The Onyx Club was a jazz club located on West 52nd Street in New York City."New York: America's Jazz Capitol"
PBS. Retrieved 13 July 2013.

History

; 35 West 52nd Street (1927–1934) : The Onyx Club opened in 1927 at 35 West 52nd Street as a speakeasy under bootlegger Joe Helbock ''(né'' Joseph Jerome Helbock; 1896–1973).
52nd Street, The Street of Jazz
'' Arnold Shaw,

Da Capo Press Da Capo Press is an American publishing company with headquarters in Boston, Massachusetts. It is now an imprint of Hachette Books. History Founded in 1964 as a publisher of music books, as a division of Plenum Publishers, it had additional of ...

(1977) ; 72 West 52nd Street (1934–1937) : In February of 1934, after the end of

prohibition Prohibition is the act or practice of forbidding something by law; more particularly the term refers to the banning of the manufacture, storage (whether in barrels or in bottles), transportation, sale, possession, and consumption of alcoholi ...

, the Onyx Club became an authorized club in a new location — 72 West 52nd Street. The Onyx featured musicians including the Spirits of Rhythm and

Art Tatum Arthur Tatum Jr. (, October 13, 1909 – November 5, 1956) was an American jazz pianist who is widely regarded as one of the greatest in his field. From early in his career, Tatum's technical ability was regarded by fellow musicians as extraord ...

, who then was the regular intermission pianist. It burned down in 1935. Helbock rebuilt it and reopened it July 13, 1935, and reopened with Red McKenzie, Stuff Smith, Jonah Jones, John Kirby, Maxine Sullivan, and others. ; 62 West 52nd Street (1937–1939) : It moved to 62 West 52nd Street and closed in 1939, due partly to a fallout with a silent partner, guitarist Carl Kress. ; 57 West 52nd Street (1942–1949) : In 1942, a new Onyx Club, unrelated to the original, opened at 57 West 52nd Street and flourished as a jazz venue featuring

, Red Allen, Cozy Cole, Roy Eldridge,

Ben Webster Benjamin Francis Webster (March 27, 1909 – September 20, 1973) was an American jazz tenor saxophonist. Career Early life and career A native of Kansas City, Missouri, he studied violin, learned how to play blues on the piano from ...

Billie Holiday Billie Holiday (born Eleanora Fagan; April 7, 1915 – July 17, 1959) was an American jazz and swing music singer. Nicknamed "Lady Day" by her friend and music partner, Lester Young, Holiday had an innovative influence on jazz music and pop s ...

Charlie Parker Charles Parker Jr. (August 29, 1920 – March 12, 1955), nicknamed "Bird" or "Yardbird", was an American jazz saxophonist, band leader and composer. Parker was a highly influential soloist and leading figure in the development of bebop, a form ...

Dizzy Gillespie John Birks "Dizzy" Gillespie (; October 21, 1917 – January 6, 1993) was an American jazz trumpeter, bandleader, composer, educator and singer. He was a trumpet virtuoso and improviser, building on the virtuosic style of Roy Eldridge but a ...

, and

Sarah Vaughan Sarah Lois Vaughan (March 27, 1924 – April 3, 1990) was an American jazz singer. Nicknamed "Sassy" and " The Divine One", she won two Grammy Awards, including the Lifetime Achievement Award, and was nominated for a total of nine Grammy Award ...

. The owners included Irving Alexander (1908–1987), Jack A. Colt (1905–1970), Mac Rosen, Arthur Jarwood (1907–1998), and Chauncey Samuel Olman (1908–1965). The group, at varying degrees, was involved in the ownership of Kelly's Stable, Downbeat, Three Deuces, and the Door. Olman, an attorney for musicians and composers, was the brother of band leader Val Olman (1913–2006). The venue, under the same name, became a

strip club A strip club is a venue where strippers provide adult entertainment, predominantly in the form of striptease or other erotic or exotic dances. Strip clubs typically adopt a nightclub or bar style, and can also adopt a theatre or cabaret-style ...

in 1949.''Jazz, A–Z,'' by Peter Clayton and Peter Gammond, Guinness Superlatives (1986)

References

Jazz clubs in New York City Music venues in Manhattan 1927 establishments in New York City Restaurants established in 1927 Defunct drinking establishments in Manhattan Defunct jazz clubs in New York City Nightlife in New York City Defunct restaurants in New York City {{Manhattan-struct-stub