Venue: Cafe Au Go Go
Town: New York, US

The Cafe Au Go Go was a night club in Greenwich Village located in the basement of the New Andy Warhol Garrick Theatre building in the late 1960s, at 152 Bleecker Street in Manhattan, New York City. The club featured many musical groups, folk singers and comedy acts between the opening in February 1964 until closing in December 1970. The club was originally owned by Howard Solomon who sold it in June 1969 to Moses Baruch. Howard Solomon became the manager of singer Fred Neil. The club was the first New York City venue for the Grateful Dead. Richie Havens and the Blues Project were weekly regulars as well as Harvey Brooks, who was bass player in residence; the Stone Poneys featuring Linda Ronstadt played frequently; The Grateful Dead played 10 times in 1967 and 3 in 1969; Jimi Hendrix sat in with blues harp player James Cotton there in 1968. Other notable acts that played at Cafe Au Go Go include: Van Morrison, Tim Hardin, Tim Buckley, Joni Mitchell, Judy Collins, Howlin' Wolf, Muddy Waters, John Lee Hooker, Oscar Brown Jr., the Youngbloods, the Siegel-Schwall Band, John Hammond Jr., the Paul Butterfield Blues Band, the Clear Light, Michael Bloomfield, Jefferson Airplane, Cream, the Chambers Brothers, Canned Heat, the Fugs, Odetta, Country Joe and the Fish, the Yardbirds, the Doors, Blood, Sweat & Tears. Blues legends John Lee Hooker, Lightnin' Hopkins, Son House, Skip James, Bukka White, and Big Joe Williams performed at the club after being "rediscovered" in the 1960s. Before many rock groups began performing there, the Au Go Go was an oasis for jazz (Bill Evans, Stan Getz), comedy (Lenny Bruce, George Carlin) and folk music. When the club was sold in 1969 it closed for over a month for renovations including upgrades to the kitchen and a new sound system installed by a then-local audio engineer Kenny D'Alessandro. Van Morrison was the first artist to play at the re-opened club in August 1969, having just released his album Astral Weeks. In 1964, Solomon brought in