‘Wining the wallpaper off’: The underground world of Sheffield’s blues parties

Sheffield’s blues parties were unlicensed underground gatherings that gave the city’s Caribbean community places to socialise and hear music when racism excluded black people from many city-centre clubs. Selector Prento says Sheffield was once a major centre for DJ clashes, where selectors competed head to head.

The parties took place in homes and cellars across the city during the 1970s and 1980s, with Donkey Man’s basement venue in Pitsmoor among the best known. Some accounts recall dangerous incidents, including a reported shotgun threat at Donkey Man’s, but Prento says most gatherings were peaceful and joyful.