Two legendary gigs, two years apart: July 12th was the day to be at J.C. Dobbs on South Street. Nirvana tore up the tiny club in 1989 to a crowd of just over 100 people when their debut LP Bleach was only a month old. It was their very first show in Philadelphia, and you can stream it here in all of its early grunge glory:
On the same date in 1991, Pearl Jam played at Dobbs. We don’t have the footage, but Eddie Vedder remembered it well at WMMR’s birthday concert. You get an idea of how much energy was contained in the venue in this photo shared by the band a while back – it was small, but mighty! You can also hear bootleg audio from the night here.
When you realize the weekend is finally here… #JeffAment #PearlJam #FlashbackFriday pic.twitter.com/rlFJhK30dc
— Pearl Jam (@PearlJam) February 22, 2019
A month after that show, Ten would be released, catapulting Pearl Jam into unexpected stardom and steering the sound of rock music further into grunge territory.
J.C. Dobbs hosted plenty of other acts in the 80s and 90s that are now household names; Green Day, Rage Against the Machine, and Tool are among them. The club since changed ownership numerous times and was home to Jaxon’s Local Shots for a stretch. We hear that the doors of 304 South Street may reopen in the near future, and we’ll keep you posted as that develops.
Setlists via setlist.fm:
Nirvana at J.C. Dobbs on July 12th, 1989
School
Floyd the Barber
Love Buzz (Shocking Blue cover)
Scoff
About a Girl
Spank Thru
Paper Cuts
Moustache
Big Cheese
Polly
Sifting
Blandest
Dive
Negative Creep
Blew
Pearl Jam at J.C. Dobbs on July 12th, 1991
Wash
Once
Even Flow
State of Love and Trust
Alive
Oceans
Jeremy
Why Go
Porch
Alone
Breath
— by Sara Parker