Club Riviera was a nightclub at 4460 Delmar Blvd in

St. Louis, Missouri St. Louis ( , sometimes referred to as St. Louis City, Saint Louis or STL) is an Independent city (United States), independent city in the U.S. state of Missouri. It lies near the confluence of the Mississippi River, Mississippi and the Miss ...

. It was one of the most popular African-American nightclubs in the United States in the 1940s and 1950s. It was owned by politician and civil rights activist Jordan W. Chambers from 1944 to 1962. In 1964, the venue became the Riviera Civic Center under new ownership. The building was vacant when it was destroyed by fire in 1970.

History

The New Riviera Club was opened by Alex Bayou on December 3, 1943. The opening featured performances by the Smoothies, radio stars

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, dancer Dorothy Dale, comedian Jack Herbert, and Gus Martel's orchestra. In 1944, African-American politician and civil rights activist Jordan W. Chambers purchased the Riviera nightclub located at 4460 Delmar Blvd. Chambers acquired the property through a white buyer who had an option on it. The grand reopening featured performances by the vocal group

Cats and the Fiddle The Cats and the Fiddle was an African American singing group formed in 1937 in Chicago and active until 1951, releasing more than 30 gramophone sides during the period. Their instrumentation included a bass (the "fiddle" of the title), tenor gui ...

, singers Marcella Wilson, Connie Lynwood, dancer Hortense Allen and her Riviera Chorines, and the

Jeter-Pillars Orchestra Jeter-Pillars Orchestra was an American jazz troupe, led by altoist James Jeter and tenor-saxophonist Hayes Pillars. Career Jeter and Pillars were previously members of Alphonso Trent's big band. After that outfit split in 1933 they formed th ...

on June 23, 1944. After a three-week closure for redecoration, Club Riviera reopened on December 21, 1945. Performers at the reopening included

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and his orchestra, the Phil Moore Four jazz group, comedians Allen Drew and Grace Smith, and dancer Al Guster and the Riviera Chorines. During its heyday, Club Riviera is said to have rivaled the

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. Renowned jazz entertainers such as

Nat King Cole Nathaniel Adams Coles (March 17, 1919 – February 15, 1965), known professionally as Nat King Cole, alternatively billed as Nat "King" Cole, was an American singer, jazz pianist, and actor. Cole's career as a jazz and Traditional pop, pop ...

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, and

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performed at the club. Chambers also rented the nightclub out to social clubs and organizations for events. In February 1952, a reception was held at Club Riviera in honor of entertainer

Josephine Baker Freda Josephine Baker (; June 3, 1906 – April 12, 1975), naturalized as Joséphine Baker, was an American and French dancer, singer, and actress. Her career was centered primarily in Europe, mostly in France. She was the first Black woman to s ...

who was presented the key to the city. In the early 1960s business began to decline and after Cambers died in 1962, his estate sold the building. In 1964, the building was remodeled and reopened as the Riviera Civic Center. A fire destroyed the vacant building on December 7, 1970. Authorities suspect it was an act of

arson Arson is the act of willfully and deliberately setting fire to or charring property. Although the act of arson typically involves buildings, the term can also refer to the intentional burning of other things, such as motor vehicles, watercr ...

because the windows and doors of the vacant building were boarded up after a fire the previous month. The venue subject of a play, ''Live at the Club Riviera'', at The Grandel in St. Louis.

Notable performers

Notable performers who performed at Club Riviera include: *

Valaida Snow Valaida Snow (June 2, 1904. Other presumed birth years are 1900, 1901, 1903, 1905, and 1907 – May 30, 1956) was an American jazz musician and entertainer who performed internationally. She was also known as "Little Louis" and "Queen of the Tru ...

King Cole Trio Nathaniel Adams Coles (March 17, 1919 – February 15, 1965), known professionally as Nat King Cole, alternatively billed as Nat "King" Cole, was an American singer, jazz pianist, and actor. Cole's career as a jazz and Traditional pop, pop ...

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Luis Russell Luis Carl Russell (August 5, 1902 – December 11, 1963) was a pioneering Panamanian jazz pianist, orchestra leader, composer, and arranger. Career Luis Carl Russell was born on Careening Cay, near Bocas del Toro, Panama, in a family of African ...

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Miles Davis Miles Dewey Davis III (May 26, 1926September 28, 1991) was an American jazz trumpeter, bandleader, and composer. He is among the most influential and acclaimed figures in the history of jazz and 20th century music, 20th-century music. Davis ado ...

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Jay McShann James Columbus "Jay" McShann (January 12, 1916 – December 7, 2006) was an American jazz pianist, vocalist, composer, and bandleader. He led bands in Kansas City, Missouri, that included Charlie Parker, Bernard Anderson, Walter Brown, and B ...

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 made significant contributions to jazz music and pop ...

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Cab Calloway Cabell "Cab" Calloway III (December 25, 1907 – November 18, 1994) was an American jazz singer and bandleader. He was a regular performer at the Cotton Club in Harlem, where he became a popular vocalist of the Swing music, swing era. His niche ...

Count Basie William James "Count" Basie (; August 21, 1904 – April 26, 1984) was an American jazz pianist, organist, bandleader, and composer. In 1935, he formed the Count Basie Orchestra, and in 1936 took them to Chicago for a long engagement and the ...

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Dizzie 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 add ...

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References

{{reflist Music venues in St. Louis Music venues in Missouri Music of St. Louis Defunct jazz clubs in the United States