Last Friday April 3, marked the 50th anniversary of the legendary club, The First Avenue in downtown Minneapolis. The club opened in April 1970 when it was known as the Depot because previously the building actually was a Greyhound bus station depot. Joe Cocker's Mad Dogs and Englishmen launched the venue with the first ever show at the Depot, as the club become a popular live venue for local and International musicians. The history of the club is a long and sometimes complicated story with several financial disputes, bankruptcy, closure, format/theme changes and name changes. For an informative history of the club, watch the excellent documentary, First Avenue: Closer To the Stars. In 1972, the club changed it's image and the Depot evolved to become Uncle Sam's (Uncle Sam's was a part of a national franchise of the American Events Company) with DJ dance nights and it literally became a massive disco.
It wasn't until 1981 when the club changed it's name to the First Avenue and a year prior they opened the 7th St. Entry side room that the club gained momentum to become something special. The amount of great shows and bands that have played at the First Avenue in the past thirty years is eye popping. The stars painted on the side of the building are just some of the names that have helped propel the First Avenue through the years. There's no doubt that Prince was very responsible for giving the club national recognition and it became a tourist attraction, but the rise of the Minneapolis music scene nationally in the 1980's can be traced to many incredible shows at the corner of First Avenue and 7th St. Besides Prince, there were other great bands that frequently played the club such as the Replacements, Husker Du, Soul Asylum, Suburbs, Trip Shakespeare and the Jayhawks to name only a few. I've had the pleasure of seeing several good shows at the First Avenue, I think the first was in 1997 with Dinosaur Jr and I haven't been back since 2007 when I saw Fountains of Wayne, with lots of cool shows between. Presently, as well as the The First Avenue and 7th St. Entry, the owners also operate the Turf Club and the Palace Theatre in St. Paul and also own the Fine Line in Minneapolis. First Avenue is one of the longest running independently owned and operated clubs in the United States. It appears the club has been doing well except now with COVID-19 the reality of the situation is in jeopardy with mass postponement of concerts in their calendar of events. The hope is that the club (and all clubs!), as well as the music industry will bounce back strong whenever things get back to a near normal in the near future (we can only hope).
For the next few posts as a tribute to the First Avenue, I'll be posting shows from this venue with a range of artists from the Twin Cities and beyond. I probably won't share shows I attended/taped at the clubs mainly because the sound quality isn't great, but there are many must-hear shows at the First Avenue that were recorded.
First up is a show from 2007 from Twin Cities resident, Paul Westerberg who participated in an installment of "The Craft" a Rock 'n' Roll Hall of Fame interview/performance series. Hosted by writer/musician, Warren Zanes, (formerly of the band, Del Fuegos) he talked to Westerberg about various topics and gave some rare insight into his personal life, music and recording and performing with the Replacements. Between interview segments, Westerberg picked up his guitar and performed ten songs from his solo career and the Replacements. A truly unique concept and concert experience and fortunately Zanes is a knowledgeable fan and interviewer to make a potentially dry event into a memorable evening with one of the most talented singer songwriters of his generation.
Enjoy!
Please do NOT sell or profit from this recording!
Do NOT convert to lossy format (except for personal use)
Please share!
PAUL WESTERBERG
First Avenue
Minneapolis, MN
September 23, 2007
The Craft Interview/Performance
Lineage: (Master audience recording)
Coresound Binaurals> M-Audio Microtrack>
Goldwave> CD WAV Editor> FLAC
Recorded by: Rob
01. Warren Zanes Intro
02. Let The Bad Times Roll
03. Interview Part One
04. It's A Wonderful Lie
05. Interview Part Two
06. Everyone's Stupid
07. Lush And Green
08. Interview Part Three
09. Make The Best Of Me
10. Interview Part Four
11. What A Day For A Night
12. Interview Part Five
13. World Class Fad
14. Dyslexic Heart
15. Can't Hardly Wait
16. Skyway
PAUL WESTERBERG- 2007-09-23 First Avenue, Mpls, MN The Craft FLAC. rar
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