Danny Koker has a passion for rock ‘n’ roll and vintage cars. It’s time for the Las Vegas icon in those dual cultures to hand over the key to his rock club.
“Running a rock club, Bro, that takes a lot of time and a lot of work, and especially for 16 years,” Koker said in a phone chat Thursday. “So somebody else really needs to take this over and continue this awesome place.”
This awesome pillar of rock, Count’s Vamp’d Bar & Grille, is up for sale and closing this summer. The club at 6750 W. Sahara Ave. is pumping the brakes on a 16-year run June 28, with Koker’s Count 77 rock outfit headlining.
The club was listed Friday morning, with an asking price of $4.3 million. Koker is working with Chip Madsen of IS Luxury, who holds the listing.
Vamp’d is going out with heightened volume. It’s venue-closing series features Faster Pussycat on May 30, Steven Pearcy and Warren DeMartini of Ratt,on June 10, Night Ranger on June 18, Loverboy on June 27, and the Count’s 77 finale June 28. Dollar Loan Center founder and avid rock fan Chuck Brennan is presenting the series.
Koker has piloted the anti-establishment establishment with his wife, Korie, since 2009. Mötley Crüe front man Vince Neil was an original partner under the venue’s original name, Feelgood’s, until Koker took over and renamed the business.
Koker and Neil remain friends. Koker, known as “The Count,” has a lot of friends in the rock community, and from his star turn in “Counting Cars”, a spin-off of “Pawn Stars” on History Channel. The show is centered on his Kounts Customs auto restoration business in Las Vegas. Koker is also the most recent guest on “Pawn Stars” co-stars Rick Harrison and Austin “Chumlee” Russell’s “Pawn After Dark” podcast.
Koker talks of club fatigue, operating a rock venue for 16 years. But he is not retiring and will remain an entertainment figure. He has plans for a new project to be unveiled after the club shuts down.
“What this comes down to is, Danny Koker has got to focus his efforts on on some new things that he can’t talk about right now,” the rocker said with a chuckle.
Vamp’d is a 6,000-square foot music fortress that has hosted members of Pantera — led by the late Vinnie Paul — Black Sabbath, Skid Row’s Sebastian Bach, bass great Phil Soussan. Local cover bands, including Sin City Stones and Three Lock Box (the Sammy Hagar tribute), Fan Halen, and LV/DC and Pyromania have packed the place.
Vegas rock stalwart Stoney Curtis, who operates Stoney’s Rockin’ Country at Town Square and Stony’s North Forty at Santa Fe Station, is a member of Count’s 77 and a frequent figure in the club.
A favorite memory from eight years ago, an all-star band put together in haste with Kip Winger, the vastly underrated rocker and founder Winger on bass and vocals; Vinnie Appice of Black Sabbath on drums, studio great and musician Pat Thrall on guitar and Frankie Moreno on piano. This show careened for three hours. By the end, the crowd was still out the door.
Those experiences are now finite. Prior to Feelgoods, Koker remembers the space as Props Mongolian Grille. Before then, it was the Italian restaurant East Side Mario’s. Koker used to dine there before he ever imagined it would be his rock club.
“We went down there and built it ourselves, and it has that reflection of our creativity,” said Koker, readily recognizable in his black bandana, shades and leather jacket. “It has such a reflection of our creativity, but it has such a reflection of my heart and soul as far as what it is and how it’s been operated.”
The buyer can turn the club into a different venture, of course, a restaurant or a fitness center. But Koker would love to keep the rock vibe alive. Who knows, maybe his band can headline the reopening.
“My feelings inside are very torn. I truly love the place. I’m truly passionate about it,” Koker said. “I just know that as a as a businessman, I have to shift gears, so to speak. But nothing would make me happier than if someone carried it on the tradition.”
John Katsilometes’ column runs daily in the A section. Contact him at [email protected]. Follow @johnnykats on X, @JohnnyKats1 on Instagram.