Gonna tell Fannie
what I heard

* Her boyfriend said

* Don't start me talking

* I'll tell her
everything I know

- [Paul] British
bands were also booked

by an increasingly
desperate McFall.

Including the
Spencer Davis group

and the Yardbirds,
featuring Eric Clapton

on a number of occasions.

- We began The
Cavern, playing there

in '64 in the March.

Now I was 17 years old

and I was the oldest
member of the band.

Remember the same year
The Yardbirds came.

Young Eric Clapton on guitar,

and Clapton was superb.

You could see then
how good he was.

(guitar music)

- Alexis Korner also recorded
a live album in 1964.

And the sleeve notes state,

the Cavern stage performance
captures an atmosphere

which no studio can recreate.

McFall was paying
more and more money

to attract big names,

in between the ever
increasing down times.

But then he got lucky.

He was approached by
French TV company, R.T.F.,

who were planning a
live, direct transmission

from the club to an
excited French audience,

hosted by Petula Clark.

It featured some of the
best footage of the club

ever captured on film.

(audience applauds)

* Why don't you
come along my baby

* Whole lotta shakin' goin' on

* Ah, I said, come
on over baby

* There's a whole lotta
shakin' goin' on

* Why it's late, whole
lot of shaking going on

* Well I said come
along my baby

* we got chickens in the barn

* Woo-Huh come along my baby

* really got the
bull by the horn

* Oh we ain't fakin'

* Whole lotta shakin' goin' on

(slow guitar music)

* Life goes on day after day

* Hearts torn in every way

* So ferry 'cross the Mersey

* 'Cause this land's
the place I love

* And here I'll stay

(somber bluesy harmonica music)

- [Paul] McFall was
losing money, and fast.

It became a never-ending
drain on his resources.

And he continued to
shoot for the stars

and beyond his means.

Soul music was now
huge in the UK,

especially in the north.

And the Cavern played host

to many of the
genre's biggest stars,

including 16 year
old Stevie Wonder,

* La-La-La-La-La

* La-La-La-La-La

* La-La-La-La-La

Doris Troy, Gina Washington,

Rod Stewart,

The Who,

and Bluesology,

together with a young
pianist called Reg Dwight,

the soon-to-be Elton
John, all played the club.

- Remember '65, a little
guy called Reggie Dwight

had long hair.

It was his own then.

And we took him to the,

we took him from The Cavern

to the Blue Angel Club
in Seel Street one night.

They'd been on at The Cavern
with a band called Bluesology.

He was backing Doris Troy,
who was an American singer.

Just one look, great
singer Doris Troy,

and Reggie played the keyboards.

Reggie of course
became Elton John.

And he was a really nice guy,

but he didn't sing much.

He kind of just played
keyboards behind the singer.

Took him to Blue Angel.

And he came back,
I think once more

to the Cavern.

And he was, you could see
obviously how good he was.

'Cause the fan base that came,

but as Elton John, massive,

but Reggie Dwight, he
wanted to be on the Cavern.

He wanted the
Cavern on their CV.

It was that important
to do the Cavern.

Didn't matter,

might've got a quid,
true, but doesn't matter.

You could play The Cavern.

On my CV. I've
been to the Mecca.

That's what they
thought in those days.

- Ray McFall never
ran out of ideas.

He was just running
out of money.

The reality was

The Cavern was punching
above its weight.

It was a small club
with a huge reputation.

And now even bigger debts.

The telephone line was cut off,

and the inevitable followed

and bankruptcy
proceedings began.

- Well it had a
devastating effect on,

on the family to the
point where, you know,

my father couldn't really
talk about the Cavern

for a good 20 years
after, you know,

it initially closed in 1966,

when he went bankrupt.

You know, he couldn't
really talk about

the fact that he
owned the Cavern

until sort the mid-eighties.

He was a trained accountant,

but he wasn't a
trained businessman.

So just at the point where

takings and the audience
was beginning to drop,

he then expanded the club,

bought the cellar next door,

invested in, like,
a recording company.

And it was all sorts
of ancillary things,

draining money out of
dwindling takings, anyway.

So, you know, it was only
gonna go one way, really.

(melancholy rock music)

- [Paul] The
receiver was damning

in his eventual
declaration in the court,

but this was very
harsh and unfair.

Whilst Bob Wooler had perhaps

been the face and
engine of the club,

Ray was paying the
bills, or rather not.

It was a very sad end
to a management reign

as the owner for
the Cavern club.

Indeed,

with the artists that
performed under his tenure,

it could be confidently argued

that this was the
defining period

that made the club, the most
famous club in the world.

The bailiffs closed the Cavern

on the 20th of February, 1966,

despite futile attempts by fans
to barricade themselves in.

(melancholy rock
music continues)

- Suddenly the crowd,
of their own volition,

started putting chairs
all the way up the stairs,

blocking any chance
of anybody getting in.

And of course blocking any
chance of everybody getting out.

- Roy was there, the
Crying Shames, ourselves,

so many different bands.

And then next morning,

we went back on stage
at about 10 o'clock.

The Hideaways, we went
back on in the morning,

started playing again.

One o'clock there was bang
on the doors, real noise.

And we just couldn't.

We were, by then,

we were pretty shuttered
in there for hours.

The kids were absolutely-

Opened the doors, and
in came the bailiffs

and that was it.

End of story.

It was closed.

Out in the street,
"The Cavern had died."

(somber music)

- We did a big protest
march around town.

We all had homemade banners

and we walked through town

singing The Yardbird's
"Still I'm Sad."

It was (singing) "Oh, oh, oh"

and we laid a wreath
over the Cavern doorway.

(somber music continues)

- [Paul] The receiver
sold the lease

of 8 to 10 Mathew Street.

And more importantly,

the name The Cavern club

to local businessman, Joe Davey

who in turn brought in Alf
Geoghegan as his partner.

- Course, we were
absolutely delighted

when we found out that
Alf and Joe bought it

and they were re-opening it.

* Well be-bop A-Lula

* She's my baby

* Be-bop A-Lula

- They too, had grand designs,

but they quickly and wisely
invested in the infrastructure,

which hither-to had been largely
neglected or even ignored.

The drainage system was updated,

which, in turn, greatly
improved the notorious toilets

and smells.

The footprint was extended.

And at ground level
there was a new entrance,

which is exactly
where it is today.

And a cafe, souvenir
shop, and CCTV.

The Cavern was going up market.

* I know that she's the
woman that loves me so

(fans screaming)

- This is the original
doorway to the club

when it opened in 1957.

Now remarkably, today,

this isn't the entrance
to the rebuilt Cavern.

This is the fire exit.

When the club initially
closed and reopened in 1966,

the extended footprint

led to the repositioning
of the entrance.

So here, which as you see is
where the entrance is today.

(rock music)

The reopening on
July the 23rd, 1966

was seen as so important

that the then Prime
Minister, Harold Wilson

was invited to officially
cut the ribbon.

A week later, England
won the World Cup.

(fans cheering)

Everything looked rosy.

- [Newscaster] Some time ago,

the Prime Minister said

he would open the new Cavern

and here he was

in the cellar
where it all began.

Mr. Wilson said that even when
the country's up against it,

there's no reason to be gloomy.

So cheers with the Mersey Beat,

pop in general and the
Cavern in particular.

(audience applauds)

Over now to those local
idols, The Hideaways.

(rock music)

- [Paul] During the
opening celebrations,

Ken Dodd sat next to
MP Bessie Braddock.

- And of course, the
same year, '66 in July,

the Cavern, they
opened the new owners

and The Hideaways, my group,

had the honor of
being the first band.

There was so many people there.

It was absolutely
packed, it really was.

And they were serving food,

like a sausage-in-mash,
and there was a power cut.

And suddenly from the
band room came this voice.

It was obviously Ken Dodd,
there's no other voice.

And he said,

"Bessie!" Bessie Braddock,

"Get your hand off me sausage!"

(laughing)

- Alongside The
Hideaways, Rufus Thomas

Solomon Burke,

Billy J. Kramer.

The foremost all performed
at the grand re-opening.

The future looked assured.

- The Cavern, as well as
being a big Blues venue,

was a big Soul venue.

When people talk
about Northern Soul,

they don't mention the Cavern,

but we were heavily
involved in that.

And mostly all night sessions,
with American Soul artists.

We had the Drifters, the
Exciters, the Platters,

the Coasters, all
people like that.

And one night we had
Solomon Burke on,

and he comes into the band room

and he says to me,

"Young man," he said, "you
know my introduction?"

I said, "No."

He said, well, "Wait 'til
I come out and I tell you."

So he came out and had
this enormous red cloak on,

right down to his
feet, with airman trim

and a crown on his head.

He said, "You introduce
me as Solomon Burke,

the King of Soul. You got that?"

(soulful music)

* I'm goin' stop
wasting time, honey

- Joe Davey had sold on his
interest to Alf Geoghegan

after health problems,

* Chasin' after all

but it was Alf's
daughter, Debbie,

that was really running the club

on a day-to-day basis.

- My dad thought, oh, what?

I don't know. He
came to me and said,

"I've got the chance
of buying the Cavern.

What do you think?"

Well, that was like offering a
child, a key to a sweet shop.

I was in the Cavern every time
I could possibly be there.

- [Paul] The Cavern was being
operated as a proper business.

In 1967, a licensed bar was
introduced for the first time.

However, one of the
biggest four names of all

was about to make a
surprise appearance.

* Well I love you babe

* Wanna tell it all over town

- [Debbie] It was the
25th of October, 1968.

And Paul made an impromptu
visit to the Cavern.

My dad was stocking the
top bar at the time.

- [Cavern Attendee]
And he's wandered in

"Hi, lads" so we
said, "Alright, Paul."

we couldn't believe, a
Beatle in the Cavern,

unannounced, just
walked in, you know,

and he's wandered around.

He said "Gotta look downstairs."

We said, "Okay Paul, fine."

- [Debbie] And he said,
I'd like to bring Linda.

Then his new girlfriend,
Linda Eastman.

And we closed the doors,

stopped the tourists coming in

and went to pour the champagne.

Linda said, "I'll do that.

I'm a good bartender."

So she poured the champagne

and Dad picked up
the camera and said,

"Is it okay, Paul, can we
take a few photographs?"

"Certainly" he said,

Linda said, "I'll do that.

I'm a good photographer."

And she picked the camera up,

altered all the dials on
the front of the camera.

And my Dad's face,

I could see him thinking,
oh, that's torn it.

Paul went over to a, a piano,

which was outside the band room,

which was to the
left of the stage.

And he lifted the lid

and started to play
and sing "Hey Jude."

And it was absolutely magical.

You could hear a pin drop.

It was absolutely fabulous.

(upbeat rock music)

- [Paul] During their tenure,

there were only a few major
artists that played the club.

Notably Chuck Berry.

Other acts followed
over four year period,

Edwin Star,

Family,

Bruce Channel,

The Zombies,

Wishbone Ash,

Nazareth

and Status Quo were
the only big names.

But with hindsight,

most of these became more
famous after their appearance.

One band that certainly
played the Cavern

that were not at all
famous at the time,

were Queen.

- The Cavern was
quite special for us.

The place itself is fascinating.

'Cause of course you think

it's gonna be
something rather grand

'cause it's world
famous, but it's tiny.

And you're playing under
these little arches,

just like sort of being in
a, in an underpass, really.

- [Paul] Again, there was
to be a change of ownership.

- Dad was approached by Harry
Waterman to sell the club.

And he was a bit
hesitant to begin with

because he hadn't
thought about selling,

but it was at its peak and
it was doing very, very well.

And three or four
weeks later, he, he

Harry approached him again
and said, "Well Alf, you know,

have you thought about
it?" He said, "Well, yes.

Okay Harry. Yeah,
I, I- I'll do it."

- [Paul] Roy Adams was
very fiscally prudent

and many complained that
under his ownership,

the Cavern just became a venue

for second and third
division heavy rock bands.

In Roy's defense,

the local rock scene
was dominated by the
Liverpool stadium,

Roy couldn't and
wouldn't compete.

He harbored dreams of hosting
gigs for up to 2000 people,

but it was never
gonna be possible.

Roy received letters
from British Rail,

who owned the building,

explaining that they
wanted to demolish the club

to make way for a
ventilation shaft

for the underground railway loop

that still goes
under the club today.

The Geoghegan family had
known about the plans

for the proposed demolition

prior to the sale to Roy Adams.

- And Roy did not know about
it until he got this letter,

which I'll, I'll just
quote it from his book.

"I received a letter
from the council

informing me that
I had eight weeks

to vacate the premises.

Those British Rail
were taking it over.

I got on to them
and they informed me
that they had written

to the Cavern several times
with the notifications.

I presume mail had gone
to the previous owner,

who kept stum!"

- Three weeks into
the negotiations,

Dad received a letter of intent

from British Rails, solicitors.

British Rail owned the land
that the Cavern stood on.

They wanted to put
their ventilation shaft

for the new underground Metro,

Lincoln Liverpool City Center,
that they were building.

And for 500 pound,

they would move the
ventilation shaft

further down Mathew Street
towards Button street.

- My dad went berserk when he,

when he finally found
out what was happening.

And he was really annoyed with
Alfie Geoghegan, doing that.

'Cause he said, "I
wouldn't have bought it."

You know, I spent
all that money on it.

So I think it's, I think
it's relatively clear.

Think about it.

500 pound.

A club on two floors that
was absolutely packed.

He was making an awful
lot more than that.

Every single week.

When it happened,

he went told to the
council planning,

local MP wrote letters
all over the place

and he, and he said to them,

"Why, if something's
working that well,

why would you wanna change it?"

- [Paul] However Roy's
lease was coming to an end.

He couldn't increase
the capacity

and he'd found superior,
in his mind, premises,

only 15 yards across the road.

And that signaled the end

of the first era
of the Cavern club

on its original site.

- It's a bad thing
that it should go

because it definitely has
some historical significance

in Liverpool, now.

More people come here

than go to the two new
cathedrals, for example,

and it's better known
than the new cathedrals.

It's better known than
anywhere else in Liverpool.

In fact, people come from
abroad, they don't go to London.

They come straight to
Liverpool to see the Cavern.

- I just see. I haven't been
anywhere else like this before.

- It really is a good
place. It really is.

- Yeah. It's great.

- We've had a real
fantastic time tonight

- You couldn't say
that of anywhere else.

You know, sort of
make it the same.

- I think they
shouldn't close it down.

Nothin' will beat this place.

- [Journalist] Why is it
so important? The Cavern,

what's the magic?

- Well it's so
original, sort of thing.

You know, I mean most of
the other clubs in town

are more or less the same,

but there's just no
place like the Cavern.

- When they close the
door of the Cavern club

for the last time,

I think that will close
the door on an era,

an era that will never
be surpassed again,

not by any artist or film
star, or whatever you like.

I'll never be surpassed again.

It only happens
once in a lifetime.

(faint echoes of fans and music)

(silence)

- When Roy Adams made the
decision to move over the road,

he moved the Cavern entrance
15 yards across the street.

To here.

(swanky guitar music)

And to this day,

the Liverpool city council
has shouldered the blame

for allowing the original
Cavern club to be knocked down.

(guitar solo)

- It's terrible.

- The Cavern is the
be-and-all of all music.

- It's beautiful.

- And the Cavern
will always live,

whether it comes down or
not. It will always live.

- I'll be here even if
it's down. You know?

It's got sentimental
value to me.

- [Newscaster] The Cavern club,

famous as the birthplace
of The Beatles

is coming down.

True, they're building a new
Cavern across the street.

But it's not the same, is it?

(upbeat rock music)

- When I heard that it was
going to be demolished,

I thought this is ridiculous.

The council didn't want to know,

the people didn't want to know,

people on the scene
didn't want to know.

They just didn't want to know.

(bricks crashing)

(rubble imploding)

(melancholy guitar music)

* Too late to cry, baby

* Your last chance is gone

- Roy spent 32,000 pounds
moving over the road

to a building with
Cavern-esque arches

that could accommodate
2000 people.

* Your last chance is gone

- [Cavern Attendee] Once it was,

it went to the new
Cavern, it lost it.

It just wasn't the old Cavern.

- [Paul] And despite attracting
big names at the time,

such as Suzi Quatro,
and Roy Wood,

it soon struggled and
closed, yet again.

But Cavern enterprises,
owned by Roy Adams

still continued to
trade on Mathew street.

Roy, after two failed attempts

to make a profit on
his new premises,

rented the venue to three
younger entrepreneurs,

Ken Testy,

Roger Eagle and Pete Falwell,

who launched Eric's.

(upbeat punk music)

A new punk venue,

which satisfied the demands
of a younger audience.

Here, the Sex Pistols,

the Stranglers,

the Police,

Elvis Costello,

and the Ramones all performed.

Punk was a
short-lived, knee-jerk

youth counterculture reaction
to the establishment.

Eric's, which had been

at the very forefront
of this revolution

itself, imploded.

After four hugely
successful years

(punk music fades out)

(gulls chirping)

(water lapping)

In December, 1980,
everything was re-evaluated.

- I was awoken about half-eight

by a battering on the front door

and the guy who did work
for me, Roy Alexanders,

standing on the, the doorstep,

absolutely crying his eyes out.

I said, "Roy, what's up?"

"John Lennon's been
shot in New York."

And I heard this
amazing sob behind me.

And that's all I can
remember of that day.

Earlier in the
year, in, in August,

British Rail had asked me

to look at coming up with
some ideas for the site.

I'd been thinking, you know,
I want to rebuild The Cavern,

but it was the
inspiration I got from,

from hearing that news.

And the next day,
started drawing

and did the embryonic sketches
of, of the whole building.

When we started on
the site scrape,

we found, I think,
five wells on the site.

And we went down in, in the
crane buckets, you know,

the personnel skip.

Down this hole and found this
watercourse under the Cavern.

And it was really,
really freaky down there,

(water dripping)

but we'd also found
the Cavern arches.

Now you don't
demolish a basement.

You fill it in.

And it's been filled
in with bricks,

but the arches were still there.

The top had been smashed in,

but the main side
arches were still there.

So we could measure them,
get the exact sizes.

And we saved all the bricks.

There they are.

(upbeat rock music)

The Cavern we see today is,

is fundamentally as
the original Cavern.

In that the size of
the arches and the,

and the curve of the arches.

* Never makes me wait

* She always cares

- [Paul] The original site

was about to be
redeveloped again,

and the Cavern would
move for the last time

back to here, to
where it all began.

* Not draggin' me down

* You're not draggin' me down

Gone was the sweaty,

smelly melting pot that had
been the original Cavern.

And in its place were carpets,
fine wines, table service.

The entertainment was cabaret.

The concept of the new owners,

which included Liverpool
Football and Tommy Smith

was that the
original Cavern crowd

were now in their thirties

and wanted something
more refined.

How wrong can you be?

- I do recall '84
vividly in the opening

and we all came down

to sign the wall, all the
guys, all the legendary people,

you know, the Mersey-beats

and there was Foreign.

And everyone came, came down
that night, it was tremendous.

It looked like the same, but
the archways on the stage,

it looked, it
smelled much better.

Smell was great.

It was a lovely-

That's really nice, that now.

- [Paul] Within a year,
the club is failing

and indeed changed hands
for 500,000 pounds.

The new owners promised
flashy disco lights

and a more modern feel.

They duly delivered
on that promise

and went bust very quickly.

- This other grotto
we're about to see

is where the Cavern
actually started.

It's been reopened as a,
like a tacky wine bar.

Come 4,000 miles
to see the Cavern.

Would you wanna come see
a tacky wine bar? Not me.

(funky upbeat music)

- In 1989,

Jimmy McVitie took over,

and finally somebody
did something right.

McVitie went for the newly
emerging student market,

a result of a huge expansion

by Liverpool's
universities and colleges.

And for about 18 months,

it was wildly successful,

until it was closed down

after McVitie and his bouncers

were tried and convicted

of the assault of
a young customer.

And despite this lamentable
incident in the club's history,

McVitie had
reintroduced live music.

And though it was
only on a Saturday,

it was a big step in
the right direction.

(guitar twangs)

* Ah-Huh-Ah-Ah

After being closed
for many months,

the Cavern Club was acquired
in 1991 by Cavern City Tours,

it's current owners.

- February the first, 1964.

I can still remember it.

And they decided
that they were gonna

open the Cavern on a Saturday
afternoon, just for kids.

We were all down
there like a shot.

- [Newscaster] Yes, they're
as small as they look,

these thumb size baby Beats
are just 12 years old.

And up until last Christmas,

they had no instruments
to call their own.

- The queue was
like a mile long.

It was back down the street

or we were standing
almost outside Hessie's.

We thought we,

we were never gonna get
in here, but anyway,

we stuck it out,

got there at 10 o'clock

and got in the club at 2
o'clock in the afternoon.

And the, the thing,

the most memorable thing
for me was the heat,

the darkness and the noise.

It was just like

something you'd never
experienced before in your life.

And you know, never
for one minute

did I ever think that,
you know, I'd own it.

- It was nothing to
do with the Beatles

that brought me here.

We were big, big fans of
a Dutch band called Focus.

And when we came down the stairs
and we were in the Cavern,

we didn't even know
we were in the Cavern.

We thought,

where do we pay?

- So we were kind of hesitant.

We just went down the, the steps

thinking, no,
someone's gonna stop us

and ask us for
money or, you know,

so we can't come in,
you needed a ticket.

- And we realized we were in.

And it was started
to get packed.

Then we saw Focus.
They were brilliant.

Yodeled all the way
home that night.

We didn't realize at the time

we just saw one of
the last big acts

of a band in the Cavern.

- The new owners put
music at the forefront

and made live music

the staple of everyday
life at the Cavern club.

- As anyone knows
who's ever been here,

it's like, you are, you
are steeping yourself,

you're immersing
yourself in the,

in this history, not just
a history of music, but a,

but a history of culture.

There's that phrase
that they say four,

four boys or four lads
that changed the world.

Well, yeah, they did.

But they, this is
where they changed it.

This is where, you
know, so you're part of,

you're part of that.

And I came in here and got
that tingling feeling, that,

that whole God, this is,
this is, this is amazing.

This is where it happened.

And I remember saying,
it'd be bloody good,

to get Mac'er in here.

(rock music)

* Well she was just seventeen

- I thought that
we had to do a gig

that was going to be of
monumental importance.

* How could I dance
with another

* Woo

* When I saw her
standing there

- I wanna welcome,

all of people who
are watching this

or listening to this,

and all the people
who've come here

from all around
the world tonight.

- [Paul] Thousands
of fans gathered

in Liverpool city center
to watch the concert

live on a huge outdoor screen.

What's more, the concert had

an estimated online audience

of some 53 million viewers.

* Well my heart went boom

- The day that Paul McCartney
returned to the Cavern,

that dominated the news.

(camera shutters click)

It was the front page story

on every single national
newspaper in this country,

including the Financial Times.

- [Paul] It's undeniable
that if the Beatles

were the band that
defined the Cavern,

it was Paul's return
that cemented it

in the minds and the souls
of fans and artists alike.

Paul's appearance
opened the flood gates.

- [Current Cavern Club
Owner] We've had Donovan,

Gloria Estefan,

Earth Wind and Fire,

Richie Havens, Paul
Rodgers, Arctic Monkeys,

Paris Hilton, Elvis
Costello, Yoko,

we've even had the
Fonz. Kings of Leon.

* Shoot your head down

Bo Diddly, Mary Wilson
of the Supremes,

Stephen Van Zandt,

from Bruce Springsteen's
E street Band,

we've even had British royalty.

* Well you're in my house

Go back to the
fifties. You know,

we've got legends like The
Comets and The Crickets,

* Mm-Hm

Liam Gallagher, The Coral,
Martha Reeves, the Kooks,

Mark Hamill,

Jesse J.

* I love to see you walk

You never know who's gonna
turn up at the Cavern.

* I was in Liverpool

* At the Cavern club

* and I just wanted to sing

* Ooh yeah

- [Paul] Interestingly enough,

the club is to go through
one more turbulent period.

- [Current Cavern Club
Owner] We had a dream

to open the world's first

Beatles-themed hotel,

and it took 15 years,
but it nearly killed us.

And over a four year period,

which we'll remember
with abject horror,

any given day we
could have gone under,

which would've taken the
Cavern down with it as well.

- They said that they
needed somebody to buy in.

And I jumped in with both feet.

And the irony is that the money,

the bucket source,
had come from John.

And John had always said

that the happiest time
of his life as a musician

was on the Cavern stage.

And he owns it now.

- [Paul] Every day,

the club opens its
doors to the world,

to Beatles fans wanting to
make the ultimate pilgrimage

to where it all began.

And to music fans, keen
to hear the latest sounds

booming out of this
legendary cellar.

- I'm from Brazil.

- Somerset, Taunton.

- I am from South Africa.

- Bangkok, Thailand.

- From Wilmington, Delaware.

- I come from Bulgaria.

- From Australia,
Brisbane, Australia.

- Cornwall.

- [Interviewer] Why did
you visit the Cavern for?

- [Cornwall Visitor] Well,
because we're from the beach

where this area made
me feel 20 again.

- Also you love it.

- It feels like I'm
walking into history.

- It's a very international
atmosphere down there.

- Yeah. It's, it's, it's a
special place to be, I think.

* One, two, three, four

(upbeat rock music)

- The Cavern of course,

has to pay tribute
to The Beatles,

but it can't just be
about The Beatles.

It's not a shrine,

it's a happening
live music place.

And it's been a backdrop
the whole 60 years,

from Jazz, Skiffle,
early Rock and Roll,

Pop music, Soul, Blues,

everything.

(high intensity rock music)

* Let me show you I will be

* One for you

* Nineteen for me

* 'Cause I'm the tax man

* Yeah

* I'm the tax man

- The Cavern today,

it's so eclectic, what we do

and it embraces
every genre of music

and keeps, keeps
moving forward as well.

* I'm crawlin',
crawlin', crawlin'

* Could not complain

* Whoa-Oh

* Magic wands and paper ties

* You bound my bones
and broken heart

* Thrust in too deep

* Questions are
still not resolved

* Desperate screams
in silent halls

* Just the sentiment

- I think it's really
common for, you know,

venues such as this to get
stuck in a sort of way,

which is very much
bands of the past,

but The Cavern has
done such a great job

in kind of expanding that

and letting new artists
kind of come here and shine

and play in such
a historic place.

- This next one is a,
another new song off the,

of the new album.

And I did it on George Holland
a couple of months ago.

And it's, it's my,
it's my favorite song.

Like I just, I probably burst-

Oh, good.

Oh I'm glad, but I don't, don't
like kind of bat an eyelid,

if I suddenly burst
into tears during it.

It makes me really sad.

But this is a song called
"Someone Like You".

- We're obviously used to
having people, famous people,

want to play the Cavern.

And when Adele played,

that was amazing.

She was playing live

and it was recorded and
put out on the radio.

And it was all part of
the launch of a new album.

* I heard

* That you're settled down

* That you found a girl

* And you're married now-ow-ow

* I heard that your
dreams came true

* Guess she gave you
things I didn't give you

- Adele was previewing 21,

which was obviously
the album that was

took her to worldwide success.

It was wonderful.

It was, we didn't
know the songs,

but you knew you were
listening to something special.

* Why are you so shy

* It ain't like
you to hold back

* Or hide from the light

* I hate to turn up
out of the blue

- The Cavern Club,

the club that means so
much to so many people,

a club that's embraced an
ever-changing in music scene.

The highs and lows, the dramas,

the battles, the
heartache, and most of all

the music.

(fans shriek)

* Hey

- [Audience] Hey

* Ho

- [Audience] Ho

* Huh

- [Audience] Huh

* Huh

- [Audience] Huh

(audience screams with glee)

* Shake it one more time

* Shake it one more time, now

* Shake it one more time

* Shake it one more time

* Yeah yeah yeah

* Shake it one more time

* Shake it one more time

* Hey

* Ho

* Huh

- [Audience] Huh

* Huh- huh- huh

* Baby it's all right

* Baby it's all right now

* Yeah

(drum roll)

(audience cheers and applauds)

- This is Bob Wooler.

Thanks for coming to Liverpool.

* Hey

* Hey

* Ho

* Ho

* Huh-Huh-Huh

(audience cheers)

* Shake it one more time now

* Shake it one more time

* Shake it one more time

* Yeah yeah yeah

* One more time

* Hey

* Hey

* Ho

* Ho

* Huh

- [Audience] Huh

* Huh-Huh

* Huh

* Huh-Huh-Huh

(audience screams)

* Baby it's alright now

* Baby it's alright

* Saying it's alright

* It's alright

* Yeah it's all right

* Yeah