Cain’s Ballroom, Tulsa

The building started life in 1924. Not as a ballroom or music venue though – it orginated as a garage. The internet tells me that this was ‘for Wyatt Tate Brady’s automobiles’. At first I took this to mean that Mr Tate Brady was in the motor trade but no, he was a little mpore complex than that.

I imagine that therefore, the building was to house Mr Tate Brady’s vehicles, as he was classed as a founder of Tulsa. He was a prosperous businessman, was married to a Cherokee woman and he shot himself in 1925.

But in years later, the building was sold to Madison ‘Daddy’ Cain. He started a dance academy in the building. This morphed into a dance venue and the most frequent performers there were Bob Wills and his Texas Playboys. (Don’t you love those 1930s bands’ names? It gives a clue to the type of music they played there. Probably ‘both kinds’*.)

I have to show you Bob and the band…

Now if that, and the above quote* about ‘both kinds’ doesn’t remind you of the Blues Brothers then I don’t know what will.

Now later, in 1972, a fan of Bob Wills decided to buy the almost derelict Cain’s building. Marie Mayers, the fan, was eighty-two at the time. She decided to open the place as a traditional ballroom but as you might expect, it had only a very limited success. Four years later she sold the place to a rock concert promoter.

The sign that the venue was back on the map happened in 1978 when the Sex Pistols performed there. A hole in the wall punched by Johnny Rotten when in a grumpy mood, still exists there.

Since that time, the venue has gone from strength to strength and is one of America’s most popular venues, albeit one with a limited capacity. It will hold only 1200 people.

You can see all the upcoming acts on the Cain’s Ballroom website and have a look at the FAQ section too to learn more about visiting.