Casbah Coffee Club

Casbah Coffee Club and the story of the Beatles Part 4.

Casbah Coffee Club and the story of the Beatles PART 4.

Good fun at the Casbah this morning with the TT's who were being interviewed for a new documentary about their Merseybeat days.

THE ONLY CONCERT OF PETE BEST IN 2019 Best Fest 11 – Casbah Coffee Club 60th Anniversary – Mersey Beat and the Beatles on Saturday the 24th of August 2019 at the Casbah Coffee Club featuring, The Pete Best Band, The Beryl Marsden Band, Karl Terry and the Cruisers, The Connection, The Threetles and the Dolomites. Details and ONLY a handful of tickets remain available at www.petebest.com Please note the ticket line will be closing soon.

The Best Family arrived in Liverpool on Christmas Day in 1945, and Liverpool was so different to anything Mo had experienced. She was shocked to discover a cold, grey and dank city which had been decimated by bombing. Liverpool was literally a shell of its former glory. Mo, John and sons moved into Ellersby Manor the Best family home in the suburbs of Liverpool, but life was not what Mo had expected. She clashed with John’s sisters and the cultural gap between them could not ...be bridged. Mo insisted they had to find their own home and John agreed. But houses were not easy to come by in a war-torn Liverpool. So, it was a flat on Cases Street in Liverpool where they first settled. A prefabricated house followed in what is now known as the Cantril Farm area of Liverpool. (Although these houses were built as temporary accommodation, they are still there to this day) From Cantril Farm they moved to a semi-detached house in Queenscourt Road, West Derby and it was whilst here my brother Rory began attending a school called Marlborough College in Haymans Green, West Derby Village.
Rory told Mo about a large Victorian mansion for sale in Haymans Green. My mother Mona Best viewed 8 Haymans Green. She loved it, but her enthusiasm wasn’t shared by her husband John Best. He felt the big old Victorian mansion was nothing but a big white elephant and had no desire whatsoever to go after the house. Mona however had other plans. She was quite a character, always independent, free spirited and unconventional.
This is my second Blog from the Magical Beatles Museum website. Blog No 3 will appear there tomorrow.
Enjoy,
All the best,
Roag
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THE ONLY CONCERT OF PETE BEST IN 2019 Best Fest 11 – Casbah Coffee Club 60th Anniversary – Mersey Beat and the Beatles on Saturday the 24th of August 2019 at the Casbah Coffee Club featuring, The Pete Best Band, The Beryl Marsden Band, Karl Terry and the Cruisers, The Connection, The Threetles and the Dolomites. Details and ONLY a handful of tickets remain available at www.petebest.com Please note the ticket line will be closing soon.

Casbah Coffee Club and the story of the Beatles Part 3.

THE BEGINNING So, what on earth would inspire a person to make a Beatles Museum?
In my case, my unique family history. My eldest brother Pete Best was in the band for over 2 years, my father Neil Aspinall worked with the Beatles for all of his adult life and was regarded as their closest and most loyal confident. My mother Mona Best was recently recognised as one of the most inspirational women in Liverpool due to her entrepreneurial idea in 1959 to open Liverpool’s first Roc...k N Roll Club – The Casbah Coffee Club, where this part of my family story began.
So, let’s start at the beginning. My mother Mona Best – affectionately known as The Mother of Merseybeat opened the Casbah Coffee Club in Liverpool on Saturday the 29th of August 1959.A lady way ahead of her time. Little did she know The Casbah was the spark which ignited not only the Merseybeat movement, but the greatest music phenomenon of all time, The Beatles.
Mona (Always known as Mo) was from an Irish military family whom had been stationed in India. And it was in India at a military dance that she met, fell in love, and subsequently married the young and dashing army Captain Johnny Best. The war came to an end and John Best and his beautiful wife Mona, and their two young sons Pete and Rory headed home to Liverpool on the last troop ship out of India The Georgic.
All the best,
Roag
This is my first blog on The magical Beatles Museum website. If you would like to see tomorrows come and have a look.
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THE ONLY CONCERT OF PETE BEST IN 2019 Best Fest 11 – Casbah Coffee Club 60th Anniversary – Mersey Beat and the Beatles on Saturday the 24th of August 2019 at the Casbah Coffee Club featuring, The Pete Best Band, The Beryl Marsden Band, Karl Terry and the Cruisers, The Connection, The Threetles and the Dolomites. Details and ONLY 3 tickets NOW available at www.petebest.com

Casbah Coffee Club and the story of Beatles true beginnings (some of the story). Part 2.

THE ONLY CONCERT OF PETE BEST IN 2019 Best Fest 11 – Casbah Coffee Club 60th Anniversary – Mersey Beat and the Beatles on Saturday the 24th of August 2019 at the Casbah Coffee Club featuring, The Pete Best Band, The Beryl Marsden Band, Karl Terry and the Cruisers, The Connection, The Threetles and the Dolomites. Details and ONLY 5 tickets NOW available at www.petebest.com

Lovely to see Paul talking about some of his memories from the Casbah Coffee Club in Reverb Magazine

Casbah Coffee Club - The True Beginnings of The Beatles. Some of the story. Part 1.

We have created a little 11 part mini series about the Casbah Coffee Club which will be shown one a week starting from next week. Hope you enjoy it.

THE ONLY CONCERT OF PETE BEST IN 2019 Best Fest 11 – Casbah Coffee Club 60th Anniversary – Mersey Beat and the Beatles on Saturday the 24th of August 2019 at the Casbah Coffee Club featuring, The Pete Best Band, The Beryl Marsden Band, Karl Terry and the Cruisers, The Connection, The Threetles and the Dolomites. Details and ONLY 7 tickets NOW available at www.petebest.com

THE ONLY CONCERT OF PETE BEST IN 2019 Best Fest 11 – Casbah Coffee Club 60th Anniversary – Mersey Beat and the Beatles on Saturday the 24th of August 2019 at the Casbah Coffee Club featuring, The Pete Best Band, The Beryl Marsden Band, Karl Terry and the Cruisers, The Connection, The Threetles and the Dolomites. Details and ONLY 13 tickets NOW available at www.petebest.com

Everything has a source. Somewhere where it all began or someone who kick started it. So, Mona Best being recognised is FAB. It was International Women's Day on Friday the 8th of March. 100 Inspirational Merseyside women to celebrate in the Liverpool Echo. Mona Best - The Mother of Merseybeat and owner of the Casbah Coffee Club - The Holy Grail of the Beatles trail..

The Quarrymen perform in the Rainbow room at The Casbah.

Unlike The Cavern, this is still as it was and how it was in the day. It even includes The Beatles own original ceiling art. A real buzz to be in there and an informative tour. Would like to return to see Pete playing there at some point. Great stuff!

Travelling back in time, great to see the Casbah still as it might have been 50 years ago - great to have a storyteller like Roag on our side - amazingly, fascinating listening to him. I never expected to find the highlight of my trip to Liverpool on my last day. I´m coming back!

This is one of the true Beatle's history gems. The Cavern claims to be the birth place of The Beatles, but this is the true birth place.

Unlike the Cavern, this club is almost as it was in early Beatles days. Most of the painting done by The Beatles, such as ceilings and walls. All is in cellar area of the Best family home. It's a must see for true Beatles fans.

At the special yearly event, Pete plays drums with his band and signs photos etc.

Last two years have featured the amazing Beryl Marsden and groups such as The Undertakers.

There is a real magical feeling with this place that l just don't feel anywhere else, to such a degree. I just love my yearly visit to this wonderous place.

Thank you for making our visit to the Casbah on the 7th April an amazing and interesting visit (we didn’t win the lottery by the way), thank you for the kind gift you gave us as we are celebrating 30 yrs of marriage. This place is just the Best!!! Xx

Roag's guided tour of the Casbah , can only be described as a "performance ". I've never seen a more energetic . entertaining, informative and inspired Tour Guide in my entire life !! ( and this was for a total of 3 of us on a bank Holiday ! )

I can only imagine how great and special it is for a group of people !

Roag Best = The Best !

My wife and I on our 20th wedding anniversary, along with our two friends visited the Best Fest and we had an outstanding, amazing time.

Roag made us feel extremely welcome, we spoke and made friends with other fans from all over the world.

As soon as we entered the drive it felt magical and you could imagine the vibe of the Casbah back then. Fantastic memorabilia, the place is as it was when it all started, and to hear Pete play drums with his band in his family home was a memorable experience. Pete then found time to say hi to most of the people who stayed on after the music had finished which obviously made all of our experiences extra special.

All the folk who worked and we're helping out were extremely friendly and accommodating.

A trip the four of us will remember forever.

Especially my dear friend John who is bravely fighting cancer and came with us, Roag very kindly ensured that John could meet Pete and was emotional seeing the sheer happiness that this brought to John.



6 stars, highly, highly recommended

☆☆☆☆☆☆



Darren Sims (Daz)

Daz's Rock 4 Charity

If your a fan of the Beatles and your visiting Liverpool then there is no better shrine to the Fab 4 than this place. You could easily drive past and you'd never know its there which makes it all the more unbelievable. I took some mates from Blackpool there a few years back and they honestly still talk about it to this day. Highly recommend.

I've been wanting to visit the Casbah since seeing it firstly in the 1982 documentary The Compleat Beatles. And what an experience... my friend and I were met first by Rory Best's wife - lovely lady whose name I can't remember but she was a delight. We'd booked Tour B which was the Beatles memorabilia tour but on arrival we were told that who normally did it couldn't be there that day but we were going to be given free signed photos by Pete after our tour - couldn't believe how kind that was. Rory's wife took us through the entrance and the Rainbow Room, then left us with Rory who showed us the Spider Room and the coffee bar, where he at age 14 would serve coffee, soft drinks and sweets to the kids who came to see the bands, it was incredible. I was in awe of the fact that I was standing underneath ceilings that the Beatles themselves had decorated, and seeing where John had carved his name. Rory talked about the various photos on the walls in each room and showed us some in the book he, Pete and Roag have written which is available to buy at the Casbah. I felt really quite emotional in the Rainbow Room; this room is exceedingly narrow, with benches either side, with the ceiling Paul painted in bright stripes. Everyone knows about the Cavern Club, which claims to be "where it all started." But to me, the Casbah was one of the first places John, Paul and George played together and got to know each other's stage presence and craft. It's like the nucleus, going back to year dot. The Casbah is unchanged from 1958, and has the boys' presence everywhere. It is the true place "where it all started" and I can't recommend it highly enough if you love the Beatles.

Fantastic tour of The Casbah Coffee Bar. A truly hidden jewel in the Beatles story and....The true birthplace of the Beatles. Without this rock n roll cellar. There would be no Beatles. Roag Best(Pete Best's younger brother and son of Neil Aspinall head of Apple Corp) was an amazing tour guide of his family home and very descriptive and energetic. The vibe and smell of the place the painted walls, by John, Paul, George, Pete and Cynthia Lennon throughout was just mesmerising. This is a must for any true Beatles fan. So informative and steeped in history about his family, brothers Pete and Rory, mother Mona and the birth of The Beatles.

Unlike The Cavern, this is still as it was and how it was in the day. It even includes The Beatles own original ceiling art. A real buzz to be in there and an informative tour. Would like to return to see Pete playing there at some point. Great stuff!

Travelling back in time, great to see the Casbah still as it might have been 50 years ago - great to have a storyteller like Roag on our side - amazingly, fascinating listening to him. I never expected to find the highlight of my trip to Liverpool on my last day. I´m coming back!

This is one of the true Beatle's history gems. The Cavern claims to be the birth place of The Beatles, but this is the true birth place.

Unlike the Cavern, this club is almost as it was in early Beatles days. Most of the painting done by The Beatles, such as ceilings and walls. All is in cellar area of the Best family home. It's a must see for true Beatles fans.

At the special yearly event, Pete plays drums with his band and signs photos etc.

Last two years have featured the amazing Beryl Marsden and groups such as The Undertakers.

There is a real magical feeling with this place that l just don't feel anywhere else, to such a degree. I just love my yearly visit to this wonderous place.

Thank you for making our visit to the Casbah on the 7th April an amazing and interesting visit (we didn’t win the lottery by the way), thank you for the kind gift you gave us as we are celebrating 30 yrs of marriage. This place is just the Best!!! Xx

Roag's guided tour of the Casbah , can only be described as a "performance ". I've never seen a more energetic . entertaining, informative and inspired Tour Guide in my entire life !! ( and this was for a total of 3 of us on a bank Holiday ! )

I can only imagine how great and special it is for a group of people !

Roag Best = The Best !

My wife and I on our 20th wedding anniversary, along with our two friends visited the Best Fest and we had an outstanding, amazing time.

Roag made us feel extremely welcome, we spoke and made friends with other fans from all over the world.

As soon as we entered the drive it felt magical and you could imagine the vibe of the Casbah back then. Fantastic memorabilia, the place is as it was when it all started, and to hear Pete play drums with his band in his family home was a memorable experience. Pete then found time to say hi to most of the people who stayed on after the music had finished which obviously made all of our experiences extra special.

All the folk who worked and we're helping out were extremely friendly and accommodating.

A trip the four of us will remember forever.

Especially my dear friend John who is bravely fighting cancer and came with us, Roag very kindly ensured that John could meet Pete and was emotional seeing the sheer happiness that this brought to John.



6 stars, highly, highly recommended

☆☆☆☆☆☆



Darren Sims (Daz)

Daz's Rock 4 Charity

If your a fan of the Beatles and your visiting Liverpool then there is no better shrine to the Fab 4 than this place. You could easily drive past and you'd never know its there which makes it all the more unbelievable. I took some mates from Blackpool there a few years back and they honestly still talk about it to this day. Highly recommend.

I've been wanting to visit the Casbah since seeing it firstly in the 1982 documentary The Compleat Beatles. And what an experience... my friend and I were met first by Rory Best's wife - lovely lady whose name I can't remember but she was a delight. We'd booked Tour B which was the Beatles memorabilia tour but on arrival we were told that who normally did it couldn't be there that day but we were going to be given free signed photos by Pete after our tour - couldn't believe how kind that was. Rory's wife took us through the entrance and the Rainbow Room, then left us with Rory who showed us the Spider Room and the coffee bar, where he at age 14 would serve coffee, soft drinks and sweets to the kids who came to see the bands, it was incredible. I was in awe of the fact that I was standing underneath ceilings that the Beatles themselves had decorated, and seeing where John had carved his name. Rory talked about the various photos on the walls in each room and showed us some in the book he, Pete and Roag have written which is available to buy at the Casbah. I felt really quite emotional in the Rainbow Room; this room is exceedingly narrow, with benches either side, with the ceiling Paul painted in bright stripes. Everyone knows about the Cavern Club, which claims to be "where it all started." But to me, the Casbah was one of the first places John, Paul and George played together and got to know each other's stage presence and craft. It's like the nucleus, going back to year dot. The Casbah is unchanged from 1958, and has the boys' presence everywhere. It is the true place "where it all started" and I can't recommend it highly enough if you love the Beatles.

Fantastic tour of The Casbah Coffee Bar. A truly hidden jewel in the Beatles story and....The true birthplace of the Beatles. Without this rock n roll cellar. There would be no Beatles. Roag Best(Pete Best's younger brother and son of Neil Aspinall head of Apple Corp) was an amazing tour guide of his family home and very descriptive and energetic. The vibe and smell of the place the painted walls, by John, Paul, George, Pete and Cynthia Lennon throughout was just mesmerising. This is a must for any true Beatles fan. So informative and steeped in history about his family, brothers Pete and Rory, mother Mona and the birth of The Beatles.