House of Blues is an American chain of live music concert halls and restaurants. It was founded by

Isaac Tigrett Isaac Burton Tigrett (born November 28, 1948, Jackson, Tennessee) is an American businessman, best known as the co-founder of Hard Rock Café and House of Blues. Early life Isaac Tigrett belonged to a well-to-do business family and was raised i ...

, the co-founder of

Hard Rock Cafe Hard Rock Cafe, Inc. is a British-based multinational chain of theme restaurants, memorabilia shops, casinos and museums founded in 1971 by Isaac Tigrett and Peter Morton in London. In 1979, the cafe began covering its walls with rock and r ...

, and Dan Aykroyd, co-star of the 1980 film ''

The Blues Brothers The Blues Brothers are an American blues and soul revivalist band founded in 1978 by comedians Dan Aykroyd and John Belushi as part of a musical sketch on ''Saturday Night Live''. Belushi and Aykroyd fronted the band, in character, respecti ...

''. The first location opened at Harvard Square in

Cambridge Cambridge ( ) is a College town, university city and the county town in Cambridgeshire, England. It is located on the River Cam approximately north of London. As of the 2021 United Kingdom census, the population of Cambridge was 145,700. Cam ...

Massachusetts Massachusetts (Massachusett: ''Muhsachuweesut Massachusett_writing_systems.html" ;"title="nowiki/> məhswatʃəwiːsət.html" ;"title="Massachusett writing systems">məhswatʃəwiːsət">Massachusett writing systems">məhswatʃəwiːsət'' En ...

on November 26, 1992 (Thanksgiving Day). The chain has been a division of Live Nation Entertainment since July 2006, and there are 11 locations throughout the United States .

Overview

The first House of Blues opened on November 26, 1992, in the Harvard Square commercial district and retail area of

, Massachusetts, as a live music concert hall and restaurant. The company was originally financed by Dan Aykroyd, Aerosmith,

Paul Shaffer Paul Allen Wood Shaffer (born November 28, 1949) is a Canadian singer, composer, actor, author, comedian, and multi-instrumentalist who served as David Letterman's musical director, band leader, and sidekick on the entire run of both ''Late Ni ...

River Phoenix River Jude Phoenix (; August 23, 1970 – October 31, 1993) was an American actor, musician and activist. Phoenix grew up in an itinerant family, as the older brother of Rain Phoenix, Joaquin Phoenix, Liberty Phoenix, and Summer Phoenix. He ...

Jim Belushi James Adam Belushi (; born June 15, 1954) is an American actor. He is best known for the role of Jim on the sitcom ''According to Jim'' (2001–2009). His other television roles include ''Saturday Night Live'' (1983–1985), '' Total Security'' ...

, and

Harvard University Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of high ...

, among others. This original location closed in 2003 as the company sought a larger Boston location. However, the hands-in-concrete driveway where members of the Blues Brothers and others left their mark, still remains. Aykroyd remains associated with the brand and is present for most openings, attending and performing as one half of The Blues Brothers. In 1993 House of Blues launched a 501(c)(3) non-profit called International House of Blues Foundation which provided arts programs, resources and musical instruments for youths. The Music Forward Foundation continues to provide services for youth and has generated more than $20 million of support for these programs over its 20+ year existence. Also in 1993, the syndicated program ''The House of Blues Radio Hour'' launched in partnership with CBS Radio Hour. The show is hosted by Aykroyd, in character as Elwood Blues, and focuses on the history of blues music and the contemporary artists honoring the art form. Its final episode aired in July 2017. In 1999, House of Blues acquired Universal Concerts from

Seagram The Seagram Company Ltd. (which traded as Seagram's) was a Canadian multinational conglomerate formerly headquartered in Montreal, Quebec. Originally a distiller of Canadian whisky based in Waterloo, Ontario, it was once (in the 1990s) the ...

. On July 5, 2006, Live Nation acquired House of Blues Entertainment and created the Live Nation Club and Theater Division. As a division of Live Nation, the company currently operates 11 clubs throughout North America.

Locations

Current

Former

List of affiliated Live Nation venues

The following is a list of venues operated by Live Nation:

Gallery

File:Exterior of The House of Blues, music hall, San Diego.jpg, San Diego House of Blues in

San Diego San Diego ( , ; ) is a city on the Pacific Ocean coast of Southern California located immediately adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a 2020 population of 1,386,932, it is the eighth most populous city in the United State ...

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...

near Petco Park, the

Gaslamp Quarter The Gaslamp Quarter is a 16½-block neighborhood in the downtown area of San Diego, California. It extends from Broadway to Harbor Drive, and from 4th to 6th Avenue. Listed as a historic district on the National Register of Historic Places as ...

and the ocean. File:HouseOfBluesBostonMA.jpg, House of Blues across the street from

Fenway Park Fenway Park is a baseball stadium located in Boston, Massachusetts, United States, near Kenmore Square. Since 1912, it has been the home of the Boston Red Sox, the city's American League baseball team, and since 1953, its only Major League Bas ...

Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...

File:House of Blues Sunset.jpg, House of Blues Sunset in

West Hollywood West Hollywood is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States. Incorporated in 1984, it is home to the Sunset Strip. As of the 2020 U.S. Census, its population was 35,757. It is considered one of the most prominent gay villages ...

. File:House of Blues.JPG, Former location at

Downtown Disney Downtown Disney (officially the Downtown Disney District) is an outdoor shopping center located at the Disneyland Resort in Anaheim, California. It opened on January 12, 2001; a component of the Disneyland Resort expansion project alongside the ...

in Anaheim, California. File:House of Blues Myrtle Beach.JPG, House of Blues in

North Myrtle Beach North Myrtle Beach is a city in Horry County, South Carolina, United States. It was created in 1968 from four existing municipalities, and is located about northeast of Myrtle Beach. It serves as one of the primary tourist destinations along ...

. File:House of Blues Florida Disney.jpg, House of Blues at

Disney Springs Disney Springs (previously known as Lake Buena Vista Shopping Village in 1975, Walt Disney World Village in 1977, Disney Village Marketplace in 1989, and Downtown Disney in 1997) is an outdoor shopping, dining, and entertainment complex at the ...

Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...

. File:House of Blues Back Florida Disney.jpg, House of Blues at

. File:Ashes of Eagles House of Blues.jpg, American rock band Ashes of Eagles from

Dallas Dallas () is the List of municipalities in Texas, third largest city in Texas and the largest city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of metropolitan statistical areas, fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States at 7.5 ...

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2020, it is the second-largest U.S. state by ...

performing at the House of Blues. File:Drive Thru Society.jpg, American rock band Drive Thru Society from Dallas, Texas performing at the House of Blues. File:Like Bridges We Burn.jpg, American rock band Like Bridges We Burn from Dallas, Texas performing at the House of Blues.

Notes

References

External links

House of Blues official siteHouse of Blues Hits LansdowneHouse of Blues Studios - Recording studios in Nashville, Encino, and Memphis
{{DEFAULTSORT:House Of Blues Blues venues Music venues in the United States Music venues in Los Angeles Sunset Boulevard (Los Angeles) Restaurants established in 1992 The Blues Brothers 1992 establishments in Massachusetts Music venues in Chicago Dan Aykroyd