Cat's Cradle

Cat's Cradle marked its 50th anniversary with two weekends of celebratory shows at the end of December 2019 and beginning of January 2020, drawing capacity crowds. [www.ncarts.org] For more than half its lifespan, the Cradle has been located at 300 E. Main St. in Carrboro, its home since 1993. [www.ncarts.org] Frank Heath has been the Cradle's sole owner since 1987. [www.ncarts.org] Heath entered the picture in 1986 when David Robert sold the club to him and Richard Fox; Fox bowed out a year later, leaving Heath as sole owner. [www.ncarts.org] The very first Cat's Cradle opened in 1969 in a basement on West Rosemary Street, with room for only about two dozen people. [www.ncarts.org] Future Red Clay Ramblers collaborator Jim Wann was one of the original owners of the first Cat's Cradle, and the club's name came from Kurt Vonnegut's 1963 novel Cat's Cradle. [www.ncarts.org] In the mid-1980s the club moved to Franklin Street, occupying two locations, and survived a 1983 bankruptcy over unpaid taxes before changing ownership more than once. [www.ncarts.org] Nirvana played the Cradle several times, including on Oct. 4, 1991, ten days after the release of Nevermind; Pearl Jam also played the Cradle that year, drawing about 100 people. [www.ncarts.org] Cat's Cradle was among the first clubs in the Triangle to go smoke-free, in 2003. [www.ncarts.org] The current venue layout holds 750 people. [www.ncarts.org] Derek Powers had been Heath's de facto manager for 26 years as of 2020, and Billy Johnson, a former UNC football player who predates Heath's ownership, had 38 years of tenure at the club as of 2020, still checking IDs at the door. [www.ncarts.org] In recent years the Cradle expanded with Cat's Cradle Back Room, a smaller satellite club next door. [www.ncarts.org] The venue describes itself as the Triangle's premier live music venue for over 50 years. [catscradle.com] It is located less than a mile from the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill campus in downtown Carrboro. [catscradle.com] The venue's own account of bands it has hosted includes Nirvana, Public Enemy, John Mayer, Joan Baez, and Iggy Pop. [catscradle.com] The venue states its capacity is 750 people. [catscradle.com] Its address is 300 E Main St., Carrboro, NC 27510. [catscradle.com] As of April 2025, the article states Cat's Cradle has been the leading concert venue within UNC's vicinity for over 55 years. [www.dailytarheel.com] Cat's Cradle opened in 1969 in a basement that couldn't hold more than 30 concert-goers. [www.dailytarheel.com] The club later moved to a narrower venue that couldn't hold more than 250 people, then to a location on Franklin Street where Might As Well Bar & Grill is now located. [www.dailytarheel.com] The club moved to its current location in 1993; it has two main rooms, combined holding just under 1,000 attendees. [www.dailytarheel.com] According to the Daily Tar Heel, Frank Heath bought Cat's Cradle in 1986. [www.dailytarheel.com] Notable performances cited include Phish in 1991, Radiohead in 1995, The Smashing Pumpkins in 2000, John Mayer in 2001, and Joan Baez in 2003, as well as Nirvana's 1991 show ten days after Nevermind's release. [www.dailytarheel.com] According to Heath, Chappell Roan and Noah Kahan both played the Cradle as opening acts before becoming famous. [www.dailytarheel.com] Cat's Cradle is at 300 East Main Street in downtown Carrboro, less than a mile from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill campus. Its own page puts its run at over fifty years. [catscradle.com] The page gives the capacity as 750 and names Nirvana, Public Enemy, John Mayer, Joan Baez and Iggy Pop among the bands it has hosted. [catscradle.com] The venue programmes a second room, listed on the same page as the Cat's Cradle Back Room. [catscradle.com] The original Cat's Cradle was opened in 1969 by Marcia Wilson with two partners, Mike Cross and Larry Reynolds. It was in a basement about half a mile from the present address and held around two dozen people. [en.wikipedia.org] The club relocated and changed ownership several times and went bankrupt in 1983 over unpaid taxes. In 1987 it was sold to Frank Heath, who still owns it. After a six-month hiatus in 1993 it moved to its Main Street location. [en.wikipedia.org] A smaller club next door, the Cat's Cradle Back Room, was opened in later years. The two rooms hold 750 and 200 people. [en.wikipedia.org] In the early 1990s the club hosted regional and national alternative and grunge acts — Nirvana, Pearl Jam, Sonic Youth, The Smashing Pumpkins and Ween — and contributed to the music press calling the Chapel Hill region the "Next Seattle". [en.wikipedia.org] Ween documented their 9 December 1992 performance as the album At the Cat's Cradle, 1992. Other live albums recorded at the club include Dillon Fence's Live at the Cat's Cradle (2001), Gillian Welch's The Revelator Collection (2002) and Superchunk's The Clambakes Series Vol. 3 (2004). [en.wikipedia.org] In August 2009 The Cosmopolitans played their reunion concert at the club after a twenty-seven-year hiatus. [en.wikipedia.org] In 2020 the club nearly closed over the COVID-19 pandemic. To cover its losses an album of studio cover songs called Cover Charge was made, featuring North Carolina artists including Superchunk, Iron & Wine, The Mountain Goats, Sarah Shook and The Connells. The venue reopened. [en.wikipedia.org] Cat's Cradle, located on Main Street in Carrboro, has been the leading concert venue in the UNC area for over 55 years. [www.dailytarheel.com] The club opened in 1969 in a small basement holding fewer than 30 concert-goers, then moved through progressively larger Chapel Hill locations before settling at its current Carrboro venue in 1993. [www.dailytarheel.com] Owner Frank Heath bought Cat's Cradle in 1986, just before Chapel Hill's music scene came to be called the 'Next Seattle.' [www.dailytarheel.com] Nirvana played Cat's Cradle in 1991, ten days after the release of 'Nevermind'; other acts who played the venue include Phish (1991), Radiohead (1995), The Smashing Pumpkins (2000), John Mayer (2001) and Joan Baez (2003). [www.dailytarheel.com] Heath described what keeps the venue vital. [www.dailytarheel.com] According to Heath, Chappell Roan and Noah Kahan both played Cat's Cradle as opening acts before achieving wider fame. [www.dailytarheel.com] Cat's Cradle marked its 50th anniversary with two weekends of shows in late December 2019 and early January 2020, featuring 50 acts over six nights, including Southern Culture on the Skids, Superchunk, and reunions of bands such as The Popes and Flyin' Mice. [www.ncarts.org] The first Cat's Cradle opened in 1969 in a basement on West Rosemary Street in Chapel Hill, with room for only about two dozen people; the club's name came from Kurt Vonnegut's 1963 novel 'Cat's Cradle.' [www.ncarts.org] The club moved to its current location at 300 E. Main St. in Carrboro in 1993 after losing its last Franklin Street location to developers; owner Frank Heath initially called Carrboro 'a last resort,' saying at the time, 'Nothing against Carrboro, but the Cradle is a Chapel Hill thing.' [www.ncarts.org] New York band Sonic Youth referenced the club's scene in its 1992 song 'Chapel Hill,' with lyrics about 'the Cradle rocking.' [www.ncarts.org] Nirvana played Cat's Cradle several times, including on Oct. 4, 1991, just 10 days after 'Nevermind' was released; Pearl Jam also played the venue that year to a crowd of about 100. [www.ncarts.org] As of 2020, Derek Powers had worked as Cat's Cradle's de facto manager for 26 years, and Billy Johnson, who predates Heath's ownership, had worked the door for 38 years. [www.ncarts.org]

“It’s incredible to me, too. The 50-year shows were amazing, like catching lightning in a bottle.” [www.ncarts.org]

“You can say that Frank’s the owner, and everyone else works for him.” [www.ncarts.org]

“the Cat’s Cradle has been the Triangle’s premier live music venue for over 50 years” [catscradle.com]

“Every night at the Cradle is a different crowd, different vibe. So, for the people that work there, what keeps it fun is just having that variety and never really knowing what happens.” [www.dailytarheel.com]

“Chappell Roan played at the Cradle three years ago. Noah Kahan did the same thing. You never know what’s gonna happen on a given night.” [www.dailytarheel.com]

“the Triangle’s premier live music venue for over 50 years.” [catscradle.com]

“who last performed there just 10 days after the release of Nevermind” [en.wikipedia.org]

“Every night at the Cradle is a different crowd, different vibe. So, for the people that work there, what keeps it fun is just having that variety and never really knowing what happens.” [www.dailytarheel.com]