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Disco Music > Discotheques and Clubs Index > Backstreets
Backstreets
Downtown Fort Lauderdale, Florida
Legendary disco where only the best Hi Energy, Euro and Italo Music was jammed!
This Fort Lauderdale institution was a gay disco that welcomed a mixed crowd. I remember the resident DJ being Bob Miro who played obscure Dance tunes that later became popular...he mixed Laid Back's White Horse...(If you wanna ride...ride the White Bitch) Fun Times.
Backsteets was an emporium styled after a saloon, huge wooden bar around the perimeter, bleechers where Anything Goes and people would crowd and dance on the stairs or speakers when Hazel Dean, Sylvester or Sharon Redd would come to town.
Backstreets had an outside pool and jacuzzi area, tiki bar and an outside courtyard stage and dance floors. I heard stories about the locker rooms. Wrap around balconies would lead you back into the main club where a spinning horse carousel spun over the DJ booth. It had separate bar areas with Cowboy murals and the best shows.
There was a Backstreets in Key West and Atlanta, the one in Atlanta is still open, but I would love to hear more from this icon of South Florida. Anyone have any pix?
Photo above submitted by: S. Martin
Description: I know its not much of a pic, but it was taken at Backstreets in the back yard.
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The following nine photos submitted by David
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COMMENTS ON THIS DISCO / DISCOTHEQUE / NIGHTCLUB
Oh my god, I remember Backstreets in Ft. L soooooo well!!!! It was the only club to go to in Florida (where you didn't have to hear commercial drivel). I first heard ABBA- the Visitors EP of course - there. Blew me away.....
amazing cool place bigger than most at the time (1982) and anything went....
Thanks for bringing back some GREAT memories!!!
Backstreet was phenomenal!! This was pre-South Beach, where the best nightlife existed in Ft Lauderdale. The energy, music, men & mixed crowd made it such a fun club. No attitude, no dress code, just be yourself & have fun, pre-aids 80's.
Great times!!
...I forgot to mention the fireworks that would go off every night...
This was THE club. I have never been to a club which had the energy of fun that Backstreets had. It is the club which I was taught how to spin fans. And YES the stories are all true about what went on in there......including tales of shots of "special punch" being handed out to friends of the bar.
BTW....Backstreets Atlanta closed last year....no more 24/7 service
my fondest memory was the the song from backstreet that everyone sang. it's the roof is on fire we don't need now water burn mf. well, that's were i first heard it.
I used to go to Backstreet all the time. It was the best place to have a good time in the early 80's. "Live" performances (Sylvester, Lime, Hazel Dean, etc) dancing, all the bars...they don't make clubs like Backstreet any more...sigh.
i was a DJ at "the Candystore" on the strip in Ft Lauderdale in 86....
Most the employees after work (we closed at 2) used to head to backstreets after work for some nitecappers....Being from NY....I used to live in a hotel at the time, and used to spin at Candystore 6 days a week, and from what i can remember, we used to alwayz go Backstreets after work...kool place
kool time in my life....was it by the airport?
No I think you might be thinking City Limits....Backstreets was by the train tracks in Downtown where all the little cafes and Broward Center of the Performing Arts is now...Also, there is a place close by called Riverwalk
it was city limits...ty
Having spent my time during the mid 80's and beyond as a booking agent and events promoter in Miami I had the honor and sometimes headache of working with nealry every club from the tri country area,as well as getting my groove on the dance floor.
Backstreets did not only break the gay/straight barrier, but it also helped break a cultural barrier between Anglos and Latinos as hundreds of Miami Latino club goers would drive off towards Ft. Lickerdale (lol) while getting off at mile marker 28 to get to Backstreets.
Ft. Lauderdale as it always has been was very Anglo populated,and tensions were already high between Latino's and Anglo's but esculated further after the arrival of fleeing Cubans during the 1980 Mariel boat lift.
Backstreets may have been one of the best venues to go to,but it was also one of the most dangerous venues.
I cannot remember any Friday night I was there on business or play, that atleast two fights didnt break out during the night,thank God for Backstreets quick to react bouncers,who I considered the best out of any clubs security staff.
I can till remember being in the booth when fights broke out,as myself,Bob Mero and his wife Maria,who also worked for Backstreets at the promoting end of things,as well as hiring acts, just stood there shaking our heads.
If you ever took a good look at Bob, you'd know he looked like the main DJ for the Hells Angel motorcycle gang, yet I as a Latino can say there wasnt an ounce of racism in Bob's body.
But thats how both sides thought of each other,and sadly one night some pour kid lost his life for simply looking to Gringo like,if you can stomach that notion.
Those commonly growing issues is what ultimately lead to Backstreets closing,as even on Gay nights it had become dangerous for Backstreets lifeline, which was their strong Gay following.
I have never been ashamed of being Latino, even though I was born in this country,but watching the crap that went on at Backstreets was the first and last time I did feel some disgust.
Either way,the times and experience I had there are times I wouldnt want to replace.
Sorry for the long post,Im just a detailed kind of person.
Get use to it! lol
Some of my best memories of the early 80's is from Backstreets.That was the greatest club, there will never be another one like it. I wish there was a cd available with Bob Miro/ Backstreet music. Does anyone remember a dance song, some of the lyrics:
"Morning Sad Morning(I Poppy)"
MiamiDisco,
The lyrics "morning sad morning" are from the song, The Mexican...in the 80's, Backstreets played the version of this song from John "Jellybean" Benitez.....I don't remember "I poppy", except from another song...."Clave Rocks" by Amaretto....it was probably mixed together....These tunes were definitely from the mid to late 80's when the club started changing and turning for into Freestyle Music and the Latin crowd....Up until about '84-'85...the club played predominantly Disco, High Energy and lots of Italo....those were the good ole' days!
Wow. What memories. I actually flew home to Miami from Tallahassee (while at FSU)just to go to Backstreets in October 1985. It was Halloween weekend and the line was all the way out to Broward Blvd.
This was a club like none other. The music, crowd, energy, and I guess most of all the time in my life. Carefree and just into the music and energy while dancing the night away.
During the day, I actually went to the pool and got sun, went home, ate, gym, napped, and returned for the evening.
What a great time. I still have all those 12" dance singles being played there at the time.
Well I had some of my best timed spinning at Backstreet before I moved to NYC. I loved that crowd. Actually I was the one that use to cut in "b****" for "white" in white horse. heeeee. a little tongue and cheek. Anyone know where Mike Mayburry is?
Backstreets was definitely the place of all places. Remembering people like Lemon (the bouncer) and Ira ( the door man) who unfornutely is no longer with us. If we could only turn back the hands of time for a few weeks!!!!
I remember going to Backstreets on my spring break and deciding that my life would never be the same after that. There was such a sense of celebration and harmony. My highlights were;
Hearing Mike Mayberry (sweet, generous, talented) play "It Feels Like I'm in Love", "The Visitors", "Ain't no Mountain High Enough (Boystown Gang).
Gazing at that hunky bartender, Dwight...Grrrr.
My first dose of MDA.
Belle Knincaid (RIP)
and Angelo the bouncer.
DJ Bob Miro was a great DJ, But Scotty Blackwell the DJ prior to DJ Miro, was the absolute best! Scotty's partnered with God now and is doing the best of the best in music production. Too many stories to tell about Backstreets, and definitly one of the best Dance clubs EVER!
I was wasted most of the time...but the music and energy reverberated deep inside and both you and Bob knew how to work a crowd...Excellent programming, well thought out sets....superb mixing and welcomed surprises throughout the night! What I'd give for one more night dancing until the wee hours when the tempo went to sleeze and driving music....at the time we'd chase the sun to make it home before the sun came up over Dade County...Scotty do you still spin as a hobby? It seems all of the vinyl is just about gone in Ft. Lauderdale....except for the Punk stuff at Uncle Sam's....Thanks for the good times and unforgettable memories!
So you we're the culprit behind the Laid Back tricks!! Fun stuff, I know you had a lot of tricks up your sleeve to raise the vibe of the crowd! Would love to hear some of our hilights,
Marco
Yes Scott, I know were Mike Mayberry is !
Hi Bob,
How are you doing. You did s great job at Backstreet. Remember the dj vs dj session in basement at Tory's? I would love to catch up. Hope all is well with you and yours. I am still spinning. I have had a fri and sat residency here in LA @ Padri for the past three years. I am a low voltage contractor during the week. I would love to connect with Michael too. Hope to hear from you soon.
Hey Scott, I'm doing well and it sounds like you're a survivor also. Send me your email address or phone # at bobmirobackstreet@gmail.com and we'll catch up. Keep them dancing !!!
Wow, this is a great site, and thanks everyone for sharing the memories. just to be back there once again....
somone above was very right-on saying that seems everyone just could easily get caught up in the music. time flew there. no pretenses like s.beach bars.
Recalling backstreets, another thing that stands out in my mind are the hottie male strippers on (some) friday nights! dare to remember Frankie...I was 18 yrs old... he was my first 'crush'....Frankie.. the amazing puerto rican hottie!
remember, they legally let us kids in after 2am!
I have a surprise for everyone reading this.... want to really bring back the memories? get these 2 cds! Exactly the Backstreet music from 87-89!
My favorite was 'wake up' --you'll know it once you hear it... and the hits by LIME.
1. circus disco
2. freestyle's greatest hits
both are avail at cduniverse.com
pleae email me if you have photos of backstreet, club 1235, or casanovas
taken before 1990.
Thanks to all for sharing the memories. Me being the nostalgic type at my current age, these posts bring back incredibly wonderful memories. Some of them of things that I would now not want my own kids to do! Like getting drunk on the drive from Hialeah (yes I was one of those Cubans that made the drive up 95 to enjoy the ONLY dance club worth going to back then) so we only had to buy a couple of drinks (we was poe!); I’d sip a couple of Long Island Ice-Teas the rest of the night, having gotten thoroughly buzzed on the drive up. Then head to Denny’s at 4 am when we had our fill of the music, the women (for a “gay” club, there was no shortage of beautiful and approachable women) and dancing. Then home to sleep most of Sunday. And then work all week with the anticipation of the next Saturday at Backstreets! It was the first night club I experienced where everybody danced with anybody. You could even dance by yourself and it was cool. I don’t remember all the fights mentioned by some previous posters; not denying that there tensions or fights, but I remember it as a place where most got along. There wasn’t all of the posing that went on at other discos, where you had all the macho boys hanging by the bar waiting for you to look at them the wrong way to get into a fight. As I recall, if you were on the first floor by the dance floor it mostly meant you wanted to dance; and most danced the night away. And yes, I also recall the “Burn the MF Down” chant. I clearly remember one night arriving late, and as I was walking from the parking lot to the entrance the chant of Burn the MF down could be heard clearly and loudly outside! What a place, and what a moment in our lives. It was short-lived, reflecting back on it now. As with most great things in life, they last but for a relatively brief moment. Eventually other clubs emerged and South Beach was reborn. I eventually moved on to clubs like Fire and Ice and the Kitchen; and then I just got old.
Henry, nice hearing from fellow Dade commuters ending up at Backstreets...I totally agree with you that Backstreets was head and shoulders above the rest..but lets not forget that in the 80's, there was no shortage of great places to go Nightclubbing in Dade and Broward County...Also, I understand that Backstreets was not that shortlived, it was happening as an predominantly Gay Club long before we Heteros infiltrated in the mid to late '80's. When I first was introduced to Backstreets it was already mixed...my wife remembers going in '82 before we met and she remembers it predominantly gay....but ALWAYS the music was it!!! Best song memories.. Color my Love - Fun Fun, White Horse - Laid Back, My Forbidden Lover - Tapps, When Doves Cry - Prince...too many to list! Great Hi Nrg, Italo Music, Disco and later Freestyle...Early Freestyle was great - The Mexican - Jellybean, I Want it to Be Real - John Rocca...Divine, Bobby O, it goes on and on....
Does anyone know if the building is still there? My daughter goes to concerts at The Revolution and I'm wondering if that's the same building.
Great place, great times!
Frankie the stripper was my favorite too!!
This was my favorite of all time Discos. I went around 1981/82. It was still pretty Gay the best music and the best vibe. I don't remember any fighting. I remember guys dancing with huge fans or with a snake wrapped around them or playing castanets. I remember the men in chaps riding the mechanical horse in the room to the left of the entrance . I remember smelling amylnitrate in the air. I remember a lesbian girl grabbing my a** while I was dancing with my future husband. I saw Claudja Berry and will always regret not seeing Sylvester. I remember guys diving into the pool naked. There was a rumor that a guy in the parking lot would give you $5.00 if you let him suck your feet. I was straight out of highschool and this place made quite an impression on me.
Wow! What great memories. Backstreets was the best. I can remember the Jai Alai guys Freddy and Pete were always there on Fridays and Saturdays having a good old time. Does any body know them or if they are still around.
Wow so cool to hear from all you Backstreet people!!!My friend Carlota and I used to steal her father's van while he slept so we could go to the club!We were in high school(Hollywood Hills)I have no idea how we got in all the time!I remember seeing Secret Society,Nocera,Taylor Dayne,Bonnie Pointer,and the guy who sang "Boom Boom Boom lets go back to my room!!Those were the greatest times!!!I still love the clubs today,but it's not even close to how it used to be!!!
I had my best times at Backstreet both with Hot 105 appearences and perforning as Will to Power. It is actually Backstreet where I first took my acetate of Dreamin'. Bob Miro was loved by everybody.
Wow Bob Rosenberg!My best friend and I loved you & Suzie Carr back then,your music was amazing and we still listen to it today!I used to work at Publix on sheridan street back then and waited on your mom many times and she would always brag about you!Coming out with something new soon?
Backstreet was a great club. I remember hearing Kraftwerk's Number as I waited to get in. The music was always fresh and you can hear it from the outside. You can see everyone from the second floor looking down having the best time. The size of the club and energy was wonderful. I spent Halloween 1981 there. It was the perfect place to see the largest and most spectacular customs. The place reminded me of Moulin Rouge. Everything was happening at the same time.
I spent many a night at Backstreet. I was listening to a Bob Miro mix today as a matter of fact. It was Easter time and Debbie Jacobs was performing. Bob did the mix of her medley. She said it was a killa. I was there that night. I am friends with Debbie so when I turned 30 my friends Steve and Sue ratted me out and Debbie sang Happy Birtday to me on the Stage at Backstreet. Later that year, Debbie performed at Uno in Miami for New Year's eve and would be at backstreet the next night. Went to Bob Miro's house and laughed as he told of Belle Kincaid falling from the ceiling on New Year's eve. The only one I missed! Maybe some time...we can do it all again!
Bob Miro was fantastic mainly in his ability to read the crowd. That is why people from Dade County even took the drive to Backstreet. I did many DJ appearences with Hot 105 (Wednesday nights with Bobby Ellerbee) and also used turntables in Will to Power show.
This pic is from 85-86. I have my turntables on stage (in front of DJ booth). The kid on stage watching is DJ Laz.
The best Club south of Club Studio 54 no club can ever get close to that.I make the drive from Hialeah every saterday. I started going there before the pool patio was open 1980 to 1983 was my place to Party and meet grils most gays new me and never had a problem. Hialeah ,Carol City ,West Chester,and Northmiami all went to have fun, the fight's started after people sall we were having fun and destroyed the Best Club Ever But nothing last for ever.Best Memory's
Its great to hear from so many who had the privilege of calling Backstreet home. Remember the killer Rum Runners from the outside bar. Or the greatest bartender Bernie, who always had a waiting drink for me. Hearing the songs "The Dominatrix sleps tonite" or "The Mexican". Backstreet was my home from Wed thru Saturday. The only club I would drive from Miami to Ft. Lauderdale to and it was worth every mile. I still remember the saloon bar, the riding bull that became the piano room, the pool, the jacuzi, the outside stage, the gym and so on. My club membership and how I skipped the line that wound around the block. Good times, that I cherish to this day. I partied during Sobe hayday and it still doesn't compare to Backstreet back in the day. Before the fights started, all got along, gay, straight, black, white, hispanic, it was the most divsersified club of its time. None has come close to its glory.
Wish I had every dime I ever spent in this location on drinks and recreation. Spent many a happy times there from 1982-1986. Mostly Sunday "Tea Dance". When I hear the music and shut my eyes, feels like only yesterday. The thing I remember the most was the tolerance. Everyone was accepting of differences, Gay, Straight, Black, White, etc, just didn't matter. Even within the gay community, so many 'branches' of the family tree, it was a place everyone could enjoy the party. Feels like that's been lost. Society seems so segmented these days, it's a loss. If we do go to heaven and we get to create our own versions, I know mine is gonna have a Backstreets in it. :)
Does anyone remember the name to a song that went like this? "I can feel the presence of another women, its all over you face, someone's taking my place, ooh babe, I'm losing you". If anyone can tell me the name of the song and who sung it, I would be grateful. Thanks in advance!!!
Hey Diana!
Are you talking about the Temptations, "I'm Losing You"
http://www.justsomelyrics.com/610185/Temptations-I'm-Losing-You-Lyrics
I belive it was remade after the Temptations by a girl group called "Uptown"....
I remember dancing to that at Backstreet,awesome jam...
Thanks Kam, Thanks Mair, the one by Uptown is the version I'm looking for. By any chance do you know from what site it might be available for purchase via download? Thanks!!!
Diana, It's the Uptown verision I used to play, I have many CD's recorded live with that song, if you can't find the download.
dj Bob Miro
Backstreet
Bob and Diana,
Let me know where I can download "I know I'm Losing You" by Uptown. It used to be on the Oak Lawn Record label out of Dallas
Paul & Diana
If you guys want to email me an address where I can send you a CD each, It'll have "I'm losing You" on it! BobMiroBackstreet@gmail.com
I saw Laura Brannigan perform GLORIA there, while Scott Blackwell was there. An excellent club, as everone before me can attest to. A very strong 10 on my scale.
There was no other club to be on a Wendsday nite in the mid to late 80s. The nite started at the strip but always ended up back dancing to those incredible mixes that building pushed out for hours after hours. I can still remember the build up while waiting in line to get in....That was the greatest club ever...Hands Down!
You definitely needed to get out more. The Copa had better music. Many clubs had better lights and sounds, a quick example. BIG DADDY'S in North Miami on 163rd street. Finer women, should have gone to CASANOVAS or 1235. Better gay clubs, two or three on the beach, easily. Ambiance,1235,CLUB MYSTIQUE to name two. DeeJays,now there BACKSTREETS was tough. But still, CASANOVAS had TWO great deejays. So to call BACKSTREETS the "greatest club ever...hands down" is both foolish, and a lie. Ever been to New York City?? There were hundreds of better clubs there!
Hey vynil,
Did you read the first line of my post?
Been to every club you mentioned. All were fantastic in the day. I don't remember any of them packing the crowds on a Wendsday nite like Backstreets did. No disrespect to NYC. I'm from City Island orig.
Peace
Point Taken. You are right. On a Wednesday night this was the best place in town. everyone got that. There were some Clubs in New York that had FANTASTIC Wednesday nights though!
Hi guys, well I do agree that the club seen was great at Backstreets but you have to admit that The Copa had a better sound system. I remember standing right in front of the DJ and looking over the dance floor and you can almost visually hear the music moving from one end of the dance floor to the other. The crowd dancing to Bill Kelly's great mixing. That to me was the place to be!
While BACKSTREETS was a pretty incredible place, it was THE COPA that made the Fort Lauderdale area DANCE. Every other club was trying to get whatever The Copa had. The problem was that BACKSTREETS didn't have the deejay longevity of Bill Kelly. It did have Scott Blackwell for a while, but that was for a short period of time only. This is a good comparison though.
How about danceing on the big a** speaker!And how about Roopaul.One big shemale
Did you know that RuPaul actually was a high school basketball star? She always had a thing for BALLS!! She loved to play with them. As for that big speaker you were talking about, it was actually a regular horn and bass bin, but was exaggerated for the purpose of letting people dance on it.
I didn't get better...Backstreet was the place to be!!!! Viola Wills and Hazell Dean...And who could forget Belle Kincaid! Does anyone remember Belle Kincaid's Dynasty routine? Crystal after a few lines...Claudia in a state of depression and of course Steven. I still laugh about it 23 years later. I loved Belle...the world became a little more somber when she left us.
I did Backstreet a handfull of times when visiting from NYC. It was a great place really loved the set up, had that whole "southern belle/Charleston" look and,I thought, was attitude-free. I didn't catch any fights either, but I wasn't there often. When did it close? Any idea what's there now? The matches say: 200 W Broward Blvd. Peace.
Frank, it's not closed!! The place remains a club, just not the famous BACKSTREET. I think there is a live house band, and dining. No more DISCO!
Thanks for the update, Vynil... next time I'm in FLL I'll definitely stop in. Gather its not gay anymore...not without disco! Ciao
That's right, but there are plenty of Gay Clubs near-by!!
Hey Ya'll have many many fond memories of backstreets and the Copa.. hey does anyone remember "patty cakes" and "kelly anderson".... I wish I knew what became of them..and a bartender at the copa..he worked the upper bar..his name was joel..
They did an amazing job remodeling the old Backstreets,it is now an events venue,not really a club,they host concert events there more then anything.
See for yourselves.
http://www.jointherevolution.net/catering/index.htmlt
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