9 great Glasgow bars with free live music
The city's best bars for live music, from traditional folk sessions and whisky-soaked pubs to late-night indie gigs and blues
The Ben Nevis
1147 Argyle Street
This Finnieston favourite has an entire wall of amber delights for those who enjoy a good nip of Scotland’s national drink. The well-worn comfy seats can be fairly hard to come by, especially those next to the real fire on a chilly night, or when the free traditional live sessions are happening three times a week.
Bloc+
117 Bath Street
With a tagline like ‘Not for everyone’, Bloc+ has been on the edgier side of Glasgow’s musical nightlife since 2001. The US-loving food offering impresses with wings, dogs, burgers and poutines, plus extensive vegan options, as well as pizzas until 2.30am. Alongside regular club nights, live indie-leaning music happens every night and it’s always free.
The Butterfly And The Pig
153 Bath Street
Set in a Georgian townhouse, The Butterfly has a restaurant and bar on the lower-ground floor doing great Scots-leaning comfort food, and a daytime tearoom upstairs. The bar is charmingly old-school, where you can sink into chesterfields for near-nightly free performances on the wee stage, from open mic to trad, jazz and beyond.
The Howlin' Wolf
100 Bath Street
The Wolf never seems to sleep, with a bar until 3am and food until 2am every day. Blues is its bag and there are free live gigs every night, from solos to bands. For sustenance, there’s a menu heavy on the Americana, whether Tex-Mex faves, big burgers or wings.
Macsorley's
42 Jamaica Street
This enticing and popular traditional boozer has been refreshing thirsty Glaswegians since 1892. There’s a good selection of draughts and whiskies, a menu of well-handled Scottish pub faves plus burgers and pizzas, and a live music programme six nights a week, with a couple of artists hitting the stage on weekends.
The Park Bar
1202 Argyle Street
Enjoy traditional music nearly every night at this Highland favourite close to Kelvingrove Park. There’s sessions for the youngsters and nights of Gaelic and Celtic songs plus lively ceilidhs at the weekends and full bands on the holidays. Some big-name outfits such as Skipinnish and Skerryvore have graced the stage here.
Also try… long-established The Clutha Bar by the Clyde for music every night, Slouch for a rock and indie focus with very late-night food, or The Islay Inn for whiskey and live traditional music; main picture: The Howlin' Wolf.
This TipList is taken from the 2026 edition of Eat & Drink 365 Glasgow, our sister mag recommending the best in restaurants, bars, cafés and more. Want a copy? It’s available online or across all good stockists in Glasgow.