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When Birmingham inventor Alexander Parkes demonstrated the first plastic or 'parkesine' in 1862, little did he know that nearly a century later his new invention would be the main ingredient in the manufacture of vinyl records.

Previously in 1840, John Wright and the Elkington brothers had been awarded the first patents for electroplating in the city, now an essential process in the manufacture of vinyl disc masters.

In Birmingham swinging jazz all-nighters took place at the Town Hall. Teddy Boys and Teddy girls rocked and rolled at venues such as Alex Hoopers and The Star Ballroom on the Stratford Road and party goers jived to coffee bar jukebox 45’s along Broad Street and Five Ways.

Rock, blues and soul took the city by storm in the 60s and cover bands such as the Modernaires played the Ritz in Kings Heath. Sometimes during band intervals someone would play records to fill the gap, certain venues like the Tudor Club (now Oceania) and the West End Ballroom gradually played more and more records with disco DJs starting to emerge in the mid to late 60s.

New York, Detroit & Birmingham?

Greg Wilson, a pioneer of mixing in the UK and first 'dance music' resident at the Hacienda in Manchester, played at the first Powerhouse All-Dayer in 1983.

"My main connection with the city was the great travelling crowd who'd come to my weekly nights at Legend and Wigan Pie," he said.

The 70s brought radical change with DJs playing the Rum Runner (influenced by New York's Chic power-disco and made famous by Duran Duran) but it wasn't until the 80s that the DJ craze really took off.

Disc Jockeys copied the Hip Hop style from New York with DJ competitions such as the DMC mixing championships inspiring DJs such as 'Sparra' (DMC champion) to take to the wheels of steel, Birmingham producers were amongst the first to release UK Hip Hop records.

Raregroove was also popular in the city with DJ Dick and Sean Williams playing similar styles to London’s Norman Jay. Acid house and techno became a natural progression from electro for Birmingham’s underground music fraternity.

It brought to light the futuristic sounds of Detroit masterminds like Derrick May, Juan Atkins and Kevin Saunderson. The compilation is now considered to be one of the major keystones in the history of techno music.

"Network Records was a shining light for Birmingham, at least the ones that knew it was in Birmingham, I'd say every Detroit techno pioneer visited Stratford House at some time. Judy Nanton worked at Network, also a regular at the Powerhouse in Birmingham around 86, the constructive Trio were Birmingham's pioneer house DJs and used to play at The Powerhouse." - Martin Red

Acid House - Rave

The Warehouse style raves that were sweeping the nation took place in the city. Biology was an early all-nighter at the Hummingbird (now the Academy) soon followed by Spectrum which had roots in London.

"I had a friend from London who phoned me in the morning telling me he was in Birmingham. He was very surprised he ended up in Brum, he thought he was gonna get on a coach which would take him to the m25, but he ended up in the Hummingbird instead." - Martin Red

One of the Midlands most notorious dance promotions was Shelly's in Staffordshire, part promoted by Birmingham resident Martin Red and made famous by Network's 'Altern 8' who once performed an impromptu gig on the back of a huge HGV outside.

Other late 80s promotions that embraced the new acid house and rare groove phenomenon included Chuff Chuff, Dial B, Salvation, The Bottle and Rococo. These were served by pre-eminent DJs Nathan Gregory, Bill, Dick, Lee Fisher and Moneypenny’s promoter Jim Shaft Ryan.

"Birmingham had a core of dedicated clubbers very early on who were willing to travel to Manchester and London as well. Mega Active arcade catered for this scene and one stall was The Depot which became a national outlet for rave ticket sales and mix tapes helping to distribute dance music across Britain." - Jim Shaft Ryan

Pure and Tempest were respected dance record stores and the first "record bar" called 'Global Grooves' opened in the Arcadian with the now infamous 'Hard To Find' records hot on their heels. DJ and Mix Magazine often cited Miss Moneypenny’s, Wobble, C.R.E.A.M. (prior to Liverpool’s Cream), Chuff Chuff, and Fun among the top ten house nights in Britain with the Nightingale, Tin Tins and Que Club keeping it underground.

Notable Midland DJs to emerge from the clubs include Steve Lawler, Tony Devit, Scott Bond, Lisa Lashes, Patrick Smooth Neil Macey, Andy Roberts and Nathan Gregory to name but a few. The city even exported brands such as Moneypenny's to Ibiza, Gatecrasher to Sheffield and Sundissential to London. Early bars included 49er’s, Notes and Marco Polo.

Rave Of The Future

The music scene remains diverse as ever and dance music is still thriving. If you're looking for glamorous house nights out in the second city then check out Miss Moneypenny's, Gods Kitchen and Fuel. If electro house is your bag then 'B1' at Chic and 'Switch' at Moonlounge may be worth a look with 'Mud' and 'If' after parties taking place at Bushwackers and Boho Rooms respectively.

Digbeth continues to spearhead the alternative dance scene in the city with Shaanti and House of God bringing ethnic beats and techno breaks to The Factory.

The "free party" scene is still going strong also, with Atomic Jam about to celebrate their 12th birthday at the Medicine Bar and electro breaks night ‘Trigger’ taking over the Rainbow club.

Bam Bam takes place every 3rd sat of each month at the Rainbow importing deep disco and Balearic beats and if the city centre is not up your street then sample the Bulls Head in Moseley or Hare & Hounds in Kings Heath for jazzed up night 'Leftfoot' which recently hosted Gilles Peterson.