Beloved Boston Club Great Scott Eyes Big Return to Allston
Great Scott, an Allston staple for decades, is finally returning to the local scene after a few years of closure and question marks.
The club first opened on the corner of Commonweath and Harvard Ave. in Allston in 1976. For the following 44 years, the space would play host to local and national acts, popular dance nights and more, becoming a neighborhood epicenter for music and culture.
Then came the COVID-19 pandemic. Like too many local venues, Great Scott closed in 2020 and did not reopen. Save a 2022 summer pop-up, the club has faded into memory and legend. 1222 Comm. Ave. is now a Taco Bell. I went there. It made me sad.
But now, I’m not sad anymore.
![Exterior shot of the Boston Taco Bell on Comm. Ave. in Allston](https://rock929rocks.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/93/2024/01/IMG_4452.jpg?resize=1024,768)
A Plan Comes Together
While Allston patrons have been tearfully munching chalupas on the corner of Comm. and Harvard Ave., some local players have been working behind the scenes to bring Great Scott back. In mid-2023, the club’s longtime booking manager Carl Lavin made a call.
That call was to Redefined CEO Paul Armstrong. Paul produces the Boston Music Awards, publishes the award-winning online music mag Vanyaland, and does a lot more for the Boston music scene. Armstrong hit up local real estate maven Jordan Warshaw. A plan was hatched.
![A parking meter outside Taco Bell in Allston, former home of Great Scott](https://rock929rocks.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/93/2024/01/IMG_4453.jpg?resize=769,1024)
A Triumphant Return to Allston
Says Lavin: “Since Great Scott closed four years ago, there has been such an outpouring of support for its reopening, but we live in a difficult economic climate where in the past few years more small venues have closed than have opened. This partnership with Paul and Jordan has enabled us to create an economic model that will not only allow a new Great Scott to be built, but for it to be successful for many more years.”
So what’s the plan? Two separate venues: Great Scott, with a 300 person capacity, and the 75-person capacity O’Brien’s Pub, its long time sister club. “These beloved venues will be housed in a mixed-use building, complete with additional retail space and much-needed rental housing,” the press release goes on to state.
Exciting times in Boston, with venues opening instead of closing. Visit the Great Scott website to find out more about the project’s timeline and the club’s opening date.