Juice's Tampere

This collection contains books from Juice Leskinen’s own home library and is open on request. There are seats for 45 people. The venue can also be used for different kinds of meetings and parties.

Juice got interested in Tampella area when it started its transformation from an industrial location into a residential neighborhood. Juice decided to buy an apartment at Turpiinikatu 2 because he was born by the river Jukajoki in Juankoski and felt that the running water was the most important element of nature for him.

In 1970, Juice started studying at the language institute of Tampere, operating in a former business college. Juice was doing well with English as his major but never graduated. This was because he didn’t participate enough in the studies of his minor subject, German. Creating lyrics and music were already more important and Juice was starting his musical career by playing at student parties. Juice and Vesa Majanen (who also studied at the language institute) created the first Finnish rock opera called Godmother (Kummitäti).

The original members of the band Coitus Int were students who couldn’t afford proper band equipment. Therefore it was rented and borrowed from the music instrument shop Tampereen Musiikki. The shop owner Mika Sundqvist was also a musician, who later became a studio owner. In his MSL-studio Juice recorded most of his music.

Coitus Int’s original members performed at first for their fellow students. The band faced a wider audience for the first time at the Student Union House of Tampere in spring 1973.

When Juice moved to Tampere, Tillikka had already for years been a popular restaurant for students and artists. Juice socialized there mostly with musicians and sometimes with other artists too.

The students Juice Leskinen, Mikko Alatalo, Harri Rinne and Max Möller started to practice playing music together in the early 1970’s in Harri Rinne’s apartment. Later the group was joined by Pentti Penninkilampi who worked at the Valmet factory. Unfortunately, the apartment house at Otavalankatu 8 has been demolished.

The restaurant Leena and Pekka was a meeting place for local musicians and also a bus station for bands. For years, Juice’s Grand Slam, Eppu Normaali, Popeda, Ilona and later on Yö started their gig journeys from the front of this restaurant, nicknamed the “lounge bar” by musicians. Juice was one of the lounge bar’s most loyal customers. In this same location, you will now find Scandic Tampere City’s restaurant Be Calm & Buzz On.

Juice and his friends spoke the management of Tampere Hall into an exciting project: the new concert and congress center was to be completed by the late summer 1990, but Juice threw his 40th anniversary concert there already on 19.2.1990. Juice’s last big concert also took place at Tampere Hall on 13.11.2004. After that, he was playing only at clubs and other small gigs.

Juice has been buried to Kalevankangas cemetery. His grave is near the main gate and the graves of the cultural icons Väinö Linna and Veikko Sinisalo. Juice’s headstone was designed by sculptor Timo Hannunen.