Anchor ads are not supported on this page.

4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs

Adams Avenue Theater to host music again

After 30 years as fabric store

Black Flag at Adams Avenue Theater, 4/29/83
Black Flag at Adams Avenue Theater, 4/29/83

After over three decades without music, a legendary part of San Diego’s pop music history is on track to be resurrected as a music venue.

Opened in 1930 as a movie house, by the late '70s the Adams Avenue Theatre had started hosting punk and new wave shows. During its run as a 500-capacity venue, the theater hosted acts like R.E.M., the Stray Cats, Iggy Pop, the Stranglers, and the Circle Jerks. When the Red Hot Chili Peppers played, they opened for the Cramps.

The music stopped in 1986 when the 7,600-square foot building became Discount Fabric.

The yardage store and the building at 3325 Adams Avenue (between Felton and 33rd Streets) was eventually taken over by the Yardage Town chain which kept operating it as Discount Fabric. In January Dean Goldman representing family which owns the Yardage Town chain, announced that Discount Fabric would be closing after a liquidation sale. The Adams Avenue Theater building was put on the market for just over $1 million.

Sponsored
Sponsored

And while the Discount Fabric store's everything-goes sale is in its final weeks, Dean Goldman has announced that his family has taken the building off the market, and is in negotiations to lease it to an operator who will bring it back as a music venue.

While Goldman would not disclose who that new operator is, he seemed bullish on its potential as a music showcase.

“My mom went to the theatre when it showed movies,” Goldman tells me. “We really want to clean up the building and bring it up to code.”

Goldman says his family would only serve as landlords and not be involved in the new business. It was unclear if it might be used for major name headliners like the Balboa Theater or nearby Observatory North Park (both also housed in old movie theaters). It is similar in size to the Irenic.

Normal Heights is already known as music-centric neighborhood thanks to the annual Adams Avenue Street Fair and Adams Avenue Unplugged festivals. Lestat’s West and the Ken Club are the most prominent nearby venues with music. Other smaller pubs in Normal Heights that occasionally host live music include the Rabbit Hole, Sycamore Den, Rosy O’Grady’s, the Ould Sod, and the Triple Crown Pub.

“I think it’s great if it comes back as a theater,” says Lestat’s co-owner John Husler. “My first thought is they would have to do a lot to make it earthquake-safe. And I don’t think those balconies are set up for volume [of people]. I’m excited by it.”

I saw the Hitmakers, one of the original SD punk bands, at a show there in late 1977. Doriot Lair of the Dinettes and the Cockpits was also at that show. “It’s a fabulous idea,” says Lair about the return of music to the 88-year-old theater. “It certainly gives an alternative for music outside of centralized San Diego. It might give a chance for a band like the Dinettes to play that area without playing a bar.” Lair says she doubts it would have the wild and wooly atmosphere of the old days. “I remember somebody once set off a pepper bomb. It took a second for people to figure out what it was before they fled the theater.”

Vintage flyer

Casbah co-owners Tim Mays and Harlan Schiffman used Adams Avenue Theater to host shows with GBH, The Vandals, Black Flag, The Dead Kennedys, X and The Blasters.

“Tim did a show called ‘More Core in ’84,’” recalls veteran local soundman Louis Procaccino. He recalls Schiffman getting arrested at a Social Distortion show he brought there. “They claimed we didn’t have a permit for the event,” he remembers. “It was thrown out of court. They just didn’t want shows there. It started getting harder to get permits from police and fire.”

The latest copy of the Reader

Please enjoy this clickable Reader flipbook. Linked text and ads are flash-highlighted in blue for your convenience. To enhance your viewing, please open full screen mode by clicking the icon on the far right of the black flipbook toolbar.

Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all
Previous article

Jayson Napolitano’s Scarlet Moon releases third Halloween album

Latest effort has the most local vibe
Black Flag at Adams Avenue Theater, 4/29/83
Black Flag at Adams Avenue Theater, 4/29/83

After over three decades without music, a legendary part of San Diego’s pop music history is on track to be resurrected as a music venue.

Opened in 1930 as a movie house, by the late '70s the Adams Avenue Theatre had started hosting punk and new wave shows. During its run as a 500-capacity venue, the theater hosted acts like R.E.M., the Stray Cats, Iggy Pop, the Stranglers, and the Circle Jerks. When the Red Hot Chili Peppers played, they opened for the Cramps.

The music stopped in 1986 when the 7,600-square foot building became Discount Fabric.

The yardage store and the building at 3325 Adams Avenue (between Felton and 33rd Streets) was eventually taken over by the Yardage Town chain which kept operating it as Discount Fabric. In January Dean Goldman representing family which owns the Yardage Town chain, announced that Discount Fabric would be closing after a liquidation sale. The Adams Avenue Theater building was put on the market for just over $1 million.

Sponsored
Sponsored

And while the Discount Fabric store's everything-goes sale is in its final weeks, Dean Goldman has announced that his family has taken the building off the market, and is in negotiations to lease it to an operator who will bring it back as a music venue.

While Goldman would not disclose who that new operator is, he seemed bullish on its potential as a music showcase.

“My mom went to the theatre when it showed movies,” Goldman tells me. “We really want to clean up the building and bring it up to code.”

Goldman says his family would only serve as landlords and not be involved in the new business. It was unclear if it might be used for major name headliners like the Balboa Theater or nearby Observatory North Park (both also housed in old movie theaters). It is similar in size to the Irenic.

Normal Heights is already known as music-centric neighborhood thanks to the annual Adams Avenue Street Fair and Adams Avenue Unplugged festivals. Lestat’s West and the Ken Club are the most prominent nearby venues with music. Other smaller pubs in Normal Heights that occasionally host live music include the Rabbit Hole, Sycamore Den, Rosy O’Grady’s, the Ould Sod, and the Triple Crown Pub.

“I think it’s great if it comes back as a theater,” says Lestat’s co-owner John Husler. “My first thought is they would have to do a lot to make it earthquake-safe. And I don’t think those balconies are set up for volume [of people]. I’m excited by it.”

I saw the Hitmakers, one of the original SD punk bands, at a show there in late 1977. Doriot Lair of the Dinettes and the Cockpits was also at that show. “It’s a fabulous idea,” says Lair about the return of music to the 88-year-old theater. “It certainly gives an alternative for music outside of centralized San Diego. It might give a chance for a band like the Dinettes to play that area without playing a bar.” Lair says she doubts it would have the wild and wooly atmosphere of the old days. “I remember somebody once set off a pepper bomb. It took a second for people to figure out what it was before they fled the theater.”

Vintage flyer

Casbah co-owners Tim Mays and Harlan Schiffman used Adams Avenue Theater to host shows with GBH, The Vandals, Black Flag, The Dead Kennedys, X and The Blasters.

“Tim did a show called ‘More Core in ’84,’” recalls veteran local soundman Louis Procaccino. He recalls Schiffman getting arrested at a Social Distortion show he brought there. “They claimed we didn’t have a permit for the event,” he remembers. “It was thrown out of court. They just didn’t want shows there. It started getting harder to get permits from police and fire.”

Comments
Sponsored

The latest copy of the Reader

Please enjoy this clickable Reader flipbook. Linked text and ads are flash-highlighted in blue for your convenience. To enhance your viewing, please open full screen mode by clicking the icon on the far right of the black flipbook toolbar.

Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all
Previous article

Extended family dynamics

Many of our neighbors live in the house they grew up in
Next Article

Wild Wild Wets, Todo Mundo, Creepy Creeps, Laura Cantrell, Graham Nancarrow

Rock, Latin reggae, and country music in Little Italy, Oceanside, Carlsbad, Harbor Island
Comments
Ask a Hipster — Advice you didn't know you needed Big Screen — Movie commentary Blurt — Music's inside track Booze News — San Diego spirits Classical Music — Immortal beauty Classifieds — Free and easy Cover Stories — Front-page features Drinks All Around — Bartenders' drink recipes Excerpts — Literary and spiritual excerpts Feast! — Food & drink reviews Feature Stories — Local news & stories Fishing Report — What’s getting hooked from ship and shore From the Archives — Spotlight on the past Golden Dreams — Talk of the town The Gonzo Report — Making the musical scene, or at least reporting from it Letters — Our inbox Movies@Home — Local movie buffs share favorites Movie Reviews — Our critics' picks and pans Musician Interviews — Up close with local artists Neighborhood News from Stringers — Hyperlocal news News Ticker — News & politics Obermeyer — San Diego politics illustrated Outdoors — Weekly changes in flora and fauna Overheard in San Diego — Eavesdropping illustrated Poetry — The old and the new Reader Travel — Travel section built by travelers Reading — The hunt for intellectuals Roam-O-Rama — SoCal's best hiking/biking trails San Diego Beer — Inside San Diego suds SD on the QT — Almost factual news Sheep and Goats — Places of worship Special Issues — The best of Street Style — San Diego streets have style Surf Diego — Real stories from those braving the waves Theater — On stage in San Diego this week Tin Fork — Silver spoon alternative Under the Radar — Matt Potter's undercover work Unforgettable — Long-ago San Diego Unreal Estate — San Diego's priciest pads Your Week — Daily event picks
4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs
Close

Anchor ads are not supported on this page.

This Week’s Reader This Week’s Reader