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When, as a young man in 1981, Sam Rudin moved from his native Philadelphia to the East Bay, he quickly fell in love with the Freight & Salvage, Berkeley’s quirky little 87-seat concert hall.

Filled with comfortable thrift store furniture and an informal ambience of appreciative attentiveness, the Freight was a perfect fit for performers of modest renown and acoustically-based music.

As a solo (albeit high-energy) pianist, Sam’s music fit the bill, and the Freight became Sam’s home base. In the absence of other Freight-like rooms, Sam turned his solo performer attention to the outdoor fair and festival circuit, and later started the jazz/blues band Hurricane Sam & the Hotshots.

Now, maybe it’s all the energy he put into becoming a master piano teacher,  or maybe the fair and festival circuit just doesn’t have the right ingredients to nurture a high-profile career. Whatever the reason, despite critical acclaim, four CD’s, and a whole bunch of happy audiences, years later Sam was still a performer of modest renown, and he missed that great little room.

As the Freight grew and expanded, ultimately arriving at the gorgeous 420 seat theater that it occupies today, Sam started to feel that maybe it was up to him to recreate that wonderful small space. No longer a young man, it would be his late-life adventure.

Eventually, he found the perfect spot: a beautiful space with brick walls and vaulted wood ceilings right by the Arts District in downtown Berkeley. As of April 2016, it is open for business, complete with the requisite thrift store furniture.

The space is actually the back room of a larger building, so of course it is called The Back Room, and the tag line on its logo says it all – “an intimate place for music.”

The site, at 1984 Bonita Ave., also functions as Sam’s teaching studio, so if you’re looking for “The Piano Lessons You’ve Always Wanted,” now you know where to find them.

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Events

Yoav Konig Quartet with Flora Sullivan, Spencer Tantameng, Simon Aks
Wed, Jul 23, 7:30pm - 9:30pm PDT 
Yoav Konig Quartet with Flora Sullivan, Spencer Tantameng, Simon Aks
The Back Room, Berkeley CA, United States
David White Trio, with Aaron Germain and Brian Fishler – CD Release!
Thu, Jul 24, 8pm - 10pm PDT 
David White Trio, with Aaron Germain and Brian Fishler – CD Release!
The Back Room, Berkeley CA, United States
Nat Bolden & the State of Mind Blues Band
Fri, Jul 25, 8pm - 10pm PDT 
Nat Bolden & the State of Mind Blues Band
The Back Room, Berkeley CA, United States
Bululú: Boleros & Ballads
Sat, Jul 26, 8pm - 10pm PDT 
Bululú: Boleros & Ballads
The Back Room, Berkeley CA, United States
Yolandra Rhodes  with special guest Codany Holiday
Sun, Jul 27, 2pm - 4pm PDT 
Yolandra Rhodes with special guest Codany Holiday
The Back Room, Berkeley CA, United States
Charlie Hunter/Scott Amendola Duo - ADVANCE TIX ARE SOLD OUT!
Sun, Jul 27, 7pm - 9pm PDT 
Charlie Hunter/Scott Amendola Duo - ADVANCE TIX ARE SOLD OUT!
The Back Room, Berkeley CA, United States
Nathan Nakadegawa-Lee Quartet, with Joe Warner
Thu, Jul 31, 8pm - 10pm PDT 
Nathan Nakadegawa-Lee Quartet, with Joe Warner
The Back Room, Berkeley CA, United States
Steve Freund Blues Trio
Fri, Aug 1, 8pm - 10pm PDT 
Steve Freund Blues Trio
The Back Room, Berkeley CA, United States
Slinky Thing: Steely Dan Tribute
Sat, Aug 2, 7:30pm - 9pm PDT 
Slinky Thing: Steely Dan Tribute
The Back Room, Berkeley CA, United States
Jim Page
Sun, Aug 3, 7pm - 9pm PDT 
Jim Page
The Back Room, Berkeley CA, United States
Blues & Jazz Singer's Jam Session with Sam Rudin & Pamela Rose
Sun, Aug 10, 3pm - 5pm PDT 
Blues & Jazz Singer's Jam Session with Sam Rudin & Pamela Rose
The Back Room, Berkeley CA, United States
Jennifer Jolly & Friends
Fri, Aug 15, 8pm - 10pm PDT 
Jennifer Jolly & Friends
The Back Room, Berkeley CA, United States

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