ON the final evening in May 1993, an unknowing King Tut’s Wah Wah Hut had its name etched into music history.
That night, Creation Records boss Alan McGee was at the then-four-year-old club to see his Glaswegian protégés 18 Wheeler.
The support band was Manchester’s Sister Lovers, who had – unbeknownst to the promoter – brought their mates Oasis along in the van, with the intention of reducing their petrol bill and getting them on the bill.
The promoter was not impressed. Things got tense.
“They [Oasis] are saying: ‘Look, it's cost us £200 to hire the van and equipment and get here.
"If you don't let us play, we'll smash your club up. There's 10 of us and only two security,” recalled Alan a year later.
"So the promoter let them play.”
Having arrived early and witnessed this, Alan wanted to see what they were like.
"The first song was really good. Then the second was incredible.
"By the time they did this fantastic version of I Am the Walrus, I'd decided I've got to sign this group, now.
"I said: 'Do you have a record deal? Do you want one? I wanna do it.’
“Seeing them is what seeing the Stones must have been like in the early days. Brutal, exciting, arrogant."
Over two decades later, King Tut’s is still one of the city’s foremost clubs for new talent spotting.
Its history has earned it a place among the great Glasgow venues, and it brims with a unique character that other bars would kill for.
It might not turn out another Oasis, but the spirit of those heady Britpop days lives on in its Summer Nights sessions and record label showcases. Long may it last.
King Tut’s Wah Wah Hut
Q: What’s the best gig you’ve seen in King Tut’s?
1. John Filshie, 22, Hamilton, We Were Promised Jetpacks
David Mathieson, 22, West End, NEEDTOBREATHE
2. David Johanning, 23, Paisley, Dirty Sally
Mark McMillan, 27, Johnston, Pulled Apart By Horses
3. Aimee Begg, 18, Cessnock
Favourite Club? Downstairs in Sleazy’s
Favourite Bar? Firewater
Favourite DJ? DJ EZ
Favourite Band? Brand New
Favourite Club? The Cathouse
What you Drinking? Sam Adams
Describe Your Dancing? Crazy and fun
4. Hannah Watson, 18, Cessnock, The Front Bottoms
5. Anthony Hopkinson, 19, Motherwel, I can’t pick one – there’s been too many
Nicole Matthewson, 20, Motherwell, Dinosaur Pileup
6. Wallis Davidson, 25, Bridgeton, Drive-By Argument
Jordan Crawley, 24, Clydebank, Amy MacDonald
7. Raymond Strachan, 24, Bearsden, The Iqons
Terry McGinley, 24, Clydebank, Enter Shikari
Comments & Moderation
Readers’ comments: You are personally liable for the content of any comments you upload to this website, so please act responsibly. We do not pre-moderate or monitor readers’ comments appearing on our websites, but we do post-moderate in response to complaints we receive or otherwise when a potential problem comes to our attention. You can make a complaint by using the ‘report this post’ link . We may then apply our discretion under the user terms to amend or delete comments.
Post moderation is undertaken full-time 9am-6pm on weekdays, and on a part-time basis outwith those hours.
Read the rules here