DANCING AT THE HAMMERSMTH PALAIS 1973

Raw footage used in a Thames TV report on the popular LONDON DANCE HALL in 1973

See: FLYOVER - THE HAMMERSMITH HUSTLE  for more on The Palais:
http://denimdisco.blogspot.com/2019/10/flyover-hammersmith-hustle.html

FLYOVER - THE HAMMERSMITH HUSTLE

                                           

                                               ''Keep Movin', Keep Movin', Keep Movin', Keep Movin'
                                                Keep Movin', Keep Movin', Keep Movin', Keep Movin'!''
                                       
         

                                                 ''Down London town with the noise 'n' bustle,
                                               We've got a dance, it's the Hammersmith Hustle!''


THE HAMMERSMITH PALAIS was a large DANCE HALL situated in a working class neighbourhood in WEST LONDON. Built in 1910 as Roller Skating Rink and converted to host ballroom dancing in the '20's, the venue weathered countless musical trends and was drawing crowds in excess of 2,000 for it's SATURDAY NIGHT DISCO during the mid seventies when songwriter/producer MIKE FINESILVER hit upon idea of a dance number with a distinctive LONDON flavour

Queuing to get into the Palais on a saturday night in '73

Finesilver had co-written the hit ''FIRE'' for THE CRAZY WORLD OF ARTHUR BROWN in the late 60's and went on to found PATHWAY STUDIOS with partner PETER KER. In early '76 he set about recording this cheeky tribute to ''THE HUSTLE'' by VAN McCOY In the tiny 8-TRACK STUDIO. He choose the name FLYOVER for the studio band {on account of a flyover running close to the venue} and ROCKET RECORDS pressed it on '45. It failed to set the world alight, but was presumably spun at the venue itself. Does anyone remember hearing it?

                                              Dancing around the handbag on a Saturday night

During the next couple of years the studio became synonymous with the early PUNK/NEW WAVE movement and the likes of THE DAMNNED, SHAM 69, SQUEEZE and MADNESS recorded there. One band that didn't were THE CLASH, but they recorded their own tribute to the venue ''WHITE MAN AT THE HAMMERSMITH PALAIS'' at BASING STREET STUDIOS up the road in Notting Hill around mid '78. Pathway continued to operate untill the mid 90's and The Palais finally shut it's doors in 2007 and was demolished in 2012

                                                                    ''Alright my son?

                                                                    Yeah! Lovely init'?

                                                                    Just keep on dancing''


 FLYOVER - THE HAMMERSMITH HUSTLE

FLYOVER - THE HAMMERSMITH HUSTLE {Part Two}