Ronnie Scott’s Jazz Club is a long-running jazz venue in the Soho district of London, founded on October 30, 1959, by saxophonists Ronnie Scott and Pete King. It began life in a basement at 39 Gerrard Street before moving in 1965 to its present home at 47 Frith Street, where it has operated ever since as one of the world’s most storied jazz rooms.
The club built its reputation as the first in the UK to regularly book American jazz musicians, drawing performers such as Sonny Rollins, Zoot Sims, and Bill Evans across the decades. It also became a footnote in rock history: Jimi Hendrix made his final public appearance on stage at Ronnie Scott’s in 1970. After Ronnie Scott’s death in 1996, longtime partner Pete King continued running the club until it was sold in 2005 to theatre producer Sally Greene and philanthropist Michael Watt, who have kept it operating as a nightly live jazz venue.
Stats at a Glance
- Location: Frith Street, Soho, London, England
- Type: Jazz club
- Opened: October 30, 1959
- Current site since: 1965 (47 Frith Street)
- Capacity: About 250 (main room)
- Famous for: Jimi Hendrix’s final public performance, 1970
The Ride Experience
Ronnie Scott’s operates as an intimate cabaret-style room, with small tables arranged around a compact stage so audiences sit close to the performers. The main room holds around 250 guests for nightly sets that mix touring international jazz artists with a resident house band, keeping the venue’s original late-night club atmosphere alive more than six decades after it opened.
Beyond the main room, the building has expanded over the years to include additional performance space above the historic club, reflecting the venue’s continued investment in live music beyond its Frith Street basement roots.
A Landmark of British Jazz
Ronnie Scott’s earned its legendary status by being the first UK club to host major American jazz musicians on a regular basis, at a time when work-permit restrictions made this difficult. That booking policy brought artists like Sonny Rollins and Bill Evans to London stages and cemented the club’s international reputation.
The venue survived the deaths of both its founders, a change in ownership in 2005, and decades of shifting music trends, remaining a fixture of Soho’s nightlife and a regular stop for jazz musicians touring the UK.
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Ronnie Scott’s Jazz Club FAQs
When did Ronnie Scott’s Jazz Club open?
It opened on October 30, 1959, in a basement at 39 Gerrard Street in Soho, London, founded by Ronnie Scott and Pete King.
Where is Ronnie Scott’s Jazz Club located today?
Since 1965, the club has been located at 47 Frith Street in Soho, London, after moving from its original Gerrard Street basement.
Who is Ronnie Scott’s Jazz Club named after?
It is named after co-founder Ronnie Scott, a British jazz saxophonist who ran the club with his business partner Pete King until Scott’s death in 1996.
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Photo: N Chadwick / CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons.