Greenwich Village clubs and nightlife: Jazz and comedy venues

Claustrophobes, beware: It gets crowded at this iconic MacDougal Street venue, especially on weekends, thanks to the immense popularity of the Greenwich Village standby.  Founded in 1981 by Bill Grundfest, the legendary spot still sees comedy big wigs from Chris Rock to Amy Schumer to Jerry Seinfeld regularly dropping by for a surprise set and on any given night, you can expect to see other local greats whose acts are more X-rated than at other clubs (and who will distract you from your bachelorette-partying neighbors). The club's strict no-phone policy enforces that extra-intimate vibe and also keeps all of those punchlines feeling fresh and unexpected. 

Bob Dylan cut his teeth in this joint, which has proudly championed the singer-songwriter since 1961. (Though Younger patrons might come to gawk at the place where Stefani "Lady Gaga" Germanotta got her start.) Dylan aspirants as well as the occasional folk or country-rock star appear here, including Ramblin’ Jack Elliott. It ain’t the Mamas and the Papas, Joni or Joan, but you still get to check out who’s folking whom.

Since 2005, the prolific composer and improviser John Zorn has operated his nonprofit venue, The Stone, with one-of-a-kind curated lineups and a no-beverages-or-merch policy out of an East Village storefront. That space shuttered in March 2018, but the music keeps going at its new home: the New School’s Glass Box Theatre. Expect the same adventurous music organized by world-class curators (Sonic Youth rocker Thurston Moore and jazz-guitar wiz Bill Frisell are among the names penciled in for residencies).

Situated in the basement of the long-gone Village Gate—a legendary performance space that hosted everyone from Miles Davis to Jimi Hendrix—Le Poisson Rouge was opened in 2008 by a group of young music enthusiasts with ties to both the classical and indie-rock worlds. With a top-notch sound system and modular stage that can be set up for in-the-round performances, LPR sounds great whatever the genre is.