In the 1970s and 1980s, The Four Aces nightclub in Dalston was so famous in the capital that it was dubbed 'the London equivalent of the New York Apollo'. It mixed up reggae, soul, punk, and Motown in a way that was unique to its time. It then morphed into legendary rave club Labyrinth in the early 90s (I remember it!), with live sets by the likes of The Prodigy, before succumbing to gentrification in the area and closing its doors.
In honour of the memory of this Hackney institution, there will be a screening of the documentary Legacy In The Dust: The Four Aces Story on Tuesday 26th November, 7pm, which charts the nightclub's fortunes - one that reflected the borough's mixed culture, in which white and black came together on the dancefloor despite simmering racial tension and on the streets and rising unemployment levels in the jobs market. Limited edition screen prints supporting the film's long-awaited release will be on sale. The screening will take place at The Jago (FKA Passing Clouds).
I'll be involved with a Q&A taking place after the screening with director Winstan Whitter and Jago owner Kwame. There will also be DJs and encouragements to register to vote (given that Tuesday is the deadline to do so before December's general election - more on that in this blog coming soon).
Tickets £5 from here.
A trailer for the documentary can be viewed here on Vimeo.
You can also listen a Spotify playlist that I've compiled of much of the songs that were played at The Four Aces and then Labyrinth below:
