New Brunswick, New Jersey’s Court Tavern, a small rock club that has shared its stage with the likes of the Replacements, Pavement, Ween, the Flaming Lips, and the Gaslight Anthem over the years, was saved earlier this week after raising over $20,000 needed in back taxes to remain open, NJ.com reports. But here’s the kicker: they pulled it off in less than 24 hours, after posting on their Facebook and MySpace pages.
In the age of conglomerates like Live Nation, Ticketmaster, and Clear Channel, stories such as this really warm our hearts around here. Aside from basements and garages, small rock clubs—like Minneapolis’ Uptown bar, for example—are where great music is born, and they should be protected by the bands that have gone on to play bigger venues.
On that note, the owners are already in talks with a couple of Court Tavern’s famous former performers for a possible benefit show to pay back their recent emergency donors. Hey, perhaps the newly-reunited Pavement could take a break from the festival circuit to visit their old stomping grounds… I’m just sayin’.