\nThe offices of Education at Work.<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
Loads of raucous local CD release parties happened\u00a0within the cavernous main room, including shindigs by Morse Code, Mourning Maxwell, Victims in Ecstacy, Kings of Pleasure and Blessedbethyname. As one of the snazzier mid-sized venues locally, it saw a lot of use by Valley artists with significant followings, as well as underground hip-hop acts, up-and-coming indie bands, punk and ska legends and hordes of hard rock and death metal groups.\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n
The Bash enjoyed a six-year run, but a combination of waning crowds, the post-9\/11 economic funk, and a downturn of interest in live music convinced owner Scott Adams to eschew concerts in 2004 and turn it into a nightclub. It didn\u2019t last, and he consequently brought back The Bash on Ash the following summer, only to close both it and McDuffy\u2019s in 2005. The building is now occupied by the offices of Education at Work.<\/p>\nThe exterior of Tempe Bowl in 1983.<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\nTempe Bowl<\/h2>\n 1100 E. Apache Blvd., TempeIn what some folks fondly remember as the Valley\u2019s version of Chicago\u2019s infamous Fireside Bowl, the long-defunct Tempe Bowl was the site of many rock, pun, and ska gigs in the late 1990s. After the neighboring Electric Ballroom lost its liquor license in 1997, shows booked at the ailing venue were quickly moved next door to the bowling alley. Christine Zahn, Tempe Bowl\u2019s owner, was receptive to the situation and allowed further concerts at her business in the following months. It quickly became a popular all-ages venue frequented by punks and straight-edge kids.<\/p>\n
The shows helped Tempe Bowl\u2019s bottom line, but it wasn\u2019t enough to keep the place alive. It closed in the early 2000s and was transformed into the Southwest Institute of Healing Arts. The property has since been razed and is now a multimillion-dollar condo project set to open later this year.<\/p>\nTempe band The Psalms performing at Merlin\u2019s in 1982. The spot, originally called The Star System in the late \u201970s, was located in the southeast corner of Danelle Plaza. It hosted influential local and touring punk and New Wave acts, including Fear, The Go-Go\u2019s, Billy Clone and the Same, Killer Pussy and The Feederz.<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\nThe Star System\/Merlin\u2019s<\/h2>\n 400 S. Mill Ave., #348, TempeTempe\u2019s Danelle Plaza has experienced its fair share of Valley music history. Starting in the late \u201970s, The Star System operated in a secluded corner of the shopping center, showcasing both local talents and touring acts from the budding New wave and punk scenes. Originally designed as a disco, complete with a spacious dance floor beneath an \u201cimmersive canopy of twinkling stars,\u201d groups like The Plugz, Fear and The Go-Go\u2019s graced the venue with their performances. The Star System was also a vital outlet for influential and iconic local acts of the era, including Billy Clone and the Same, Killer Pussy, The Feederz, Meat Puppets and Blue Shoes.<\/p>\n
In 1980, new owners renamed the place Merlin\u2019s but kept the focus on emerging and experimental sounds. It was the stomping grounds for noisy art rockers Sun City Girls, the skate-punks of JFA and new wave act The Jetzons. Modern rock band The Psalms, which featured Doug Hopkins and Bill Leen prior to their stint in Gin Blossoms, were also regulars at Merlin\u2019s.<\/p>\nA 1996 photo of Big Fish Pub.<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\nBig Fish Pub<\/h2>\n 1954 E. University Drive, TempeOpened in 1995 by original owner Donny Johnson (currently the general manager for Lucky Man Concerts), Big Fish Pub was slightly removed from the popular Mill Avenue scene but still featured many of the same acts. As the years wore on, the pub also hosted many renowned hard rock and alternative acts during their formative years, including A Perfect Circle, Sevendust, Eagles of Death Metal, 30 Seconds to Mars and Chester Bennington\u2019s pre-Linkin Park band, Grey Daze.<\/p>\n\nThe former home of Big Fish Pub.<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
Johnson sold the bar in 2005 after a decade of ownership to local entrepreneur\u00a0Mark DiCarlo. It became more of a blues\/R&B joint before changing owners again in 2008, this time being purchased by proprietor Victor Boiseau, who returned the place to its rock club roots.<\/p>\n
Despite his best efforts to sustain the Big Fish, he reportedly got into a spat with the owners of the strip mall that housed the bar over rent and other issues. As a result, Boiseau closed the pub in 2014 and moved it to Mesa (where it lasted less than a year). Since then, its original home underwent a major remodeling and is now home to one of the Valley locations of 360 Physical Therapy.<\/p>\n\nThe old Minder Binder\u2019s on McClintock Drive in Tempe in 1972.<\/p>\n
\n
Courtesy of Tempe History Museum<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
Minder Binders<\/h2>\n 715 S. McClintock Drive, TempeWhen it came to kitschy spots, it was hard to top Minder Binders. After all, the place was built to resemble a huge red barn and boasted a bucolic theme and an array of antiques inside. Opened in 1972, it was aimed at college students and beckoned them with five different bars, nickel beer nights, dance parties and shows in its backyard or the upstairs area. Veruca Salt played there once, as did bands like Flotsam and Jetsam, Agent Orange, Voodoo Glow Skulls, Infectious Grooves and even Hole (back before Courtney Love went completely nutso).<\/p>\n
Minder Binders bought the farm around 2005, and the property sat almost a decade as a decrepit eyesore along McClintock Drive before being completely reconstructed and remodeled in 2014. It\u2019s now known as Social Hall, an expansive restaurant and bar with none of the ostentatiousness of its predecessor.<\/p>\nRock and blues spot Chuy\u2019s, which was located in Hayden Square and operated from 1989 until 2002.<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\nChuy\u2019s<\/h2>\n Multiple Locations<\/strong><\/p>\nThe history of Chuy\u2019s encompasses not one, but three separate bygone venues in downtown Tempe, each with its own particular vibe and preferred sound. The first location originated in the 1970s and was known as Chuy\u2019s Choo-Choo, a ground-level bar at the now-demolished Casa Loma Hotel near Third Street and Mill Avenue that started featuring live acts around the late 1970s.<\/p>\n
In 1981, local musician Jim Simmons and his wife, vocalist Nancy Jackson, took over the spot, 86ed the \u201cChoo-Choo\u201d portion of this moniker, and turned it into a hot spot for jazz and blues artists. \u201cEvery big jazz and blues person you could think of played there, like the Crusaders and John Lee Hooker,\u201d says local concert promoter Danny Zelisko. Other visitors included Charlie Musselwhite, the late Jaco Pastorius, Branford Marsalis, McCoy Tyner and Gatemouth Brown.<\/p>\n
Due to real-estate development in downtown, Simmons and Jackson moved Chuy\u2019s twice during the 11-year span they ran the club, eventually winding up in what then was known as Hayden Square in 1989 and spending the next three years hosting rock and alternative concerts until its closure in October 1992.<\/p>\nGibson\u2019s in Hayden Square was a rock haven.<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\nGibson\u2019s<\/h2>\n 410 S. Mill Ave., TempeFast-forward a year and a half (and an ownership change) later to 1994 and what was once Chuy\u2019s became Gibson\u2019s, a preferred spot for many music fans. Its balcony was a great place for bird\u2019s-eye views of the bands (not to mention a closer look at the row of namesake guitars adorning the ceiling), the higher-than-normal stage gave an aura of importance to anyone performing on it, the sound was always spot on and it was where many saw some of their biggest rock heroes during the height of their success.<\/p>\n
Danny Zelikso was one of \u2019em. \u201cI loved shows at Gibson\u2019s,\u201d he says. \u201cThere was that balcony and you could look down on whoever was playing.\u201d<\/p>\n
Gibson\u2019s was open for only five years, but hosted plenty of famous acts, including Lords of Acid, Gravity Kills, Suicidal Tendencies, Supersuckers, Cibo Matto and Soul Coughing.<\/p>\n
In 2000, the bar went hippie as Have a Nice Day Cafe for a few years before becoming a series of different clubs, including Margarita Rocks, Moonshine Whiskey Bar and The Cabin Tempe. The property is currently vacant but we\u2019re guessing it will have a new tenant before too long.<\/p>\nJD\u2019s was one of the Arizona spots where Waylon Jennings got his start.<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\nJD\u2019s<\/h2>\n 825 N. Scottsdale Road, TempeYou may not know it from its shabby appearance, but the now-closed furniture store next door to the Dream Palace strip club was once considered hallowed ground. A lifetime ago, it was the location of JD\u2019s, a name that\u2019s likely familiar to fans of the late Waylon Jennings.\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\nThe now-closed 4-Day Furniture in Tempe.<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\nThe two-floor nightclub, which was located at what was then the bottom of the dry Salt River, debuted in the mid-\u201960s and featured rock bands downstairs and country music upstairs. The outlaw crooner and longtime Valley resident performed there often, honing his craft and gaining exposure to the country music world. Other Hall of Famers that graced JD\u2019s and packed \u2019em in by the thousands were Johnny Cash, Willie Nelson and the Valley\u2019s own Mike Condello.<\/p>\n
The club survived into the \u201970s, albeit after a number of setbacks. After the river bed flooded in 1965, significant water damage caused the place to close for weeks. It also changed ownership and names before being gutted by a fire in 1976 and eventually turning into a retail store in 1978. It was most recently a furniture outlet, which went out of business a few years ago.\u00a0<\/p>\nThe original Compton Terrace in 1980.<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\nCompton Terrace<\/h2>\n 5555 E. Van Buren St.Say the name \u201cCompton Terrace\u201d to old-school Valley residents and they might immediately ask back, \u201cWhich one?\u201d There were two versions of the famed outdoor amphitheater, with the first located on the Phoenix\/Tempe border inside the storied Legend City amusement park. Built by local entrepreneur Jess Nicks (father of rock \u2018n\u2019 roll queen Stevie Nicks) and his brother Gene, it occupied the southeastern corner of Legend City and debuted in July 1979. It also provided a new source of income to the struggling amusement park.<\/p>\n
Filling a need for large-capacity concert venues in the Valley, the first Compton Terrace featured a 20,000-person capacity and an unrivaled lineup of shows. The Nicks partnered with local promoter Doug Clark and brought big-name rock and pop stars of that era to its stage, including Elton John, Dan Fogelberg, Cheap Trick, Grateful Dead and Linda Ronstadt.<\/p>\n
Legend City finally went under in 1983, forcing Compton Terrace to relocate to what was then known as Firebird Lake in Chandler. (AC\/DC performed the final show at its original home.) Concerts continued to take place there through the \u201990s and 2000s until its demolition a decade ago.<\/p>\nDashboard Mary performs at The Sun Club in 1996.<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\nThe Sun Club<\/h2>\n 1001 E. Eighth St., TempeThere will never be another place like the Sun Club. Easily one of the more legendary and seminal music venues in Tempe history, it was a breeding ground, cultural incubator and launching pad for what would become some of the city\u2019s most illustrious rock acts.<\/p>\nValor on Eighth in Tempe.<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\nCase in point: The Gin Blossoms attracted major label interest after a memorable show here in the early \u201990s. The members of Dead Hot Workshop were also regulars during the band\u2019s formative years and would pay homage in 1995 by using a photo of the Sun Club as the cover art for their album \u201c1001.\u201d<\/p>\n
Bluesman Hans Olson began a long association with the place in 1969 when it was known as The Library and offered him a regular spot to jam. He became owner in the late \u201980s, fixed it up, and rechristened it with its best-known moniker while racking up $48,000 in debt, necessitating selling it off 18 months later. The Sun Club lived on for another couple of years before closing in 1992. A four-story apartment building called Valor on Eighth is now located on the property.<\/p>\nA photo of the late Nita Craddock, the original owner of Nita\u2019s Hideaway, from 1998.<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\nNita\u2019s Hideaway<\/h2>\n 1816 E. Rio Salado Parkway, TempeIn early 1995, Nita\u2019s Hideaway, the small out-of-the-way dive on Rio Salado Parkway owned by the late rodeo queen Nita Craddock, had a watershed moment: It hosted the first of a series of weekly sets by the now-defunct pop band the Piersons. It was the first-ever show at the bar arranged by Charlie Levy, who had to cajole its owner into allowing it to happen. Craddock finally relented, allowing her namesake spot to become etched in the annals of Tempe music lore.\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\nA Cost Plus World Market is now located where Nita\u2019s once stood.<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\nThe Piersons were the first of literally thousands of bands to perform at Nita\u2019s over the next seven years, helping it become a staple of the local music circuit. Craddock allowed Levy to build a stage, buy a sound system and bring in bigger acts on weekends, like Tucson\u2019s Giant Sand. Things quickly blew up from there as Nita\u2019s became a hub for indie and tastemaking rock.<\/p>\n
Then came a number of twists and turns. Craddock became fed up with the bar biz and sold the building in 1998, only to buy it back months later after its new owners\u2019 attempt at an all-ages punk club failed. Then, the late Mark Covert purchased it in 1999 and returned Nita\u2019s to its former glory in 2000 with Levy\u2019s assistance. Unfortunately, the bar and other nearby businesses were earmarked for the future Tempe Marketplace and torn down in 2003 to make way for the shopping center.\u00a0<\/p>\nThe interior of Long Wong\u2019s on Mill Avenue in 2004.<\/p>\n\n
David Rhodes\/Tempe History Museum<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
Long Wong\u2019s<\/h2>\n 701 S. Mill Ave., TempeLong Wong\u2019s on Mill was the epicenter of the Tempe scene during its glory years and the nucleus of an interconnected network of musicians, clubs and fans. An esteemed institution that hummed with live music nightly for 16 years straight, it\u2019s where bands wanted to be seen and heard. Although the Gin Blossoms will forever be linked to the place, they weren\u2019t the only ones that made its tiny stage their home.<\/p>\n
The list of those who were featured at Wong\u2019s is nearly endless: The Beat Angels. Zen Lunatics. The Pistoleros. The Refreshments. Busted Hearts. Gloritone. Revenants. Trophy Husbands. Flathead. Even the late Elvis \u201cThe Cat\u201d Delmonte, an entertainingly eccentric artist, even got stage time. Long Wong\u2019s ultimately was a barometer of Tempe\u2019s music scene, rising in prominence and importance as interest in its brand of rock and pop did the same. Its closure in 2004 came as a blow and surprise to many, even after the spotlight on Mill had long since faded.<\/p>\n
And though Long Wong\u2019s was demolished to reportedly make way for future development along Mill, its plot has remained vacant ever since, serving as an occasional parking lot and a gaping reminder of what was.<\/p>\n
Editor\u2019s note: This article was previously published in 2015, 2020 and 2023 and has been updated. New Times\u00a0thanks the Tempe History Museum and Bruce Liddil for the use of their photos.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n \u2018 The preceding article may include information circulated by third parties \u2019 <\/em><\/p>\n \u2018 Some details of this article were extracted from the following source www.phoenixnewtimes.com \u2019 <\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Despite rumors to the contrary, April 3, 2004, wasn\u2019t the day that the music died in Tempe. It was the date when the plug was pulled on fabled Mill Avenue rock club Long Wong\u2019s, though. The heartbreaking event signaled the end of the city\u2019s biggest live music era, but not a death knell for its […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":2431051,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"jnews-multi-image_gallery":[],"jnews_single_post":[],"jnews_primary_category":[],"jnews_social_meta":[],"footnotes":""},"categories":[25179],"tags":[476879,443531,23362],"class_list":["post-2431050","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-music","tag-history-nostalgia","tag-tempe","tag-venues"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/Then-and-now-Tempes-legendary-music-venues.webp","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2431050","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2431050"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2431050\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2431052,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2431050\/revisions\/2431052"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2431051"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2431050"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2431050"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2431050"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}