Sort of in the original place (give or take a few yards) this subterranean joint is tourist-party central, but with its recreated barrel-vaulted arches and good time rock’n’roll (and local troubadours most evenings) the Cavern Club is a likeable enough place, if a touch ersatz.
If you want to see The Beatles in The Cavern (while actually seeing neither) this is a close as you’re likely to get, with regular performances from tribute acts and karaokers boosted by Dutch courage and English lager.
Fear not, however, there are some startlingly good acts knocking out Beatles numbers in Liverpool, complete with mop tops and Sergeant Pepper outfits. The back room is more likely to feature these acts, alongside touring acts and ticketed events – there’s a huge amount of resident bands to feed the 365-day demand for live music at the Cavern Club. Somewhat improbably it has hosted secret and warm-up gigs by the likes of Adele, Jessie J, The Arctic Monkeys and Oasis over the years.
The front room is a big tourist attraction, featuring a replica of the iconic 1960s stage with the names of the bands who played there written on the back wall. There’s live music there most night when they’re not filming: two John Lennon biopics – In His Life: The John Lennon Story and Nowhere Boy – have featured the room.
The Cavern’s souvenir shop stocks touristy merchandise including t-shirts, CDs, books and postcards. Meanwhile the venue is the perfect place for a nostalgia-themed event – you can hire it out for a fee.
The audience may be made up of star-struck tourists and those in their swinging sixties, but there’s a lot to be said for a trip to the Cavern Club if you’re visiting Liverpool.
The Cavern Club is not the place to go for the city’s cutting-edge music, but it’s worth a pilgrimage for a drink or two.
