For over three decades, Aadam Jacobs, aka ‘Chicago’s Taping Guy’, recorded gigs in or around the Windy City for his own personal archive.
Jacobs was a fixture at clubs such as Metro, The Empty Bottle, Double Door, Lounge Ax, Cubby Bear, Hideout, Fireside Bowl and more, amassing a collection of recordings of over 10,000 gigs.
“I wanted to have a physical archive of the concerts I went to,” he explained in 2019.
Now that collection is being uploaded online for free on the nonprofit digital library Internet Archive, as part of the site’s ‘No Tape Left Behind’ project. And it’s a remarkable treasure trove for those who might wish to hear archive recordings of local heroes such as Smashing Pumpkins or Liz Phair, international stars such as The Cure, Nick Cave and Depeche Mode, alternative rock legends Fugazi, Sonic Youth and Hüsker Dü or less celebrated indie rock heroes such as Superchunk, Lungfish, or Guided By Voices.
Want to hear Nirvana’s first gig in Chicago at Club Dreamerz on July 8, 1989? Enjoy! Fancy listening to R.E.M. at the UIC Pavilion – University of Illinois at Chicago from 1987? Knock yourself out. Want to hear The Afghan Whigs covering AC/DC’s Night Prowler as the closing song of their set at Lounge Ax on February 28, 1992? Then today is your lucky day, friend.
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You can read more about the project here.
Dig through the archive here.
Filmmaker Katlin Schneider made a documentary about Jacobs in 2023. The synopsis for Melomaniac, reads:
“For almost three decades, a passion and obsession drove ‘Chicago’s Taping Guy’ to record audio from thousands of live rocks concerts. Melomaniac introduces Aadam Jacobs and his archive of recordings, while exploring his impact as a Chicago music scene staple in the 80s and 90s. Interviews with the owners of longstanding Chicago venues including The Metro and the former Lounge Ax lend perspective to Aadam’s character and the music scene. Conversations with Chicago artists give the 80s/90s scene a voice through interviews that include local music icon Jon Langford and comedian Fred Armisen. The film looks ahead to the vital need to preserve the historically important music legacy Aadam will someday leave behind while highlighting its importance now.”
Watch it below.