Big Man's West was a nightclub located at 129 Monmouth Street in Red Bank, New Jersey. It was owned by Clarence "Big Man" Clemons of

Bruce Springsteen Bruce Frederick Joseph Springsteen (born September 23, 1949) is an American singer and songwriter. He has released 21 studio albums, most of which feature his backing band, the E Street Band. Originally from the Jersey Shore, he is an originat ...

's E Street Band and managed by Terry Magovern and George McMorrow. Although the club was short-lived, together with The Fast Lane and The Stone Pony, it played a key role in the revival the

Jersey Shore The Jersey Shore (known by locals simply as the Shore) is the coastal region of the U.S. state of New Jersey. Geographically, the term encompasses about of oceanfront bordering the Atlantic Ocean, from Perth Amboy in the north to Cape May Po ...

music scene during the early 1980s. The club opened on July 11,

1981 Events January * January 1 ** Greece enters the European Economic Community, predecessor of the European Union. ** Palau becomes a self-governing territory. * January 10 – Salvadoran Civil War: The FMLN launches its first major offensiv ...

with a concert given by the house band Clarence Clemons & The Red Bank Rockers. They were joined on stage by Springsteen and

Gary U.S. Bonds Gary U.S. Bonds (born Gary Levone Anderson, June 6, 1939) is an American rhythm and blues and rock and roll singer, known for his classic hits "New Orleans" and " Quarter to Three". Career Born in Jacksonville, Florida, Bonds lived in Norfolk, ...

for a set that included " Ramrod", " Around and Around", " Summertime Blues", "Jole Blon", " You Can't Sit Down" and "Cadillac Ranch". ''Classic-Jersey Shore Venues''
/ref>Patrick Humphries and Chris Hunt: ''Springsteen - Blinded By The Light'' (1985) Throughout it short existence, Springsteen would go on to play at the Big Man's West regularly, making at least eighteen guest appearances. During

1982 Events January * January 1 – In Malaysia and Singapore, clocks are adjusted to the same time zone, UTC+8 (GMT+8.00). * January 13 – Air Florida Flight 90 crashes shortly after takeoff into the 14th Street bridges, 14th Street Bridge in ...

he performed at the club with the likes of Junior Walker & The Allstars, Beaver Brown, John Eddie & The Front Street Runners, Southside Johnny, Sonny Kenn, Bill Chinnock,

Iron City Houserockers The Iron City Houserockers were an American rock band from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, led by the singer and guitarist Joe Grushecky, from 1976 to 1984. History Started in 1976 as the Brick Alley Band by Grushecky, a high school special education ...

and

Dave Edmunds David William Edmunds (born 15 April 1944) is a Welsh singer-songwriter, guitarist and record producer. Although he is mainly associated with pub rock and new wave, having many hits in the 1970s and early 1980s, his natural leaning has alwa ...

.Brucebase 1982
/ref> Other acts to perform at the club included Joan Jett,

Steve Forbert Samuel Stephen "Steve" Forbert (born December 13, 1954) is an American pop music singer-songwriter. His 1979 song "Romeo's Tune" reached No. 11 on the U.S. ''Billboard'' Hot 100 and No. 13 on the ''Billboard'' Adult Contemporary Chart. It also ...

Jon Bon Jovi John Francis Bongiovi Jr. (born March 2, 1962), known professionally as Jon Bon Jovi, is an American singer, songwriter, guitarist, and actor. He is best known as the founder and frontman of the rock band Bon Jovi, which was formed in 1983. He ...

Bonnie Raitt Bonnie Lynn Raitt (; born November 8, 1949) is an American blues singer and guitarist. In 1971, Raitt released her self-titled debut album. Following this, she released a series of critically acclaimed roots-influenced albums that incorporated ...

and Little Steven & The Disciples of Soul The club would also feature popular Jersey Shore acts such as The Midnight Thunder Band fronted by Jobonanno, The Jim Davison Band, The George Theiss Band and The Diamonds. Theiss was a former member of The Castiles, one of Bruce Springsteen’s earliest bands. The Diamonds, featuring former members of

Cats On A Smooth Surface Cats on a Smooth Surface is an American rock group, that starting in 1978 and throughout the 1980s was the house band at The Stone Pony in Asbury Park, New Jersey In the years 1981 and 1982, the band's lineup consisted of Bobby Bandiera on lead gu ...

, made their debut opening for Little Steven at Big Man's West on December 16, 1982. Through a combination of health and safety regulations and financial difficulties, Clemons decided to close the club in January

1983 The year 1983 saw both the official beginning of the Internet and the first mobile cellular telephone call. Events January * January 1 – The migration of the ARPANET to Internet protocol suite, TCP/IP is officially completed (this is consid ...

. On January 8, the final night the club was open, Clemons, Springsteen,

Max Weinberg Max Weinberg (born April 13, 1951) is an American drummer and television personality, most widely known as the longtime drummer for Bruce Springsteen's E Street Band and as the bandleader for Conan O'Brien on ''Late Night with Conan O'Brien'' a ...

and Garry Tallent joined Larson for two songs, " Rockin' All Over the World" and " Lucille". In May 1984 Springsteen and the E Street Band, together with new recruit Nils Lofgren, also used the now defunct club for rehearsals for the forthcoming Born in the U.S.A. Tour.Brucebase 1984
/ref>

References

{{Coord, 40.3487, -74.0716, region:US-NJ_type:landmark, display=title Jersey Shore sound Music venues in New Jersey Music of Red Bank, New Jersey