The list, which also includes prestige small venues like HiFi in New York, The Hideout in London and Wild At Heart in Berlin was selected by a collection of music industry insiders, including performers, writers and DJs. Among the panel was Duke Special, who was lavish in his praise of The Spirit Store.

"You would be hard-pressed to find anywhere as welcoming to an artist and more genuinely music-driven in its programming of events," the Duke reflected. "That's why I keep going back there to play, and why many other artists who have outgrown the 120- or so capacity venue keep returning. So many venues and promoters are about the money but Derek Turner, who books the music, is driven by something much more."

"We are delighted and honoured," Derek Turner of The Spirit Store told Hot Press.

Meanwhile, Berlin's Wild At Heart comes highly recommended, although for somewhat different reasons.

"Wild At Heart is a whisky-soaked, no-nonsense rock'n'roll joint in Berlin's old anarchist district, Kreuzberg: a seven-nights-a-week venue painted blood red, crammed with Elvis memorabilia, Hawaiian gods and a lifetime's supply of hard liquor," explains Max Décharné, singer with The Flaming Stars.

The Spirit Store is in good company overall. Among the other venues named are Il Folk Club in Turin, Gerbard in Barcelona, LIquid Room in Tokyo and Salón Rosado de la Tropical in Havana.