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Tipitina's

{{Short description|American music venue}}

{{About|the New Orleans music venue|the Professor Longhair song|Tipitina}}

{{Use mdy dates|date=June 2022}}

{{Infobox venue

| name = Tipitina's

| image = 250px

| image_caption = Tipitina's Uptown

| nickname = Tips

| location = 501 Napoleon Ave., New Orleans, Louisiana

| coordinates =

| type = Concert Hall

| genre = R&B, Rock, Jazz

| broke_ground =

| built = 1912

| opened = January 14, 1977

| renovated =

| expanded =

| closed =

| demolished =

| owner = Galactic

| former_names =

| seating_type =

| seating_capacity = 800

| website = [http://www.tipitinas.com/ Tipitinas.com]

}}

Tipitina's is a music venue located at the corner of Napoleon Avenue and Tchoupitoulas Street in Uptown New Orleans, Louisiana, United States.

History

Local music enthusiasts opened the venue on January 14, 1977.[http://www.bestofneworleans.com/dispatch/2003-12-02/blake.html Gambit Weekly - Blake Ponchartrain - New Orleans Know-It-All] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080525191444/http://www.bestofneworleans.com/dispatch/2003-12-02/blake.html |date=2008-05-25 }} The name was inspired by a well-known song, "Tipitina", by Professor Longhair who also performed there until his death in 1980. Before adopting use of "Tipitina's" as its name, the facility was known as "The 501 Club," in reference to its street address (501 Napoleon Avenue). Tipitina's stands as one of the best-known clubs in New Orleans. The building itself was constructed in 1912, and prior to becoming Tipitina's, it served as a gambling house, gymnasium, and brothel.[http://www.tipitinas.com/info/history.asp Tipitina's History] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071228022029/http://www.tipitinas.com/info/history.asp |date=2007-12-28 }}

In the early years, it had a juice bar, restaurant, and a bar. The only remnant of the juice bar is the banana in Tipitina's logo. In the early 1980s, the studios of radio station WWOZ were located in one of the apartments upstairs from the club. During that time, WWOZ would occasionally carry a Tipitina's show live by literally lowering a microphone into the club through a hole in the floor.[http://www.wwoz.org/about.php WWOZ History] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080114000926/http://www.wwoz.org/about.php |date=2008-01-14 }} Tipitina's closed for a time during the 1984 World's Fair, when much of the local music scene was drawn to venues in and around the Fair. The building was then remodeled to remove the upstairs apartments in favor of a higher ceiling in the downstairs music venue and reopened.

In 1998, Tipitina's opened a second location on North Peters Street in the French Quarter,[http://www.tipitinas.com/Events/facilities/fquarter.html Tipitina's French Quarter] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071211122508/http://www.tipitinas.com/Events/facilities/fquarter.html |date=2007-12-11 }} which for a time was also a regular live music venue as well as open for private events and parties but is currently{{when|date=December 2019}} closed. Apart from running these venues, Tipitina's established the Tipitina's Foundation, a non-profit organization to support local music and musicians. The main focus of the Tipitina's Foundation was to provide musical instruments and uniforms to New Orleans public high school marching bands. The Foundation was especially active in supporting the musicians victimized by Hurricane Katrina.[http://www.tipitinasfoundation.org/about/mission.asp Tipitina's Foundation Mission] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071017064218/http://tipitinasfoundation.org/about/mission.asp |date=2007-10-17 }} The Tipitina's Foundation closed shortly after Tipitina's was sold in late 2018.

During the annual New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival period, Tipitina's hosts a concert series titled "Fess Jazztival", which is a play on "Jazz Festival" and Professor Longhair's nickname, "Fess".

In December 2018, Tipitina's was purchased by the members of the New Orleans–based jam band Galactic from Mary and Roland von Kurnatowski, who had owned the venue since 1997.{{cite web |title=Galactic Issues Statement On Purchase Of Tipitina's |url=https://www.jambase.com/article/galactic-purchase-tipitinas |website=JamBase |accessdate=31 March 2019 |date=3 December 2018}} Galactic formed the [https://www.tipitfoundation.org/ Tip-It Foundation], a donor advised fund supported by the Greater New Orleans Foundation, after purchasing the club. The Tip-It Foundation's mission is to support and promote the future of the Gulf South's music, culture and heritage via the Tipitina's venue and brand.

Live albums

Image:Tipitinas Apr23 2004 2.jpg

Numerous live albums have been recorded at Tipitina's, including:

See also

References

{{Reflist}}

External links

{{Commons category}}

  • [http://www.tipitinas.com/ Official site]
  • [https://www.tipitfoundation.org/ Tip-It Foundation site]

{{Coord|29.9173|-90.1009|type:landmark_region:US-LA|display=title}}

{{Music venues of Louisiana}}

{{Authority control}}

Category:Music venues in Louisiana

Category:Culture of New Orleans

Category:Jazz in Louisiana

Category:Jazz clubs in the United States

Category:Event venues established in 1977

Category:1977 establishments in Louisiana