Al Finch established Crazy Al’s, a restaurant and music venue, in 1973, at 5408 North College Avenue in what would become known as (South Broad Ripple). The restaurant, with its eccentric vibe and alternative music, including new wave and punk as well as other genres, quickly made the area the center of the Indianapolis counter-culture scene.
Jeff Bugbee took over ownership of Crazy Al’s in February 1974. After five years, Bugbee moved the restaurant and venue to a larger space across the street at 5373 North College Avenue. The increased capacity proved difficult for Bugbee to manage, and he nearly sold the restaurant in 1980. Soon after, Steve Cohen and Dave Myers of Twilight Tone Productions approached him about a partnership. Twilight Tone Productions, an Indianapolis-based promotions company, worked with the nearby but wanted a smaller venue to feature new and lesser-known musicians.
Twilight Tone funded a remodel of Crazy Al’s in 1981, turning it into a 200-seat club with a larger stage and new dance floor that continued to serve pizza. The promotion company agreed to handle booking the entertainment, freeing Bugbee and his partner Gary Lawson to manage the restaurant. Despite this, Crazy Al’s only lasted for another year, closing on April 1, 1982.
During Crazy Al’s decade-long existence, the restaurant brought attention to many local punk, new wave, rockabilly, and funk bands. Regional groups, including the Elvis Brothers, a rock band from Champaign, Illinois, and national acts like the Go-Go’s, the famed all-women rock band, and Joan Jett, who was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2015, also performed at the venue. In 2014, Rick Wilkerson produced a comprehensive 2 CD set with his label, TimeChange Records, called Indiana Punk and New Wave: The Crazy Al’s Year(s), featuring 38 bands with mostly original material.
The location once again became a hub of food and music when the moved into the space in 1994.
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