James Taylor, Carole King, Bonny Raitt, Jackson Browne - The early years @The Troubadour
Troubadours: The Rise of the Singer-Songwriter
Regie: Morgan Neville
Producent: Concord Music Group 2011.
The Troubadour is a nightclub located in West Hollywood, California, USA, at 9081 Santa Monica Boulevard just east of Doheny Drive and the border of Beverly Hills.
The club was founded in 1957 by Doug Weston. It was a major center for folk music in the 1960s, and subsequently for singer-songwriters and rock.
The Troubadour played an important role in the careers of Elton John, Linda Ronstadt, Hoyt Axton, the Eagles, The Byrds, Joni Mitchell, James Taylor, Carole King, Bonnie Raitt, J.D. Souther, Jackson Browne, Van Morrison, Buffalo Springfield and other prominent and successful performers, who played performances there establishing their future fame. On August 25, 1970, Neil Diamond introduced Elton John, who performed his first show in the United States at the Troubadour. In 1974, John Lennon and his friend, Harry Nilsson, were ejected from the club for drunkenly heckling the Smothers Brothers. Randy Newman started out at the club and comics Cheech & Chong and Steve Martin were discovered there. In 1975, Elton John returned to do a series of special anniversary concerts. In November 2007, James Taylor and Carole King played a series of concerts commemorating the nightclub's 50th anniversary and reuniting the two from their 1970 performance.
Other alumni include Paramore, The Tragically Hip, Sloan, Rod Stewart, Lenny Bruce, Bette Midler, Leo Kottke, Bruce Springsteen, the Pointer Sisters, Liza Minnelli, Sheryl Crow, Karla Bonoff, Al Stewart, Sandy Denny, George Carlin, Tom Waits, Pavement, Carly Simon, Fleetwood Mac, Rickie Lee Jones, Leonard Cohen, Roberta Flack, Ramblin' Jack Elliot, Paul Sykes, Donny Hathaway, Arlo Guthrie, and Darren Criss.
The Troubadour would also feature New Wave and punk in the late 1970s and early 1980s, and became virtually synonymous with heavy metal bands like Mötley Crüe, Guns N' Roses and W.A.S.P. in the 1980s. Guns N' Roses played their first show at the Troubadour, and were also discovered by a David Geffen A&R representative at the club. There are a variety of styles of music played at the Troubadour to the present day and it continues to be one of Hollywood's favorite and most respected places to see live music.
The Troubadour was created by Doug Weston in the late 1950s as a coffee house on La Cienega Blvd. It then moved to its current location shortly after opening, and has remained open continuously ever since that first day. Some say there is no other club in the country that can compare to its infamous long standing rock n' roll history.[citation needed]
Damien Rice at the Troubadour
In 2011, a documentary about the club called Troubadours: Carole King / James Taylor & The Rise of the Singer-Songwriter was released.
Today the venue is well known for presenting emerging UK artists (Radiohead, Coldplay, Franz Ferdinand, Arctic Monkeys), punk/hardcore acts, such bands as Billy Talent, Papa Roach, and Rise Against, the latter filming five nights in a row for a DVD, Generation Lost. It is also still a popular venue to showcase singer-songwriters: Ray LaMontagne, Joanna Newsom, Fiona Apple, Kina Grannis.
2 LA: Honor Flow Productions Live @ The Troubadour
As history has shown, since Doug Weston opened up shop at 9081 Santa Monica Boulevard in 1957, there have been a number of career/genre defining moments at The Troubadour. It was the center of folk music in the 1960s (James Taylor and Carole King in particular). It has been the first United States stage touched for a list of then emerging United Kingdom artists and bands (Elton John, Coldplay, and Radiohead are three of them). In 1970s and 1980s, although popular belief usually solely credits Sunset Boulevard has the center of the Los Angeles music scene, all those bands of that era (Motley Crue and Guns N Roses for example) had to also complete The Troubadour rite of passage.
While the trends of popular music have altered many times over the course of its 55 year existence, one crucial characteristic of The Troubadour has not changed at all; and that is its undisputed reputation as being one the leading tastemakers for not just the Los Angeles scene, but also internationally. Don't believe me? Just mention the venue's name to any self-respecting music lover, and take note of their reaction. There are musicians who work an entire lifetime hoping and praying to at least, get to play one song on Troub's signature hardwood floor. They gave us the keys to castle without restraint for an entire night. And that was a once in a lifetime opportunity I will forever be grateful for. And I once again thank The Troubadour for being such gracious host.
Since The Troubadour is known for ushering in new eras in music, I want to continue that tradition and make it the center vocal theme of this live experience. Words cannot completely do justice to how proud I am of this night. To DJ Em-One, The Beat Advocate Steve Liriks & The Spoken Herd, and Hugh Augustine The MC, you guys left everything on that stage and as a fan, I am extremely happy with your performances. Thank you for trusting us and being a part of the vision that is 2 LA. It was an honor and pleasure to share the stage with you all. To all my staff and crew, we could not have done it with you.
To my fellow band mates, what can I say? We're like fine wine, and we just keep getting better with time. Musically, this was the most challenging set we had constructed yet and I can say without regret we gave everything we had up there. I hope you all feel the same way when you watch this. Because we had a hell of time up on that hardwood stage. So on behave of myself and everyone in H.F.P., we send you the upmost Soul Claps & Salutes for all of your love and support, and are proud to present, in its entirety, our Troubadour Rite of Passage.
- DJ Chuck thE oLd SouL