There are several rock venues around the world named First Avenue, but there's only one that Prince devoted his love for Apollonia at in Purple Rain when he screamed, "do you want him, or do you want me, 'cuz I want you."

What began as a bus depot in downtown Minneapolis in the 1930s transformed into a midwestern cultural mecca several decades later.

The beautifully curved Greyhound terminal on the corner of First Avenue and Seventh Street went through several name changes when it switched gears to host music: The Depot (1970–1972), Uncle Sam's (1972–1979), Sam's (1979–1981), and then First Avenue (1981–present).

In the 50+ years to follow, countless legendary acts have played on the stage of First Avenue and it's adjacent baby bar, 7th Street Entry.

The Allman Brothers, Pat Benetar, Canned Heat, Chubby Checker, Morris Day & The Time, John Lee Hooker, Iggy & the Stooges, B.B. King, The Kinks, The Ramones, Ike & Tina Turner, The Small Faces, Rod Stewart, U2, Frank Zappa & the Mothers of Invention are just a few of the artists who have blessed those hallowed halls.

Let's go through a few of them.

Prince

Minnesota native Prince Rogers Nelson could have played anywhere after Purple Rain skyrocketed the legend. First Ave. was so important to him that he insisted the club scenes be shot there when he made the film. And he made sure to return there several times after he made it big.

Legend has it that the title track was recorded at the venue, but that's not entirely accurate. The film's version was shot and recorded there. The tune you hear on the radio and on your streaming devices was recorded in both LA and MN studios.

Throughout his life Prince performed nine times at First Avenue. But sadly because of the worldwide popularity of the Oscar-winning movie and Grammy-winning soundtrack, the makeup of the club changed.

"Before Purple Rain, all the kids who came to First Avenue knew us, and it was just like a big, fun fashion show. The kids would dress for themselves and just try and look really cool," Prince was quoted as saying.

"Once you got your thing right, you'd stop looking at someone else. You'd be yourself, and you'd feel comfortable. When the film first came out, a lot of tourists started coming. That was kind of weird, to be in the club and get a lot of 'Oh! There he is!' It felt a little strange. I'd be in there thinking, 'Wow, this sure is different than it used to be.' "

The Replacements

If you were a local group one of your dreams was to first play at the smaller 7th Street Entry club and eventually graduate to First Ave.

One of the bands that did it and were fortunate enough to have it documented beautifully on video were the forefathers of grunge, the lovably sloppy quartet, The Replacements.

In 1981 the trailblazing Minnesota indie label Twin/Tone who would launch the careers of Soul Asylum, Hüsker Dü, and the Mats, had the bright idea to video three bands a night at 7th St. for five nights.

One they captured wonderfully was the Replacements as they had just released their album Sorry Ma, Forgot To Take Out The Trash.

How young was the band? Bassist Tommy Stinson, who would later go on to play with Guns N' roses for a decade, was just 14.

The Mats played 7th Street 21 times and First Ave 10 times.

Because there is no justice, there has not been an official release of The Replacements live at either of the venues. Rhino Records, must we help you dig through the archives?

U2

Although few remember them as playing in anywhere smaller than a baseball stadium, the Irish superstars performed at the venue not once, but twice.

In 1981, they performed at the space when it was called Uncle Sam's and the following year they were one of the first groups to play there when it started being First Avenue.

Legend has Paul Westerberg of The Replacements was at one of those U2 shows and after hearing the Irish lads' romantic "I Will Follow," he wrote the rebuttal punk anthem "Kids Don't Follow."

A few years back, two dozen boxes of First Ave's records were donated to the Minnesota Historical Society who digitized all sorts of ephemera, files, letters, and contracts.

One of the most wholesome findings was U2's modest rider:

"One clean lockable dressing room, the key of which should be available to the band's tour manager on arrival at venue. The dressing room should be heated where applicable, should be convenient to a toilet with wash basin, should have seating for 8 persons, should contain a large mirror.

"The following provisions should be provided in the dressing room for the band:
a. 1-2 doz. beers
b. 1 bottle white and 1 bottle red wine
c. Abundant orange juice and coke
d. Glasses
e. Light refreshment i.e. deli tray
f. 4 clean towels
g. Tea/coffee making facilities
h. 20 tickets to be available for the use of U2"

Soul Asylum

Even though Soul Asylum were just a few years younger, and sold far more records, they were almost always in the shadow of The Replacements in the Twin Cities and around the midwest.

It's a shame because although their aggressive styles that could also become tender were somewhat similar in the early '80s, as both bands matured they grew into their own unique voices.

While Prince was changing the world, Soul Asylum's universe was also expanding after they got to open for X at First Avenue in 1984 when they long haired rockers were called Loud Fast Rules as part of short tour headlined by the LA punk heroes.

Parents, don't read this part:

"That right there is what made Dave, me and Karl all drop out of college," guitarist Dan Murphy told the Minnesota Star Tribune in 2012.

Soul Asylum have played First Avenue 71 times. They've played 7th Street 37 times. #38 will be tonight. Tickets - if you can get them - are on the Soul Asylum website.

Upcoming shows at First Avenue include The Hold Steady, Napalm Death with The Melvins, Jet, OMD and others. Go to the First Ave website for their full calendar.

Other Venue Spotlights:
The Apollo Theater
The Fillmore in San Francisco
The Hollywood Palladium
The KIA Forum
Madison Square Garden
Massey Hall
The Metro
Nippon Budokan
O2 Arena
Red Rocks
The Royal Albert Hall
The Ryman Auditorium
Sydney's Qudos Bank Arena
The Whisky