Cat's Cradle is a music venue and

nightclub A nightclub or dance club is a club that is open at night, usually for drinking, dancing and other entertainment. Nightclubs often have a Bar (establishment), bar and discotheque (usually simply known as disco) with a dance floor, laser lighti ...

located in Carrboro, North Carolina, less than a mile from the

University of North Carolina The University of North Carolina is the Public university, public university system for the state of North Carolina. Overseeing the state's 16 public universities and the North Carolina School of Science and Mathematics, it is commonly referre ...

campus. It has two rooms with a capacity of 750 and 200 people. In the early 1990s, it contributed to the Chapel Hill region being called the "Next Seattle" by the music press, given that the club hosted upcoming regional and national alternative and grunge acts such as

Nirvana Nirvana, in the Indian religions (Jainism, Hinduism, Buddhism, and Sikhism), is the concept of an individual's passions being extinguished as the ultimate state of salvation, release, or liberation from suffering ('' duḥkha'') and from the ...

(who last performed there just 10 days after the release of ''

Nevermind ''Nevermind'' is the second studio album by the American rock band Nirvana (band), Nirvana, released on September 24, 1991, by DGC Records. It was Nirvana's first release on a Record label#Major versus independent record labels, major label an ...

''),

Pearl Jam Pearl Jam is an American Rock music, rock band formed in Seattle, Washington, in 1990. One of the key bands in the grunge, grunge movement of the early 1990s, Pearl Jam has outsold and outlasted many of its contemporaries from the early 1990s, ...

Sonic Youth Sonic Youth were an American rock band formed in New York City in 1981. Founding members Kim Gordon (bass, vocals, guitar), Thurston Moore (lead guitar, vocals) and Lee Ranaldo (rhythm guitar, vocals) remained together for the entire history of ...

The Smashing Pumpkins The Smashing Pumpkins (also simply known as Smashing Pumpkins) are an American alternative rock band formed in Chicago in 1988 by frontman and guitarist Billy Corgan, guitarist James Iha, bassist D'arcy Wretzky and drummer Jimmy Chamberlin. The ...

, and Ween (who documented their December 9, 1992, performance with ''

At the Cat's Cradle, 1992 ''At the Cat's Cradle, 1992'' is the sixth live album by the American rock band Ween. It was released on November 25, 2008, on Chocodog Records. The 2-disc package includes a CD containing a live performance from December 9, 1992, at the Cat's ...

''). In later years, the venue also saw performances by

John Mayer John Clayton Mayer ( ; born October 16, 1977) is an American singer, songwriter, and guitarist. He attended Berklee College of Music in Boston, but he left for Atlanta in 1997 with fellow guitarist Clay Cook, with whom he formed the short-liv ...

Iggy Pop James Newell Osterberg Jr. (born April 21, 1947), known professionally as Iggy Pop, is an American singer, musician, songwriter, actor and radio broadcaster. He was the vocalist and lyricist of proto-punk band the Stooges, who were formed in 1 ...

and

Joan Baez Joan Chandos Baez (, ; born January 9, 1941) is an American singer, songwriter, musician, and activist. Her contemporary folk music often includes songs of protest and social justice. Baez has performed publicly for over 60 years, releasing mo ...

. In August 2009, The Cosmopolitans played their reunion concert at Cat's Cradle following a 27-year hiatus.

History

The original Cat's Cradle was opened in 1969 by Marcia Wilson and two partners, Mike Cross and Larry Reynolds. Located in a basement about a half mile from the current location, the original venue was significantly smaller, with a capacity of around two dozen people. The club relocated and changed ownership several times, and went bankrupt in 1983 due to unpaid taxes. In 1987 the club was sold to the current owner, Frank Heath. After a six month hiatus in 1993, Cat's Cradle moved to its current location on Main Street. In recent years, an additional yet smaller club next door called Cat’s Cradle Back Room was opened. In 2020, the club nearly closed its doors due to the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...

. To cover financial losses, an exclusive album of studio cover songs called ''Cover Charge'' was created that featured North Carolina–based artists such as Superchunk, Iron & Wine,

The Mountain Goats The Mountain Goats are a United States band formed in Claremont, California, Claremont, California, by singer-songwriter John Darnielle. The band is currently based in Durham, North Carolina, Durham, North Carolina. For many years, the sole me ...

, Sarah Shook and

The Connells The Connells are an American musical group from Raleigh, North Carolina. They play a guitar-oriented, melodic, jangle-pop style of rock music with introspective lyrics that often reflect the history or culture of the American South. Though the ...

. The venue has since reopened.

Live albums

Notable live albums documenting shows at Cat's Cradle include: * Dillon Fence – ''Live at the Cat's Cradle'' (2001)Mason, Stewart
Dillon Fence Biography
,

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All-Music Guide and AMG) is an American online database, online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on Musical artist, musicians and Mus ...

. Retrieved January 19, 2018 * Gillian Welch – '' The Revelator Collection'' (2002) * Superchunk – '' The Clambakes Series Vol. 3'' (2004) * Ween – ''

'' (2008)

References

{{Music venues of North Carolina Music venues in North Carolina