History

The reasons for the club's birth and trajectory forms the perfect jazz story involving two young London-based jazz musicians, both saxophonists, Ronnie Scott and Pete King, who grew up through the swing era of thirties and were inspired by the bebop revolution of the mid-forties emanating from the US, whose leading figures were saxophonist Charlie Parker and trumpeter Dizzy Gillespie.

Bebop, an exciting and frenetic musical style was performed mostly in the New York jazz clubs such as the Three Deuces and Birdland. It was the heady atmosphere of these clubs in and around 52nd Street, also known as 'Swing Street', that Ronnie and Pete along with their fellow British musicians such as Johnny Dankworth and Tony Kinsey who played in the dance bands on the trans-Atlantic liners, were able to experience firsthand, their musical heroes, when they disembarked between crossings.

During the immediate post-war period, the coterie of young jazz musicians who followed the genre that became known as 'modern jazz' (as opposed to 'trad' or New Orleans revival) had attempted to set up venues where they could enjoy the freedom to play their own music for each other and like-minded audiences, with a modicum of success. The of these was 'Club 11', a short-lived night nightclub at 41 Great Windmill Street – founded in 1948 and closed in 1950 following a 'drugs' raid by the police. Otherwise, the scene was fairly dissipated between gigs in the back rooms of pubs and the occasional concert at larger venues such as the Dominion Theatre in Tottenham Court Road such as the show given by the then very popular Jazz Couriers co-led by the two-tenor sax front line of Ronnie Scott and the prodigiously talented Tubby Hayes. By this time, Ronnie had achieved a certain star status and was widely respected by his peers as a leader of his generation.

Following a commercially unsuccessful venture with their cooperatively run nine-piece band in 1949, and the demise of 'Club 11', Ronnie and Pete who had been inspired by the 52nd Street clubs, kept the dialogue going regarding a similar setting, as a permanent home for modern jazz. Eventually, they came across a suitable basement at 39 Gerrard Street in what later became Chinatown. 

During the day, the space was utilised by London cabbies as a stop-off point for tea and sandwiches. Ronnie and Pete approached the building owner and were able to persuade the building owner to have them run a jazz club in the evenings, the opening night for Ronnie Scott's Jazz Club being 30th October 1959 which of course headlined with the UK's biggest instrumental jazz star, Tubby Hayes.

For a couple of years, the club featured solely local players, but this could be sustained from a business viewpoint and thus began the quest to present international jazz talent. Ronnie and Pete agreed to split their duties of running a full-time jazz club. Ronnie became its figurehead and played in the club between tours whilst Pete abandoned his musical career to run the business.

Since the 1940s there had been a ban instituted by the Musicians Union regarding overseas musicians, namely from the US (instrumentalists rather than vocalists) performing in the UK. The ban was designed to protect the jobs of local musicians. A similar ban existed regarding UK musicians who wished to work in the US. It was Pete who flew to New York and brokered a band exchange deal with the American Federation of Musicians. The first example of this arrangement was the booking of the Tubby Hayes Quartet at the Half Note in New York, and the first US star club presentation of the easy swinging tenor saxophonist Zoot Sims accompanied by the house trio led by top UK pianist Stan Tracey in December 1961. The residency lasted 4 weeks, such was the unquenchable thirst of the music-loving for authentic American jazz by its top practitioners.

Under the watchful business eye of Pete and with Ronnie playing with his band, usually as the opening sets before the headliners, though other local bands were often booked for these slots when Ronnie was on tour, Ronnie's became firmly established as one the world's premier jazz clubs.

It should also be noted that Ronnie, lighted cigarette in hand or wedged into his saxophone would stand by the solitary column to the left of the stage and work the audience into hysterics with a series of one-liners, as a warmup before the headliner appeared. Like many great musicians, he possessed perfect comic timing – thus familiar punchlines would hit their target even though they had been delivered many times before, to the regular attendees.

The big names in jazz such as Oscar Peterson, Ella Fitzgerald, Dizzy Gillespie, Herbie Hancock, Weather Report, Charles Mingus, Sarah Vaughan, Roy Ayers and Nina Simone continued to be presented at Ronnie's. In fact, it was easier to identify the small handful of jazz stars that did not play the club, such as John Coltrane and Duke Ellington. Remarkably, trumpeter Miles Davis, who since the mid-sixties was playing exclusively concert halls and festivals performed at Ronnie's with his 'Bitches Brew' band for a BBC TV recording in 1970.

Stories that have become the stuff of legend abound, such as the time when tenor titan Sonny Rollins remained in the club overnight to compose the title music for the Michael Caine classic 'Alfie' and the infusion of excitement brought to the scene by the run of high-energy Cuban bands, commencing with Irakere led by piano great Chucho Valdes in the mid-eighties and continuing with the likes of trumpeter Arturo Sandoval and saxophonist Paquito D'Rivera. Soho tour guides pausing outside the club tend to focus on the non-jazz legends, namely Jimi Hendrix's last performance preceding his death in 1970 when he dropped by and jammed on stage with War and the fact that Ronnie Scott's played on the famous Beatles' track 'Lady Madonna.'

Ronnie's survived many challenges over the years such as financial difficulties, fire damage, noise complaints and changing musical tastes. It has even survived the passing of its two founders, Ronnie Scott died in 1996 with Pete King carrying on until 2005 when he sold the business to theatrical impresario Sally Green and philanthropist Michael Watt who continue to own the club today. Pete died in 2009.

The club underwent a three-month refurbishment and was reopened in June 2006. The unique feel and intimacy of the main room was retained but the ancillary spaces such as the entrance lobby were replanned to accord with the current health and safety requirements. Nevertheless, the main room and the upstairs bar are welcoming spaces, the former is where the musical performance, sound quality, listening comfort and peerless hospitality is prioritised and the latter has a more casual feel though again, the music is given the platform it deserves.