Coordinates: 40°43′39″N 73°59′18″W / 40.727509°N 73.98846°W
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signpost in front of Fillmore East site, 2007. |
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| Type | Concert Venue |
|---|---|
| Genre(s) | Rock Music |
| Opened | March 8, 1968 |
| Location | Second Avenue at East Sixth Street, New York City, New York, United States |
| Closed | June 27, 1971 |
| Former name(s) | Commodore Theater, Village Theater |
| Capacity | 2,700 |
Fillmore East was entertainment promoter Bill Graham's late 1960s – early 1970s rock palace in the East Village area of the Manhattan borough of New York City, New York.
Contents |
Pre-Fillmore East history
Originally opened in 1926 as the independently operated Commodore Theater, this movie house/Yiddish theater was taken over by Loew's Inc. and later became known as the Village Theater. It can credit Lenny Bruce as appearing on its stage.
In March 1968 it became the Fillmore East concert venue. Located on Second Avenue at East Sixth Street and known as the Village Theater for most of its previous existence, the venue had been a mainstay of the Yiddish-theatre circuit; it had also been a cinema and had fallen into disrepair before Graham's acquisition. Despite the deceptively small marquee and façade, the theater had a capacity of 2,700 seats.
Fillmore East years
The venue provided Graham with an East Coast counterpart to his existing Fillmore West establishment in San Francisco, California.[1] Opening on March 8, 1968, the Fillmore East quickly became known as "The Church of Rock and Roll," with two-show concerts several nights a week. Graham would regularly alternate acts between the East Coast and West Coast venues.
It was not unusual for a band to be booked to play two shows both Friday and Saturday nights; nearly all bands were contracted to play 8 p.m. and 11 p.m. shows until early 1971.
Notable acts highlights
The Allman Brothers Band played so many shows at Fillmore East that they were sometimes called "Bill Graham's House Band". Along with The Allman Brothers Band, Jefferson Airplane performed six shows and Taj Mahal performed eight shows at Fillmore East.[2]
The Joshua Light Show, headed by Joshua White, was an integral part of many performances, with its psychedelic art lighting in a backdrop behind many live bands.[3]
Live albums
Many live albums were recorded at the Fillmore East, including:
- The Allman Brothers Band - At Fillmore East (1971)
- The Allman Brothers Band - Fillmore East Feb 70 (released 1997) on Grateful Dead Records
- The Chambers Brothers - Love, Peace And Happiness a double album with one studio disc and one live disc recorded at Bill Graham's Fillmore East
- Derek and the Dominos - Live At The Fillmore ; recorded October 23-24, 1970 (released 1994)
- Jefferson Airplane - Bless Its Pointed Little Head (1969) ; this album was split between the Fillmore East and Fillmore West.
- Jefferson Airplane - Live at the Fillmore East (recorded 1969; released 1998)
- Jefferson Airplane - Sweeping Up the Spotlight: Jefferson Airplane Live at the Fillmore East 1969 (released 2007)
- Jimi Hendrix - Band of Gypsys (1970) & Live at the Fillmore East (1999)
- Joe Cocker - Mad Dogs & Englishmen - The Complete Fillmore East Concerts - March 27-28, 1970 (released 2006)
- John Mayall - The Turning Point (1969)
- Grateful Dead - Ladies and Gentlemen… The Grateful Dead: Fillmore East — April 1971 (2000) ; a four-disc set taken from their five-night stint at the Fillmore East in April 1971
- Grateful Dead - Live at the Fillmore East 2-11-69 (1997)
- Grateful Dead - History of the Grateful Dead, Volume One (Bear's Choice) (February 13-14, 1970) (1973)
- Grateful Dead - Dick's Picks Volume Four – Grateful Dead Fillmore East 2/13–14/70 (1996) ; a three-disc set released on Grateful Dead Records
- Humble Pie - Performance Rockin' the Fillmore (1971)
- Miles Davis - Live at the Fillmore East, March 7, 1970: It's About That Time (2001) ; recorded March 7, 1970, in a rare live recording of Davis's so-called '"lost quintet"
- Miles Davis - Miles Davis at Fillmore: Live at the Fillmore East (1970) ; recorded June 17-20, 1970
- Neil Young & Crazy Horse - Live At The Fillmore East recorded March 6-7, 1970 (released on CD & DVD 2006)
- The Nice - Live At The Fillmore East December 1969 ; recorded Dec. 19-20, 1969 (released 2009)
- Laura Nyro - Spread Your Wings And Fly - Live At The Fillmore East May 30, 1970 (released 2004)
- Ten Years After - Live At The Fillmore East ; recorded February 27-28, 1970 (released 2001)
- Frank Zappa's Mothers - Fillmore East - June 1971 (released 1971)
Frank Zappa's Mothers June 1971 live album
Shortly before the Fillmore East closed, the album Fillmore East - June 1971 (1971) by Frank Zappa's Mothers was recorded there. The live performance included The Turtles' two lead singers, Howard Kaylan and Mark Volman. The album Some Time in New York City (1972), by John Lennon and Yoko Ono, included the live tracks recorded with the Mothers at the Fillmore East from that same night when they jammed together. After The Mothers finished playing "Happy Together," better known as The Turtles' most-famous song, Zappa said:
"I know that in a way it's sad that Bill Graham is closing down the Fillmore, but I'm sure he'll get into something better. It's been lovely working for you this evening, good night boys and girls."
Closing
Because of changes in the music industry and exponential growth in the concert industry, Graham closed the Fillmore East. Its final concert took place on June 27, 1971, with the billed acts: The Allman Brothers Band, The J. Geils Band, Albert King, and special guests — Edgar Winter's White Trash, Mountain, The Beach Boys, and Country Joe McDonald — in an invitation-only performance. The concert was broadcast live by WNEW-FM with between-set banter by many of the station's then-trendsetting disc jockeys — Alison Steele ("The Nightbird") and Scott Muni among them. The Allman Brothers Band set was released as the second disk of the deluxe edition/remastered version of their Eat a Peach (1972 and 2006) album.
After Fillmore East
In 1980, the former Fillmore East site became The Saint, a private gay club. As of 2007, the former entrance lobby is a branch of Emigrant Savings Bank. The rest of the interior has been demolished and replaced with an apartment complex.[4]
Live Nation resurrected the Fillmore East name by rebranding a renovated Irving Plaza as The Fillmore New York at Irving Plaza on April 11, 2007, with English pop-music singer and songwriter Lily Allen as the opening act. [5]
Notable acts
(not a complete list; plain alphabetical - e.g., Neil Young under letter "N")
See also
Live at the Fillmore East albums
References
- ^ Shelton, Robert. "7,500 Attend Concerts at the Fillmore East." The New York Times, April 1, 1968, p. 56.
- ^ "Show Listings". Fillmore East Preservation Society. undated. http://www.fillmore-east.com/showlist.html. Retrieved May 9, 2007..
- ^ Del Signore, John, Joshua White, "The Joshua Light Show", Gothamist, April 2, 2007.
- ^ Garbarine, Rachelle (March 7, 1997). "Apartments Rising on Site Of Fillmore East and Saint". The New York Times.. Accessed February 25, 2009.
- ^ Huhn, Mary. "Get on the Bandwagoner", New York Post, March 30, 2007. Accessed May 29, 2009.
External links
- Fillmore Auditorium Posters at www.janisjoplin.net
- Fillmore East Preservation Society, dedication website
- Tim and Jeff on the Isle of Manhattan (timbuckleyandfriends.com), personal website that includes photographs of Fillmore East building in 2001
- Allman Brothers at The Fillmore East 1971, (wolfgangsvault.com), a nostalgia site
- The Fillmore East 2008 New Location
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