Austin celebration to rekindle fond memories of bygone teen club

At age 15, Barry Rush was already a seasoned musician when he got the call for a gig in the fall of 1957. The Saints, a local doo-wop group, had a booking for opening night at a club in downtown Austin, Minn.

The young guitarist had no idea he was kicking off a nearly 15-year run for a club that's still legendary in the memories of southern Minnesotans who came of age in the 1950s and '60s.

On Friday, Rush and his band, the Rush Hour, will take the stage again to headline the Tower Tribute, celebrating the 65th anniversary of the Tower, a club that was unlike just about any other place in the state.

"I'm flattered, but actually my only accomplishment is that I've grown old and I've managed to stay physically fit enough to play guitar," the 79-year-old Rush said with a laugh. "It will be a fun thing. It will bring back a lot of memories."

The Tower was created by Clarence Nybo, a regular guy who worked for the local power utility and had two young daughters. As they approached their teen years, Nybo began wondering how he could steer them to safe, fun activities.

His solution: open a club for teens in the Austin area. He rented a space on the second floor of a downtown building and the Tower opened at the end of August 1957. The stairs to the club, quickly thronged with young Austinites, were dubbed "the stairway to heaven."

"My mom and dad loved dancing; they loved music. We always had music going in the house," said his daughter, Linda Nybo Lenz, of Austin. "So it's not a surprise that when he thought of a place for kids to go, it would involve dancing and music."

It was a big risk. To open the club, Nybo used money he'd been saving to buy a house. But it paid off — if not financially, then in the satisfaction of seeing his idea succeed beyond expectations.

During its run, the Tower was unquestionably the most popular hangout in town. There were either live bands or a jukebox every night. In the beginning, the club had a full-service grill serving hamburgers, french fries and malts. That was later pared back to pop and snacks.

The club brought together Austin teens who sometimes existed in separate orbits. The Catholic kids from Pacelli Catholic School met the Protestants from Austin High, and the more affluent westsiders mingled with the working-class kids from the east.

"Your parents didn't know if you were dancing with a Catholic girl or a Jewish girl," said Bruce Folken, a 1968 Austin High grad who organized the tribute. "They just knew you were having a good time with your friends."

Folken, who now lives in Arizona, said he feels fortunate to have grown up in a town that offered such a wonderful amenity.

"There was ping pong, pinball, a soda fountain, places to hang out. Everybody just threw their coats in one big pile," he said.

Blue jeans were discouraged and kids wore their best clothes for Friday and Saturday night dances. Rules against drinking and fighting were strictly enforced, Folken said. Anyone suspected of drinking had to submit to a basic breath test: a sniff from a chaperone.

"There was probably more gum sold in Austin than in any other town," he said with a laugh.

The Tower closed in 1971, a victim of changing times. Drugs came in, and kids from the Cities who discovered the Tower proved more difficult to keep in line.

But for one night — with hopes that it will become an annual event — a generation of Austinites will recapture their youth.

"It was a really special place," Folken said.