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Disco Music > Discotheques and Clubs Index > Chez Paree
Chez Paree
245 South New York Avenue, Atlantic City, New Jersey USA
Owner: Cliff Shute
DJ: Charlie "Buckeye" Bucci
This club was so hot in the 70's and 80's that people from NYC & Philly would drive down after their local clubs closed to party at the Chez!
Buckeye wouldn't go on until 4 am. I can remember the anticipation in the room every night he started. What new hot song was he going to play? It was normal to leave the Chez at 8 or 9 am.
The sound system at the Chez was knockin! There were 4 stacks arranged on each corner of the dance floor with a sub, mid bass horn, and highs. There were also two tweeter boxes hanging from the ceiling for added highs.
The Chez also had a killer neon and laser show run by Judy Jetson. The effect of the lighting was magnified by the mirrors suffounding the walls.
Charlie passed away in 2002 RIP. Buckeye inspired me to be a DJ!!!
Please feel free to link to this page by using this URL:
http://www.discomusic.com/clubs-more/3049_0_6_0_C/
COMMENTS ON THIS DISCO / DISCOTHEQUE / NIGHTCLUB
I am from Philly and we used to travel "down the shore" just to go the the "Chez". Spent many nights and earl mornings there. Always rembered how Karen Young's Hot Shot was a favorite play there.
Chez Paree my old stompin grounds. I remember those hot summer nights on the weekends. Dancin till 10 am. Used to drive from Trenton then moved down the shore. Was a regular at the Chez in the early/mid 80's. Even dated one of the DJ's 1983-84. i've got one of the original ltd ed black satin Chez Disco baseball jackets that were for the DJ's only.
The Chez was the place. We'd drive down from S. Philly on Saturday nights and party until 9am-10am and then drive home. Sadly a high school friend was killed in a car accident on the way home from the Chez summer before senior year.
does anyone know who built the
suound system there?
I used to love the Chez and would often drive down after Gatsby's closed in Cherry Hill, especially on Sunday nights. Recently I ran into Martha Wash at the Hammerstein Ballroom in NYC; I told her that I had last seen her in Atlantic City at the Chez Paree about 1982. She said I must be mistaken as she's not that old, and then laughed. She said she always had a good time there.
used to work at the chez, did pretty much everything there. Sorry to hear Buckeye is gone....he was one of the best..killer sound system there. those were the good old days...
Worked at the Chez, was good friends with Chalie. Good man. He was the first scatcher and he worked with 3 turntables at onnce.
I worked with Jomark at the chez in the very early eighties. Partied with Bucci many times. Gin n Tonic, with a bump on the side.
Glenn From Philly
I remember sitting in the DJ booth for hours with Charlie and Sick Nick - as a matter of fact I sat there for about 4 years. There will never be another combination of Light Man and DJ - or a club like that again. Here is too good friends and good memories.
the chez, what can i say. as a dj myself i too admired charlie bucci. and when i couldn't get to the chez , i would injoy his mix set on the radio. this day i looked for charlie only to find out he passed on. to one bad a** dj, friend and mixmaster rip.
Cliff Shute now owns Passion Nightclub @ the Hard Rock Casino in Hollywood FL. www.passionnightclub.com
The Chez was my favorite nightclub in the 70s. I spent many a night and day there. I go back to the days when Paulette and Guy were tending bar and DCA Joe was a door person. Such wonderful memories. I believe Cliff's wife at the time was Dee.
The Chez was one of our favorite clubs, we have great memories of all the fun we had there. Fast Eddie, Donna Cappo and Julia were our favorite bartenders. I have a Chez jacket and membership in a shadow box hanging above my Chez bar stool.
DOES ANYONE REMEMBER COOKS BOOKS THE CAB DRIVE IN A.C????...... HE WOULD TAKE ALL THE KIDS TO THE CHEZ FOR FREE.....HIS MOTTO WAS "TRY".... ANYWAY I LOVED THE CHEZ ONE SUMMER I WENT THERE EVERYNITE. WEEKDAY, WEEKEND, ALL THE TIME...IT WAS REALLY A GOOD TIME ALWAYS......SENDING PHOTOS OF THE CHEZ SIGN, COOKS BOOKS OUTSIDE CHEZ AND MYSELF AND MY BEST FRIEND DENISE AT THE BAR IN THE CHEZ.....
Photos below:
DEBBIE & DENISE AT CHEZ BAR CHEZ SIGN W/COOKS BOOKS, DEBBIE, DENISE COOKS BOOKS (CAB DRIVER) & DEBBIE OUTSIDE CHEZ (NEW YORK AVE)
I just wanted to pay my respects to Charlie Buckeye...he was one of the best DJ's I ever heard and he was a very nice man. I bought a Technics 1100 A from him. He would always let me hang out in the booth and made tapes for me...never charged me a cent...I think tapes were like 10 or twenty bucks at the Chez back in the day. Goodbye Charlie...you were an inspiration to many.
Funny. I was just at the www.ureidj.com site thinking about the times I used to hang out in the booth with Charlie, & Nick. Laser lights were off the chain. Charlie used to hit me off with fresh copies of his mix tapes for the night. He was one of the best. I should know. When I was'nt in the booth at The Chez, I was up in NYC in the booth with Larry Levan at The Garage. Charlies mixes were razor blade clean. That cat could blend records with the best of them. I was addicted to that spot, and had to be in the house Saturday nights as soon as I got off of my casino job. My favorite tracks he'd mix when I requested were D Train's 'Keep Movin', & Mantronix 'Hip Hop Don't Stop'.
New years of 1979 was one of the best times I had there.
THERE IS GOING TO BE A CHEZ PAREE REUNION ON MARCH 30TH, SUNDAY TICKETS $20.00 ANYONE INTERESTED??????
Does anyone know when the Chez closed?
"Meet me at the Chez Paree" Reunion to benefit South Jersey Aids Alliance, Sunday, March 30th!! More information to follow...don't miss it!
"Meet Me at the Chez Paree" reunion to Benefit the South Jersey Aids Alliance.
March 3oth,6PM, Deja Vu (site of the Chez) New York Ave & the Boardwalk, AC
$20.00 at the door. For online tickets and more information visit www.southjerseyaidsalliance.org
This will be a GREAT Reuion of Friends!
I'll see you there!
Jeanne Chiaradio
I use to hustle at the chez in the 80s THE BEST TIMES EVER
WOULD ANYONE HAVE ANY MIXES FROM THOSE NIGHTS AT THE CHEZ-POSSIBLY TRANSFERED TO CD? ALSO ANY OTHER CLUB MIXES FROM BACK IN THE DAY FROM EITHER PHILLY CLUBS OR JERSEY? HIT ME BACK - WILL PAY ; THANKS, GARY
I have been to this DIVE a few times, must agree that GOOD TIMES were a standard there. Located in a questionable part of town, but then again, all of Atlantic City was QUESTIONABLE. Great times, I admit!!
i always wanted to go, but never went. i remember i could hear the music pumping from way up on the boardwalk..i always went past, to the saratoga a gay club down the block.sure wish i had the guts back then..it sounded like a blast
I went to the Chez from the mid 80's until they closed the place down. I had some of the most memorable times of my life in that place. Hung out in the booth with Charlie and would watch Julio and the breakers kick it live.
I have started collecting tapes from people I used to know back when I was young and cute, but age has caught up with me like the rest of us. It's amazing how a place like that can provide such great memories. When Tattangers popped up I had the honorable task of dismanteling the old Chez sound system and installing a new one with Frankie BOE. That was a week I'll always remember. Being in there when it was empty was the strangest thing. If those walls could talk. (How many of us would still be in jail) I can remember Grace Jones being there with the "Human Buffet" set up. That place will never be duplicated.
I lived in Northern Jersey, right across the Hudson from New York City. I only went to Atlantic City occasionally. I missed all these things, It was usually in the summer, so was that the off-season? Remember when ?? My question is, At what time of the year was all this going on? I missed out!!!
Hello to all you loyal Chez fans...we had a GREAT Time at the "Meet Me at the Chez Paree" reunion which benefited the South Jersey Aids Alliance on March 30, 2008. If you want to check out some pictures...go to www.southjerseyaidsalliance.com
If you want to be added to our database (we are hoping to make this an annual event) feel free to e-mail me at jeannechiaradio@comcast.net The place was packed with people and memories!
My friend (DJ) Anthony Bradly (form Trenton) told me about this web site, and after hearing about it, well here I am! I was one of the DJ's in the rotation at the Chez and Saratoga in 1982, 1983 and 1984. Me (Jerome Martucci), Buckeye and Mike Polveri and of course light man Sick Nick. It was one of the best times of my life. One quick story about just how many people partied there. One New Years Eve(in 82 or 83) me and Buckeye had a 5 gallon bucket filled with Chez buttons (a 2 inch round button that you would pin on your shirt). Just for laughs, during the night we threw them out in the croud, (there had to be 700 to 800 of them in the bucket). when the party ended about 11:30AM the next morning and the club was empty, me and Buckeye tried to see how many buttons we would find on the dance floor. All we could find was one button!
"Meet Me at the Chez Paree" Reunion, March 30th, 2008 pictures at www.southjerseyaidsalliance.org (not.com-sorry)Hopefully this will be an annual event so stay tuned...
Jeanne
OMG,can't believe I found this website, trying to load songs on my ipod and thinking back to the best tunes ever spun and remembered the Chez! Every weekend, we'd drive down there and party our asses off, it's a wonder most of us survived. I've never danced so much since then and sure wish I could take a trip back. I would have gone to the reunion for those memories! RIP Buckeye, still hanging onto some of your cassettes (warped sounds and all).
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