When the Crosstown Lounge opened in June 2007, Grand Forks saw the spark of something special as live music was once again a regular happening downtown. There had been jazz at Sanders and some occasional local acts at The Hub, with a couple of street dances sponsored by Gillies. Sometimes, a bar/restaurant like Joe Blacks or The Toasted Frog pushed back some tables and made room for a local band. It really wasn’t until Brad and Amy Beauchamp, owners of the Crosstown Lounge, started booking touring bands that downtown Grand Forks looked like it would return to the era of live music when Grigg’s Landing was a hopping blues club back in the 70′s and 80s. A musical Renaissance began that is making downtown Grand Forks a destination location.

Renovating what was once Lucky’s Green Room, a pool hall on the second floor of the old Griffith’s Department Store on the corner of Third Street and Demers, the Beauchamps contracted for an unusual horseshoe-shaped bar, which was built on site by John Widdel over a two-month period. A local wood craftsman, Widdel is best known for his duck decoys and his canoe paddles made from strips of different types and colors of wood. “We’ve got two miles of wood strips in it,” says Brad Beauchamp. “That’s why we affectionately call it the Two-Mile Bar.” Widdel was able to bend the wood into the double curves of the horseshoe.

And it is the bar that you see when you exit the elevator into the Crosstown Lounge. There, the friendly staff will serve up cocktails, microbrews, and beer on tap. “We have a pretty impressive liquor selection overall,” says Beauchamp. “I’ve taken some pride in bringing in a wide variety of high-end and middle-end tequilas. We also have some high-end Scotches that run-of-the-mill bars don’t carry. I try to get as much variety as I can and try to bring it to the customer for a fair price,” he says. “I work with the staff pretty extensively on making a good drink, but not a burnt drink.”

The Crosstown also has specialty beers. “We have over 70 imports and microbrews,” Beauchamp says. “We put those on special quite a bit.” The Crosstown also has two beer glasses sizes for draft beer: the pint and the 35-ounce super mug. “We don’t have any standard domestic beer on draft,” Beauchamp adds. It’s all microbrews, with names like Amberbok, Blue Moon, Red Hook, and Boulevard. And, the bar doesn’t offer pitchers of beer. Clientele come to have a good drink and enjoy the music, not be carried out of the establishment.

Crosstown also offers a unique bar menu, one that Guy Fieri would say was “money.” They offer nachos, hot wings, wraps, burgers, wraps, paninis, croissants, tacos, and a couple of signature dishes: the Philthy Pig, a barbeque pork sandwich with a slice of provolone, and the Dirty Dog, a Chicago-style hot dog  (third of a pound, 100 percent all beef) topped with chili, cheddar cheese, and onions.

Though patrons can get a brew and a burger almost anytime, it is the live music that is packing in the clientele. Though the first band they brought in was local band, Beauchamp could tell that he was definitely filling a musical niche. “Ever since the flood of ‘97 when the live venues downtown were washed away, I’ve always thought that it was something that was needed. There was a thirst for it,” Beauchamp adds.

Working with a booking agent, Beauchamp has been able to add Grand Forks to the tours of a number of bands as they make a swing to Fargo. Many bands are glad to add another date to their tours and spread their music to a wider audience. Some just come to play at the Crosstown, even all the way from Minneapolis.

Beauchamp’s booking agent has brought in Wookiefoot, Gypsyfoot, Fat Maw Rooney, God Johnson, and many others that have played at the 10,000 Lakes Festival. These are bands that have a wide following in the region and ones that fans just don’t get to see very often.

The festival circuit has also helped expose music fans here to a wider variety of genres, allowing Beauchamp to bring in bands such as the reggae band Public Property, the jamgrass group Cornmeal, one-man vocal band Heatbox, and Down Lo with LA rapper Deploi.

Down Lo with Deploi

He also brought in the California rock band Dirty Sweet and showcased a lot of experimental bluegrass.

“Live music is something that I am going to keep doing it as long as I can afford to,” Beauchamp states. Though Beauchamp reluctantly charges a small cover (usually $5) to help pay for the bands, he eases the sting a little by offering a free beer with your admission.

Though live music is a great boon for Grand Forks music fans, folks are driving up from Fargo to catch a band for a second night or because the band isn’t playing down there.

Beauchamp also makes sure that bands are treated well, offering them, not only the hospitality of the Crosstown Lounge, but also making hotel arrangements and making sure their sound needs are met. He has invested in a great sound man with a terrific system to keep the music sweet all evening, every evening a band plays there.

“I tell my staff that we always treat these musicians well,” Beauchamp says. “It’s all based on karma. If you treat them well, they’ll put on a good show. And when they leave here, they’ll say the right things about us.”

Beauchamp has got that right. Musicians keep returning, and new ones are finding out about the great fans at the Crosstown. Music fans already know that the Crosstown Lounge is the best venue downtown to see a festival touring band.

This entry was posted on Monday, June 1st, 2009 at 7:52 pm and is filed under Issues, June 2009. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.