The Nightclub reference article from the English Wikipedia on 24-Jul-2004 (provided by Fixed Reference: snapshots of Wikipedia from wikipedia.org)

Nightclub

A nightclub (often dance club or club, particularly in the UK) is an entertainment venue which does its primary business after dark.

Nightclubs are always associated with music and have a dance floor, however small: a drinking establishment without music is a saloon or bar, a pub or a tavern. Though a nightclub may have a floor show or other entertainment unsuitable for minors, the music, dancing and socializing of a night club are secondary in a "strip joint". Music may be live or mixed by a DJ, and can range from jazz or blues to electronic music styles such as drum and bass, house, trance or techno.

Gatherings in nightclubs which primarily involve music mixed by a DJ involve dancing and in most cases alcohol. Illegal use of recreational drugs such as ecstasy is commonplace in many modern clubs featuring electronic dance music. Clubs are oftened advertised by the handing out of flyers on the street, in record shops, and at other clubs and events, they are often highly decorative and eye-catching.

Nightclubs often feature lighting and other effects: flashing lights of many colors, moving light beams and smoke machines. One common item is a disco ball: a rotating football-sized ball at the ceiling, covered with many small flat mirrors, with a light beam directed on it; the reflections form a multitude of moving light spots on the floor and on the people.

History

In the U.S, the repeal of Prohibition in February 1933 sparked the revival of nightclubs, which had gone underground, as speakeasies. In New York City, three famous midtown nightclubs from the "Golden Age" were the Stork Club, El Morocco and the Copacabana, while uptown in Harlem the Cotton Club was king.

The first rock and roll generation did not favor nightclubs, but the club returned in the 1970s as the "disco", from the French discothèque (although by the early 2000s, the term "disco" had largely fallen out of favor). Two early discos in New York were 'Le Club' and 'Regine's'.

Notable nightclubs

• Danceteria, New York
• Studio 54, New York, 1970s - 1980s, disco
• The Saint, New York, (September 1980 - 1986)
• Paradise Garage, New York, pioneer of garage music
• The Hacienda, Manchester, United Kingdom, 1982 - 1997. Home to post punk, early acid house, Madchester and electronic music
• The Limelight, was the name for two different clubs: one in London (1980s - 2003), the other in New York (November 8, 1983 - late 1990s) home to goth, industrial, noise, and techno.
• The Slimelight, London, United Kingdom, (started in the 1980s). Notable London club, its name was a reference to The Limelight and is a home to industrial, noise, techno and goth music.
• Tresor, Berlin, 1991 - current
• The Whisky A Go-Go, Los Angeles, 1964 - current
• Cream, Liverpool-based nightclub, noted in techno and trance
• Zouk, Singapore, 1991 - current

See also:

• rave party
• Gay nightclub

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