The legendary The Who and The Kinks gigs played at Hertford Corn Exchange over the years says The Hertfordshire Mercury

 

We've all missed live music over the last year, but even as concerts and gigs resume there are some that will be impossible to beat.

While now we're all used to having to travel into London to see the biggest names that didn't used to be the case.

Long before the big arenas and chain venues, Hertfordshire has helped break through some of the most famous artists in the world.

That includes smaller gigs including Pink Floyd and The Police at Hatfield Poly, as well as the huge shows including Oasis at Knebworth.

Perhaps two of the most incredible were in Hertford, at a venue now fighting for its future.

Hertford Corn Exchange is one of the town's most striking buildings and dates back to 1857.

Then it was built on the site of the old Butchers Market, and before that a prison - so it definitely has some stories to tell.

While there was no chance of filming the gigs on your mobile during its heyday, two of the most interesting concerts to take place in the county have been fondly remembered by people who were there.

The Who played in Hertford on Friday, March 25, 1965, with flyers still living on today as memorabilia.

The Kinks' show is also almost completely lost to history, and there aren't even posters that have survived.

However, fans have documented as many shows as possible, so we know it took place on June 25, 1966.

It was the day after they appeared on Ready Steady Go, playing Sunday Afternoon and Dandy so we're able to piece together the era.

The band would play until 1997, so it was a very early performance, but there would still be You Really Got Me and Sunday Afternoon to enjoy, so fans would have known they were watching something special.

One commentator online managed to get two impressive stories out of the gigs - he had to miss the first show, but his friend won a competition to meet The Kinks before he saw The Who.

He added: "I did see ‘The Who’ performing at the Corn Exchange in 1966 and, on this occasion, it was ‘packed out’. My friend met Roger Daltrey in the Warren House pub that evening and he bought her a drink!"

That's definitely a story worth telling for the decades after.

In recent years, the Hertford Corn Exchange has been revived as a place to enjoy live music and comedy.

It might not have as iconic names these days, but you never know who they could turn out to be.