Rockefeller's is a live music venue located in

Houston Houston (; ) is the most populous city in Texas, the most populous city in the Southern United States, the fourth-most populous city in the United States, and the sixth-most populous city in North America, with a population of 2,304,580 in ...

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...

History

In 1979, Sanford and Susan Criner opened Rockefeller's to serve as a performance space for Houston's music scene. The Criners wanted to create a place where both local talent and already-established acts could play to Houston crowds. They already owned a former bank building, designed by

Joseph Finger Joseph Finger (7 March 1887 – 6 February 1953) was an Austrian Americans, Austrian American architect. After immigrating to the United States in 1905, Finger settled in Houston, Houston, Texas in 1908, where he would remain for the duration ...

in 1925; they turned it into a club and used proceeds to renovate the space. The building's architecture lent itself to a unique performance space. The old bank vault became an artists’ dressing room, while the large lobby created a distinct acoustic atmosphere. Seating was two-tiered, with some of the audience on the ground level and some in balconies that nearly extended over the stage. The venue could seat about 325 guests. Rockefeller's closed as a public venue in 1997. The owners of Star Pizza purchased the building and it was a private event and wedding space from 1999 to 2014. In 2016, concerts returned to Rockefeller's for the first time in nearly 20 years.

Noted performers

List of noted performers during the 80s and 90s: *

Angela Bofill Angela Tomasa Bofill (born May 2, 1954) is an American singer-songwriter of Cuban- Puerto Rican origins. A New York native, Bofill began her professional career in the mid-1970s. Bofill is most known for singles such as, "This Time I'll Be Sweete ...

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Carl Perkins Carl Lee Perkins (April 9, 1932 – January 19, 1998)#nytimesobit, Pareles. was an American guitarist, singer and songwriter. A rockabilly great and pioneer of rock and roll, he began his recording career at the Sun Studio, in Memphis, Tennes ...

Chet Atkins Chester Burton Atkins (June 20, 1924 – June 30, 2001), known as "Mr. Guitar" and "The Country Gentleman", was an American musician who, along with Owen Bradley and Bob Ferguson, helped create the Nashville sound, the country music s ...

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Dwight Yoakam Dwight David Yoakam (born October 23, 1956) is an American singer-songwriter, actor, and film director. He first achieved mainstream attention in 1986 with the release of his debut album '' Guitars, Cadillacs, Etc., Etc.''. Yoakam had considerab ...

Ella Fitzgerald Ella Jane Fitzgerald (April 25, 1917June 15, 1996) was an American jazz singer, sometimes referred to as the "First Lady of Song", "Queen of Jazz", and "Lady Ella". She was noted for her purity of tone, impeccable diction, phrasing, timing, in ...

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Fats Domino Antoine Dominique Domino Jr. (February 26, 1928 – October 24, 2017), known as Fats Domino, was an American pianist, singer and songwriter. One of the pioneers of rock and roll music, Domino sold more than 65 million records. Born in New O ...

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Janis Ian Janis Ian (born Janis Eddy Fink; April 7, 1951) is an American singer-songwriter who was most commercially successful in the 1960s and 1970s. Her signature songs are the 1966/67 hit " Society's Child (Baby I've Been Thinking)" and the 1975 Top T ...

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Jerry Lee Lewis Jerry Lee Lewis (September 29, 1935October 28, 2022) was an American singer, songwriter and pianist. Nicknamed "The Killer", he was described as "rock & roll's first great wild man". A pioneer of rock and roll and rockabilly music, Lewis made ...

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* Riders in the Sky *

Roy Orbison Roy Kelton Orbison (April 23, 1936 – December 6, 1988) was an American singer, songwriter, and musician known for his impassioned singing style, complex song structures, and dark, emotional ballads. His music was described by critics as ...

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External links

Houston Folk Music Archive
(Woodson Research Center, Rice University)
Houston Folk Music Archive Guide
(Woodson Research Center, Rice University)

References

Music venues in Houston 1979 establishments in Texas {{music-venue-stub