It’s one of the most accessible cities from the island. Take a break from the Manhattan music scene, pop onto the PATH train for 15 minutes across the river, and listen to live bands in some of the hippest bars in Hoboken. Here’s a roundup of some of the best.
SCOTLAND YARD
72 Hudson St. | 201.222.9273 | scotlandyardbar.com
How can you resist a place—with a Hoboken address—that proclaims to be the best blues bar in New York? You can’t. Scotland Yard has the appeal of a popular neighborhood hangout, where some of its patrons are just a generation shy of being wooed by Frank Sinatra.
Every Saturday afternoon from 4-7 p.m., locals gather to listen to blues guitarist Joe Taino play with guest musicians. The arrangement is simple: Joe starts off the jam with his own set, then other groups of musicians alternate on stage. On any given weekend, you may find Joe keeping his cool, sipping from an orange drink while alternating through two different sets as a vocalist, guitarist and drummer.
In spite of the strong individual performances by many musicians, the real protagonists of the afternoon are usually the patrons. Their enthusiasm for blues, exhibited by spontaneous dancing or clapping, fills the space with an energy that won’t burst at the beams. At one point the place got so crowded that they ran out of clean glasses and had to serve beer in plastic cups.
While the Blues Jam is free of charge, tips are collected for the musicians. Another Blues Jam is hosted on Mondays from 9:30 pm-12:30 am by Big Ed Sullivan.