From Armstrong to Led Zeppelin, we had it covered

"You do realise the paper is going to close. Pop music's finished, mate." These were the grim tidings that made me so upset I was violently sick.

"You do realise the paper is going to close. Pop music's finished, mate." These were the grim tidings that made me so upset I was violently sick.

But this wasn't the news I heard today oh boy. It was what the staff told me the day I joined Melody Maker back in 1964. Beatlemania was gripping the nation. The Rolling Stones were topping the charts. And I had just left my safe local newspaper to become a "pop music reporter".

Not only was the place filled with rumours of closure, my first experience of life under the news editor Ray Coleman was tough. "Get John Lennon for the front page - now! I don't care what Brian Epstein says - somewhere, Lennon must be near a telephone." Day over, I stumbled to the Red Lion, Fleet Street, Melody Maker's local pub, where I was offered too much beer and little solace.

Having heard the predictions, I stumbled home determined to resign. This turned out to be "press day". Everyone was either in bed, hung over or at the printers. In a strangely silent office, I discovered Melody Maker had been going since 1926. Every week the paper had promoted the latest pop heroes, from Louis Armstrong to Bing Crosby.

Across the yellowing acres of newsprint lay a unique history of popular music. Recently the paper had been full of trad jazz. Now it was making a quantum leap into the Swinging Sixties and they needed fresh blood. I suddenly felt privileged. I wasn't going to leave - I was going to stick it out.

Melody Maker in those days was full of wonderful characters such as the jazz critic Max Jones, who wore his beret with pride and had a healthy respect for Scotch whisky. Although their roots were in jazz and blues, my elders liked the idea of an ever changing pop scene. So when the magazine wrote about Elvis, he was regarded as a "good blues singer".

Circulation was down to about 41,000 when I joined. But the magazine took the Beatles seriously and loved Cream, the Jimi Hendrix Experience, Pink Floyd and Led Zeppelin. With a huge boom in album sales and live music, circulation soared to nearly 300,000 a week.

The office seemed like a poll winners' party for 16 years. That's how long I stayed. It's true security threw Mick Jagger out of the office and Black Sabbath once punched the future editor Alan Jones for a bad review. Those were the days. And now Melody Maker really is closing. I won't throw up this time, but I will shed a tear.

Chris Welch worked as a reporter, features editor and singles reviewer for Melody Maker from 1964 to 1980.