1964 brought changes on Tuesday evening with Aylesbury Bluesville presenting rhythm and blues in the shape of acts such as The Animals, The Yardbirds and Manfred Mann – see here for details.

Saturday evenings at the Borough Assembly Hall continued to be promoted by Eddie Friday. Highlights included two further appearances by Gene Vincent (February – see below – and July) and three more by the Barron Knights (July, October and December).

Appearing for the first time during the year were the Swinging Blue Jeans (two appearances in February and November), Unit Four Plus Two (in May and September) and The Applejacks. With the winding up of the Aylesbury Jazz Club, Eddie Friday also took the opportunity to present some jazz artists, such as the Terry Lightfoot Jazzmen and the Dutch College Swing Band.

The Swinging Blue Jeans appearance in February caused a stir. The Bucks Advertiser reported:

It was the biggest night at the B.A.H. for many seasons, of that there was little doubt. Promoter Eddie Friday shut the doors tight at 8 o’clock, just as the dancing started. Inside were as many people as he dare alow. The fans had waited for a long time – two girls started their vigil four hours earlier.

They played again in November:

Other promoters brought Alexis Korner and his Blues Incorporated and the Graham Bond Organisation. The Graham Bond Organisation included Jack Bruce and Ginger Baker who, with Graham Bond, had left Blues Incorported to form this new group, and Dick Heckstall-Smith. Despite their reported hostility to each other during their time with Graham Bond, Jack Bruce and Ginger Baker were later to form Cream with Eric Clapton – Cream played in Aylesbury in February 1967. Before this Bruce left the Graham Bond Organisation, joining John Mayall’s Bluesbreakers, which included Eric Clapton, and then Manfred Mann, playing on “Pretty Flamingo”.

One unsolved mystery is a possible appearance by Marianne Faithfull. In her book Faithfull: An Autobiography it shows that, as part of her schedule for November 1964, Marianne Faithfull appeared at the “Barrow Assembly Hall” in Aylesbury on 23rd November 1964 – but this was a Monday night when wrestling was taking place at the hall. No other details can be found about this – can you help?

List of gigs at Borough Assembly Hall:

Date	Promoter Name	Artist 1	Artist 2
4/1/1964	Eddie Friday	Johnny Milton And The Condors	The Apollos
11/1/1964	Eddie Friday	Shane Spencer and The Casuals	The Trackers
18/1/1964	Eddie Friday	Roy Starr and the Cherokees	The Crusaders
25/1/1964	Eddie Friday	The Ghouls	Neil Landon and the Burnetts
1/2/1964	Eddie Friday	Johnny, Mike And The Shades	The Rhythm 3, The Journeymen
7/2/1964	The Chris Du Maurier Agency	Shane Fenton and the Fentones	The Kossaks featuring Johnny Kaye
8/2/1964	Eddie Friday	Gene Vincent & The Shouts	The Apollos
15/2/1964	Eddie Friday	Dave LaKaz and the G Men	The Bullets
22/2/1964	Eddie Friday	The Kubas	Johnny Anger and the Wild Ones
28/2/1964		Alexis Korner and his Blues Incorporated	The Impulsions
29/2/1964	Eddie Friday	The Swinging Blue Jeans	Ken Gordon and the Dynamic Down-Siders
7/3/1964	Eddie Friday	Russ and the Sabres	The Cavaliers, The Rave Ons
14/3/1964	Eddie Friday	The Cherokees featuring Roy Starr	The Apollos
21/3/1964	Eddie Friday	Mike Berry and the Innocents	Johnny Carr and the Cadillacs
28/3/1964	Eddie Friday	Shane Spencer and The Casuals	The Phantoms
4/4/1964	Eddie Friday	The Flintstones	The Strangers
11/4/1964	Eddie Friday	Johnny, Mike And The Shades	The Craymen
17/4/1964		Graham Bond Organisation
18/4/1964	Eddie Friday	Wee Willie Harris backed by The Rockets	The Redcaps, The Rave Ons
25/4/1964	Eddie Friday	Peter Andersen and The Midnighters	Johnny Anger and the Wild Ones, The Preachers
2/5/1964	Eddie Friday	Unit Four Plus Two	The Classmates, The Sound Trekkers
9/5/1964	Eddie Friday	Johnny Carr and the Cadillacs	Cliff Adams and the Twilights
16/5/1964	Eddie Friday	Grant Tracey and the Sunsets	The Corvettes
18/5/1964	Eddie Friday	Shane Spencer and The Casuals	The Whispering Four
23/5/1964	Eddie Friday	The Redcaps	The Telstars, The Chessmen featuring Jeff Reed
30/5/1964	Eddie Friday	Steve Francis and the Higrades	The Rebels
6/6/1964	Eddie Friday	Pat Wayne and the Beachcombers	The Storms
13/6/1964	Eddie Friday	King Size Taylor and the Dominos	Tony and the Stranglers
20/6/1964	Eddie Friday	The Plus Four featuring Erky Grant	Roy Powell and the Offbeaters
27/6/1964	Eddie Friday	Shane Spencer and The Casuals	Ken Gordon and the Downsiders
4/7/1964	Eddie Friday	The Barron Knights and Duke D'Mond	The Silhouettes
11/7/1964	Eddie Friday	The Wackers featuring Terry Anton	Johnny Anger and the Wild Ones
18/7/1964	Eddie Friday	Johnny Carr and the Cadillacs	The Chessmen featuring Jeff Reed, The Rave Ons
25/7/1964	Eddie Friday	Gene Vincent & The Shouts	The Apollos
1/8/1964	Eddie Friday	The Hustlers	The Cavaliers
3/8/1964	Eddie Friday	The Niteshades	The Whispering Four
8/8/1964	Eddie Friday	Washington D.C.	The Leon Boys
15/8/1964	Eddie Friday	Shane Spencer and The Casuals	Tony and the Stranglers
19/8/1964	Eddie Friday	Terry Lightfoot Jazzmen
22/8/1964	Eddie Friday	The Deacons	Johnny Anger and the Wild Ones, The Journeymen
29/8/1964	Eddie Friday	The Applejacks	Georgie, The Rave Ons
5/9/1964	Eddie Friday	Unit Four Plus Two	Johnny Carr and the Cadillacs
11/9/1964	Music Management Promotions	Snowballs	The Soundtrekkers, Scrooge and the Misers
12/9/1964	Eddie Friday	Jimmy Nicol and the Shubdubs	The Reasons
18/9/1964	Music Management Promotions	The Other Two	The Herd, Evergreens
19/9/1964	Eddie Friday	The Mike Cotton Sound	The Storms
26/9/1964	Eddie Friday	King Size Taylor and the Dominos	Terry Judge, The Barristers
3/10/1964	Eddie Friday	The Migil Five	The Cavaliers
10/10/1964	Eddie Friday	Mal Ryder and the Spirits	Shane and the Shane Gang
17/10/1964	Eddie Friday	The Barron Knights and Duke D'Mond	The Apollos
21/10/1964	Eddie Friday	The Papa Bue Viking Jazz Band
24/10/1964	Eddie Friday	The Wranglers	The Dolphins
30/10/1964	The Grange Youth Club	The Mistral Tuacs	The Berries
31/10/1964	Eddie Friday	Johnny, Mike And The Shades	The Whispering Four with Pam Cordell
7/11/1964	Eddie Friday	Dave Curtis and the Tremors	Tony and the Stranglers
14/11/1964	Eddie Friday	Buddy Britten and the Regents	The Trolls
21/11/1964	Eddie Friday	The Swinging Blue Jeans	Georgie, The Rave Ons
28/11/1964	Eddie Friday	The Clouds	The Koalas
2/12/1964	Eddie Friday	Dutch College Swing Band
5/12/1964	Aylesbury Young Conservatives	The Mistral Tuacs	The Penny Blacks
12/12/1964	Eddie Friday	The Fenmen	The Storms
19/12/1964	Eddie Friday	The Downsiders	Washington DCs
24/12/1964	Eddie Friday	The Barron Knights and Duke D'Mond	The Reasons
26/12/1964	Eddie Friday	Johnny Anger and the Wild Ones	The Sneakers