Bennetts Lane Jazz Club

Bennetts Lane Jazz Club was a live jazz performance music venue in Melbourne, Australia, established by entrepreneur Michael Tortoni. It was located at the end of its namesake lane off Little Lonsdale Street from November 1992 to February 2017. New owners planned to reopen the club in new premises in Flinders Lane, and open in the 2020s, but this plan has not come to fruition as of 2023.

Tortoni opened a new jazz club called The JazzLab (which had been the name of an earlier performance space in the Bennetts Lane Club) in April 2017, located in Leslie St, Brunswick.

History

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Early days

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Entrepreneur Michael Tortoni opened the Bennetts Lane Jazz Club on 27 November 1992,[1] located at the end of its namesake lane off Little Lonsdale Street.[2]

A second performance space was added in an adjoining building to the north called The JazzLab[3] in January 2000 for the Melbourne International Jazz Festival.[4][5] The venue's opening night featured a concert by David Jones' band AtmaSphere.[6]

Change of management (2015)

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The venue closed on 15 June 2015, following the sale of the real estate assets by Tortoni for $10 million[7] to a developer intent on building an apartment complex on the site.[8] Tortoni then sold the intellectual property of the club, including the employment of long-time manager Megan Evans, to entrepreneur David Marriner in June 2015.[9]

Marriner negotiated with the developer to retain the club at its original site until they were ready to begin works. The club reopened 10 weeks after initially closing, on 27 August 2015, with a performance by Yvette Johansson, and an updated interior, air conditioning, and sound system.[10] During this time Marriner enlisted Evans' design studio, Brolly Studios, to design the new club at its future location in Flinders Lane, behind the Grand Hyatt,[11] the plans for which were approved in 2016. The studios closed to allow space for the developer to install a display suite, and Flipboard Cafe,[12] also onsite, continued to operate. Due to the club still operating, the opportunity to reconsider the design allowed Marriner and Evans to update their design. The new design was approved by the Melbourne City Council in 2019.[13]

Closure (2015)

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The club finally closed in February 2017.[14] After its closure David Marriner and his team awaited the go-ahead by the Grand Hyatt land owners to begin construction.[15] As of February 2020 there was no news of construction or projected opening dates.[16] On 13 November 2022, the owners appeared to have made the decision to put their efforts on hold for the time being.[17]

New JazzLab

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Tortoni opened a new jazz club called The JazzLab in April 2017, located in Leslie St, Brunswick.[18][19]

Significance and recognition

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The club hosted local, national, and international musicians, and was the flagship venue for the Melbourne Jazz Festival for many years. Lonely Planet called it "The World's Best Jazz Club" and it won the Best Venue Award at the Australian Jazz Awards in 2003[20] and 2004 (the award being discontinued thereafter).[21][22]

Performers

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Musicians who have performed at the club include:

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "Bennetts Lane". Bennettslane.com. Archived from the original on 3 March 2000. Retrieved 20 November 2021.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
  2. ^ "Google Maps". Google.com. Retrieved 20 November 2021.
  3. ^ "About The JazzLab". Jazzlab. 10 November 2021. Retrieved 11 November 2023.
  4. ^ "Discover the Lane"[usurped], Bennett's Lane. Retrieved 10 January 2012.
  5. ^ Claire Halliday, "Can you dig it?", The Age, 2 May 2005. Retrieved 10 January 2012.
  6. ^ a b "AtmaSphere". David Jones Drummer. 23 August 2022. Retrieved 11 November 2023.
  7. ^ Pallisco, Marc (10 July 2015). "Capital Gain: Bennetts Lane Jazz Club to move to Grand Hyatt". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 16 January 2020.
  8. ^ Robb, Kirsten. "Controversial tower given VCAT approval to replace Bennetts Lane Jazz Club". Domain. Retrieved 16 January 2020.
  9. ^ "Megan Evans: How Allan Browne saved Bennetts Lane". AustralianJazz.net. 23 September 2016. Retrieved 16 January 2020.
  10. ^ Dwyer, Michael (14 August 2015). "Bennetts Lane Jazz Club reopens with Yvette Johansson". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 16 January 2020.
  11. ^ "Council Meeting - Bennetts Lane July 2016" (PDF). Melbourne.vic.gov.au.
  12. ^ "Flipboard Cafe". ArchitectureAU. Retrieved 16 January 2020.
  13. ^ Johanson, Simon (30 July 2019). "Jazz club to reopen in upmarket Hyatt hotel building". Commercial Real Estate. Retrieved 16 January 2020.
  14. ^ Mitchell, Roger (7 April 2017). "Bennetts Lane". Ausjazz Blog. Retrieved 11 November 2023.
  15. ^ Johanson, Simon (30 July 2019). "Jazz club to reopen in upmarket Hyatt hotel building". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 20 November 2021.
  16. ^ "Where is Marriner's Jazz Club?". Cbdnews.com.au. 19 February 2020. Retrieved 20 November 2021.
  17. ^ "Bennetts Lane Decision". facebook.com. 13 November 2022. Retrieved 13 November 2022.
  18. ^ "JazzLab Club : Homepage". Jazzlab.club. Retrieved 20 November 2021.
  19. ^ Hastings, Emma (1 August 2017). "Not a lounge — 'it's a hard-core jazz club'". Herald Sun. Retrieved 20 November 2021.
  20. ^ Carolyn Webb, "Top honour for jazz veteran 'Lazy Ade'", The Age, 29 August 2003. Retrieved 10 January 2012.
  21. ^ Greg Burchall, "Giving is its own award", The Age, May 24, 2006. Retrieved 10 January 2012.
  22. ^ Andra Jackson, "Round midnight in Melbourne", The Age, 18 April 2009. Retrieved 10 January 2012.
  23. ^ Bowden, Ebony (15 June 2015). "Australian Jazz community mourns death of drummer and composer Allan Browne". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 20 November 2021.
  24. ^ Middleton, Carol (27 January 2007) "Hayley Clare Quintet", Retrieved 8 September 2022
  25. ^ Michael Dwyer, "Prodigy makes great Corea move on her stairway to jazz heaven", The Age, 5 May 2007. Retrieved 10 January 2012.
  26. ^ "Evans/Swanton/Hall". Australianmusiccentre.com.au. Retrieved 20 November 2021.
  27. ^ Dwyer, Michael (13 October 2011). "Stares, whispers and heavy metal swing". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 20 November 2021.
  28. ^ Andra Jackson, "Don't ask me, I'm the conduit", The Age, 19 April 2008. Retrieved 10 January 2012.
  29. ^ "Transient Tuesdays @ Bennetts Lane". Andreakellerpiano.com.au. Retrieved 20 November 2021.
  30. ^ "Melbourne Music Listings 28 February - 6 March 2014". The Sydney Morning Herald. 27 February 2014. Retrieved 20 November 2021.
  31. ^ "Esperanza Spalding @ Bennetts Lane". Beat.com.au. 3 June 2016. Retrieved 20 November 2021.
  32. ^ Patrick Donovan, "Prince's secret gig not-so-secret", The Age, 12 October 2003. Retrieved 10 January 2012.

37°48′32″S 144°58′3″E / 37.80889°S 144.96750°E / -37.80889; 144.96750

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