Village Vanguard - History

History

The Village Vanguard, a small underground club nestled in the heart of Greenwich Village, first opened its doors in 1935. Yet its history did not begin there; for years prior to 1935, the Vanguard’s proprietor, Max Gordon, strove to run a successful nightclub. His first attempt at a Village Vanguard opened in 1934 on Charles Street and Greenwich Avenue. Gordon intended for the Vanguard to be a forum for poets and artist as well as a site for musical performances. Yet, due to insufficient facilities, Gordon was refused a cabaret license from the police department and was unable to create the club that he originally envisioned. In his autobiography, Gordon writes that “I knew if I was ever to get anywhere in the nightclub business, I’d have to find another place with two johns, two exits, two hundred feet away from a church or synagogue or school, and with the rent under $100 a month.” In 1934, Gordon moved his business and purchased the Golden Triangle, a speakeasy on 178 Seventh Avenue. The Golden Triangle was an apt name for the club, as the structure of the basement facility resembled that of an isosceles triangle. After purchasing the property, Gordon changed the name of the club to the Village Vanguard and that name has remained ever since.

Like its prototype on Charles Street, the Vanguard was initially dedicated to poetry readings and folk music. Frequenters of the club in the thirties and forties would hear poetry read by poets such as Maxwell Bodenheim and Harry Kemp; they would hear folk music ranging from Lead Belly’s southern U.S songs to the Duke of Iron’s Caribbean calypso. Painters would go there to have discussions regarding the Spanish Civil War. Political posters dotted the walls, enhancing the atmosphere of intensity and discourse. The club also had a rich stand-up history, with comedians like Phil Leeds performing there. Yet throughout the thirties and forties, amidst the neo-bohemian culture that flourished in the Village, jam sessions were making their presence known at the Vanguard. “The biggest reason my pals and I went to the Vanguard, though, was because there were jazz jam sessions in the afternoons on Sundays. You could go hear Lester Young, Ben Webster; all the greatest jazz musicians for fifty cents at the door, or something like that.” Even though jazz was not yet the main attraction at the Club, the Vanguard was still a haven for the then established small group swing idiom. In the 1930s and 1940s, performers of the standing of Sidney Bechet, Una Mae Carlisle, Art Hodes, and Mary Lou Williams performed at the Vanguard. The wife of Max Gordon, Lorraine Gordon, has commented on the growth of jazz at the club, stating “in time, Max began to book acts, often three a night. Many proved to be high-caliber jazzmen.” In 1940, Roy Eldridge performed at the Vanguard. His virtuosic performance coupled with his dedicated following presented the possibility that jazz sets could be at the top of the bill. As modern jazz developed in the forties, small group sets began to dominate the Vanguard scene. The maturation of jazz at the Vanguard can be partially attributed to the growing interest in and identification with the music among college students and artist in Greenwich Village. In 1940, a resident trio was formed that included the pianist Eddie Heywood, along with Zutty Singleton, and Jimmy Hamilton. Mirroring the culture in the Village,the jazz scene at the Vanguard was steadily growing.

In 1989, Max Gordon died. The day after, Lorraine Gordon closed the Vanguard. The following the day she reopened it and has continued to run the place ever since. She has not made any alterations of any kind, and kept it how it was, how people liked it. The Thad Jones–Mel Lewis Orchestra that eventually became the Vanguard Jazz Orchestra played from 1966 to 1990 on Monday nights.