Papa Joe’s Northern A-Go-Go
This brick building at 325 West Broadway in Minneapolis was built in 1903.
NORTHERN BAR & CAFE
The Northern was a ’30s night club that had some unusual features. The bar had beautiful fish and live alligators in their natural haunts. View Harvey Kruse’s famous collections of northern Minnesota scenes. What could that mean?
Minneapolis Tribune, November 9, 1938
The Northern was advertised for sale in December 1941.
In June 1948 the owner was Stanley Daszkiewicz.
PAPA JOE’S
Sherwin Linton said, “I played Papa Joe’s Northern Bar in 1959 when we were the Fender Benders. We had been playing the 311 Bar next door on Broadway and had the placed packed, so Papa Joe hired us. The 311 was just a 3.2 beer tavern so the Northern was a big step Up.
Will Jones noted on March 2, 1964, that although the place was being billed as Papa Joe’s, the sign outside still said the Northern Bar. Augie Garcia was performing there at the time. He said the bar had been featuring rock ‘n’ roll previously, but Augie was mixing in some jazz, Latin and show numbers.
Papa Joe was Joseph Daszkiewicz, who also owned the Sandpiper Inn. He was also a boxing promoter, manager, and trainer of professional and Golden Gloves boxers. He and his wife Rita had ten children. He died in 2003.
At Thanksgiving 1964, Papa Joe invited us to the Northern Supper Club.
BANDS AT PAPA JOE’S
Bruce Pedalty recalled that “the Dorados did a stint there as the house band, in the ’60s . Music lore had it that Gary Neilson had a bullet hole in his B3 from gunfire inside the club.”
Joel Geris remembered that when you walked in the back door the air conditioner would leak on the back of your neck. In the window the poster said “The Stars of Tomorrow today.” Joey Strobel and the Runaways were playing.
THE STARLINERS
Ad courtesy son Joe Daszkiewicz
In 1966 the Starliners made a live album at the club. Band member Keith Zeller tells us that the members were himself on guitar, vocals, and piano; Jack Kollodge on bass and vocals; and John Rosner on drums and vocals. Keith says the LP was recorded “Live with no over dubs!!” This extremely rare album is showing availability on Discogs.com….. for $1,200!
In October 1967, the Tributes entertained, with Go-Go girls.
Joe Scanlan: “I played at Papa Joe’s many a time in the day! My band was the Rush Hour…Ross Ingram, Chuck Edwards and myself. The Go Go girls started at 4 PM and we would begin at 8:00. Great memories. As stated above, Papa Joe was a boxing promoter. On any given night there might have been as many as three or four boxers in the club. And yes many of them drink milk!”
Speaking of boxers, Eddie Shaw says, “I played there in 1969 with Rick Odell (can’t remember all the names). I was slugged by a resentful boxer (waiting for me) the end of the night as I was walking out. Papa Joe banned him from entering the club again.”
Bill Swanson says he “was with the House Band at Papa Joe’s in early ’70s with my band Treadwood. Found friendship with one of the go-go girls. Witnessed some crazy stuff there.”
Papa Joe’s ads seem to stop in January 1972.
From then on, the name seems to have reverted to the Northern Bar.
On February 12, 1972, a policeman was shot in the back behind the Northern Bar.
A fire hit the building in March 1973; the article identified the first floor as the Northern Bar. A permit to demolish the building was pulled on March 20, 1973.
It’s now an on-ramp to I-94.