Toads Place Project

Anyone who has lived near New Haven, CT, in the past 40+ years has surely heard of Toad's Place. With a capacity of 1,000, Toad's has served as the perfect spot for musicians who prefer smaller venues. U2 played one of their first US concerts there, on their Boy tour. In 1979, Bruce Springsteen had a concert scheduled in the Hartford Civic Center when the roof collapsed under heavy snow, resulting in the concert being moved to the Colosseum in New Haven. During his time in New Haven, Springsteen arrived at Toad's, unannounced, and got up and played. The surprises kept coming and the club was attracting big names, as well as up and comers. In 1989, the Rolling Stones played a surprise show on Saturday. Giving 700 fans had the night of their dreams. Nothing could have been better. The Rolling Stones in downtown New Haven was unimaginable! That is only a taste of the stories that are uncovered in this book. Randall Beach and Toad's owner Brian Phelps recall the legendary shows and behind the scenes stories.