The Roxy Theatre turns 50 this fall, and the iconic music club of the legendary Sunset Strip will celebrate with a full-slate of concerts, exhibits and events marking the milestone. In an LA Times online feature out today, Rock and Roll Hall of Famer and Roxy owner Lou Adler announced the return of Neil Young to The Roxy for a special performance taking place on September 20; fifty years to the day after he headlined the venue's opening night in 1973. The event will benefit The Painted Turtle and Bridge School. This milestone anniversary will also be celebrated in partnership with the GRAMMY Museum and West Hollywood Library, who have each detailed the Roxy50 activations they'll open this fall. Adler spoke to the LA Times about these events, as well as memories from The Roxy's earliest days (stories were also shared by Slash, Linda Ronstadt, Todd Rundgren, David Foster, Cheech Marin and Peter Asher), plus all that's still to come: https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/music/story/2023-07-18/the-r…
The GRAMMY Museum's exhibit, The Roxy: 50 Years On The Sunset Strip, will open September 15 with a special film screening, a rooftop reception and a Q&A with Adler and his sons Nic and Cisco. The exhibit will run through January 7, 2024, and feature rare/behind-the-scenes photographs of performers and notable regulars; plus Roxy memorabilia like the original white piano from the club’s infamous On The Rox (played by the likes of John Lennon, Elton John, Bruce Springsteen and others) and items from The Rocky Horror Show, which made its US debut at The Roxy in 1974. For more information and tickets, please go to: www.grammymuseum.org.
The West Hollywood Library exhibit will open September 12 with a reception that features Lou Adler and Nic Adler in conversation for the city's Artists and Icons series at the West Hollywood Council Chambers. The exhibit will run through May 2024 at the library, featuring photographs from the venue curated by Jasen Emmons and accompanied by written anecdotes from the key players involved. The exhibit will be free and open to the public for its duration, with an online RSVP link opening August 1 via weho.org.
The Roxy has hosted many of the biggest names in music at early stages of their careers over the past 50 years and continues to be a career defining moment for emerging talent. The Roxy has been immortalized on live albums by Bruce Springsteen, Bob Marley, The Ramones, Brian Wilson, Chuck Berry (featuring Tina Turner), Emmylou Harris, Frank Zappa, Richard Pryor, Gladys Knight, Guns N’ Roses, Buzzcocks, George Benson, Todd Rundgren and Warren Zevon. The Roxy is also where Adler launched The Rocky Horror Show in the US, to an opening night audience that included Jack Nicholson, Cher, Mick Jagger and John Lennon. In September 1973, the club was co-founded by Adler and his then partner Elmer Valentine, with music industry legends Elliot Roberts, David Geffen, Bill Graham and Peter Asher participating as investors and/or consultants.
