The EARL
Encyclopedia
The EARL is a popular alternative music venue in Atlanta, Georgia
Georgia (U.S. state)
Georgia is a state located in the southeastern United States. It was established in 1732, the last of the original Thirteen Colonies. The state is named after King George II of Great Britain. Georgia was the fourth state to ratify the United States Constitution, on January 2, 1788...

, located on Flat Shoals Avenue in the neighborhood of East Atlanta
East Atlanta
East Atlanta is a neighborhood of Atlanta, Georgia in the eastern portion of the city. The term "East Atlanta" is frequently misused to refer to the entire eastern portion of the city located in DeKalb County, roughly 10% of Atlanta's area annexed in 1909...

. The Earl was opened in 1999 by John Searson, a long-time Atlanta resident but a newcomer to the restaurant and live entertainment business. The restaurant and club has grown into one of the city's favorite neighborhood bars and live music venues.

History

The building at 488 Flat Shoals Avenue was being used to store mattresses when Searson signed the lease with the intention of transforming the space into a club and lounge. Much of the business was built by hand, with licensed contractors called in when needed. Even now, the interior of the building reflects Searson's bare-knuckled approach to the business. The bar is made out of a tree which fell on his property while he building the bar.
At the time, the neighborhood was rapidly gentrifying, but wasn't anywhere near as safe as it is now. The front window had two bullet holes from a scuffle in the street. Searson let a friend sleep in the back to protect the property from any local criminals. The restaurant's opening was a source of intrigue in the neighborhood, with residents pestering Searson to learn when it would be opened. The slow pace of the work prompted him to post a sign on the door saying it would be open when it was open.

Opening night came with the bar already teetering on the edge of bankruptcy. A local distributor had donated three kegs of Pabst Blue Ribbon
Pabst Blue Ribbon
Pabst Blue Ribbon is a brand of beer sold by Pabst Brewing Company, originally established in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, but now based in Los Angeles. Pabst Blue Ribbon is contract-brewed in six different breweries around the U.S...

, but Searson says one of those was consumed before the doors were even open. Yet from the beginning, the restaurant was an improbable success.

List of performers

A partial list of bands and artists that have appeared at the Earl since its opening:
  • Alejandro Escovedo
    Alejandro Escovedo
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  • American Music Club
    American Music Club
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  • ...And You Will Know Us By The Trail Of Dead
    ...And You Will Know Us by the Trail of Dead
    …And You Will Know Us by the Trail of Dead is an American alternative rock band from Austin, Texas. The chief creative members of the band are Jason Reece and Conrad Keely . The two switch between drumming, guitar and lead vocals, both on recordings and live shows...

  • Art Brut
  • Atlas Sound
    Atlas Sound
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  • Band of Horses
    Band of Horses
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  • Beach House
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  • Ben Kweller
    Ben Kweller
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  • Ben Lee
    Ben Lee
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  • Black Kids
    Black Kids
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  • Black Lips
    Black Lips
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  • Blitzen Trapper
    Blitzen Trapper
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  • Bob Mould
    Bob Mould
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  • Boris
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  • Brian Posehn
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  • Cat Power
    Cat Power
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  • Clap Your Hands Say Yeah
    Clap Your Hands Say Yeah
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  • Clinic
    Clinic (band)
    Clinic are a Liverpool based post-punk revival band noted for their often fast-paced, eclectic sound. Their sound is often distinguished by the prominent use of vintage keyboards/organs, most notably the Philips Philicorda, and peculiar off-scale chord progressions.-Formation and early...

  • Cracker
    Cracker (band)
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  • Daniel Lanois
    Daniel Lanois
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  • David Cross
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  • Dead Confederate
    Dead Confederate
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  • Death Cab for Cutie
    Death Cab for Cutie
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  • Deerhunter
  • Dr. Dog
    Dr. Dog
    Dr. Dog is a psychedelic rock band from West Grove, Pennsylvania. Its lineup currently consists of Toby Leaman , Scott McMicken , Frank McElroy , Zach Miller , and Eric Slick . Lead vocal duties are shared between Leaman and McMicken, with all members contributing harmonies...

  • Eric Bachmann
    Eric Bachmann
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  • Explosions in the Sky
    Explosions in the Sky
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  • Girls
    Girls (band)
    Girls is an indie rock band from San Francisco, California. Made up of two key members, Christopher Owens who is the main writer and Chet "JR" White who plays bass and produces. The band's lead singer, Christopher Owens, is a former member of the Children of God cult...

  • Grupo Fantasma
    Grupo Fantasma (American band)
    Grupo Fantasma is an eleven-piece, Grammy Award winning Latin funk orchestra from Austin, Texas. Formed in 2000 from the merger of two Austin acts, The Blue Noise Band and The Blimp, the band emerged with a sold out show at the former Empanada Parlour in Austin...

  • Guitar Wolf
    Guitar Wolf
    Guitar Wolf is a Japanese garage punk power trio founded in Nagasaki, Nagasaki in 1987. The band is known for songs with piercing vocals and an extremely loud style of noise-influenced punk which emphasizes heavy distortion and feedback...

  • High on Fire
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  • Holly Golightly
    Holly Golightly
    Holly Golightly is a British singer-songwriter. Her mother christened her after the protagonist in Truman Capote's Breakfast at Tiffany's. Her musical style ranges from garage rock to R&B.-Musical career:...

  • Iron & Wine
    Iron & Wine
    Samuel Beam , better known by his stage and recording name Iron & Wine, is an American singer-songwriter. He has released four studio albums, several EPs and singles, as well as a few download-only releases, which include a live album...

  • Isis
    Isis (band)
    Isis was a Los Angeles, California-based post-metal band, founded in Boston, Massachusetts, with a career spanning from 1997 to 2010...

  • Jay Reatard
    Jay Reatard
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  • Joanna Newsome
  • Jonathan Richman
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  • Langhorne Slim
    Langhorne Slim
    Langhorne Slim is an American singer-songwriter, . Scolnick attended high school at Solebury School in New Hope, Pennsylvania, and graduated from the Conservatory of Music at Purchase College, part of the SUNY system.He began to gain public notice through several years of touring with the...

  • Les Savy Fav
    Les Savy Fav
    Les Savy Fav is a New York City indie rock band. Their style is influenced by art rock and post-hardcore. The group is known for the stage presence of lead singer Tim Harrington...

  • Liars
    Liars (band)
    Liars is a three-piece band formed in 2000 consisting of Angus Andrew , Aaron Hemphill , and Julian Gross...

  • Los Campesinos
  • M83
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    M83 is a musical act by French musician Anthony Gonzalez. It is named after a spiral galaxy, Messier 83. The band was founded in 2001 by Gonzalez and former member Nicolas Fromageau in Antibes, France...

  • Magnapop
    Magnapop
    Magnapop is an alternative rock band based in Atlanta, Georgia. Formed in 1989, the band has consistently included songwriting duo Linda Hopper as vocalist and Ruthie Morris on guitar. Magnapop first achieved recognition in the Benelux countries of Belgium, the Netherlands and Luxembourg through...

  • Mary Weiss
    Mary Weiss
    Mary Weiss, born on December 28 in Queens, New York, found fame in the 1960s as the lead singer of The Shangri-Las. She then vanished from the music scene for decades, returning in 2007 to record her first solo album with Norton Records....

  • Mastodon
    Mastodon (band)
    Mastodon is an American heavy metal band from Atlanta, Georgia, formed in 1999. The band is composed of bassist/vocalist Troy Sanders, guitarist/vocalist Brent Hinds, guitarist Bill Kelliher and drummer/vocalist Brann Dailor...

  • Midlake
    Midlake
    Midlake is an American rock band from Denton, Texas. The band first gained popularity in Europe, signing to Bella Union Records and playing at festivals such as Les Inrockuptibles, Wintercase, End Of The Road Festival and South by Southwest.-History:...

  • Mike Watt
    Mike Watt
    Michael David Watt is an American bassist, singer and songwriter.He is best known for co-founding the rock bands Minutemen, dos, and Firehose; , he is also the bassist for the reunited Stooges and a member of the art rock/jazz/punk/improv group Banyan as well as many other post-Minutemen...

  • Mission of Burma
    Mission of Burma
    Mission of Burma is an American post-punk band formed in Boston, Massachusetts in 1979. The band was formed by Roger Miller , Clint Conley , Peter Prescott and Martin Swope...

  • Mono
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  • Mudhoney
    Mudhoney
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  • My Morning Jacket
    My Morning Jacket
    My Morning Jacket is an American rock band from Louisville, Kentucky.The band consists of Jim James , Tom 'Two-Tone Tommy' Blankenship , Patrick Hallahan , Carl Broemel , and Bo Koster .-History:My Morning Jacket was...

  • Neko Case
    Neko Case
    Neko Case is an American singer-songwriter, best known for her solo career and her contributions as a member of the Canadian indie rock group The New Pornographers....

  • Patton Oswalt
    Patton Oswalt
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  • Peelander-Z
    Peelander-Z
    Peelander-Z is a Japanese punk band based in New York City. They bill themselves as a "Japanese Action Comic Punk band hailing from the Z area of Planet Peelander"...

  • Polvo
    Polvo
    Polvo is an American indie noise rock band from Chapel Hill, North Carolina. The band, formed in 1990, is fronted by guitarists/vocalists Ash Bowie and Dave Brylawski. Brian Quast plays drums, and Steve Popson plays bass guitar...

  • The Rock*A*Teens
  • Ronnie Spector
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  • Shannon Wright
    Shannon Wright
    Shannon Wright is an American singer-songwriter from Atlanta, Georgia.-History:Wright moved from New York City to Chapel Hill, NC after her first band Crowsdell called it quits. While in Chapel Hill, Wright started experimenting and writing solo songs with a borrowed four-track recorder...

  • Shipping News
    Shipping News
    Shipping News is an American post-rock/post-hardcore band. The group formed in the fall of 1996 when members Jason Noble and Jeff Mueller, who were both in Rodan, collaborated to create music for the Chicago-based syndicated National Public Radio program This American Life. Kyle Crabtree was later...

  • Shonen Knife
    Shonen Knife
    Shonen Knife, written in Japanese characters as 少年ナイフ, which transliterates as Shōnen Naifu, literally "Boy Knife," is an all-female Japanese pop-punk band formed in Osaka, Japan, in 1981...

  • Silver Jews
    Silver Jews
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  • Sondre Lerche
    Sondre Lerche
    -Career:Sondre Lerche was born in Bergen, Norway. Growing up, Lerche was heavily influenced by the '80s pop that emanated from his older siblings' rooms. Compelled by a defining fascination for bands such as The Beatles, A-ha, the Beach Boys, and Prefab Sprout, Lerche began formal guitar...

  • Southern Culture on the Skids
    Southern Culture on the Skids
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  • St. Vincent
  • Tapes n' Tapes
  • Ted Leo and the Pharmacists
    Ted Leo and the Pharmacists
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  • The Avett Brothers
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  • The Brian Jonestown Massacre
    The Brian Jonestown Massacre
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  • The Detroit Cobras
    The Detroit Cobras
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  • The Dirty Projectors
  • The Dodos
    The Dodos
    The Dodos are an American indie rock band consisting of Meric Long and Logan Kroeber.- History :The Dodos began playing music together in 2005, when musician Meric Long, who had been gigging steadily in San Francisco as a solo singer-songwriter, was introduced to Logan Kroeber through a mutual...

  • The Hold Steady
    The Hold Steady
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  • The Kills
    The Kills
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  • The Meat Puppets
  • The Muffs
    The Muffs
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  • The National
    The National (band)
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  • The Postal Service
    The Postal Service
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  • The Queers
    The Queers
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  • The Reverend Horton Heat
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  • The Rosebuds
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  • The Thermals
    The Thermals
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  • The Walkmen
    The Walkmen
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  • The Wedding Present
    The Wedding Present
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  • The Whigs
    The Whigs
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  • Tokyo Police Club
    Tokyo Police Club
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  • Tortoise
    Tortoise (band)
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  • Vampire Weekend
    Vampire Weekend
    Vampire Weekend is an American indie rock band from New York City that formed in 2006 and signed to XL Recordings. The Band has four members: Ezra Koenig, Rostam Batmanglij, Chris Tomson, and Chris Baio. The band released its first album Vampire Weekend in 2008, which produced the singles "Mansard...

  • Vic Chesnutt
    Vic Chesnutt
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  • Wayne "The Train" Hancock

  • Awards

    • One of Playboy's 10 best rock clubs in the U.S.
    • One of the Wall Street Journal's best hamburgers in the U.S.
    • One of Paste Magazine's 40 best music venues in the U.S.
    • 2005 Best Place to Hear Local Music/Best Rock Club

    External links

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