What Adelaide’s nightlife looked like in the ’80s and ’90s
REMEMBER the days of crimped hair, scrunchies and revolving dance floors? You’ll love our step back in time to view the changing faces of city nightclubs.
REMEMBER the days of flares, popped collars and dancing to The Smiths?
Or perhaps your favourite memories of a “night on the town” are all about crimped hair, scrunchies and revolving dance floors?
Reporter Stephanie Timotheou takes a step back in time to look at Adelaide’s nightclubs: How they once looked and what they are like now.
And she’s joined on stroll down memory lane by local entertainment industry stalwarts Paul Kitching and Cathy Adamek, stopping in at:
HQ Complex (which was formerly known as Heaven)
Jive (Toucan)
Dog and Duck/The Dog (Royal Admiral)
Venues in Light Square (Le Rox)
Woolshed on Hindley (Jules)
Other nightclubs that can’t go unmentioned include Cargo Club and Limbo which now belong to the University of South Australia’s City West campus, and Rio which is now Red Square.
TELL US BELOW: What are your favourite memories — and places — of a night out in Adelaide?
A step back in time
What it was: Heaven
What it is now: HQ Complex
1 North Tce, Adelaide
HEAVEN was one of the first superclubs in Australia and its peak in the mid ’90s coincided with Adelaide’s position as a leader in electronic dance music (EDM) culture and production.
Paul remembers when it was the original Heaven, before it became Heaven II, and going to gigs including Faithless, Michael Franti and YoungMC.
Now HQ is co-managed by DJ Brenden who was a DJ and producer in the early ’90s and continues to lead and mentor homegrown EDM production.
But the chapter on this site, which includes the heritage listed Newmarket Hotel, may soon come to an end — it’s up for sale.
Cathy says the talk is the medical industry will take over and bump HQ out, but she has no doubt the club will find a new home.
What it was: Toucan
What it is now: Jive
181 Hindley St, Adelaide
TOUCAN opened in the ’70s and was the nightclub that introduced Paul to alternative music.
He recalls DJs Ian and Robin playing in the DJ box, looking down on the dance floor and stage, commanding a full floor.
Live bands played every Tuesday and entry was free.
“I remember crazy acts on stage, even crazier patrons and dubious, lewd, eye-opening acts going on ... it was all part of the fun,” Paul says.
“I hold many awesome memories of going there every weekend in my finest Stuart Membrey outfits dancing to Tears for Fears, The Smiths and Human League to name a few.”
Cathy says Toucan was known for its eclectic mix of early hip-hop, new wave and house music.
“The average age range seemed to be 14 to 50 and was an incredible cross section of Adelaide society, arty creatives, underworld figures, private school kids and B-boys from Elizabeth,” she says.
Across two decades the venue was transformed into a bar, nightclub, strip joint and comedy club before Jive was born.
Now, the club has a great visual story with its ’80s mural facade that features a girl dressed like a Toucan Tou regular.
The club and live music venue features a chilled out lounge vibe where DJ Craig spins indie and ’60s tunes late into the night.
And as of this week, Jive also operates as a record store by day.
Owner Tam Eoakes says ’80s lovers will find everything from vinyl records, CDs and T-shirts, to books, vintage turntables and speakers.
What it was: Royal Admiral
What it is now: Dog and Duck/The Dog
125 Hindley St, Adelaide
THE Royal Admiral opened in 1838 as the Commercial Hotel.
Cathy says it had a cool, underground vibe in the ’80s, playing the best new music and supporting local rock and garage bands such as Screaming Believers and Exploding White Mice who were big on the national music circuit at the time.
It was run by entrepreneur Tony Kellie, whose nephew James was responsible for some of the first and edgiest acid house clubs in pop-up venues around town.
Dog and Duck — or The Dog — is now in its place, where it’s a pub by day and club by night.
The venue shut its doors in February, blaming the State Government’s 3am lockout law, but relaunched as The Dog on July 3 after regaining its licence to open until 6am.
Every Saturday there are three rooms dedicated to three different music genres — ’90s and R & B, dance, and trap (subgenre of music with influences from hip hop, dubstep, rap and trance).
What it was: Le Rox
What it is now: Various venues within Light Square House
9 Light Square, Adelaide
PAUL says Le Rox was the club to be seen at in the late ’80s.
“People would be dancing in the main room on the floor — or on the stage — under the guidance of the excellent selections of DJ George Vagas,” he adds.
“This was the original Le Rox before it turned ravey, full of alternative dance music from the likes of New Order, The Cure and FunBoy3.”
The club, run by Ron Anderson, was full of mohawks, bandannas and soon after, acid house music.
He recalls watching Ice T perform, after the artist had strolled into Youthworks earlier in the day and bought a leather jacket from our now Lord Mayor Martin Haese.
Cathy says Le Rox became known as the “techno centre” of Australia, with many comparisons between The Haçienda, which was a late ’80s/early ’90s nightclub in Manchester.
The precinct has changed drastically over the years and was once the much-loved Night Train.
Now, Light Square House is home to a range of businesses including The Underground on Light Square and Nove on Luce Espresso Bar.
What it was: Jules
What it is now: Woolshed on Hindley
94-100 Hindley St, Adelaide
JULES was at the forefront of disco in the ’70s and ’80s.
It featured a revolving dance floor for the groovers, and a coffee bar and video games for those who didn’t want to bust a move.
People sported platforms and flared jeans and often stumbled out when Jules closed its doors at the crack of dawn.
Woolshed on Hindley has now taken over the site and is a hotspot for the new breed of club-goers.
With its country-like decor, the pub/club — known as ‘The Shed’ to most — is not only a party destination from Wednesday to Saturday, but people can dine in or host their next function.
It also features a mechanical bull, imported from England.
A fun fact
MARS Bar on Gouger St is one of Adelaide’s oldest nightclubs and is still open after 39 years.
The city’s only gay and lesbian club opened in 1976 and has traded under a range of names including The Cactus Patch and Park Avenue at Chix Restaurant.