Fillmore West — Bill Graham's San Francisco, California

The Fillmore West at the intersection of South Van Ness Avenue and Market Street was the San Francisco counterpart to Bill Graham's Fillmore East in New York — together the two most important rock concert venues of the late 1960s. The Fillmore West (originally the Carousel Ballroom, taken over by Graham in 1968) hosted the Grateful Dead, Jefferson Airplane, Janis Joplin, Cream, Jimi Hendrix, and virtually every significant act of the San Francisco psychedelic scene. Graham's double and triple bills — where audiences might see three major acts in a single evening for a few dollars — defined the era's concert culture.

Bill Graham (born Wulf Wolodia Grajonca in Berlin in 1931, a Holocaust survivor) was the most important concert promoter in rock history. His insistence on professional production values, fair dealing with artists, and respect for audiences transformed live rock from chaotic happenings into properly staged events. The Fillmore West shows featured the Joshua Light Show's liquid projections, printed poster art by Wes Wilson and Stanley Mouse that became iconic, and a barrel of free apples at the door. Graham closed both Fillmore venues in 1971.

The original Fillmore West building at 10 South Van Ness (formerly the Carousel Ballroom) has been through various uses since Graham's tenure. The original Fillmore Auditorium at 1805 Geary Boulevard — where Graham first began promoting concerts in 1965 — continues to operate as a concert venue and is the more famous of the two locations. Both sites are essential to the history of San Francisco rock.