Rock-a-Bye Baby: America's Top 10 Closed Concert Clubs

Martin Cizmar January 5, 2010 5:05PM

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Maybe it's the karaoke. Maybe it's increasingly harsh DUI laws. Maybe it's the fact that every douchebag hipster with a Mac and blogger buddies thinks he's a DJ. Whatever the reason, it's been a bad era for the rock club. Anyone who likes to listen to live music on a small scale will tell you America is hemorrhaging concert clubs.

The re-opening of Long Wong's, Arizona's best-known rock club before it was shuttered, then demolished, back in 2004, has us thinking a lot about those missing music venues. And not just here. Here are America's top 10 now-closed meccas for live music. Many of these we've been to, a few we just wish we'd been to. All of them are dearly missed by their former patrons.

In the spirit of Long Wong's probable rebirth as a live music venue -- instead of its current role as just a well-regarded chain of wing joints with no connection to the Mill Ave. nightspot -- we've also included two clubs that re-opened after lengthy hiatuses, capturing some of their former mojo.

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Martin Cizmar

Contact: Martin Cizmar