In the 1920s, The Warfield was a popular location that featured
vaudeville and other major performances, such as
Al Jolson,
Louis Armstrong, and
Charlie Chaplin. The theater opened as the Loews Warfield, named after
David Warfield. It later became known as the
Fox Warfield. New life came to the Warfield in 1979 when
Bob Dylan played 14 shows at the start of his first Gospel Tour in November 1979, and again 12 shows in November 1980 during his "A Musical Retrospective Tour". The Warfield had an appeal as a rock concert venue because it has more intimacy and better sound quality than an arena, yet has an occupancy of over 2,000 persons. Like many historic theaters, its main floor had the seats removed in the 1980s for general admission and dancing. Prior to the removal of the seats,
Joe Strummer of
The Clash once refused to play unless the first two rows of seats were removed to allow for dancing. It is a favorite venue for performance among many entertainers. In 1980, the
Grateful Dead played 15 sold-out shows there, featuring both an acoustic and two electric sets. The shows were a celebration of the band's 15th anniversary and done as a show of appreciation for their loyal fans. These, along with a sold-out eight-night run at
New York's
Radio City Music Hall were recorded for release as two double albums; one, all acoustic called
Reckoning, the other, electric, called
Dead Set.
Jerry Garcia also made the Warfield a second home, performing a record 88 times there with his various side bands, when not touring with the Dead. On May 9, 1991,
Guns N' Roses performed the first of a few "secret warm-up theatre gigs" prior to the official opening of their
Use Your Illusion Tour. ==Current use as music venue==