GARFIELD’S CLOSES AFTER SWITCH FROM DISCO FORMAT

Garfield’s Nite Spot in Huntington Beach has closed after a short-lived attempt at showcasing original music, adding another name to the growing list of failed Orange County concert clubs.

Owners of Garfield’s filed for bankruptcy in March, approximately the same time they changed the club’s format from a Top 40 disco to emphasize concerts.

Club officials said they anticipated attracting a substantial concert audience in the wake of the closing of the Golden Bear in Huntington Beach. At that time, one of Garfield’s managers said they hoped that concerts would compensate for the club’s slumping mid-week business. In the last five months, Garfield’s had been increasing the number of shows and attracting more popular acts to the club.

Phones at the club were disconnected and owner Burk Dennis could not be reached Thursday. Dennis’ attorney and partner in the club, Mark Silver, also could not be reached Thursday.

In May, Dennis said that the bankruptcy filing was “a legal maneuver” and that “we’ll be out of it in about two months.”

Promoter Berkeley Green, who had been organizing the club’s weekly blues shows on Thursday, expressed disappointment over the closing and the cancellation of a concert he had booked Thursday with Maggie Mayall & the Cadillacs.

Garfield’s closing is the third this year for Orange County clubs featuring original music. In addition to the Golden Bear, Spatz in Huntington Harbour closed in January. Radio City in Anaheim, which closed after a fire last November, was prevented from reopening when the Anaheim City Council voted in February to revoke the club’s entertainment permit.

Safari Sam’s in Huntington Beach and the Coach House in San Juan Capistrano are the only remaining clubs booking original music full time. The operators of the Golden Bear, however, this week began presenting a series of concerts at the Kono Hawaii restaurant-showroom in Santa Ana.