Jazz History of Vancouver - Famous Venues

The Cave (1937—1981)

"That was the gig in the city." - Oliver Gannon

The Cave was considered to be one of the most upscale clubs in Vancouver and it was particularly important during the 1950s, when it became the first Vancouver club to be granted a liquor license.
At the same time, the Golden Age of Striptease was established which included Broadway-inspired production numbers.
The club was also able to bring in high-quality touring productions. For example Las Vegas shows were tested at the Cave to find out if they were successful in Hollywood, as the Canadian audiences were known as hard to please.
The Cave also had its own house band, led by Chris Gage and Fraser MacPherson, which performed with artists like Tony Bennett, Ella Fitzgerald, Anthony Newly or Mitzi Gaynor.
As time passed, also the type of music evolved from Jazz to rock’n roll and the Cave became a popular venue for Tina Turner, Tower of Power and the Police.

The Commodore Ballroom (1930—now)

The Commodore Ballroom opened in 1930, ready to embrace the advent of the swing era. It was considered as one of the biggest dance floors in Canada.
Most of the time local artists performed at the Commodore Ballroom like Bob Lyon, Ole Olson and Fraser MacPherson.
After the Second World War, the Bebop developed and other progressive genres encouraged jazz to move into smaller venues. However, jazz returned to the Commodore in a big way with the establishment of the TD Vancouver International Jazz Festival, started in 1985. As a Festival venue, the Commodore was and continues to be an important site for jazz fusion, funk, world, and electronica music.

The Penthouse (1947—now)

The Penthouse building was created in 1938 by Giuseppe Filippone and became one of the most famous family businesses in Vancouver. First the building was used for amateur boxing, and later was transformed in a restaurant and nightclub by Giuseppe’s son, Joe. This transformation took place because the Penthouse was known as a location for lavish parties.
After some problems with getting the liquor license until 1968 because of rumors linking the Philliponis and the Mob, the Penthouse got famous in the Vancouver entertainment scene for after-hours activities. During the Golden Age of Striptease, the club joined other Vancouver venues in presenting Vegas-style entertainment. It got so bad that the reputation of the Penthouse suffered due to high-class prostitution. Today, the Penthouse continues to operate as a strip club under the ownership of Joe's nephew Danny.