Kursaal: Southend's Own Paradise Theatre

An album I always like to speak about is Paradise Theatre by Styx. I love when an album tells a story, which sadly I don't find many of in recent releases. Paradise Theatre - from the moment the listener even handles the album - takes the audience on an emotional rollercoaster of a journey through the rise and fall of a once popular venue.

From 'AD:1928' to 'AD:1958' (and finishing with 'State Street Sadie') the listener is propelled on a journey that begins in the Paradise Theatre at its prime, to a flashback rock'n'roll musical esque track in 'Rockin' The Paradise'. Over the course of the album, the love for the venue and appreciation for the arts is felt deeply - not only live music and theatre, but also with nods to bands such as Pink Floyd, with similar production techniques used in 'Too Much Time On My Hands' with clocks, as is in 'Money' with the famous cash-register sample sound.

The journey felt is one of joy and sadness, wrapped with the perfect depiction on album cover in itself, sandwiching the CD/record between the peak and dilapidation of the theatre, following its closure.

The juxtaposing album cover

Over the years, this album has resonated with me much closer to home. The Kursaal is a Grade 2 listed building in Southend-on-Sea, which began life as one of the UK's first purpose built amusement parks, in 1901. In the last 100+ years, the building has housed many dances, bowling lanes, arcades, a casino and even a wall of death. Notably, the former ballroom has also hosted some names, including Thin Lizzy, AC/DC, Rod Stewart and Status Quo. Now, the building stands empty, with only a Tesco Express on the outer being open to the public. In prime location on the seafront, the building is the definition of potential, and many residents of the area have petitioned for the building to be reopened for a host of different purposes. Personally, I think it would make a wonderfully iconic music venue, but for now, its fate seems to remain along with that of the Paradise Theatre.

Kursaal Southend, before the bowling alley closed its doors