‘Where the Peppermint Twisters Meet’: The Peppermint Lounge
‘New York Groove’ Book Excerpt
High Society discovered rock and roll at the Peppermint Lounge, 128 West 45th Street, one rainy night in 1961. Joey Dee & the Starliters were on stage, and the young, raucous crowd was doing the Twist, the dance craze popularized by Chubby Checker’s 1960 number-one hit.
“The Peppermint Lounge was in the Theater District,” Dee told the Cape May County (NJ) Herald, “and one night in October of 1961, there was a torrential downpour as the theaters were emptying, and some of the theater crowd came in to get out of the elements.
“They saw the kids and some of the sailors from the Brooklyn Navy Yard dancing, so some of these society people got up and joined them in doing the Twist. A journalist — Cholly Knickerbocker — was there and he wrote about it the next day. All the stars started coming to the Peppermint Lounge. You name it; they were there.”
Marilyn Monroe, Frank Sinatra, Judy Garland, Jackie Kennedy, John Wayne, and Greta Garbo flocked to the cramped club to dance to groups like the Ronettes, the Four Seasons, and the Isley Brothers. “I decided we had to take advantage of this notoriety,” said Dee, so he co-wrote and recorded “Peppermint Twist” on Roulette Records.
“Peppermint Twist” topped the Billboard Hot 100 chart in January 1962. The Beatles stopped in during their first US tour in February 1964. But by late 1965, the Peppermint Lounge lost its liquor license and closed.
After two gay-friendly clubs, Hollywood and G.G. Barnum’s Room followed. The Peppermint Lounge reopened in November 1980 under new management. Joan Jett, Billy Idol, Grandmaster Flash & the Furious Five, the Go-Gos, Afrika Bambaata, and the Bangles entertained Mick Jagger, David Bowie, and Yoko Ono. In 1982, the club moved downtown to 100 Fifth Avenue; it closed in 1985.
Frank Mastropolo is the author of New York Groove: An Inside Look at the Stars, Shows, and Songs That Make NYC Rock. Check out our latest release in a new mini book series, Rock and Roll Heroes: Hendrix. For more on our latest projects, visit Edgar Street Books.
