A Tour of the Tulsa Sound: Live Music and Legendary History in Tulsa

Tulsa’s vibrant live-music scene is hardly new. This Route 66 stop has historically been a homebase for music icons. Consider Bob Wills and the Texas Playboys, the originators of the Western Swing. From 1935 to 1942, they broadcast the jazz- and mariachi-infused style of country music from Cain’s Ballroom. Today, the century-plus-old venue hosts some of the biggest national touring acts. Leon Russell created the Tulsa Sound in town. (More on that in a second.) The Wilson brothers, better known as the GAP Band, named their funk outfit after Greenwood, Archer, and Pine streets, which intersect Tulsa’s Greenwood neighborhood, where they grew up. 

Woody Guthrie Center Mural

The Lowdown

Jazz Amid the City's Art Deco

Follow the giant neon arrow that says “Live Music” down the stairs to The Lowdown, a subterranean venue that bills itself as a jazz club, but is actually much more. The calendar at this intimate 100-seat outpost also features soul, R&B and funk, with some standup comedy tossed in for good measure. And pro-tip: Go for the local and national performers, stay for the drinks. Craft cocktails are the name of the game here.
108 N Detroit Ave, Tulsa, OK 74103
 

The Colony

Where the Original Tulsa Sound Lives

If it was good enough of a hangout for Tulsa Sound pioneers Leon Russell, JJ Cale and Eric Clapton back in the 1970s, this low-key roadside bar in Midtown is good enough for music-lovers today. There’s pool and darts in the back room and a barely elevated stage where musicians play seven nights a week. Established in 1958, it’s pretty much a Tulsa institution. And Paul Benjaman, a torch-bearer of the Tulsa Sound, has been in residency on Sunday nights for 14 years of its existence. His covers of Leon Russell staples would surely make the musician proud. Cover charge varies, 21+.
2809 S Harvard Ave, Tulsa, OK 74114
 

Thelma's Peach

Tulsa's Living Room

It’s no accident that seeing a show at Thelma’s Peach feels like hanging out in your friend’s living room while they jams with their band. Andrew O'Meilia, a musician and landscape architect, opened Thelma’s in 2019 after hosting bands at a stage he built in his backyard in downtown Tulsa. That same laid-back, familiar air defines Thelma’s. From the outside, it’s a nondescript roadside cube of a building. Inside, it’s a cozy jewel box with Christmas lights and a hodgepodge of paintings that give off granny’s sitting room vibe. The “stage” is a Persian rug and the musicians vary tremendously. And that’s a good thing. “There’s nothing we won’t touch music-wise,” says Andrew. There could be bluesy rock one night, a moody singer-songwriter the next, and comedy after that. The only thing you should expect is a surprise. Cover charge $5 to $10, 21+
2008 E Admiral Blvd, Tulsa, OK 74110
 

Church Studio 

Legendary Tunes in a Historic Space

Church Studio plays many roles in the city’s vibrant music scene. Built in 1915 as Grace Methodist Episcopal Church, it served as the HQ for Shelter Records, Leon Russell’s recording label. Under his watch, Stevie Wonder, Tom Petty and other icons recorded here. It passed through several hands before developer, preservationist and die-hard Russell fan bought the place, renovated it over the course of six years, and restored it to its recording-studio glory. And more. Now, in addition to housing high-demand music rooms for recording artists, it’s home to Teresa’s extensive collection of Russell memorabilia, from his clothing and hand-written notes and lyrics to albums and sundry collectibles. This setting, where music is sanctified, is a perfect backdrop for Tunes at Noon, a Tuesday/Thursday/Saturday series featuring musicians of all sorts—jazz, blues, classical, rock, country. Order a drink at the bar and take a seat for a midday music break. Tickets $15, includes museum admission.
 304 S. Trenton Ave., Tulsa, Oklahoma 74120

The Hunt Club

Just your friendly neighborhood watering hole for music, beer, and taxidermy

When Mary Ellen Slape opened the Hunt Club in 2009, “Fearless,” the second studio album by country singer-songwriter Taylor Swift, topped the Billboard 200. How’s that for perspective? Over the following years, as pop music — and Tay-Tay — shifted styles again and again, the Hunt Club held steady, enduring as a dependable go-to for music and familiar faces. (One of her current bartenders has been there since day one. Another joined in 2010, and another in 2011.) There’s an indoor stage in the brick-walled barroom, an outdoor stage on the patio. Plenty of beer and cocktails, plus a menu of pub-grub standards, are available, no matter where you sit.

Situated right next door to mid-size venue The Vanguard and just three minutes down the road from Cain’s, the calendar spans a broad range of musicians — pop, funk, blues, country, singer-songwriter artists. Local musicians take the stage most nights, but it’s not rare to catch a national touring group. Wednesday night is open-mic comedy night.

And about the name: Mary Ellen, who worked corporate jobs before opening the club, was a hunter. The taxidermied animals perched around the bar? That’s her handiwork. Cover $5 to $10 most nights.
224 N Main St, Tulsa, OK 74103