The Bitter End


The Bitter End is a 230-person capacity nightclub, coffeehouse and folk music venue in New York City's Greenwich Village. It opened in 1961 at 147 Bleecker Street under the auspices of owner Fred Weintraub. The club changed its name to The Other End in June 1975. However, after a few years the owners changed the club's name back to the more recognizable The Bitter End. It remains open under new ownership.

History

An earlier club, The Cock and Bull, operated on the same premises with the same format, in the late 1950s. The poet and comedian Hugh Romney read there.
The Bitter End was originally a coffeeshop. According to The New York Times, "The Bitter End, which opened in 1961, considers itself to be New York’s oldest rock club and built a legendary reputation after showcasing young performers like Joni Mitchell and James Taylor and comedians like Woody Allen and Billy Crystal." At the club, Bob Dylan played pool, watched performances, and occasionally performed circa 1961.
During the early 1960s, the club hosted folk music "hootenannies" every Tuesday night, featuring many performers who have since become legendary. During its heyday The Bitter End showcased a wide range of talented and legendary musicians, comedians, and theatrical performers.
In 1968 Paul Colby, who began his career as a song plugger for Benny Goodman’s publishing company, and went on to work for Frank Sinatra, Duke Ellington, and Guy Lombardo, became the manager and booking agent at The Bitter End, and in 1974 he purchased it. He purchased it about a decade after he began managing the club. Owner Paul Colby died in 2014. He had two partners in the club, Paul Rizzo and Ken Gorka. A tribute concert was held for Colby after his death.
According to Colby, James Taylor bombed when he played the club in 1969, and Neil Young also bombed at the club. In the mid 1970s, the club became known as the birthplace of Bob Dylan's Rolling Thunder Revue, which featured such names as Joni Mitchell, Roger McGuinn, Ramblin' Jack Elliot, Joan Baez, T-Bone Burnett, Ronee Blakely, Mick Ronson, and many other guest stars.
The band Cross Country recorded a 1973 hit in the club.
The Bitter End was granted landmark status by the city of New York in 1992. Also in 1992, the venue's landlord tried to evict the bar, with the venue saved by benefit performances by Peter, Paul, and Mary, Kris Kristofferson, George Carlin and others.
Co-owner and booking agent Kenny Gorka died in 2015. Gorka was an original member of New Jersey band The Critters.
Lady Gaga performed at the bar in October 2016, after previously performing as an unsigned act at the bar before the release of her debut album.

Live albums recorded

Albums by Biff Rose, Peter, Paul and Mary, Randy Newman, Curtis Mayfield, Donny Hathaway, Arlo Guthrie, Pete Seeger, Tom Paxton, Burlap to Cashmere, The Isley Brothers and Tommy James & the Shondells, Lou Christie, The Chad Mitchell Trio among others, have been recorded live at the Bitter End. Bill Cosby's first album, Bill Cosby Is a Very Funny Fellow...Right! was recorded there. New York based comedian Chris Rush had his second album, Beaming In, recorded there.

Comedians

These comedians appeared at The Bitter End early in their careers.