Le Tabou was a cellar club located at 33

Rue Dauphine The Rue Dauphine is a street in Saint-Germain-des-Prés in the 6th arrondissement of Paris, France. It is one of the most fashionable and expensive districts of Paris. It was named after the Dauphin, son of Henry IV of France. The Pont Neuf c ...

Saint-Germain-des-Prés Saint-Germain-des-Prés () is one of the four administrative quarters of the 6th arrondissement of Paris, France, located around the church of the former Abbey of Saint-Germain-des-Prés. Its official borders are the River Seine on the nor ...

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

. The club opened shortly after Club des Lorientais on 11 April 1947. The Club first went unnoticed, frequented by the local press distribution service, but became famous as a haunt of the

existentialists Existentialism is a family of philosophy, philosophical views and inquiry that explore the human individual's struggle to lead an Authenticity (philosophy), authentic life despite the apparent Absurdity#The Absurd, absurdity or incomprehensibili ...

Early years

Le Tabou operated with a late license, until 4am, which suited the local press distribution service. The nighthawks began to frequent the cafe in 1945, attracted by the late night opening when leaving Le Flore or Les Deux Magots. September 1946 saw the 'intellectualizing' of Le Tabou. Poets including Tousky, Camille Bryen and de Beaumont began to frequent the cafe alongside painters such as Desseau and

Wols WOLS (106.1 MHz) is a Regional Mexican radio station, owned by Norsan Media. Licensed to Waxhaw, North Carolina, the station identifies itself as “La Raza 106.1”. The station’s studios are located in Charlotte, North Carolina, and the tra ...

. The neighbourhood writers including Queneau,

Sartre Jean-Paul Charles Aymard Sartre (, ; ; 21 June 1905 – 15 April 1980) was a French philosopher, playwright, novelist, screenwriter, political activist, biographer, and literary critic, considered a leading figure in 20th-century French ph ...

, Camus and Pichette became regular patrons.

Jazz

Jazz established itself in this underground haven with a trio composed of

Boris Vian Boris Vian (; 10 March 1920 – 23 June 1959) was a French polymath who is primarily remembered for his novels. Those published under the pseudonym Vernon Sullivan were bizarre parodies of criminal fiction, highly controversial at the time of th ...

and his two brothers alongside anyone else with a desire to play. "This smoke-filled dive was to become a veritable legend on the Saint-Germain scene, providing a meeting-point for young bohemians, as well as a host of famous musicians and artists.

was a regular at Le Tabou, as were

Jean Cocteau Jean Maurice Eugène Clément Cocteau ( , ; ; 5 July 1889 11 October 1963) was a French poet, playwright, novelist, designer, film director, visual artist and critic. He was one of the foremost avant-garde artists of the 20th-c ...

and the legendary jazz trumpet-player

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 ...

. Needless to say,

Juliette Gréco Juliette Gréco (; 7 February 1927 – 23 September 2020) was a French singer and actress. Her best known songs are "Paris Canaille" (1962, originally sung by Léo Ferré), "La Javanaise" (1963, written by Serge Gainsbourg for Gréco) and "Désh ...

also made it her local haunt"

Decline

"From July to August 1947 the party was in full stride. Agitated by the noise made by the late night clients as they left, the residents of Rue Dauphine had for sometime been enthusiastically emptying their chamberpots onto the heads of the imprudent customers. This only caused the clamor of the crowd to grow louder" Manual of Saint Germain Des Pres - Boris Vian SNE Pauvert, 1997 Complaints from residents caused Le Tabou's late license to be revoked and the club was forced to close at midnight. The opening of the late night cellar club at 13 Rue Saint-Benoit coincided with Le Tabou's decline.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Tabou Former music venues in France French music history Event venues established in 1947 1947 establishments in France