The Café Bohemia is a jazz club located at 15 Barrow Street in the

Greenwich Village Greenwich Village ( , , ) is a neighborhood on the west side of Lower Manhattan in New York City, bounded by 14th Street to the north, Broadway to the east, Houston Street to the south, and the Hudson River to the west. Greenwich Village ...

neighbourhood of

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

. Its original run lasted from 1955 to 1960, and has been revived at its original location as of October 2019.

History

The club was opened in 1955 by Jimmy Garofolo. Garofolo had owned the room since 1949 and had operated it as a restaurant, bar, and stage at various times, each endeavour turning out unsuccessfully. In 1955, saxophonist

Charlie Parker Charles Parker Jr. (August 29, 1920 – March 12, 1955), nicknamed "Bird" or "Yardbird", was an American jazz saxophonist, band leader and composer. Parker was a highly influential soloist and leading figure in the development of bebop, a form ...

was living across the street from the club with poet

Ted Joans Theodore Joans (July 4, 1928 – April 25, 2003) was an American jazz poet, surrealist, trumpeter, and painter, who from the 1960s spent periods of time travelling in Europe and Africa. His work stands at the intersection of several avant-gard ...

. Parker offered to play the club for Garofolo in order to get his drinks for free, which unofficially began the room's short-lived life as a jazz club. Parker died prior to the beginning of his engagement at the Bohemia, but the hype generated around his name being promoted was enough to garner further support for the new club. Among the bands that played the club were the first

Miles Davis Quintet The Miles Davis Quintet was an American jazz band from 1955 to early 1969 led by Miles Davis. The quintet underwent frequent personnel changes toward its metamorphosis into a different ensemble in 1969. Most references pertain to two distinct and ...

Art Blakey Arthur Blakey (October 11, 1919 – October 16, 1990) was an American jazz drummer and bandleader. He was also known as Abdullah Ibn Buhaina after he converted to Islam for a short time in the late 1940s. Blakey made a name for himself in the 1 ...

's original

Jazz Messengers The Jazz Messengers were a jazz combo that existed for over thirty-five years beginning in the early 1950s as a collective, and ending when long-time leader and founding drummer Art Blakey died in 1990. Blakey led or co-led the group from the o ...

, and

Kenny Dorham McKinley Howard "Kenny" Dorham (August 30, 1924 – December 5, 1972) was an American jazz trumpeter, singer, and composer. Dorham's talent is frequently lauded by critics and other musicians, but he never received the kind of attention or public ...

's Jazz Prophets. At one point

Herbie Nichols Herbert Horatio Nichols (January 3, 1919 – April 12, 1963) was an American jazz pianist and composer who wrote the jazz standard " Lady Sings the Blues". Obscure during his lifetime, he is now highly regarded by many musicians and critics. Lif ...

was the intermission pianist. Miles Davis's

Prestige Prestige refers to a good reputation or high esteem; in earlier usage, ''prestige'' meant "showiness". (19th c.) Prestige may also refer to: Arts, entertainment and media Films * ''Prestige'' (film), a 1932 American film directed by Tay Garnett ...

recordings ''Workin, ''Relaxin, ''Steamin, and ''Cookin were meant to convey the spirit of the group's performances at the Bohemia. This is most evident on ''Workin where the band's set closer "The Theme" is played at the end of each side of the record, and one piano trio number, "Ahmad's Blues", is featured.

Oscar Pettiford Oscar Pettiford (September 30, 1922 – September 8, 1960) was an American jazz double bassist, cellist and composer. He was one of the earliest musicians to work in the bebop idiom. Biography Pettiford was born in Okmulgee, Oklahoma, United ...

penned the song "Bohemia After Dark" in spirit of the club. The cover photograph of the Miles Davis record ''

'Round About Midnight ''Round About Midnight'' is an album by jazz trumpeter Miles Davis that was originally released by Columbia Records in March 1957. It was Davis' first album with Columbia. Background At the Newport Jazz Festival in 1955, Davis performed the song ...

'' was one of several taken by

Marvin Koner Marvin Koner (1921-1983) was an American photographer who became known for his photographs of Johnny Cash and Miles Davis which he published in Pageant (magazine), Pageant and other magazines. For nearly four decades, American photojournalist Marv ...

during the quintet's stay at the club in 1956. The photograph retains the actual colouring but is cropped from the original. The red hue was due to a red fluorescent light above the bandstand. As of October 2019, Café Bohemia has been revived in its original location, in the basement of the Barrow Street Ale House (which was established in 1990).

Cannonball Adderley's New York debut

On 19 June 1955 Julian and

Nat Adderley Nathaniel Carlyle Adderley (November 25, 1931 – January 2, 2000) was an American jazz trumpeter. He was the younger brother of saxophonist Julian "Cannonball" Adderley, whom he supported and played with for many years. Adderley's composition " ...

arrived in New York on a trip for the former to work on his master's degree at

New York University New York University (NYU) is a private research university in New York City. Chartered in 1831 by the New York State Legislature, NYU was founded by a group of New Yorkers led by then-Secretary of the Treasury Albert Gallatin. In 1832, the ...

. That first night in the city the brothers went to the Café Bohemia to hear the Oscar Pettiford band, which was the club's house band at the time.

Jerome Richardson Jerome Richardson (November 15, 1920 – June 23, 2000) was an American jazz musician, tenor saxophonist, and flute player, who also played soprano sax, alto sax, baritone sax, clarinet, bass clarinet, alto flute and piccolo. He played with Ch ...

, who was the group's regular saxophonist was unavailable that evening due to a recording session. Pettiford asked

Charlie Rouse Charlie Rouse (April 6, 1924 – November 30, 1988) was an American hard bop tenor saxophonist and flautist. His career is marked by his collaboration with Thelonious Monk, which lasted for more than ten years. Biography Rouse was born in Wash ...

- who was in the audience - if he would sit in, but Rouse did not have his saxophone with him. Pettiford then noticed another audience member, Adderley, who had a saxophone case with him and told Rouse to ask this unknown man if he could borrow his horn. Instead, Rouse asked Cannonball if he would like to sit in with the group. Reluctantly, the leader complied and allowed Adderley to play. Overnight Adderley rose to prominence on the New York jazz scene. On 21 June he officially played his first night at the Bohemia; on June 28, 1955, he recorded with Kenny Clarke's group; on 14 July he recorded his first album as a leader. By October 1957 he was a member of the Miles Davis Sextet.

Live recordings

*Kenny Dorham - '' 'Round About Midnight at the Café Bohemia'' (Blue Note) *Art Blakey - ''The Jazz Messengers at the Café Bohemia, Volume 1- 2'' (Blue Note) *

Randy Weston Randolph Edward "Randy" Weston (April 6, 1926 – September 1, 2018) was an American jazz pianist and composer whose creativity was inspired by his ancestral African connection. Weston's piano style owed much to Duke Ellington and Thelonious M ...

- ''

Jazz à la Bohemia ''Jazz à la Bohemia'' (also released as ''Greenwich Village Jazz'') is a live album by American jazz pianist Randy Weston's trio with saxophonist Cecil Payne which was recorded in 1956 at the Café Bohemia in Greenwich Village and released on th ...

'' (Riverside, 1956) *

Charles Mingus Charles Mingus Jr. (April 22, 1922 – January 5, 1979) was an American jazz upright bassist, pianist, composer, bandleader, and author. A major proponent of collective improvisation, he is considered to be one of the greatest jazz musicians and ...

- ''

Mingus at the Bohemia ''Mingus at the Bohemia'' is a live album by Charles Mingus that was recorded at Café Bohemia in New York City on December 23, 1955. It was released in August 1956. Max Roach makes a guest appearance on one track. Other recordings from the same ...

'' (Debut, 1955), '' The Charles Mingus Quintet & Max Roach'' (Fantasy, 1955) *

George Wallington George Wallington (October 27, 1924 – February 15, 1993) was an American jazz pianist and composer. Early life Wallington was born Giacinto Figlia (some sources give "Giorgio") in Sicily, and then moved to the United States (New York) with ...

- ''George Wallington Quintet at the Bohemia'' (Progressive) (Prestige) *

Miles Davis Miles Dewey Davis III (May 26, 1926September 28, 1991) was an American trumpeter, bandleader, and composer. He is among the most influential and acclaimed figures in the history of jazz and 20th-century music. Davis adopted a variety of music ...

Quintet with

John Coltrane John William Coltrane (September 23, 1926 – July 17, 1967) was an American jazz saxophonist The saxophone (often referred to colloquially as the sax) is a type of single-reed woodwind instrument with a conical body, usually made of br ...

- "The Unissued Café Bohemia Broadcasts" (Domino, 2013)

References

Phil Schaap Philip van Noorden Schaap (April 8, 1951September 7, 2021) was an American radio host, who specialized in jazz as a broadcaster, historian, archivist, and producer. He began presenting jazz shows on Columbia University's WKCR in 1970, and hoste ...

interview With Nat Adderley, 12 October 1984. * "First Birthday For Jazz Club That Started by Accident." ''

The Village Voice ''The Village Voice'' is an American news and culture paper, known for being the country's first alternative newsweekly. Founded in 1955 by Dan Wolf, Ed Fancher, John Wilcock, and Norman Mailer, the ''Voice'' began as a platform for the crea ...

'', 13 June 1956.

External links

Live at Cafe Bohemia: Hardbop in the Heart of Greenwich VillageCafe Bohemia Facebook pageOne of New York City’s Oldest Jazz Clubs Re-Opens
{{DEFAULTSORT:Cafe Bohemia Jazz clubs in New York City Defunct jazz clubs in New York City Drinking establishments in Greenwich Village Music venues completed in 1955 1955 establishments in New York City