TRIBUTES TO THE COUNTRY CLUB ( 1

Difficult to put into words what I'm feeling about the closure of The Country Club. I've been playing there every Saturday since the very early days (about 4 and a half years), and it was the highlight of each week... countless wicked memories and emotions; an unbelievable system and a sense of freedom I've never found anywhere else.

As people say:- "one door closes... another opens", but I doubt there'll ever be a club like the one opened by The Dancedaddy. Built on a love for music and not money, it was a rare find in the modern world, and to say it will be sorely missed is a massive understatement.

Love, peace and respect going out to all those who really felt and appreciated the unique vibe, and a big "F#*K YOU" to those who helped destroy it.

If you've ever been to this amazing place, you'll know how special it was. Please write your own personal tribute to the club here. I'd love to compile these and make some sort of gift to the owner. I wont tell you exactly what I want to do, but it'll be special. Please tell anyone you know who ever went to the club to do the same too.



PS Leave your e-mail address at the end so I can get it touch with further details.



AND REMEMBER TO BE THERE ON OCT 26TH!




Edited by: markeg3000 at: 10/16/02 12:38:54 am

Scince i first went to the country club back in April 2000 I was hooked. The atmosphere was amazing, I never expected it to be as good as it was. Since then I have been going nearly every week and over this period I have not only enjoyed hearing my favorite DJ's & producers, But I have met so many new friends. Ive had some of my best nights of my life there.



Not only have I been lucky enough to have gone to the Country Club, but for the last 6 months Ive have played up there Almost every fortnight and for that I have to thank Meri & Clive For this ( I can't express how much this means to me ). Also I would like to thank Ian, Dave & Andy for all the support they have given to me so I could play at the best club in the world. To be able to play in a club like this is the best feeling in the world, Playing infront of people who share the same passion for music as I do. At least I have some happy memories for the rest of my life which I will never forget. I doubt if I will be able to play anywhere as good as this ever again, not because im not good enough but because there is not another club like The Country Club.

The 26th will be a very hard & upseting night for all who have cared about the Country Club ( Im in tears as I type this as it is so heart braking ), But I must remain strong as Im going to remeber the 26th not as the last night, But the best night ever.



Thank you Clive and Meri For letting me be part of the dream.



Richar Swannie

I'm gutted!

I dont think any of us will ever forget the place. For me personally, i have had some of the best nights of my life there, and also met some amazing people, most of which i am now good friends with.

C.C. is gonna have a place in all our hearts forever, thanks Clive, Meri and staff for letting us be a part of it. Take care!



See everyone on the 26th for the final dance, i think its gonna be an emotional one! Lets make it the biggest party ever and show Clive how much we appreciate what he has done for us.

Just wanted to say that I have definately had the best nights of my life at the CC every weekend.

Nothing can replace all the friends that I have met & made at this special place.

DJ'ing along side Meri & Ben Eye alone was enough let alone the countless big name DJ's like Flutlicht, the Tracid DJ's, Trance Generators & of course Mark EG.



I have seen the CC grow from nothing, (we played hardcore there before the Saturday nights were even up and running (16 at the time!), been there through the Dave Scott & Ben Eye period and seen it grow and grow.



Of course Meri has always been there, a quiet but consistantly amazing DJ & I can only say a big thankyou to Meri & Clive for giving me such an oppurtunity (one that I could never have imagined...)



Everything myslef & Ian Cross have ever done has always been aimed 100% at the Country Club (DJ'ing & production) and it is hard to imagine what it will be like without it.



I just hope that someday I will get to play alongside Meri again on a mind-blowing system to so many people that really care, something that I fear may be very hard to achive ever again.



Finally, just to say that I love you all & I love the CC & yes I probably will cry (& no I dont give a @#%$!!)



Lets make the 26th the best night of all the true CC'ers lives, so for one last time "See you down the front."





PS. We will be setting up a tribute gallery to the Country Club on our website and want everyone to send they're pics in as we will host them forever & we can all have a Country Club Album online to visit whenever.



Website : www.highfishrecordings.co.uk



email (pics/info) : Dave@Highfishrecordings.co.uk

Thank you to Clive and Meri and everyone involved in making the country club what it is and what we will all remember it as...not just a club, but a whole scene, a life style that i have enjoyed living for the past three years i've been going. I've met some of the most amazing people there, i've seen and heard my favourite dj's playing the music I love as well as having had the privilege of playing there myself (thank you meri for all your support). I can safely say i have had some of the greatest moment in my life raving hard at the front like only we know how to.

Respect, Love and Thanks to the whole CC family.

matt.

Im sooooo gutted.... The Country Club is such a special to me, Ive been going there for 4.5 years and they were for sure the best years of my life.

I met the love of my life there Kirsty,

Most of my freinds now go to the club or are part of it.

And from the frist time me and Dave Spinout walk in those doors, we've always wanted to be main room residents (what up and coming Dj dosn't)

And it was a real dream come ture when Years later we were asked to be weekly resident down stairs in the devils den!

And i have Meri and Clive to thank for that :-)



There is now going to be a massive hole in my life, And not anything will ever fill it in the way the Country Club did.



C.C will be a legend, And thanks to Clive and Meri for letting me be a part of it. Cheers!



See ya all on the 26th :-(



Iain Cross.

I have experienced the country club 'experience' for just over a year. I first walked into the club for my 18th birthday last october. Since that night I have met many people, heard music played like i'd never heard it before and felt so part of a close group of like minded people that I cannot imagine the world without it.

My favourite nights had to be new year and valentines all nighters, the atmosphere on new year was outrageous and instead of stopping to celebrate the turn of the year, Si the Sigh just shouted Happy new year over the tunes, he knew what we wanted! Valentines 2002 was the best collection of sets I've ever heard up the club. I took my camera that night and was so caught up in the music I only took a few photos of Mark E.G (purely because I was right up the front going off my head while Mark did the same) and as a result had more pictures off the aftermath.

I won't go on reminiscing, but I will say this:

IF I EVER FIND ANOTHER CLUB WITH THE SAME MAGIC AS THE COUNTRY CLUB, I WILL CONSIDER MYSELF VERY VERY LUCKY.

Thank you to every single person that contributed to my wonderful nights.



Jon_Crisford@fsmail.net

Respect to all who knows and loves the country club. All involved will know what a special place it was. And sad it is to see it go.... the house of trance.

100% respect to mark for all your support...

Baptismafish

(if this gets too sentimental i apologise)

just over three years ago i knew nothing, and i mean NOTHING about trance or techno. my friends were constantly whispering in my ear about this place called the country club, a shed on a hill a few miles out of town. one saturday night we decided to give it a go. since then we have missed only a few nights there, such is the power, the draw of the contagious passion that pulses through the veins of everyone involved with the club. i became very interested in this (to me) new and exciting music, and the best thing about it was, i could ask my favourite djs anything i needed to know... gradually trance became the love of my life, and i know this wouldnt have happened if i hadn't met meri, ben eye, chris hare, iain cross and dave spinout and jon the baptist, who have become not only my favourite djs (along with the man like mark eg, of course) but my best friends... nowhere else but the country club could this have happened... i have spent some of the best nights of my life just enjoying seeing people playing the music i love, being able to feel a part of it and know that they love the records they are playing as much as i do. to be honest it is difficult to write this, as these are feelings i thought i would never have to express! i can truly say my life is better because of the country club, and thats a fact, even after taking the rose tinted spectacles off... THANKYOU CLIVE, THANKYOU MERI, YOU WILL NEVER KNOW HOW MUCH YOU TOUCHED MY LIFE



log

loganj@bldclaims.co.uk

Still can't beleive its closing. It is no understatement to say that there is probably no other club in the world with the same atmosphere and vibe as this small village hall on the hill. Respect to Clive and Meri .



It will go down legendary and remembered by us all.

Part of me is looking forward to the final night on the 26th, but the other part of me is dreading it cos i know that i'll never set foot in there again. Just reading some of the tributes, its realy touching to see how much it has meant to people. I cant imagine how Clive must be feeling cos this was his love and passion, and regarded us as his "family".

The 26th is gonna be a strange night i reckon, probably very emotional!

C.C was so much more than just a "nightclub". For me personaly, it was a place to escape, and totally relax and forget about my problems. I felt totally comfortable there, like everybody was my freind. Ive met so many different people from different backgrounds, all coming together to share thier love for the music and each other. I'm realy gonna miss the place, it had become a part of my life since i was introduced to it 3 years ago.

See you all for the final dance...bring a camera!

What Im planning to do is to bring along a dv digital camcorder to film the last ever night at the country club. If Anybody else is planning to do the same then good on yer ! I would like to hear from anyone who is doing this because then we can put all of our footage together to make one big video or dvd. There is only so much a photo can say about a night at the country club, but a video of the night would capture the magical spirit of the place. Once I have all the footage I don't mind doing copys for people. Email me if you are planning to do the same .



Djswannie@aol.com

Hey,



Ive joined this board basically to write this reply. I feel everyone whoever went to the Country Club should write something down out of respect for the people who worked so hard to make the country club what it was.

I only started going at the begining of this as I'd heard from people tthat the place was a dive. After seeing the flyers get increasingly better line ups each month I decided to venture down. I knew as soon as I went in that this was going to be an absoloutely blinding night. It was and so was every other night Ive ever had there. The people, the music and the place on the whole is gonna live in my memory forever. I cant beleive its closing, but ill be there on the 26th for the final stomp!!



As I said earlier thanks everyone who was invloved in making the country club so legendry.



take it easy



ludd

Hi Mr Swannie, its I...YeovilRaver!

Thanks for the E-mail about C.Club. Ive been trying to reply to it but my PC wont let let me for some reason, hope u dont think i'm being ignorant! I'm like u, i do care about the club, and it makes me angry to think that somebody has spoiled it for us. I just wish there was something we could do, but its too late now. It just seems so extreme to have to close it, after all, this was Clives passion and love...and his dream.

I'm sure ive seen u at the club, i know i'd recognise u if i saw u. We'll have to meet up or something one weekend?

Making a video/DVD of the 26th is an excellent idea, and if u do it, i'll definitly buy a copy off u!!! I dont own a camcorder, otherwise i would do the same and we could make one hell of a video between us. Definitly gonna take a camera though.

Keep in touch (hopefully my PC will let me E-mail u), and see u for the final dance.

Amist the sadness and the gloom I'll always remember 1 little room, It was in a barn, a hut or a shack, call it wat u will I always went back. I cant name one thing that pulled me up there, week after week till I lost all my hair, I stomped n laffed n stomped sum more till 8 in the mornin when you'd here ONE MORE!!!! So now it is time 4 1 last chance, to get well ****in spangled in the "TEMPLE OF TRANCE", So screw the sadness as its sure to pass, im gona end up flat on my ass, no need to fret or to worry, wiv me will b my Mrs Wooly, She loves it too its just as well cuz if she didnt my life would be HELL!!!!!!!!!!!

Personal shout of thanx 4 all the Cunny Crew, U2 Mark 4 bein a total NUTTA!! My Last C.C feasty so get there early and "FEEEEEEEEEEEED MEEEEEEEEEEEEE"

Big Wooly Luv to every last muva fuxin one of ya!!!!!

YoU kNoW iTs AdDiCtAbLe!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Started going to the place two and a half years ago. That's when I first saw Mark EG and thought this blokes lost it... this is the place for me!! been going back ever since. Sgonna rock on the 26th see you there. Or if your reading this after the 26th, @#%$ me what a night. Or if you didn't go, DICCKHEAD! you missed a blinder.

Only one thing I can say really, SEVERELY HEARTBROKEN N GUTTED!!! If I feel like this I can't imagine how Clive is feeling.

I love CC with such a vengeance. I can honestly say it's probably the only club I've felt so at home. Every time was more enjoyable than the last. After each visit I'd be rounding up friends saying 'you just have to come down to the little club on the hill' - it's absolutely amazing. It's such a shame what's happened, I still can't believe it really. Saturday will be really emotional. A big respect to everyone who's made it special but most of all BIG LOVE AND RESPECT TO CLIVE who, without being the lovable man he is, we'd have never had the chance to xperience such a amazing and wonderful vibe - the feeling of being such a big happy family was a true gift!!! Thank you Clive, we love you dearly.



To those of you who have gone out of your way to ruin our musical right, I think you're scum! There are too many jealous people in the world who just want to take-take-take and it's just not right. You all know who you are. Just remember - what goes around comes around !!!



To everyone else, lets just make it a night to remember and let the memory live on.



Hey Swannie, Mark n me will be bringing our 'corder down too. It would be great if you can catch bitz from the beginning as we'll be there later . Nice one...



;o0
Edited by: chrissi3000 at: 10/26/02 2:01:47 am

Well, talk about going out with a bang, It was a truley exellent night. It was odd though, I did'nt fell sad at all until the last tune and clives speach. When I arrived at the club at about 8 ish I was looking forwards to a good nights music, during the night It felt just like anyother busy night, during my set upstairs it felt it did'nt feel like the last night, until I played the last tune then it sort of hit me. When I walked down stairs I Heard clives speach and then it fully hit me, this is it, the end. As I was listening to clive I could feel tears rolling down my face and a lump in my throat. It was so hard to dance to the last tune, not because it was 10am but because I knew this was the last time I would ever do this in this special place, it was alot for the mind to cope with at this time in the morning.

I still feel sad now, the only thing keeping me going is hope for the future, bigger & better as clive said, lets hope It will be, but the man has got his work cut out to pull off anthing better than what we had at the Country club.



The futures bright, the futures Underground

What a night!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! !!!!!!!!!!!!!

It was so worth the hours & hours queue in the driving rain & gales. Possibly the best club night ever?????????? We managed to stay dancing until the end, as did 100's & 100's others. Clive's speech brought tears to the eyes of all of us. We wish him good luck for the future. Thanks for the vinyl, Mark!

In 1996 a friend of mine, Nigel, opened the Country Club - a shack at the top of a hill in the middle of nowhere. His dream was to create a club where everyone who loved dance music and the Free Party scene could congregate, indoors, to enjoy good music and good company.

When Clive took over the CClub, he fulfilled Nigels dream, and built the Club into a place where the atmosphere and music were unrivalled. The Country Club became renowned for it's easy going approach to 'Rave Culture'.

For those of us who don't fit into the stereotypical idea of a 'Raver', this was a haven of acceptance. No-one minded that I reached (and passed) forty. No-one minded that I didn't wear the latest clubbing gear and trendy trainers. No-one minded that I often danced for so long and so enthusiastically (in my own inimitable style!) that my hair/clothes/skin were soaked in sweat. In short, so long as I wore a smile, nothing else mattered!

I was at the opening night of the Country Club in 1996, I was at Clive's first night when he took over the Country Club, and I was at the The Country Club's closing night. That final night was just as it should have been. A huge amount of people, sad in the knowledge that this was the 'last night', but absolutely determined to show their appreciation to Clive and the others by having as good a time as is humanly possible! The music was outstanding. The atmosphere euphoric. And I (like many others) ended the night sweaty, exhausted, and almost unable to imagine how we will get by without Clives hospitality.

I wish Clive happiness and good health in whatever he does in the future, and I thank him from the bottom of my heart for all the nights of fun he's given me. And if I never again find a place where I can be accepted along with anyone else who loves to dance, at least I have a million memories of The Country Club and it's happy party people.

Thank you, Clive. Thank you Country Club DJs. Thank you Country Clubbers.

Love

The closure of COUNTRY CLUB has been the hardest decision I have ever made in my life. At 57 years old, C.C. gave me the excitement and total love that kept me feeling like a 16 year old. I knew nothing of "Rave" music until 1997. A free party in IRELAND was my introduction, it's where I was named"DANCE DADDY" because of my age by a 14 year old Irish girl. Until that moment I had been a "respectable" business man, who thought Michael Jackson was about as radical as it gets...

For me it wasn't just the music, it was the feeling of unity, the acceptance of creed, colour, lifestyle. No one cared if you were 4 or 40, rich or poor. Party was all that mattered. From that magical moment I knew I had to be involved with the scene. In those days I knew nothing of HARDHOUSE, TRANCE, TECHNO it was just exciting music to me. I became obsessed, trying to understand the music, the culture started to by Vinyl, tried mixing, anything to bring that feeling into my home.

I tried a few clubs in the UK only to feel silly, trying to dance in some dark corner, trying to get away from eyes that had me marked as "OLD BILL" or some freaky pervert that should be home in bed with a copy of PENTHOUSE.. This was not what I wanted or had come to expect.

The COUNTRY CLUB was up for sale, all normal Club owners shunned it as an impossible venue. Somehow the impossibility of it was a safety net, If I failed no one would blame me. Right from day one I tried to get rid of all the normal Rules and Regulations that clubs usually have, I made sure I spoke with as many people as possible, gleaning information about what they wanted, what they expected. I was not a rich man and sold everything to get the place up and running, even running about in an old Peugot that cost £125 to get the place sorted. What I got in return for all this self deprivation was a love and respect from every clubber, that no man could put a price on.

Four and a half years later, I am older, certainly very tired and emotionally and mentally drained. Doing battle with the Authorities to get a pass out system accepted, doing battle with the Dealers who saw it as a get rich quick method. (I have had a gun pulled on me, death threats, 3 Arson attempts, been attaked by nutters with knives and generally been subjected to the most aweful intimidation imagionable) But none of that matters when compared to the buzz, the pure adrenalin that you have given me weeek after week after week. To the Girls who love me like their Dad, to the guys that seek out my advice, to the LOVE you all give me, I AM THE LUCKIEST MAN ON THIS PLANET.. and right now probably the PROUDEST one too...So again thank you all so much for allowing me to be part of your lives.

No tribute can come close. I cannot thank Clive,Mark the residents nor this somewhat odd lookin buildin placed in the middle of nowhere what they gave me that night and the followin weeks and months to come.

When i first got there i'll quietly admit it looked as though id made a mistake by turnin up but if i'd of turned round and went id of missed the most amazin time of my life you all brought me music that has changed me forever and what really blew me away was the amazing things that happened inside

ive never had nights like it i dont think i ever will...



THE SPIRIT OF THE COUNTRY CLUB WILL NEVER DIE

I WILL TAKE THEM TIMES TO THE GRAVE WITH ME

**DASH**

I feel silly writing this now.I cannot believe I didnt find out there was a tribute page for the Country Club on Marks site, damn ..........


Walking through the fire doors and downstairs into the main room blew my head clean off everytime.Greated by 600 or so messy loved up ravers, smiling like they were in permanent orgasm............
The majority of people were spending more time with their feet in the air than on the floor to the most bangin sounds around, it was surreal :D .

The vibe was second to NONE.....

I made a lot of the close friends I have today in that UNBELIEVABELY special place, such as Iain Cross, Dave Spinout, Jon Baptist & co.
I owe Clive & Meri a great debt of gratitude .....

Over six months later and Im still lost in emotion ... I will never forget :cry:

THANK YOU ALL SO MUCH .... :cry:

:D PEACE.LOVE.UNITY....

the Country Club closed down one year ago today! :cry:

''The Dream Dies but the Legend lives on ''

yeah man :)

:clap: :clap: :clap: :cry:

:dance: :crackup: