The Blue Note

On Oct. 15, 2015 I was there for a movie night and waited over 7 – 8 minutes for a beer. When the female bartender finally took my order she was very short and I thought rude. $ 5 for a can of Pabst can beer… are you serious?

Stumbled across this place traveling across the country. I fell in love right away. Killed time at the upstairs bar chatting with the bartender. Very friendly service, great atmosphere, great show, great prices. Will return no question.

Make sure you bring cash for the cover or each person will be charged a 20% service fee that is not advertized. Once inside don’t stand STAND in the wrong place or you will be told that you are in VIP and must move. Overpriced drinks in plastic cups made it truly poor. So much for the new owners making good decisions.

This is a decent small venue to see a band. I came here recently to see a childhood friend who is a Neil Diamond tribute singer and had a great time. It’s an old movie theatre, and has those old style seats in the balcony, a bar in back of the balcony, a dance floor/​pit area on the first floor with another bar. We got to go «back stage» which was kind of fun and went to the basement where the bands hang out. It’s a decent, intimate setting with adequate bathrooms and it’s in good repair. Go support your local music scene, CoMo!

The Blue Note has been a Columbia hotspot for concerts and other acts for 30 years, and I have to admit that the venue is starting to show its age. With a little bit of touch up this could easily be a ⁴⁄₅ star venue.
The Blue Note is a small, intimate theater with a seating available both downstairs and upstairs. There are two main bars, one upstairs and the other on the main floor. The stage is fairly low to the ground lending a more intimate feel with the performers, however for more popular events the area in front of the stage can get overly crowded making navigating to the bar a mess. Sound here was pretty good for a venue of its size. As far as the drinks go the prices were fair. Other than that the venue itself is a good place to enjoy your favorite band.

This is an amazing old style theater and concert venue.
There’s a floor, but I sat up in the balcony, which my increasingly aging back loved. It offered a comfy seat, good acoustics and smooth sight lines to the show below.
Now, the bar area a couple of steps down below is snug. I almost felt like a tetris piece while I snaked in and out with my drink. Beware of this and it might be a good idea to head down maybe a song or two before the opener ends its set.
So any way, lean back and enjoy the show. It’ll be a good one.

The Blue Note is a great little venue! We just saw Fitz there a few weeks ago but I frequented there throughout the good olé college years for a variety of different shows. The upstairs houses seats and there are high-​tops on the sides (I believe those are extra $$ though) but the real fun happens right in front of the stage on the «floor.» It’s such a small venue that there really isn’t a bad seat (place to stand) in the house and the acoustics were decent. I give The Blue Note major props for getting some great tours coming through and you can’t go wrong with the cute little neighborhood of downtown Columbia. It’s also pretty centrally located in the state so folks from STL or KC (where I’m from) can easily drive down for a show and back home without spending the night. There are great places in and around The Blue Note to grab a snack or dinner or even ice cream. Overall a great experience every time, The Blue Note is sure to deliver. Oh! But get there early because parking can be a major drag.

Pretty awesome venue! I love playing there and watching other bands as well. Cool atmosphere and great sound!

The Blue Note is a great Columbia venue, and it’s comparable in size and the caliber of acts to The Pageant in St. Louis and Uptown Theater in Kansas City. I have seen so many great shows at The Blue Note – the Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Conor Oberst and the Mystic Valley Band, Blonde Redhead, The Decemberists, Modest Mouse, Julian Casablancas – and each of them has had a great atmosphere in a great space. The Blue Note has a nice bar and a small number of tables in front of the standing area if you’re into sitting. One other cool thing is that you can buy Ticketmaster tickets for other venues at the Blue Note’s box office without the crazy charges, which is nice if you’re going to a show in a different city. Even though Mojo’s is my favorite Columbia venue, the Blue Note attracts good acts and always puts on a good show.

This is the best music venue in Columbia! Great bands, good acoustics, and great location.

A smaller and much cooler version of St Louis’s The Pageant. I’m very impressed the bands that make stops here and pull off amazing sets. Almost as important, the vibe and access to bartenders is perfect.
I’ve been to three shows and all killed it; Julian Casablancas, OK GO, and White Rabbits. Holy crap… Snoop Dog and Ice Cube are playing a show there Jul 30!!!

This place reminds me a of a mini Vic (Chicago). Old school theater with an open floor, some seating near the bar and upstairs theater seating with another bar. Not too bad.
Sound was good.
Beer prices were good.
Those are the two «biggies.»
Now I happened to be in town from Chicago and wandered in to check out the Walkmen (who I love). I feel horrible for the band — the crowd sucked and the place was half-​empty. However that has nothing to do with the quality of the venue so I’ll stop myself from complaining.
Hopefully next time I’m in town I can spend a night enjoying some good rock music and getting nice and drunk on cheap-​ish beer.
Now if only someone could point me in the direction of a decent bar in this town, I’ll be set.

The Blue Note served as my introduction to Columbia nightlife. I came here my second night in the city — The Yeah Yeah Yeahs were playing, the place was packed, Karen O was in all her crazy glory, and my boyfriend and I sipped $ 4.00 pints of cider and beer.
Simply put, it was a fun show in a venue with some mellowed, old-​timey showbiz flair.
The building itself is an old theater that has been nicely preserved. There’s floor space, seating in the balcony, and a bar with tables for chiling at those more low-​key shows. I like that the stage is situated relatively low to the floor, lending a more intimate feel to shows.
Since that show late last summer I’ve been back just a few times. The Blue Note is first and foremost a concert venue, so it follows that it really depends on who’s playing — my friends and I showed up once for one of their «dance parties» and the floor was completely empty. At least they gave us our cover charge back.
And I take off points because this is a Ticketmaster venue and therefore not a truly independent joint — which is somewhat disappointing, because The Blue Note certainly has character.