I remember this as if it were yesterday the year I believe was early 1984. Some friends of mine and I piled into a car and headed off to The Silver Dollar. A few of my friends had been there before but I had not.  I had been to other small town bars with live music before but never anyplace with a reputation this big.  We pulled into the dimly lit rear parking lot passing by a big U-Haul truck parked close to the back door.  No doubt that was the vehicle used to haul all the band’s gear and judging from the size of that U-Haul the band we were about to watch had a lot of gear. 

We stepped from the warmth of the car into the dark night’s chilly winter air and walked from the back parking lot towards the front of the building, hands in pockets of course, nobody wore gloves.  My anticipation grew as we rounded the corner to the front of the building and stepped onto its wood planked grand front porch, which spanned the entire front of the building and resembled something out of an old Western movie.  Unlike a porch from an old Western movie this porch was extremely well lit, the whole front of the building was flooded with light making it feel like you were on display (and maybe you were) to all the passer bys on Michigan Ave.  After my eyes adjusted to the sudden wash of bright light I could see just how close we were to the edge of the MSU campus.  The line at the door that night was short so we paid the cover and got right in.  Little did I know my life would never be the same. 

Off on the east side of the bar was a big stage flanked on both sides with PA cabinets stacked two wide and two high set right on the edges of the dance floor.   (I would in later years learn why some sound engineers did this was to keep people from sitting on them or setting their drinks on them) Remember we are in the 80’s here and PA cabinets were huge, not like today’s which pack the same punch but in a much smaller more user/roadie friendly package.  One stack of PA cabinets that night were at least 8 feet tall by 8 feet wide, that’s 64 square feet of PA fronts on each side of the stage.  The stage itself was surrounded with PAR 64 cans beaming almost every color of light imaginable and lining the back of the stage were guitar and bass amps and nestled in the middle of those amps was the drum kit, a double kick drum set with as many toms and cymbals as would fit around it.  I don’t remember the name of the band that night but I do remember being blown away by the whole experience.  There would be many more trips to the Silver Dollar Saloon for me in the future. 

I the next five or six years I made many a trip out to the Silver Dollar Saloon and saw a great deal of good rock and roll bands from all around the country.  25 cent draft beer in a plastic cup even though I preferred my beer out of a bottle, that was part of the scene.  Yeah the Silver Dollar Saloon had it’s own scene back then after all we were in the big hair/glam metal era back then and grunge was still a few years down the road so spandex, tight jeans, leather jackets, long big hair and even bright colors were in.  I got to know some of the regulars there over time and they became good friends of mine.  

There have been some big names in rock and roll that have played at the Silver Dollar Saloon over the years, ZZ Top, Aerosmith, Ted Nugent, Foghat, Bob Seger and Rush to name just a few and in the early 90’s Alice in Chains played there.  I had the privilege of seeing Drivin’ and Cryin’ at the Dollar in the early 90’s. 

Then in 1991 sometime the Silver Dollar changed formats to a country music bar and gone was hair/glam metal, rock and roll big bar scene, it had no place to go.  Sure there are many other good established bars with live music close by and they have their own scene, I have frequented them often also but to me back then I always knew what to expect at the Dollar, a good loud rock and roll band wrapped in that Silver Dollar scene of that day and served up with a 25 cent draft beer in a plastic cup.  There were several bars in the area that tried to capture that Silver Dollar rock and roll ambiance and some came close but never close enough.

They tore that Silver Dollar building down yesterday Monday, January 5^th 2009.   The first line in The Lansing State Journal’s article about it reads “The music died at the Dollar Nightclub a few year ago”.  For me I think it died there in 1991 but I was reminded of the good times had there every time I saw that landmark building.   Hats off to the Silver Dollar Saloon and thanks for all the good times had there.                                            sources:LSJ and LSJArchives


Alice in Chains at the Silver Dollar Saloon 1991