Jani Lane, 47-year-old lead singer of the rock band Warrant, was found dead in a hotel in Woodland Hills, California on August 11, 2011.
What many might not know, was that Lane was part owner of a nightclub in downtown Orlando for a couple of years in the early ’90s called Jani Lane’s Sunset Strip.
I was too young to go inside, but I do remember seeing it at the corner of Orange Avenue and Pine Street. It is where CityArts Factory now stands, it was also Bar Orlando and Rat Pack’s over the years.
I reached out on Twitter and Facebook for some memories from Orlando residents who went to the club back in the day and this is what they had to say. Feel free to share your own memories of the club too in the comments section.
Will Walker, co-owner of Will’s Pub and the Belle Isle Yacht Pub, remembers going there when he was 21:
“I saw Jani Lane perform there multiple times.”
Local musician, Rickey Dickens, has this memory:
“I got the hook, literally and deservedly so, at an open stage when you could sing with the band at Jani Lane’s on Orange Ave back in 1994. I was 21, trying to sing Roadhouse Blues. I had a sore throat and my “friend” told me NOT to sip, but shoot a SIFTER of…are you ready? BRANDY. Oh yeah, it was like the Apollo in NYC where someone w/ a huge “Hook” put it around me and gently pulled me off stage. I say “gently,” because they knew if they pulled too fast, I would have fell face first into the guitar player or fell off the stage all together. It was one of the THE most of embarrassing moments in my life. I had no idea I was supposed to SIP the Brandy, I knew after that night though.”
@fsulaw03 on Twitter: a highlight was Warrant actually playing the club…and just b4 open Jani played acoustic set at Light Up Orlando!
@JerrySteffen on Twitter: Waterballooning drunks on the street below from that tiny balcony after a Todd Rundgren show.
Betsi Scott on Facebook has this to say about the lead singer: “I actually met Jani at Jani Lane’s. I remember that he was very personable; humble and just an all-around nice guy.”
Jani Lane at Jani Lane's Sunset Strip in 1995/Courtesy of Sandra Carr
Webster Drug Stores Inc., a family-owned business with one other location, bought the four-story building (at Orange Avenue and Pine Street) for $1.2 million. The drugstore used to be part of the Liggett chain, which has disbanded. It is leasing the second and third floors to a nightclub, Jani Lane’s Sunset Strip.
”Downtown really is the hottest place right now,” said Carollynn Hammersmith, spokeswoman for for Sunset Strip.
Sunset Strip, atop Liggett, is the latest of dozens of nightclubs to open in the wake of Church Street’s success. It is named for Jani Lane, a former Orlando musician who hit the big time with a heavy metal band called Warrant.
Memory WARRANT Interview
With Vocalist Jani Lane
How are the rehearsals for the tour going?
Rehearsals went great - we are excited about this tour. We really are Whitesnake fans and will look forward to working with them.
Who is in the band now?Jani Lane/vocals, Erik Turner/ guitar, Jerry Dixon/bass, Billy Morris/Lead Guitar & Kevan Phares/ drums.
What happened to Billy?
Billy still with us. He was going to go work on a side project he has, but fortunately this tour did not cut into what he was working on. So, he is back!
Why tour right now with no new album to support?
Why not tour? We have plenty of hits that people want to hear live. Fans like to be able to sing along and go down memory lane. Actually, None of us on this tour have a new album, but we are selling out arenas!
What can fans expect live this time around? Any setlist changes?
We are trying to fit in as many songs as we can. When you are the headliner you have much more time to play all your material. We have about 50 minutes, so we have to play all the basics that the fans look to hear - Uncle Toms Cabin, Cherry Pie, Down Boys. we added Bonfire and intend to add more as we go along.
I was going to attend the Hamilton show in Aug but it just got cancelled. What happened there?
That is not something we would know about. We just get a list and follow the map. That is a question for the booking agents.
Any thoughts on a small scale Canadian tour in the near future, especially eastern Canada?
We love Canada. Hopefully we can start going up there. For now, we have the US and after this tour, some dates in Trinidad and Puerto Rico.
What would it take to get you to play live? Is it a certain amount of money or certain number of people in attendance?
We don't handle all that side of what we do. Our manager and bookers negotiate that. We would not limit why and where we play.
What is your view on Canadian reception to Warrant as compared to other places in the world?
So far we have been fortunate and receive great reception wherever we play.
Do you think the Canadian metal scene differs much from the US scene?
I think metal is pretty universal.
Do you think the image, especially the early days of matching white leather and teased hair, ever got in the way of people taking Warrant seriously as musicians?
We definitely did not choose the white leather. That was the record label - I think that we hold our own in the industry as musicians or we would not have earned platinum albums. You can't fool the fans with crap.
Does it bother you (the band) that Warrant get tagged with the label an 80's band, when in fact you were active through all of the 90's and into the new millennium?
Naw, we still tour and record and sell-out. We may not be the mainstream, but we are still selling.
I used to go there and play pool and watch the band Barrage one night I actually sang with them but I bombed. I saw Jani play one night he of course was awesome. I watched girls pick up girls it's where I found out girls like a strong approach the staff where always kind to me even if I was a 27 year old with a lot of issues
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