The Whisky a Go Go stands strong on the west end of the once-vital Sunset Strip, home of the ghosts of its gloriously rebellious past and the promise of the up-and-coming current rockers who pay for the privilege to showcase their talents in front of their friends.

The grand opening of the Whisky was probably the softest anyone could imagine. Formerly a bank, the original intention for the space was to be a French restaurant.

One of the owners had visited Paris, saw the cool young Euros in a restaurant called Whisky a Go Go and decided to try it out in West Hollywood, California.

But after spending a lot of time and money promoting its launch, most of the furniture hadn't arrived. So they faked it. Indeed, the owners paid high school students to stand in line while music blasted from inside the empty building. A bouncer was hired to make sure no one came in and discovered the ruse.

Anyone driving past on Sunset or San Vicente for the first few nights the place was supposed to have opened thought it was a smashing success due to all the sharp dressed teens waiting patiently to get in. When the kids were finally given entrée, they danced on the open floor began a movement that would never leave the club.

Eventually go-go dancers were hired. In a corner overlooking the dance floor was an old, small, security room. The owners stripped it of its walls, but kept the bones. It looked like a cage. They then hired a woman in white boots and a short dress to DJ the music.

The Go-Go scene was born and quickly they added more cages for the women to dance in.

Finally the club was living up to its name.

Soon live musicians began streaming in, beginning with Johnny Rivers, and then Love, The Doors, The Turtles, and The Lovin' Spoonful.

Because the venue was situated in the unincorporated West Hollywood, in between the city limits of Los Angeles and Beverly Hills, the Whisky was able to do things their neighbors couldn't.

One of those things was to have Black groups perform in front of an unsegregated audience. This gave way to a jet stream of Motown acts finding a home at the Whisky in the mid-1960s, including a 10-night residency by The Temptations.

It also was the stage for stars from Ike & Tina Turner, James Brown, and Otis Redding,

By the time the ’70s rolled around, the Whisky began getting a bit gritty with Jim Morrison or Janis Joplin getting drunk in a booth and Led Zeppelin blasting "Rock and Roll," literally, from the small stage.

Near the end of the '70s punk would make its way through. The Whisky welcomed it all, and still does.

Despite being about a mile east of Beverly Hills, for decades The Whisky has been a divey, authentic, barebones club that seats just 500 - and most of them are standing.

"The Whisky was on the forefront of every musical trend including Motown, Rock 'N' Roll, Heavy Metal, Punk and New Wave," Mikeal Maglieri, son of original Rainbow owner Mario Maglieri, told the Los Angeles Independent.

So many artists recorded live albums there (or had excellent bootlegs made) that the short list of groups that titled the work Live at The Whisky is not short.

Johnny Rivers (1964), The Chambers Brothers (1965), James Brown (1966), The Doors (1966), Otis Redding (1968), Frank Zappa & The Mothers of Invention (1968), Herbie Mann (1969), Alice Cooper (1969), Marvin Gaye (1977), The Runaways (1977), Van Halen (1977), Roxy Music (1979), The Germs (1981), X (1988), Kansas (1992), Otis Redding (Vol. 2, 1993), The Misfits (1998), The 69 Eyes (2008), The Stooges (2010), Otis Redding (Complete Recordings, 2016)

All of this led to the hair metal glam days of the ’80s where groups like Mötley Crüe (who lived right up the street) and Guns N’ Roses continued the legacy of working it all out at the club and then skyrocketing to infamy.

The Crue did it in the early '80s and Guns followed in the late '80s. It came from one place: The Sunset Strip.

Some say Grunge killed the vibe of the Strip but all those Seattle bands played the Whisky and its neighbors The Roxy, the Viper Room, and (a mile away) The Troubadour.

In 1990, for example, our database has over 230 bands that played at The Whisky featuring groups like: ALL, Cheap Trick, Enuff Z'Nuff, Hole, No Doubt, Soul Asylum, Sonic Youth, Soundgarden, The Go-Gos, The Tragically Hip.

Eventually the local musicians gravitated east to Silver Lake and Echo Park in the 2000s, but there's not a rocker who spends any time in LA who hasn't spent some time on stage at the Whisky or inside its historic doors.

Even today acts big and small love to point at playing at The Whisky as a milestone, thus many huge acts either kickoff tours there, hold press conferences inside, or do a special appearance at the club to honor its history.

In 2024 over 200 bands have played at The Whisky, according to our stats. Here are some of the more notable ones: Alien Ant Farm, Bruce Dickinson, Canned Heat, Cherie Curry, Faster Pussycat, KRS-One, Lita Ford, Love, REO Speedwagon, Robby Krieger, Russel Crowe, Sebastian Bach, The Dickies, The Motels, The Untouchables, Tiffany, Train and Motley Crue.

Still independently owned and operated after all these years, The Whisky may not be the star-maker of its glorious past, but it ain't dead yet.

Next year the club hosts Black Flag, Sophie Lloyd, The Strawberry Alarm Clock, and System of a Clown (the SOD tribute band).

Tickets available on The Whisky website.