Sorry if the question has been asked before but i cannot recollect it.

Reason being i have received an Email asking the Question and to be honest i have not got a clue.

so over to you guys and thanks & in advance for Your Help.

Rick.

That’s a difficult one ! My first guess would be The Flamingo Jazz All-nighters which then went R n B - but my second guess for a “ recognised “ All-nighter by today’s standards would be The Scene Club

The first allniters weren't R&B or soul related, they go back to the jazz years -- late 50's / early 60's. London January 1959 & 1960 ...

Edited July 19Jul 19 by Roburt

Early R&B niters ... LONDON >> Friday & Saturday nights in January 1964 ...

Seems jazz groups still ruled the roost @ the Flamingo at the start of 1962. But during the early part of that year, jazz acts played the niter sessions BUT the acts on had started to also include R&B songs in their repertoire. Thus jazz front men like Earl Watson & Tommy Whittle were leading jazz outfits. Also on the bill were the likes of the Birch Heckstall Smith Quartet. Main man in this jazz group was Dick Heckstall Smith. He was soon to join Alexis Korner's Blues Incorporated. They cut the groundbreaking album 'R&B from the Marquee'. The following year, he was a founding member of that band's breakaway unit, the Graham Bond Organisation. So he became one of the UK's fore-runners in the R&B field (despite his 5 or so earlier years as a main man on the London jazz scene).

MARCH 1962 Flamingo niter ad ...

Edited July 19Jul 19 by Roburt

Some very interesting posts and information there you guys and yes it is a tough one to call, even for us oldies on here ( i'm 74 btw) and the way info and promoting events was very different back then to what we have today and the old brain cells ain't what they used to be it has to be said

Flamingo is Very early & the adds full of information & and The Scene Club sounds very interesting too, so more info on that would be wonderful if anybody has any, thanks for replies up to now you guys, looking forwards anything else that may be out there. Rick

2 hours ago, Rick Scott said:

Some very interesting posts and information there you guys and yes it is a tough one to call, even for us oldies on here ( i'm 74 btw) and the way info and promoting events was very different back then to what we have today and the old brain cells ain't what they used to be it has to be said

Flamingo is Very early & the adds full of information & and The Scene Club sounds very interesting too, so more info on that would be wonderful if anybody has any, thanks for replies up to now you guys, looking forwards anything else that may be out there. Rick

Think much of the history of the Scene Club was covered in an old thread ... 1960's London Mod / Soul Clubs

SCENEMAN posting the most informative info.

A couple of jazz club ads showing their move into R&B and away from jazz (neither poster is actually for niter sessions though) ...

THEN a niter starring the Hollies (a strange choice for a live act @ a niter, but then it's early timewise) ... PLUS a niter that finished @ 4.30 am ... not too convenient in my opinion as the great thing about a proper niter was that they'd throw you out not that long before public transport started up.

The Americana club at The Mapleton was holding all nighters from 1955 prior to the same people doing so at the Flamingo.

A lot more at https://flashbak.com/club-americana-on-coventry-street-in-1955-43350/

There is also this related vinyl below.

I recommend the book mentioned in the article to explore London's other side and it's follow up.

Northern Soul Direct

Club Americana - All Night Dancing At The Mapleton - Vari...

However, it is a little known fact that there was a second club, cloistered in the basement of the Mapleton, the ‘Americana’. The club was..

Edited July 25Jul 25 by Thinksmart

6 hours ago, Roburt said:

A couple of jazz club ads showing their move into R&B and away from jazz (neither poster is actually for niter sessions though) ...

THEN a niter starring the Hollies (a strange choice for a live act @ a niter, but then it's early timewise) ... PLUS a niter that finished @ 4.30 am ... not too convenient in my opinion as the great thing about a proper niter was that they'd throw you out not that long before public transport started up.

Hi Robert , what year where these posters from ?

Roburt seems busy so they look to be 1963-64.

33 minutes ago, Thinksmart said:

Roburt seems busy so they look to be 1963-64.

Thank you , Thinksmart that's what I had in mind , The Stones must have been a good night & The Club Americana before that , things our parents kept quiet about dancing all night !!!

There have been all nighters in some form or other with different tastes in music in the uk from the fifties that I know off Jamaican , Reggae , RnB, Soul , Nsoul, even beat group all nighters, they took off big time in the early sixties legally but there was and still are underground all nighters I expect , just cause you don’t see them it doesn’t mean they don’t exist LoL,

Cheers

ML

On 25/07/2025 at 19:21, Happy Feet said:

Hi Robert , what year where these posters from ?

Various I think but I'd have to check. Obviously they're from around 62/63/64. The Club Noreik niters were going strong in 1964 / 65 -- the Rolling Stones playing the club in Feb 64 (the Who were on in Jan 65). The Macador ad was from Jan 64 -- Stevie Wonder came to the UK for some TV shows in Dec 63 ('Ready Steady Go!' and 'Thank Your Lucky Stars.'), so I guess he was booked to play a few clubs in the London area at that time (though late Jan 64 seems a bit after his TV appearances which were late Dec 63).

Edited July 27Jul 27 by Roburt

By 1965 the Stones and Hollies were playing theatres, pier halls and cinemas as pop acts rather than club nights and 'rave ups', so likely 1964 latest. Their concert schedules of 1964 onwards are available online.

One unofficial early nighter venue for trad jazz in 50s was Chislehurst Caves, in Kent.

There were also reputedly allnight Jazz sessions alongside Festival of Britain in 1951.

But it feels to me that Americana Club in 1955 was the first official nighter playing black Jazz and R&B we might enjoy.

Hi Thinksmart

There were all nighters in Liverpool every week in the late 1950,s in various venues usually big Victorian houses. Known as Shebeens, they by passed the laws of the day by giving food to the patrons as part of the admission fee usually goat curry etc I have spoken to a good number of people who visited, I was too young in the 50,s LoL, but did visit one or two late 60,s early 70,s they probably are still going strong I would have thought Manchester would have been similar, The first all nighters in my Home town Wigan was a club called Bluesville that was definitely going in 1963 the Room at the top followed circa 1965 as regards Soul music parallel to other Northern Towns Manchester, Sheffield etc etc

Cheers Mick

4 hours ago, Hooker1951 said:

The first all nighters in my Home town Wigan was a club called Bluesville that was definitely going in 1963 the Room at the top followed circa 1965 as regards Soul music parallel to other Northern Towns Manchester, Sheffield etc etc Cheers Mick

Sheffield had a guy who was the 1st promoter of such clubs. He had 2, both were jazz clubs initially & though the 2nd (the Esquire) started out with jazz, it soon morphed into an R&B club. I don't think they held niters though (we had to wait for Pete Stringfellow's King Mojo for that pleasure) ... The Esquire booked all the top UK R&B outfits + visiting US blues / R&B acts. The top local acts were fronted by Joe Cocker & Dave Berry ...

Edited July 27Jul 27 by Roburt