While Jim Morrison and Ray Manzarek were making their way to the UCLA film school, on January 11, 1964, the Whisky a-Go-Go opened its doors and plunged into rock history. The Whisky, as it came to be known, very quickly rose in prominence on the Sunset Strip, and within the music industry, and was a model and influence for discotheques across the USA.
Founded by Elmer Valentine, Mario Maglieri, and Phil Tanzini - The Whisky had to spell its name without the ‘e’ in whiskey because Los Angeles city zoning laws didn’t allow clubs to be named after alcohol (The Whisky constantly had problems with the city and for a while had the name “The Whisk?”). The Whisky quickly gained a reputation for having high profile acts such as Johnny Rivers whose breakthrough hit was Secret Agent Man (the theme song for the TV series Secret Agent). In between Rivers’ sets, a DJ named Joanie Labine, the first DJ at The Whisky, played records in a booth that was suspended to the right of the stage. During one of Rivers’ sets, Labine was moved to dancing and the concept of the go-go dancer was born. Soon a ‘uniform’ of the go-go dancer also evolved: a girl wearing a short, fringed skirt and high, white boots. Go-go dancers began appearing in nightclubs and discotheques across the country. During his tenure at The Whisky (a one year contract), Rivers recorded the album, Johnny Rivers Live at The Whisky a Go-Go, and The Miracles’ song Going to a Go-Go soon gave the nightclub a national reputation.
Drawn by Rivers’ success The Whisky became a destination for up and coming bands to try to make a name for themselves. Groups such as The Paul Butterfield Blues Band, The Rascals, The Byrds, The Turtles, Otis Redding, Love, Captain Beefheart, The Mothers of Invention, and Alice Cooper were soon performing at The Whisky. The Whisky was also the destination for hip young movie stars such as Steve McQueen and Paul Newman who could be found dancing the night away.
During the 1966 Sunset Strip riots (which were immortalized in the Buffalo Springfield song For What it’s Worth), the efforts of city officials to close The Whisky made it the focal point of the skirmishes between the protestors and the police. Other bands also paid homage to The Whisky in song including Motley Crue, and Arthur Lee in the song Forever Changes.
The Whisky was not only a breeding ground for Los Angeles bands, but a destination for a lot of British bands such as Them, Cream, Led Zeppelin, Jimi Hendrix (The Jimi Hendrix Experience should probably be considered an English band because Hendrix had to go to London before he was discovered by The Animals’ Chas Chandler, and he and Hendrix put together The Experience), The Kinks, and The Who.
The Whisky continued to feature bands through the 70’s and, as new genres of rock came into being, The Whisky was at the forefront of exploring emerging genres such as New Wave, Punk, and Heavy Metal with bands like The Runaways, X, Quiet Riot, Patti Smith, Elvis Costello, The Germs, The Misfits, Van Halen, Motley Crue, and The Police. During the 80’s, The Whisky fell on hard times as the punk bands faded from the scene and The Whisky closed its doors in 1982. In 1986, however, The Whisky reopened. Gone were the go-go dancers, DJ booth, carpeting, and downstairs booths. The Whisky remains open today and still features up and coming bands, looking to find their niche in rock ‘n’ roll history like The Doors did in the summer of 1965.
Note: Sorry, this bit of Doors history is a day late but there was a competing date of January 16, 1964 for The Whisky opening, but after further research I believe the January 11, 1964 date is the correct date.
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