There’s raucous rock ‘n’ roll, and then there’s so-riotous-you-get-banned-from-a-whole-city rock ‘n’ roll, and on July 24, 1964, the Rolling Stones proved they were masters of both when they received a four-decades-long banishment from the city of Blackpool. The strong decree came on the heels of a violent, destructive melee that occurred while the Stones were playing the Empress Ballroom in the coastal town.
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As is so often the case with rock ‘n’ roll riots, one could argue that both the crowd and the band played a part in the escalation. Blackpool Council was quick to discipline both sides.
A Summer Gig Turned Unbearably, Aggressively Hot
1964 was a busy year for the Rolling Stones. The rising blues band had an arduous touring schedule across the U.K. and the U.S., flip-flopping between the two countries for weeks at a time over the course of the year. In between consecutive runs, the Rolling Stones played a few one-off shows in their home country, one of which was at the Empress Ballroom in Blackpool on July 24. The coastal town was already a hot spot during the summer season, and the Stones’ presence turned up the heat further.
According to Peter Fielding, who played lead guitar for the Executives, the band that opened for the Stones, remembered the crowd being rowdy from the beginning of the concert. “We got through most of one set, but they began chanting, ‘We want the Stones,’ and threw coins at the stage until we had to cut things short,” per Mojo. Fielding said that even once the Stones arrived on stage, some attendees were still throwing coins.
Next, the more raucous members of the crowd began pushing their way to the front of the crowd and spitting at the musicians. “In those days I had a temper,” Stones guitarist Keith Richards recalled. That “temper” led to Richards stomping his boots onto the fingers of one of the troublemakers in the audience before kicking him in the face. One kick was all it took. The trouble had begun, and chaos was quick to ensue.
The Rolling Stones Receive Banishment From Blackpool
In true rock ‘n’ roll riot fashion, attendees began destroying any piece of physical property they could get their hands on. People began throwing bottles, ripping up their seats, smashing light fixtures, and wreaking general havoc on the Empress Ballroom. After the Rolling Stones left the stage, likely for their own safety, the crowd descended on the musicians’ equipment, destroying amps, smashing the drum kit and grand piano into little wooden pieces, and damaging the venue’s PA system.
Whether the crowd or band was the first to push the tension into riot territory wasn’t of any concern to the Blackpool Council. The council took four of the rowdier troublemakers to court. Meanwhile, they imposed a ban on the Rolling Stones that was to last 44 years. The band obliged, and the city held firm on their decision, even as the Stones became one of the most popular bands in the world.
As promised, just over four decades later, in 2008, the Blackpool Council announced that the banishment was no longer in effect and that the Rolling Stones were welcome back. (We can only assume whether or not the Blackpool Council of 1964 would have imagined that the Stones would still be around, let alone actively performing, 44 years later.) “I would love to see them play again at Blackpool,” Blackpool Council leader Peter Callow told The Guardian in 2008. “If they forgive us, we will forgive them.”
Photo by Mark and Colleen Hayward/Redferns
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