Jannus Live

Jannus Live is a courtyard. That's the whole trick. Brick walls on all four sides, open sky above, a stage at one end, and 2,000 people standing on the ground between — no seats, no barriers between you and the night. It opened in 1984 as Jannus Landing, named for Tony Jannus, the pilot who flew the world's first scheduled commercial airline flight across Tampa Bay in 1914.

The founders built it to bring reggae and punk to a market that wasn't getting either, and for the first few years only local bands played. The first national act was the Red Hot Chili Peppers in December 1987. They came back in 1989 and drew so many noise-ordinance fines that the venue nearly closed over it. That story tells you everything about the room.

What followed is close to a complete history of American music passing through one brick box in downtown St. Pete: Pearl Jam, Radiohead, Green Day, Jane's Addiction, Beastie Boys, Wilco, The Flaming Lips, Lucinda Williams, Eminem, Marilyn Manson, Mac Miller, Chance the Rapper, Run the Jewels, Sabrina Carpenter. It has hosted more concerts than any other room in the Bay.

The venue reopened in March 2010 under new operators after a rough stretch, picking up suites, a lounge, and a koi pond on the back deck, and dropping "Landing" for "Live." The brick, the sky, and the standing-room floor stayed exactly where they were.