The Loft (New York City)

Last updated
The Loft
The Loft (New York City)
Address654 Broadway
Manhattan, New York City
Coordinates 40°43′36″N73°59′53″W / 40.7268034°N 73.9981011°W / 40.7268034; -73.9981011
Owner David Mancuso
Type Private Club
Opened1970

The Loft was the location for the first underground dance party (called "Love Saves the Day") organized by David Mancuso, on February 14, 1970, in New York City. Since then, the term "The Loft" has come to represent Mancuso's own version of a non-commercial party where no alcohol, food, nor beverages are sold. Mancuso's vision of a private party is similar to, and inspired by, the rent party and house party. Unlike conventional nightclubs or discotheques, attendance is by invitation only. In the late 1970s, Mancuso abandoned the generally accepted and expected practice of beatmatching, preferring to play songs in their entirety on his renowned audiophile-quality sound system. The Village Voice wrote that Mancuso's sound system was the best in New York and even described him as "more of a party engineer than a DJ." [1] Mancuso required that the music played had to be soulful, rhythmic, and impart words of hope, redemption, or pride. [2]

Contents

History

When Mancuso threw his first informal house parties from 1965-70, [3] the gay community (who comprised much of The Loft's attendee roster) was often harassed in the gay bars and dance clubs, so many gay men carried bail money with them to gay bars. But at The Loft and many other early, private discotheques, they could dance together without fear of police action thanks to Mancuso's underground, yet legal, business model. Vince Aletti described it "like going to party, completely mixed, racially and sexually, where there wasn't any sense of someone being more important than anyone else". Alex Rosner, Mancuso's primary sound system engineer, reiterated this: "It was probably about sixty percent black and seventy percent gay...There was a mix of sexual orientation, there was a mix of races, mix of economic groups. A real mix, where the common denominator was music." [4]

Location changes

647 Broadway

The initial Loft was Mancuso's own home at 645-647 Broadway. [1] [5] [6] The first "Love Saves the Day" party was held at the Broadway location and was attended by around 100 people. After the first event, parties were unofficially established on a weekly basis and ran from midnight until six in the morning. [7] Admission was $2.00 to pay for rent and overhead, but attendees were never turned away for lack of funds. [7] [8] Organic dishes, breads, and freshly-squeezed fruit juice were freely available for attendees. Nothing was sold on the premises to keep the parties commerce-free operations. [7]

Mancuso and Rosner experimented with the sound system to optimize the listeners' experience within the 1,850-square-foot space. The sound system consisted of a McIntosh amplifier, an AR amplifier, two Cornwall Klipschorn loudspeakers, and Vega bass bottom speakers. [3] [7] Eventually, Mancuso and Rosner installed an array of JBL tweeters above the dance floor to make it sound as though music moved outwards from the dance floor itself. Mancuso avoided using pitch control on the turntables and preferred playing records from start to finish without mixing. [7] [9] He also controlled the lighting and AC of the space to match the music. [7]

The Loft experienced its first police raid in 1972 and Mancuso was initially arrested for operating an unlicensed cabaret. Mancuso successfully disputed the charges as there was no alcohol for sale and events were not open to the public. After the raid, Mancuso was more cautious about police presence and set up a warning system using lights. When the lights turned red, the party paused; everyone turned down the music, turned up the lights, and sat on the floor. [7]

99 Prince Street

The collapse of a neighboring hotel in 1974 forced a temporary closure and move [1] to 99 Prince Street in Soho, in 1975. [10] Vociferous community opposition ensued, [1] and the party lay dormant for a year during the New York City Department of Consumer Affairs' longest administrative trial to date, based on their insistence that Mancuso required a "cabaret license". The department decreed in 1975 that he was free to host his parties as long as there were no sales of food or beverages. This decision set a new precedent that benefited the Paradise Garage and other private "clubs" in the process. The period also saw Mancuso's space serve as headquarters for the New York Record Pool, the very first record pool, which he founded with Vince Aletti and Steve D'Acquisto. [10]

Alphabet City and Beyond

In 1984, [1] after Mancuso's 99 Prince Street owner put the building up for sale, Mancuso purchased a building on 3rd Street, between Avenue B and Avenue C in Alphabet City. [1] Not yet benefiting from gentrification, the new crime-and-drug ridden setting resulted in his losing "65 percent of [his] attendance". [1] Around this time, DJ and promoter impresario Richard Vasquez began his influential and exclusive weekly parties, named "The Choice", at this location along with Joey Llanos. The party kept the spirit of the early Mancuso parties while embracing the early days of Deep House Music.

Subsequent Loft parties were scattered around the East Village. In 1994, Mancuso relocated to 81 Avenue A [11] and subsequently downsized further to another location at 225 Avenue B. [11] [12] Loft parties were also held at 242 East 14th Street and the Marc Ballroom in Union Square. [12] Mancuso continued to throw three to five Loft parties per year at rented locations in the East Village while organizing general admission Loft-style events in locales as disparate as London and Tokyo. [13]

Music

At the Loft, David Mancuso's eclectic musical palette introduced club-goers to an array of tracks that became iconic within the disco era. One notable example is Babe Ruth's "The Mexican," a rock-fusion piece that may not have fit the traditional disco mold but found a home at the Loft, eventually gaining recognition in the wider music scene, especially within the emerging hip-hop culture. [14]

Mancuso's penchant for instrumentals and percussive tracks opened doors for songs like Olatunji's heavy Afro-funk compositions to permeate the Loft's dancefloor. [14] The experimental nature of the Loft allowed for sonic experiments, where the combination of specific sound systems, such as Klipschorn speakers and JBL bullet tweeter arrays, created a unique and immersive auditory experience.

Mancuso's commitment to positive and meaningful lyrics, combined with soulful and rhythmic qualities, was evident in his song selections. Tracks like Fred Wesley's "House Party," with its festive and celebratory energy, translated the Loft's emphasis on joy and communal spirit. [14] Mancuso's approach to telling a story through music, allowing songs to play in their entirety without mixing, set a precedent for DJs to focus on creating a narrative on the dancefloor.

The Loft's impact on popularizing certain records, like Barrabas' "Wild Safari" and "Woman," and its role in the exposure of Manu Dibango's "Soul Makossa," demonstrated Mancuso's ability to seek new music from foreign communities, influence trends and shape the musical landscape of the disco era. [14]

Legacy

Many of the disco era's leading disc jockeys, including Larry Levan, [10] Nicky Siano, [1] and Frankie Knuckles [10] were early Loft attendees. Their venues (the Paradise Garage, [15] The Gallery, [15] Chicago's Warehouse, [15] and the exclusively gay The Saint) were influenced by The Loft. Nonetheless, Mancuso maintained his niche, breaking such unconventional records as Manu Dibango's "Soul Makossa" [1] and the Steve Miller Band's "Macho City" at his weekly events. The frequent selection of "Soul Makossa" at the Loft helped it reach the national Billboard chart two years after its release. [16]

Mancuso continued to spread the influence of the Loft overseas, founding the Lucky Cloud Sound System in London and Last Note parties in Italy with his protégé Colleen Murphy, and provided inspiration to the audiophile club Precious Hall in Sapporo, Japan. [12]

David Mancuso passed away at his home on November 16, 2016; he was 72. [9] Many mourned Mancuso's death, remembering him for his contributions to dance culture. [17]

Compilation albums

Two volumes of David Mancuso presents The Loft were released on the independent label Nuphonic Records in 1999 and 2000. These were compiled by Mancuso and Colleen ‘Cosmo’ Murphy and featured a selection of music played at The Loft parties. [18]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bass (sound)</span> Tone of low frequency or range

Bass ( BAYSS) (also called bottom end) describes tones of low (also called "deep") frequency, pitch and range from 16 to 250 Hz (C0 to middle C4) and bass instruments that produce tones in the low-pitched range C2-C4. They belong to different families of instruments and can cover a wide range of musical roles. Since producing low pitches usually requires a long air column or string, and for stringed instruments, a large hollow body, the string and wind bass instruments are usually the largest instruments in their families or instrument classes.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Disco</span> Music genre

Disco is a genre of dance music and a subculture that emerged in the 1970s from the United States' urban nightlife scene. Its sound is typified by four-on-the-floor beats, syncopated basslines, string sections, brass and horns, electric piano, synthesizers, and electric rhythm guitars.

Chicago house refers to house music produced during the mid to late 1980s within Chicago. The term is generally used to refer to the original house music DJs and producers from the area, such as Ron Hardy and Phuture.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Larry Levan</span> American DJ from New York City (1954–1992)

Lawrence Philpot, known as Larry Levan, was an American DJ best known for his decade-long residency at the New York City night club Paradise Garage, which has been described as the prototype of the modern dance club. He developed a cult following who referred to his sets as "Saturday Mass". Influential post-disco DJ François Kevorkian credits Levan with introducing the dub aesthetic into dance music. Along with Kevorkian, Levan experimented with drum machines and synthesizers in his productions and live sets, ushering in an electronic, post-disco sound that presaged the ascendence of house music. He DJ'd at Club Zanzibar in the 1980s as well, home to the Jersey Sound brand of deep house or garage house.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ron Hardy</span> American musician

Ron Hardy was an American, Chicago, Illinois-based DJ and record producer of early house music. He is well known for playing records at the Muzic Box, a Chicago house music club. Decades after his death, he is recognized for his innovative edits and mixes of disco, soul music, funk and early house music.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Paradise Garage</span> Former discotheque in New York City

Paradise Garage, also known as "the Garage" or the "Gay-rage", was a New York City discotheque notable in the history of dance and pop music, as well as LGBT and nightclub cultures. The 10,000 square feet (930 m2) club was founded by sole proprietor Michael Brody, and occupied a building formerly located at 84 King Street in the SoHo neighborhood. It operated from 1977 to 1987 and featured resident DJ Larry Levan.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Frankie Knuckles</span> American DJ and record producer (1955–2014)

Francis Warren Nicholls Jr., known professionally as Frankie Knuckles, was an American DJ, record producer, and remixer. He played an important role in developing and popularizing house music, a genre of music that began in Chicago during the early 1980s and subsequently spread worldwide. In 1997, Knuckles won the Grammy Award for Remixer of the Year, Non-Classical. Due to his importance in the development of the genre, Knuckles was often called "The Godfather of House Music".

In popular music, a break is an instrumental or percussion section during a song derived from or related to stop-time – being a "break" from the main parts of the song or piece. A break is usually interpolated between sections of a song, to provide a sense of anticipation, signal the start of a new section, or create variety in the arrangement.

David Paul Mancuso was an American disc jockey who created the popular "by invitation only" parties in New York City, which later became known as "The Loft". The first party, called "Love Saves The Day", was in 1970.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Acid Tracks</span> 1987 single by Phuture

"Acid Tracks" is a 1987 acid house song by Phuture produced by Marshall Jefferson and released by Trax Records. Phuture consisted of Nathan Pierre Jones, better known as DJ Pierre, Earl Smith Jr, and Herbert Jackson. Jones had been interested in developing dance music and became superficially interested in house music after Spanky had taken him to see DJ Ron Hardy perform in Chicago. The trio began developing tracks without finding anything that they felt was satisfying; Jones had heard a track made on the unpopular Roland TB-303 bass machine, which led the group to purchase one.

The Warehouse is a historic building located in Chicago, Illinois in the United States, best known for the same-named nightclub catering to the gay and alternative communities that was established in 1977 under the direction of Robert "Robbie" Williams. It was Robbie Williams who on promotional posters would describe events at the Warehouse as 'house' parties or 'house' music. As such, the Warehouse is best known as the namesake for, and one of the origins of, house music. The Warehouse is specifically associated with Chicago house, and was the genre's birthplace under its first musical director, DJ Frankie Knuckles.

A subharmonic synthesizer is a device or system that generates subharmonics of an input signal. The nth subharmonic of a signal of fundamental frequency F is a signal with frequency F/n. This differs from ordinary harmonics, where the nth harmonic of fundamental frequency F is a signal of frequency nF.

Nicky Siano is a former resident DJ at Studio 54.

The Gallery was a disco in SoHo, Manhattan which was opened in February 1972 by disc jockey Nicky Siano and his older brother Joe Siano. The first location of The Gallery, located on 132 West 22nd Street, closed in July 1974. It reopened in November 1974 at 172 Mercer and Houston Streets and closed in October 1977. Famed DJs Larry Levan and Frankie Knuckles both worked at the club, but not at the DJ booth. Grace Jones and Loleatta Holloway both made their debut performances at The Gallery.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nightclub</span> Entertainment venue at nighttime

A nightclub is a club that is open at night, usually for drinking, dancing and other entertainment. Nightclubs often have a bar and discothèque with a dance floor, laser lighting displays, and a stage for live music or a disc jockey (DJ) who mixes recorded music. Nightclubs tend to be smaller than live music venues like theatres and stadiums, with few or no seats for customers.

DJhistory.com is a website dedicated to the history of dance music and DJing, and also an online record label and book publishing company. It aims to encourage interest in obscure, overlooked and collectable dance music, by creating an archive of reference material on the subject and by licensing and reissuing rare and exceptional music for download.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Colleen 'Cosmo' Murphy</span> American DJ

Colleen 'Cosmo' Murphy, is an experienced musical selector, DJ, radio host and curator, audiophile and founder of the album listening event and content hub Classic Album Sundays. She is often a spokesperson about vinyl records.

Onionz is an American music producer, DJ, and musician. The native New Yorker is known for his many contributions to Electronic Music, and more specifically, his unique signature DJing style of blending House music and Techno sounds together. In 2002, he was nominated for Billboard Magazine’s Beat Box DanceStar USA Awards in the Best Breakthrough DJ category. Onionz' earliest musical influence was his Brother and father, Victor Venegas, who played upright bass alongside important Latin and Jazz musicians such as Mongo Santamaría, Celia Cruz, Nina Simone, and Harlem River Drive Band. By the age of ten, Onionz was an accomplished percussionist on his own, making regular stage appearances together with his father and other notable musicians including Candido, David Amram, Steve Berrios, and Paquito D'Rivera.

Richard Long (1933–1986) was an American sound designer. He is known as the preeminent sound designer of the disco era, having installed systems at clubs including Paradise Garage, Dorian Gray, Studio 54, City Hall, and Max's Kansas City.

Alex Rosner is an American sound engineer and designer. He is known as the sound designer for the club The Loft and as the inventor of the DJ mixer.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Tim Lawrence Articles Archived 2005-07-30 at the Wayback Machine
  2. ↑ Brewster, Bill; Broughton, Frank (1999). Last Night a DJ Saved My Life. London: Headline Publishing Group. p. 123.
  3. 1 2 McDermott, Matt (14 November 2016). "David Mancuso, founder of The Loft, dies age 72". Resident Advisor. Retrieved 13 December 2022.
  4. ↑ Brewster, Bill; Broughton, Frank (1999). Last Night a DJ Saved My Life. London: Headline Publishing Group. pp. 120–122.
  5. ↑ NYT May 21, 1974 "Weekly Parties for 500 Chill Tenants"
  6. ↑ NYT June 2, 1974 “The Loft's Owner Is Told To Vacate”
  7. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Lawrence, Tim (2003). Love Saves the Day: A History of American Dance Music Culture, 1970-1979. Durham, NC: Duke University Press. ISBN   0822331985.
  8. ↑ Geffen, Sasha (2020). Glitter Up the Dark. Austin, TX: University of Texas Press. ISBN   978-1477318782.
  9. 1 2 Grimes, William (2016-11-19). "David Mancuso, Whose New York Loft Was a Hub of '70s Night Life, Dies at 72". The New York Times. ISSN   0362-4331 . Retrieved 2022-12-06.
  10. 1 2 3 4 Bidder, Sean (June 1999). House: the Rough Guide. London: Rough Guides Ltd. pp. 213–214.
  11. 1 2 Tim Lawrence Articles Archived 2005-07-30 at the Wayback Machine
  12. 1 2 3 Orlov, Piotr (19 February 2020). "Still Saving The Day: The Most Influential Dance Party In History Turns 50". National Public Radio. Retrieved 16 December 2022.
  13. ↑ Beta, Andy (19 February 2014). "A Night at the Loft, the Dance Party That Spawned All Other Dance Parties". Pitchfork. Retrieved 6 December 2022.
  14. 1 2 3 4 Brewster, Bill; Broughton, Frank (1999). Last Night a DJ Saved My Life. London: Grove Press New York. pp. 118–128.
  15. 1 2 3 Acland, Charles R (2007). Residual Media. University of Minnesota Press. p. 106.
  16. ↑ Murphy, Colleen (16 November 2016). "David Mancuso Taught Us That Being Selfless Is The Ultimate Act of Rebellion". Vice. Retrieved 16 December 2022.
  17. ↑ "Tributes Pour in With the Passing of David Mancuso, Founder of The Loft, at Age 72 | Insomniac" . Retrieved 2022-12-06.
  18. ↑ "The Loft (2)". Discogs. Retrieved 2022-09-26.

Official Websites:

Other Websites and Articles:

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.