I Am The Music Man – Made Of Stone

A big thank you first of all to those readers who sent in devious plans ideas to keep up my #apubadayforaweek challenge before I go back to work next Monday.

Mrs BB was perfectly happy for me to visit The Carpenters Arms on Monday after five and a half months at home, in fact she positively ushered me out of the door.

Tuesday was, as I like to call it a head wetting session and as I was chief organiser and booked a table at Ye Olde Trip To Jerusalem, that was deemed fair enough.

Apparently Russ calls head wetting a Christening – must be a Canadian quirk – but I had to be ingenious to get out of the door today.

Whoever suggested driving to Stone to take back a violin was genius and it worked perfectly as it coincided with midday and the possibility of visiting a new boozer.

Stone, must have a good selection of pubs as it is Stafford Paul’s neck of the woods and also has the Trent and Mersey Canal running through it so is a haven for boats.

I can well imagine Stirchley Pete necking some craft murk in Stone’s canalside hostelries before heading back to his boat and hotfooting it to Digbeth.

In over 600 pubs, this is my first visit to the pukka part of Stoke.  I know this of course as I lived here for three years in the nineties and this is a belting little town.

Back in those days I was less the cask connoisseur man and more man about town so my main memory is of a visit to Granville’s in the centre for a lads night out and Alan Price (of The Animals fame) was playing a set.

Now there was a large crowd of us in Stone’s only premier music venue and apparently Price wanted silence during his set.   I didn’t know a lot about Alan Price but I recently watched a documentary about Eric Burdon and it’s fair to say I don’t think Eric would have been quiet during his set.

Suffice to say a good night was had by all and brave Alan got paid battled on playing against a background of noise as opposed to whispering Bob Harris singing his praises.

I’m sure I’ve told that story before (and it was equally dull first time round) but I can unequivocally state that 613 – The Borehole ST15 8LL wasn’t an option in the nineties.

It’s sprung up on the edge of town on an unremarkable industrial estate and is the tap house of Lymestone Brewery.

I say unremarkable industrial estate but the actual boozer is an absolute gem and made the most of its surroundings.

 The views don’t quite match those on offer of the caves in Nottingham yesterday but the place was buzzing and the beer was magnificent.

Apparently the pub was an empty and disused office building/music school on the site of the old Bent’s Brewery before being revamped by Lymestone.

There’s lots of old skool industrial Stoke style buildings on the estate but it’s perched next to some very pleasant countryside in the form of the Stone Common Plott.

I was first in on the dot at 12 – I even beat Stafford Paul to the punch – but was quickly followed by a throng, as people kept appearing from everywhere.

It was a great mix of all ages with families, couples, old boys and a group who looked like they were ready for an afternoon of playing up quickly filling the benches and by the time I left at about quarter to one there were over 25 people in the front patio and back beer garden.

My pint of Stonecutter (Lymestone) was absolute nectar and only £2.80 as an added bonus. 

Sitting in the sun in Stone, doing the crossword from a newspaper and watching the world go by is one of life’s simple pleasures.  I’ve missed it!

Violin duly returned to shop and Mrs BB was delighted at me running another errand and it as a win win as I’ve visited a pub with friendly staff, friendly punters terrific beer and a vibrant atmosphere…