Seattle Twist

Welcome to Part 3 of The Home Bar: Resurrection of a Mid-20th Century Domestic Icon. At the end of Part 2 we were heading into the 1990s, a decade that saw, unpredictably, a resurgence of home bars and increased popularity in the cocktail.

In retrospect it’s difficult to determine what brought back the home bar or the renewed appreciation of the cocktail (and, more importantly, a cocktail made accurately). Perhaps it was that vintage and second-hand shops became more abundant and, hence, so did the appearance of vintage home bars up for sale. Perhaps it was because of the boredom those in their 30s and 40s — those who had gone through all the pop culture shifts of the 1970s & ’80s – had with the present-day lack of sophisticated fashion and culture in society and society’s nightlife. (After all, one can only be a rebellious, angry young man or woman for so long, downing lagers and cheap wine in pubs, live music venues, and dance clubs.) Perhaps it had something to do with discovering and appreciating the music on some of those old easy listening records that our cocktail-sipping forefathers and mothers used to listen to. Or perhaps it was simply a romanticised escapism to a time when culture and, indeed, nightlife appeared more glamourous. Maybe it was all of the above. Whatever the reasons, the resurgence happened, and the scattered little pockets of people in their 30s and 40s, who loved all the adult-oriented culture of the mid-20th Century, found that they weren’t alone in their seemingly uncool and [insert disdainful word like ‘corny’, ‘kitschy’, or ‘cheesy’] appreciation and taste — that there were other like-minded people into the same things, from the West and East Coast of America and Canada to England and Germany. 

For the most part, the core of this unclassifiable appreciation was in the cocktail itself and the image one had of the cocktail culture of the 1950s, ’60s, and early ’70s – an image which one could conjure up via decade-relevant magazines, TV shows, movies, album covers and music, photos and postcards of cocktail lounges, clothing, and perhaps even nostalgic memories of one’s swingin’ parents and/or grandparents and the parties they threw, or early family dining experiences in exotic restaurant/lounge-separated venues like Trader Vic’s.

Needless to say (but I’ll say it anyway), the un-updated mid-20th Century atmosphere of existing tiki bars, old dive bars, hotel and piano bars, and Chinese restaurant lounges were becoming frequent hangouts for the hep ‘cocktail’ crowd in the early 1990s. Many of this crowd would dress up in vintage suits and cocktail dresses, smoke cigarettes and drink cocktails, and punch up easy listening and pop-jazz music (if available) on jukeboxes – much to the amusement of the old-timers and the contempt of the developing grunge, Hip-Hop, and alternative crowd. ‘Lounge’ became a frequent catch-word to describe atmosphere, clothing, and music. Semi-jazz-based groups formed, based on Rat Pack sensibilities, surf instrumentals, mid-20th Century European soundtrack music, Exotica-stylings, and Latin rhythms. 

In Providence, then Boston, forerunners of the ‘Lounge’ music scene, Combustible Edison, coined the term Cocktail Nation — a term often used amongst those ‘in the know’, until two friends and I in Seattle soon later articulated it more accurately to the public as Cocktail Culture. 

Russ Scheidelman’s non-profit Seattle-based ‘zine Organ & Bongos — A Periodical Guide To Today’s Cocktail Culture made the first of many seasonal appearances — each issue coinciding with a cocktail theme party at his home bar, The Blue Flamingo Lounge. My long-running weekly theme night, Shaken, Not Stirred — Cocktail Culture, would jump from one Seattle venue to another, garnering a larger and larger crowd of fans and curiosity seekers, until settling for two years at The Backdoor Ultra Lounge in Seattle’s Pioneer Square. 

In pockets of the U.S. and Canada, England and Germany, cocktail ‘zines, artwork, and Lounge events began popping up; as did more live bands. Professional CD compilations and re-issues of ‘Lounge’ (aka ‘Cocktail’) music and artists from the 1950s, ’60s, and early ’70s from RCA, DCC, Capitol, Sequel, Deram, and Scamp, among others, enhanced and capitalised on the growing craze – much of the music appearing for the first time ever on CD. Vintage cocktail graphics began to appear everywhere (even if non-cocktail-related), and original ‘Retro’ artists like Shag began to snowball in popularity. Folks began educating themselves on different cocktails, the history of those cocktails, and how to make them properly. And the image of the standard cocktail  (martini) glass was the Holy Grail, the social beacon behind it all.

But whatever the reason or influence, be it the increasing interest in the Lounge craze or not, it was at this time that I noticed people were acquiring or aspiring to acquire their own home bars; and others who had ‘inherited’ one, announcing and showing pride in the fact that they had moved into a house that already had a home bar built into it, and ‘You should come over for a cocktail some night’. Still others who had purchased their home bars back in the 1980s, and who were taken with the new appreciation and interest.

So taken and intrigued by all this was I, and wanting to see and sample as many of these home bars in person as I could, I began writing an on-going article called ‘Home Bar Review’, first for my own ‘zine, Cocktail Review, and then for Scheidelman’s Organ & Bongos. The article was short-lived, but I nevertheless got to see, sample, and write about a few really interesting local home bars — all of different designs and styles and stories to go with them.

Dan Ross’ Gilligan’s Island-themed home-made bar and lounge, The Castaway Lounge. Originally constructed and furnished by he and his brother Joe for a Gilligan’s Island costume party, The Castaway Lounge has since been the location of many a swingin’ soiree. (Photo taken winter 1996/97)

A stop at The Castaway Lounge on the 2006 Seattle Area Home Bar Tour. Dan prepares for the arrival of the tour bus.

To put it simply, the home bar was and is the way to create and own one’s own atmosphere and vision, and to present one’s taste and style, without the limitations and distractions of the public drinking venue. It also creates an opportunity to be more social with people.

Next week I will finish up the 1990s and venture into the new millennium. Until then…all the best and Cheers!

 -T.G.