The Nameless Coffeehouse
The now-legendary Nameless Coffeehouse was a volunteer-run venue that presented folk concerts on weekends at First Parish Unitarian Universalist Church in Harvard Square for almost 50 years. Founded by assistant minister John Fleming in 1967 in order to connect with area students, the Nameless hosted such shows through 2015, giving hundreds of singer-songwriters, vocal groups, acoustic bands and even a few comedians their start as performers.
Community spirit, Notable appearances
The word “nameless,” of course, implies a certain humility, and for most of its history the coffeehouse did not charge admission – or pay performers. The Nameless also made an effort to include students from the Perkins School of the Blind and others with special needs as volunteers and audience members and no one who attended a Nameless show will ever forget having to fold and stack their chair at the end of the evening.
Despite this, the Nameless featured such future New England-rooted musical greats as Tracy Chapman, Ric Ocasek, Jon Pousette-Dart, Bill Morrissey, Patty Larkin, Dar Williams, The Story (Jonatha Brooke and Jennifer Kimball), and The Nields. It also presented two future comedy legends, Jay Leno, who grew up in Andover, Massachusetts, and the late Andy Kaufman. Located just down Church Street from Club 47 (now Club Passim), the Nameless became a popular drop-by spot for touring musicians, with David Bromberg, Richard Shindell and others taking the stage after (or while on break from) their Club 47 gigs.
Live at the Nameless, Fast Folk, End Construction, 1990s/2000s
The price was right for students and folk fans on a budget, and crowds flocked, consistently filling the 100-seat church parlor for the Nameless’ first 20 years, resulting in a triumphant 20th anniversary concert in February 1987. This early era was documented on both Live at the Nameless (NCP Records, 1973) and Fast Folk. One excellent example of the Nameless’ unique role in artists’ careers is End Construction, the songwriters’ collective of Ellis Paul, Jim Infantino, Jon Svetkey and Brian Doser, who played their first show as End Construction at the Nameless in April 1989. They recorded an album, Resume Speed, and were able to sell out Passim for the release concert the following year. Infantino returned to the Nameless as recently as 2014 with his band Jim’s Big Ego, and Svetkey returned that same year, with wife/singing partner Heather Quay, to participate in a Pete Seeger tribute.
In the 1990s, it became increasingly difficult to attract crowds as Club Passim, reorganized as a non-profit, began presenting folk concerts seven nights a week. The Nameless cut back to a weekly, then monthly, schedule. There were still great shows and artists such as Hewitt Huntwork, Michael Troy, Susan Levine and All About Buford used the Nameless to launch successful careers. The venue was also the setting for a key scene in the novel In Hoboken by folksinger/author Christian Bauman, who returned to read at the Nameless’ Folk Author Night in 2013.
Last official performance, Legacy
The last official Nameless performance was in December 2015, with Dean Stevens, Terry Kitchen and Deborah Silverstein (joined by Eric Kilburn, an early Nameless volunteer) presenting a Winter’s Eve concert, singing Dylan’s “I Shall Be Released” as the encore.
The Nameless Coffeehouse may not be recalled for the relatively small number of performers who “made it” beyond its tiny stage, but it’s fondly remembered by the hundreds of performers and volunteers who made up the Nameless community for the better part of five decades. And it will also have a special place in the hearts of the thousands of folk fans who got to hear live music, for little or no cost, in the heart of Harvard Square.
(by Terry Kitchen)
