Smalls Jazz Club was created in 1994. Founded by Mitchell Borden, a former Navy submariner, registered nurse, philosopher & jazz violinist, his initiative was to create an environment that was conducive to Jazz Music and Jazz culture. Borden, who booked and managed the club, approached business from a stance of generosity rather than profit. Borden’s concern was only with the music and the musicians who created it. Under his generous care, a culture of vibrant and newly energized young musicians claimed Smalls as their home base and began to develop their individuality in the music.
Since 2007 every show at Smalls has been meticulously recorded (with video since 2011), cataloged and archived. We consider this audio/video archive to be of historical importance. Now with more than 9000 recordings and over 1000 musicians in the archive and growing each week, we have made this archive available to the public for enjoyment study.