The Rat Was Kenmore Square’s Basement Rock Club From 1974 to 1997
The Cars, the Police, Talking Heads, R.E.M. and the Pixies all played the Rathskeller. Now it’s a hotel.
For more than twenty years, the most important room in Boston rock was a basement in Kenmore Square. The Rathskeller, which everyone called the Rat, was at 528 Commonwealth Avenue, a short walk from Fenway Park, and it ran as a rock club from 1974 until November 1997.
Who played there
The list is the reason people still talk about it: the Cars, the Pixies, the Police, Talking Heads, the Ramones, R.E.M., the Dead Kennedys, the Replacements, Dinosaur Jr., Metallica and Soundgarden all came through. It was owned by Jimmy Harold, and it earned the nickname the “granddaddy” of Boston rock clubs.
What’s there now
The building was torn down in October 2000. The Hotel Commonwealth stands on the site today.
The Rat’s spirit lives on in the clubs nearby. The Paradise, further out Comm Ave, opened in 1977 and is still booking bands. See who’s playing in Boston this week.
Sources: Wikipedia: The Rathskeller.
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