Club Al-Jo was a great South Jersey nightclub located in Mt. Ephraim, NJ. It was a popular place in it’s heyday where the crowds were so thick, you could hardly move. Cheap drinks, sticky floors but the music was great! Al-Jo’s featured local legends such as like the Crystal Mansion and Billy Harner. Does anyone have any pictures of this place? Let us know in the comments or on our Facebook page.
Had a lot of good times there! I played there back in 1981 with my band, Merlin! Does anyone remember Ziggie (glam rock cover band)? Once I was to meet a date there. My date was detained, and since this was in the stone age of no cel phones, the band had me paged from the stage to give me a message from her. Everyone looked at me as if I were some kind of BFD. The next week we played there and I was remembered as the guy that got paged by the band. Subsequent nights of our gig were well attended thanks to my perceived notoriety and assumed fame (by the regulars).
I enjoyed reading your post. My father owned Club Al-Jo and I have fond memories of it too. It was originally co-owned with my late Uncle Joe. As a kid, we earned our allowance doing things around the club like making sour mix. My brother Mike was on floor-duty – can’t wait to tell him that he did a crappy job LOL. My favorite night was New Years’ Eve – we’d put hats at every bar stool and my dad would let us hang out until midnight, then my mom would take us home. I always had a crush on a musician back then. In my teens, I’d want to come hear the band. I bought this half-wig thing and put on so much makeup the bouncers didn’t recognize me. I produced a NJ driver’s license (no pictures back then). My sister and I would steal them out of the lost and found box, razor blade the top layer of the license and switch the numbers to a birth year that made us just 18. Then we’d laminate it. These things worked at every south jersey club…tee hee. Of course all our girlfriends had an ID too. Mom and Dad were none the wiser. In the early 80’s, the club was sold but the people who bought it couldn’t make it work. My parents retired to Hawaii. [The nursing home popped up after that. I didn’t know that the original structure burned down]. After 20 years, they moved back to NJ. My father is 83 & still alive today, and in general good health but has bad hearing (probably from the exposure to such loud music). He was there every night it was open. He was tickled to read that people still call that dangerous curve, the “Al-Jo curve”. Good times. – Donna
Great to hear from you Donna! You wouldn’t happen to have any photos of Club Al-Jo that you’d like to share would you?
Yes, I know that I do – just have to dig out the old albums. More soon –
Donna I remember the AL- JO too yes uncle joe was my father’s older brother we lived in Cinnaminson
My mother Mae Cravero was a waitress there when I was a kid! I then frequented the club when the drinking age was 18 and I was 16 lol
Donna is your last name Webb??
I lived up the street literally, your dad was cool as can be, even would take us upstairs on pizza nights for the non hot pepper pizza
My husband just shared, “They didn’t have a TV, in the 50s but you could watch a fight, just about every night.”
Loved this place, was always a good time…..and allot of girls. This was the place to be.
Yes and those South Philly girls were great dancers!
1964-5 what a great place to meet South Philly girls. Good Catholic girls they were (in Philadelphia) met quite a few and went bonkers for one but unfortunately never married her.
will always remember the good times I had there.
Donna is your last name Webb??
Yes. I’m her nephew and former owners grandson. Interesting to hear about these days as they were never discussed growing up. Keep the stories coming. Would love to see pictures too if anyone has.
I remember a band called THE THINGS. This was very early 70’s. Always had a good time. My friend dated the drummer. Every girl there had a crush on the lead singer.
Anyone remember the Wreck Room or The Dunes at 5h3 shore..Somers Point I think
I worked at Al-Jo’s for several years. First for Bob Webb and later the new owners. Bob was (and I’m sure still is) a wonderful man. He knew I didn’t have a full time job and hired me to cut the lawn at his beautiful home in Washington Township and I’d collect money at the door at night. Later I became a bartender. Energized was the top band there for years. Two of my best friends to this day worked there as bouncers.
Hey Joe, thanks for sharing that bit of info about Club Al-Jo! Do you happen to have any old pictures of the place?
I have one on Facebook but can’t get there from where I’m at now. Will try tonight.
I just happened onto this site, while doing a quick internet trip down memory lane. My band also played there. In 1966. (Of course, I was only 10 years old at the time.) Anyway, what I remember most was the crowds. And good vibes. I also remember getting up every morning, taking a shower, and the smell of cigarette smoke coming out of my hair as I washed it. Damn. From where the band played, you could barely see into the crown what with the dense fog from cigarettes. Great place. They don’t make them like that anymore.
Played there in the 60’s as The Lydells, then the Assorted Flavors… The owners didn’t book us back because our singer was stealing beer from the walk-in case. Our agent changed the band name to the Loafers and came in again for another week… remember them adding the go-go poles on the bar.. Nice room for the band the stage was carpeted and I played bass…. good times.
Bill: You and I must have shared a lot of stages at different times. . The group I was in was called “The Thrillers”. Two brothers singing harmonies like the Everly Brothers. We likely played some of the same clubs: Satellite Lounge, some club on the boardwalk of Seaside Heights, another in Lakewood that had a 200lb go-go dancer, and many others that I just can’t remember at the moment. Our booking agent was Metro Media Artrists in Philly. Great memories, huh?
I grew up in Bellmawr on Browning Road and Club aljo I could see out my bedroom window about it when I was a kid the lights would just shine right into my room. When I went in the service when I would come home on leave I would go to Club aljo quite frequently interest rates and when I got out and got married my wife and I used to come there and it was a great time. I was going through some of my old military souvenirs and stuff and when I looked in the Box I found a handful of Club aljo coupons for drinks ten cents off I don’t even remember how much the drinks were back then. And every time I ride down Kings Highway now and she the assisted living facility they’re the first thing I think of is the old days with Club aljo it’s a shame all good things come to an end. The in what young people today don’t know what they’re missing!!