Venue: Cherry Bar
Town: Victoria, AU

The Cherry Bar is a Melbourne city bar founded in December 1999 by former Cosmic Psychos drummer Bill Walsh. Originally located on ACDC Lane (off Flinders Lane between Russell St and Exhibition St), the bar replaced existing artists studios in the building to make a rock music venue that has become a popular concert after-party venue for touring bands and their crews. Oasis guitarist Noel Gallagher was so taken with the bar during the band's 2002 Australian tour, he made an offer to purchase it. Other high-profile international visitors included Mick Jagger, Johnny Marr (from The Smiths) and Lady Gaga. In the early 2000s punters were brought to Cherry through its Deep Funk nights on Wednesdays with John Idem, hiphop Thursdays, and the consistent rock n' roll weekend nights. Thursday nights was Soul night, while rock from all genres and eras was played on weekends by founder Bill Walsh, Max Crawdaddy, Rock DJ Paul Miles, and Little Scotty. Later, the DJ roster included rock DJs Mary M, Dom, Kez, DJ Mermaid and Leaping Larry L, with radio PBS announcers Vince Peach and Pierre Baroni helming Thursday night's Soul In The Basement. Local promoter and former lawyer, radio and television presenter James Young has been managing Cherry with a consortium since 2006. In 2021 the registration for `Cherry Bar ACDC Lane Pty Ltd` was liquidated, and a new company with a new corporate structure was created giving Mr. Young majority ownership. Although inaccurately reported by Melbourne's Herald Sun that the building was destroyed by fire on 5 June 2008, it was in fact the offices located in the floors above which burned, whereas the Cherry bar, being located in the basement of the building, suffered only water damage. The bar was expected to reopen following two weeks cleaning and restoration of the electricals damaged by the water used in the fire-fighting effort but building complications delayed the re-opening until New Year's Eve. As regulars of Cherry, rock band Airbourne refe