Broken Drum

The Broken Drum was a coffee house/jazz venue, from 1966 to 1967.

Allan Holbert of the Minneapolis Tribune described it in an article about Coffeehouses on July 3,1966:

Owner of the Broken Drum, a jazz-and-folk music coffeehouse at 427 Cedar Ave. is Mike Fagin, a teacher who works with children with hearing handicaps at Agassiz School.  The Drum is decorated with paintings and sculpture that have been loaned by student artists.  In addition to a variety of coffees, the Broken Drum offers such exotic cold drinks as a “Charlie Parker,” a “One Step Beyond,” and a “Crippled Wing.”  Whenever the Broken Drum’s folk or jazz performers aren’t on stage, customers can make selections from a juke box that includes jazz and classical music, plus a recording of a “Lone Ranger” radio show.  The Broken Drum is open until 2 am Thursday through Sunday, but the entertainment, because of a city ordinance, stops at 1 am.

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An early and frequent performer at the Broken Drum in 1966 was folklorist Maury Bernstein.

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Thanks to Alan Slacter, researcher extraordinaire, we have a photo of the Broken Drum – note broken drum in the window!