We’re lucky to have top music spots

They can be anything from a gig room to performance space, as long as the capacity is 500 or below, but their real quality comes as the lifeblood of the nation’s music scene.

Every band you will have ever seen started life on the cruelly-titled ‘toilet venue’ circuit, unless you’re a fan of manufactured pop, that is, because they all start their life on a stage crafted by Simon Cowell’s minnions.

Our possible contenders come in the form of the Marr’s Bar and the Firefly in the Faithful City and the re-born Re-Con at the heart of Great Malvern.

Between the three,I’ve lost count the number of hours spent – and pints drunk – in the pursuit of a good night full of music and fun.

They all have their loyal followers and each one serves to give a leg up to hometown acts while drawing in some top out-of-town talent at the same time.

There’s usually something on seven days a week, so you can easily stumble upon a hidden gem and they normally offer a lot more than just music, with comedy nights and workshops broadening the appeal.

They may not rank highly once the results are in, but we are very lucky to have such choice on our doorsteps.

Without these venues, the music industry would be in graver dire straights than it already is and more and more people would completely lose sight of real music.

It’s also got me misty-eyed for a brief spell as a band’s roadie during my gap year, which took in a number of fine, smaller venues like the Camden Barfly, Newcastle’s Cluny and the Actress and Bishop in Birmingham.

This little venture didn’t last too long as I caught a chest infection just over a week in, lost the ability to eat and had to be shuttled home to mum and dad for some much needed rest, recuperation and home cooked food.

Obviously the rock and roll lifestyle was a bit much for me, hence why I’ve just typed this out as a journalist rather than a career amp mover.