In 1963, Toronto was a bustling jazz center akin to New York, Chicago or Los Angeles. The city's jazz establishments began to flourish in 1946, after Ontario's Liquor Licensing Board changed its dining lounge rules to permit live venues to sell alcohol. Toronto quickly became a destination for Canadian jazz musicians and for touring American artists. Toronto clubs ranged from the posh Imperial Room at the Royal York Hotel to the House of Hambourg, George’s Spaghetti House (above), the Colonial and Bourbon Street, to name just a handful.
Early in the 1960s, filmmaker Don Owen (above) made a short on the Toronto club scene. Here's Toronto Jazz (1963), with appearances by the Lenny Breau Trio, the Don Thompson Quintet and the Alf Jones Quartet...
A special thanks to Jim Samuel.
