Hilly Kristal had nearly as much influence on the American music scene as some of the musicians who graced his famous stage at CBGB. By simply giving a place for NYC area garage and early punk bands like the Ramones, Television, Blondie and the Talking Heads a place to play and grow, Kristal left an indelible mark that spread way beyond those legendary walls on Bowery Street. With his passing, those early bands are remembering the man who gave them so much help in launching their careers.

Debbie Harry issued this statement: "I am very sorry that Hilly is gone. He was a big help to Blondie and to the New York music scene for many years. His club CBGB’s has become a part of New York lore and Rock n’ Roll history." Marky Ramone spent time last night on Sirius radio honoring Kristal with an hour long tribute and issued this statement recognizing Kristal's critical roll in the careers of so many bands: "Hilly was an integral part of the punk scene from 1974 until his death. He was always supportive of the genre and of bands like the Ramones, Blondie, Talking Heads, and Richard Hell and Voidoids and will hold a prominent place in music history. In an era when disco was the mainstream, Hilly took a chance and gambled. The gamble paid off for both him and for us. We are all grateful to him and will miss him."

Labels: CBGB

Sirius Satellite Radio (NASDAQ: SIRI) will broadcast the last NYC hurrah for CBGSs, featuring the legednary Patti Smith, on Sunday, October 15 starting at 9pm EST. Tickets for the final show reportedly sold out in less than 10 minutes.

Smith, who first played CBGB in February 1975 says, "Although we mourn the closing of CBGB, we should remember CBGB, not merely as a place. It is a state of mind."

CBGB plans to open at a new location in Las Vegas. I imagine that Sin City will embrace the club, particulary since Vegas has become even more of a playground for young stars with its proximity to Los Angeles.

Labels: CBGB

In announcing the close of CBGB, Hilly Kristal intimated that he would attempt to make CBGB's final shows worthy of the club's storied history. Unlike many boasts, this one seems to have some merit. With Fishbone (September 28) and Sick Of It All (October 8) already on the schedule, the influential rasta-punk band Bad Brains will reunite for a pair of performances at the club on October 9 and October 10. The reformed band will include all the original members, including lead singer H.R.

In addition to Bad Brains, it appears that Patti Smith will also return to the Lower East Side on October 15. Fresh off her stint raising eyebrows at the Lollapalooza kiddie stage, the outspoken singer will surely be at home at CBGB. Unless further dates are announced, Smith's "Ides of October" show will be the last to take place at the iconic punk rock oasis.

Labels: CBGB

After months of legal wrangling and bitter negotiations, CBGB will finally be closing their doors at the end of September. The club plans to announce their final performances in the near future and speculation is that many artists who helped build the club's reputation will return to close the place in style. While fun to bandy about names, the same proclamation was made during last summer's "Save CBGB" promotion with Living Colour being the only notable name to lend aid to the cause.

Owner Hilly Kristal plans to reopen CBGB in Las Vegas in 2008. "I am taking the bars with me, I am taking the stage. I'm taking the urinal that Joey [Ramone] pissed in with me. I'm going to take a lot of things, anything that makes this place CBGB."

Labels: CBGB, Living Colour

By: David Schultz
Live shot photos via LivingColor.com & Flickr.

As a member of the hard-rocking, socio-politically conscious Living Colour, Vernon Reid solidified his position as one of rock and roll's most inventive and intriguing lead guitarists. In the late eighties, Reid's transcendent guitar solo from "Cult Of Personality" emanated from classic rock radio, top 40 radio and MTV. Sadly, bright stars burn fiercely; Living Colour split up in the early nineties, their vigilantly defiant voice of conscience silent until reforming in the summer of 2001.

In the aftermath of Living Colour's split, Reid released his first solo album Mistaken Identity in 1996 with the members of Masque. For the follow-up, the 2004 Known Unknown, Masque received equal billing. Taking less time to release their next album, Vernon Reid and Masque's Other True Self hits stores April 18. While awaiting the release of his new album, Reid graciously invited Earvolution into his New York City home to discuss Other True Self, Masque and the unavoidable topic of Living Colour.

Masque grew out of longtime relationships between Reid, bassist Hank Schroy and keyboardist Leon Gruenbaum. Schroy came to Masque from the alternative rock band No Walls and Gruenbaum "came from outer space by way of Brookline, Massachusetts." With a chuckle, Reid describes meeting Gruenbaum at one of his photo exhibitions where the keyboardist gave him a tape that floored the seemingly unflappable guitarist. "He's a brilliant keyboard player as well as being an inventor, incredibly knowledgeable in all types of music," says Reid of Gruenbaum. "Genius is a word that gets thrown around, but he truly is that." The term "genius" has often been applied to Reid, but when asked if he feels like one, he quickly dismissed the suggestion, succinctly and modestly responding, "Nope. I am an ongoing and developing experience."

With Masque, Reid explores different and varying musical styles. While Living Colour in no way hid Reid's guitar virtuosity, Masque gives Reid the opportunity to show off his skills in genres outside of his other band's hard rock bailiwick. On Other True Self, Reid offers a collection of instrumentals ranging from the Caribbean flavored reggae of "Flatbush And Church Revisited," the jazz, funk, metal fusion of "Game Is Rigged," a grandiose cover of Depeche Mode's "Enjoy The Silence" and an inspired reworking of Radiohead's "National Anthem." Don McKenzie, a member of the Mistaken Identity touring band, replaces Marlon Browden on drums for the new album. "Don brings something new, he's very hard-hitting," explains Reid. "Whereas Marlon has a very different style, intense, a very jazz, improvised type of thing, Don has a more funk and pocket type background."

Reid's solo projects have always dealt with the concept of identity and, as the name would lead you to believe, Other True Self continues Reid's exploration. The new album's ideological origins stem from discussions Reid had with Cream bassist Jack Bruce about their not-so-different backgrounds. Like Reid, Bruce has been involved in numerous projects. "We've lived so many lives inside of our lives," Bruce told Reid. The notion of evolving persona and psyche has always been inextricably entwined with Reid's solo work. "The idea of all these records is that by looking at identity, looking at who it is that's addressing you now, what is 'I'?" explains Reid. "What does that mean? What does it mean to be a guitarist of a certain style? What does it mean to be of a certain ethnic group? What does it mean to be an American? What does it mean to be an American in the world now?"

Bringing the analysis closer to home, Reid looks at his albums as a snapshot of where he's at now. With respect to the idea of having separate selves, Reid takes an existential view. "It's like another side of me, the same me but a different side," he says. "Mistaken Identity was so much about, there's the Living Colour thing, there's Vernon Reid and all of that and then there's this kind of darkie figurine and what does the darkie figurine have to do with Vernon Reid inside of Living Colour and outside of Living Colour," he explains. "It purports to be me and is supposed to represent me," Reid says of Mistaken Identity's cover image. "Examining what [the figurine actually represents], that's an ongoing fascination." Broadening the metaphor further, Reid concludes that, "In a way, [his Masque albums and solo projects] are all different aspects of a central question, who is this and why does he have a guitar around his neck."

Reid's intrigued by the contrast between the identity you feel for yourself and the identity projected onto you by others, a theme that runs beyond the music and into Other True Self's cover art, especially the wild helmet/mask sported by Reid. Instead of seeing the mask as an instrument of concealment, Reid sees it as a way to disclose a more complex nature. "The idea of the mask as revealing and bringing forth an aspect of one's nature," interests Reid. Enjoying the juxtaposition of wearing a suit while wearing a primitive headdress and holding a Tony Fitzpatrick painted guitar, Reid explicates that, "Masking hides the self but it also projects another true self."

While Reid's latest album reflects a distinct side of his personality, he eschews simplifying identity into a dichotomy. "Don't limit it to a duality," Reid answers deliberately. "It's like a kind of circle. I came into this really into Santana and Jimi Hendrix, then I got into [jazz guitarist] John McLaughlin and underneath all that was the blues thing, Freddie King, B.B. King. From there to The Decoding Society and Ronald Shannon Jackson, which went 'out there' into the so called avant-garde." Reid speaks reverentially about the avant-garde. "You have to have those extreme elements in music. From the avant-garde, you get to the mainstream. Working with Jackson, meeting Ornette Coleman and even what happened with Living Colour," has brought Reid to the place he is today. "You don’t get to the center without going onto the edge." Completing the circle, Reid defines his new album within that context. "Other True Self is the space between the very extreme avant-garde and the mainstream."

Other True Self succeeds by avoiding the pitfalls of becoming mired in its own heaviness, steering well clear of the stereotypical guitar histrionics that habitually weigh down full-length rock instrumental albums. Reid accomplishes the task by keeping the mix of songs fresh. "The sequence of the album is very much the journey," proclaims Reid. The opening two songs, "Game Is Rigged" and "National Anthem," comprise a gripping opening couplet. "I like how they came across, how they go from one to the other," Reid says with pride. "Game Is Rigged" seamlessly moves through funk, jazz, blues and a little metal, with Reid's guitar skating on the surface of Masque's skillful backing. The Radiohead cover may seem an odd choice, but the replacement of Thom Yorke's ethereal, ghostly voice with Reid's soulful guitar succeeds on a grand scale. "We got the bass sound just right," Reid says, unsurprisingly agreeing with the assessment. "After Soundgarden (Reid's favorite Living Colour contemporaries) broke up, I was devastated. I got a taste of what it was like for fans of Living Colour to hear that Living Colour broke up. Radiohead was one of the bands that made rock fascinating again." Plus, the title alone peaked Reid's interest as a provocateur. "You can't not think about 'The Star Spangled Banner' and I like the tension of thinking about 'The Star Spangled Banner' but playing the Radiohead tune."

"Flatbush And Church Revisited" is a reggae-tinged soundtrack for the Brooklyn intersection frequented by those who trace their ancestry to the Caribbean. Through "Flatbush," Reid best describes his affinity for instrumentals. "Instrumental music can serve to say things you can't say with lyrics but it can also serve as a soundtrack for a very particular place in time," describes Reid. "It can be a soundtrack for an emotion as well as a physical place or a mental landscape. That's how I relate to instrumental music." The song also has a small sentimental attachment for Reid as his parents are from the Caribbean, thus revealing yet another side of the guitarist, but possibly not a significant one. "I don't identify as Caribbean. I guess I do inasmuch as I'm an African-Caribbean American, but I grew up in New York. I grew up in America. The only thing I know is America, I identify as American, whatever that means," Reid says with a laugh.

The pounding beat of "Whiteface" and the bouncing "Mind Of My Mind" overlaps a little with Reid's Living Colour work, but on the whole Other True Self is as much a separate project as Will Calhoun's jazz recordings. Gruenbaum injects a little Emerson, Lake & Palmer keyboard action into "Afrerika" and the interplay between Reid's guitar and Gruenbaum's Hammond organ turn Depeche Mode's 1990 hit "Enjoy The Silence" into a laid back, elegiac anthem. "Prof. Bebey" has the joyful pacing of a medieval folk tune and concludes the album with a pleasant reverie. Known for roaring guitar solos, "Prof. Bebey" has given Reid the impetus to further exploring the potential of acoustic music. "'Prof. Bebey' was actually a cue for the film, The 12 Disciples of Nelson Mandela," Reid explains. "I kept thinking about it and recorded it with the band and it came out really well. Where the acoustic melds with the electronics," Reid says and then pauses. "I'm not sure what that's going to mean, but it's something I'm interested in."

Masque has worked out the new material on stage in Europe and Reid seemed pleased with the development. "'Game Is Rigged' really kind of grew and changes from day to day. The Radiohead and Depeche Mode songs also went over well. Mistaken Identity's 'CP Time' and Known Unknown's 'The Slouch' were also well received." There will always be those amongst Masque's audience that want to see Reid bust out a Living Colour tune but they have faded into the background over time. Reid's not bothered by those people who call for "Cult Of Personality" or their other favorite Living Colour songs. "It's gratifying to have people that have been with it since the first record." While no Living Colour covers have made their way into Masque's set, Reid's considering incorporating a song or two, thinking Vivid's "Broken Hearts" would work well. He also would like to work in a Talking Heads Fear Of Music track into the set, leaning towards "Mind."

Not one to suffer fools lightly; there is nothing frivolous about Reid. Don't take that to mean he's without humor as Reid has a very witty, amiable way about him. Rather, Reid brings a hyperactive intellect to all his pursuits. Reid can and will expound on sports, politics and especially music, offering perspectives from a unique and informed point of view. It's Reid's interpretation of the world around him that helped fuel Living Colour's success. In fact, whether Living Colour has more to say is the quandary the band presently faces. "Now I'm at a place, is this going to be an evolving thing, is this stuck in time or are we just playing the songs that everyone knows. Is it ongoing?" Reid says of Living Colour's future. "At what point do we all make that happen, and that's really a question for the band right now."



Reid was not hesitant to discuss his former band, although conceding that he was not always so forthcoming. "There's a time period in my life that if you brought up Living Colour, I would have been, next question." Reid then became momentarily pensive. "It happens, you're so close. It's funny about being intimate with people and close to them, it's weird. The disappointment is that much stronger." When asked if the true story of Living Colour's split has ever been told, Reid grinned and with a playful laugh said, "I don't think the real story's ever been told and I ain't going to tell it now." After pausing for a moment, Reid implies that there's no simple answer to that question, saying that there were many different aspects to Living Colour's breakup. "One thing I will say, we probably needed to have a serious cooling off period after [original bassist] Muzz [Skillings] left the band. Having said that, I'm really happy that Doug joined the band and all those other things you can speculate on."

Living Colour has never been shy to lend their voice or time to a cause they feel worthy. Last summer, Living Colour returned to CBGB to play a benefit show in support of the legendary punk-rock club's fight with its landlord to remain in its iconic East Village home. Reid has fond memories for CBGB and its owner Hilly Kristal and regrets the club becoming a casualty to the ever-changing New York landscape. "It's sad," Reid says of the development of the East Village. "It's turning into a miniature midtown. Low high rises all over the place. I hate the fact that it's become a scrubbed up shadow of itself. No one wants to deal with crime and unsavory elements but New York City used to have a real edge. The meat packing district has become a super-expensive, high fashion, exclusive club place and that's what happening to the East Village, it's sad."

Reid remains non-committal as to what should happen to CBGB when its lease expires later this year. "It's funny because some people are very nostalgic of CBGB," says Reid, noting the varying range of opinions on the proper course of action for the club's future. "Other people had a bad time because they didn't become famous and are very negative. Hilly gave me a fair shake. If he wants to cash out; I think he should do whatever he wants to do with it." While taking no exception with whatever Kristal eventually decides to do with his club, Reid takes issue with the circumstances that have brought the situation to bear. "CBGB should have been landmarked." Noting the similarities between CBGB's fight and the battle to save the Electric Ladyland studios, Reid posits, "On a certain level, real estate is about hubris and ego. It's about 'I can do this because I can.' It really speaks to the ferocity of the great game of New York real estate, the blood sport of it. Another generation is going to come along and no one's going to understand what it is until it's taken away from them." Reid's last thought is lyrically elegant. "You don't miss your water 'til the well runs dry."

At their CBGB concert, "Open Letter (To A Landlord)" took on added meaning and Reid compared that performance to Living Colour's cover of Bruce Springsteen's controversial "American Skin (41 Shots)" at Central Park's Summerstage in the summer of 2001, shortly after the band reformed. "We had been working up to doing '41 Shots' in Central Park and once we did it there, we didn't need to do the song again," said Reid. "The story arc of that song and Amadou Diallo was complete and to repeat the story doesn't do anything. Some things are funny that way, some things need closure. The CBGB thing, I was surprised at the people who didn't show up and didn't want to go back, but I understand that."

For many, the Central Park show marked Living Colour's reunion, even though they had played some live shows in preparation for the free concert. While fans flocked to Central Park to see Living Colour again, Reid had mixed feelings about the way Living Colour returned. "I would have liked to get together, play and write new songs," he explains. However, never one to shy from a potentially controversial position, Reid and Living Colour felt once more that they had something to say. "One thing that mattered to me was '41 Shots.' The rest of that show felt like we were playing a weird kind ofbarbecuee or weird block party, just very weird. '41 Shots' was the moment in that show where the actual Living Colour, the Living Colour that was vital, the Living Colour that meant something, actually did something."

Shortly after Living Colour's return, New York City was beset by the September 11th terrorist attacks that scarred a whole generation of New Yorkers and Americans. "I don't know if the band would have continued without September 11," explained Reid. "We're a New York band and September 11 was a moment and a thing that really brought that into focus. We'd been working on songs; 'A ? Of When' was written before the attacks but took on more meaning afterwards," says Reid before concisely summing up their return. "We still had something to say."

Living Colour returned to a different landscape that greeted them upon their late eighties debut. Reid realizes the public's reaction to Living Colour, a black band playing rock and roll, would differ if they came along today. "The novelty of being black would be less a part of the story," reasons Reid. "After Living Colour there has been Rage Against The Machine, the band that came after us that stylistically extended the boundaries, there are mixed-race bands like the Dave Matthews Band and Sevendust. Things have evolved and Living Colour was part of that reintegration and re-evolution." Reid's modest about Living Colour's role in changing people's perceptions, stressing that they made it more possible for these bands to gain acceptance but that "everyone has to stand or fall on their music. I'm not going to take credit for other people's music," he states firmly. "Lenny Kravitz became a bona-fide rock star without anyone saying 'oh he's black.' Before us it was Prince, before that Bad Brains, even as far back as The Isley Brothers."

Reid comfortably looks back on the past, but isn't content to reside there. "I'm glad that Living Colour affected the landscape of rock and roll," he says proudly. "My main concern now is whether the story is ongoing or is the story complete. What is it that we’re talking about now? What do we as, a collective, have to bring to it? What's the chapter that's going to be written next? It's an open question." However, Reid will never shy away from playing the songs that earned Living Colour legions of loyal fans that still come to see the band whenever and wherever they play. "The sentiment feels dated but for the most part when we get out of the way of the music, it's pretty fun." As to whether he will ever grow tired of playing "Cult Of Personality," Reid answers reflectively. "Has Santana ever played a show without playing 'Black Magic Woman?' It would be weird for him to get to the point where he could do a show and not play it; you would realize that a whole generation has passed out of his audience."

In discussing whether Living Colour bassist Doug Wimbish brings out anything extra from Reid ("Doug's a bad motherfucker isn't he?" Reid says with a laugh and an impish grin), you learn that Reid is very self aware of the reasons for his, and Living Colour's success. After joking that when Wimbish gets going, "I just try and stay out of the way," Reid gives a fascinating dissertation on making great rock and roll. "It's about getting out of the way of the music," he explains. "When you see a bad Living Colour show you see four guys not agreeing, colliding into one another, scrabbling for their space. When you see a great Living Colour show, the songs play themselves. The music has to play the musician."

Reid then brings up King Crimson guitarist Robert Fripp and his theory of the totality of the experience. "Rock audiences are attuned to when things are real and when things are fake. They know when a real moment's happening or when a real moment's not happening. I became fascinated with the idea that people can tell when you're playing well. They don't know scales, they don't know music theory, but they will know when you’re not playing well. If you play for musicians, half of them don't know either. It's interesting the way people respond to certain things, if someone does a flashy thing that's actually not that deep musically, people respond to it because he did a flashy thing. But it's real interesting when they respond to something really edgy, really risk-taking because they get it, they hear it."

Once again, bringing the general around to the specific, Reid explains how this works for him. "Getting out of the way of yourself, getting out of the way of what you want [the music] to be and actually being and doing what [the music] is. It can be very difficult," he says deliberately. "It's a lot easier to get in the way than to get out of the way." Reid continues, "I know for myself, when I want want want, I get into trouble. I want to be cool. I want you to like me. I want you to like this song. I want you to buy the record. I want. I want. I want. The things that I want are barriers, which is weird, because you have to have desire on a certain level and you have to execute. Really being who you are at the moment and playing the music to the best of your ability without an expectation of reward. I'm going to play this thing and you're going to love it," he reveals. "That's what works for me."

Labels: CBGB, Living Colour, Masque, Vernon Reid

A civil court judge ruled Wednesday that the landmark punk club CBGB can't be evicted from its Bowery location, saying it shouldn't be punished for not noticing it owed its landlord money.

The ruling was a victory for the club where groups like the Ramones and Blondie defined the punk scene in the 1970s, but CBGB's future is still uncertain.

Its lease with the Bowery Residents' Committee expires on Aug. 31, and a renewal remains up in the air.

The executive director of the Bowery Residents' Committee, Muzzy Rosenblatt, said he had not seen the ruling so he could not comment on it.

"All we're looking for is a responsible tenant," he said of his group, which provides shelter for homeless people in the building that houses the club.

The dispute involved about $100,000 in rent increases, interest and fees. The club says the increases went unpaid for four years because of a bookkeeping mix-up. CBGB's said it wasn't billed for the increases, but Rosenblatt said the increases were clearly stated in the lease. CBGB's rent is $19,000 a month.

In her ruling, Judge Joan Kenney praised the club's impact on the neighborhood, which she said was plagued by "destitution, degradation and substance abuse" when the club opened in 1973.

"CBGB has proven itself worthy of being recognized as a landmark — a rare achievement for any commercial tenant in the ever diverse and competitive real estate market of New York City," she wrote in the ruling, a copy of which was provided to The Associated Press by the Save CBGB's Coalition.

"It would be unconscionable for this court to allow petitioner to proceed with its intent to evict CBGB ... because it failed to notice that monies were outstanding for approximately four years," the judge wrote.

As part of its proposal for a new lease, CBGB's has said it would find a third-party guarantor and would raise money for the committee every year with benefit concerts.

Labels: CBGB

The Dead Boys, Gorilla Biscuits, Living Colour and other top acts will play benefit shows in August at the legendary rock club. CBGBs is working to build momentum and support for renewing their lease by hosting a month long series of benefit concerts for their "Save CBGB" campaign.

After 31 years, CBGB is struggling to get their landlord the Bowery Residence Committee, to renew their 12 year lease which expires August 31st 2005. The Bowery Residents' Committee sent a letter to CBGBs cutting off negotiations in May and has listed the property on the Real Estate MLS for anyone else who wishes to rent 313 and 315 Bowery. (maybe some bands with money should get together and rent it!)

The goal of these concerts is to help generate support and momentum for a quick and fair resolution for a renewed lease. All funds raised at these concerts will be used to Save CBGBs or donated to the BRC to keep fighting for the homeless upon CBGBs receiving a renewed lease.

The concerts will be a mix of old and new bands from many genres of the underground. Everything from reuniting 70s punk legends the Dead Boys to modern punk bands Against Me, and Thursday will be lending their support to Save CBGBs. Other acts include: Living Colour, Gorilla Biscuits, Sick of it All, Adrenalin OD, The Liars, Channel 3, Today Is The Day, Circle of Dead Children, Rana, Circle Jerks, and music legend Warren Haynes with Gov't Mule. English punk bands Peter and the Test Tube Babies, Anti-Nowhere League, Sham 69 and Conflict will all be coming to the US just for these special benefits. More bands are expected to be announced soon.

The organizers say that donations to Save CBGB.org will be used to promote saving CBGBs staying at 315 Bowery and once a lease has been secured all proceeds will be donated to help the homeless.

Labels: CBGB

What do Jonathan Demme, Patti Smith and Lenny Kaye, Juliette Lewis, Cyndi Lauper, Tommy Ramone, Charlotte Lesher (mother of the late Joey Ramone), Arturo Vega (artistic director for the Ramones), Chris Frantz and Tina Weymouth of Talking Heads, Richard Lloyd of Television, Little Steven, Legs McNeill, Richard Hell, Fab 5 Freddy, Seymour Stein of Sire Records, Cheetah Chrome of the Dead Boys, Bob Gruen, the Bullys, Richard H.D. Manitoba, Dennis McNamara, Daniel Wolff, John Holstrom of Punk Magazine, John Foxworthy of Garage Radio, cultural sociologist Dr. Donna Gaines, Rockefeller University Professor Dr. Sanford Simon, an entrepreneur and survivor of spina bifida, and a teacher in Honolulu all have in common?

They are supporting efforts currently underway to help CBGB & OMFUG stay on the Bowery and are backing a campaign to preserve the club's legacy with an official New York City landmark designation for 313-315 Bowery. The club currently faces a rent dispute and lease expiration on August 31, 2005.

"CBGB is a treasure of New York culture," says Tommy Ramone, "It was the original magnet that drew people from every corner of America to come to New York and participate in its rebirth."

And, in a statement to Project Save CBGB, Seymour Stein of Sire Records said, "At all costs, CBGB's must be preserved. It is more than a landmark. CBGB is an international treasure!"

CBGB's, launching bands since 1973, receives on average about 1,500 visitors a week who do not necessarily attend its shows but who just want to step inside and take a look.

"With daily visitors from Japan, Argentina, Norway, to New Zealand among other countries, CBGB functions as an historic destination in New York as much as does the Dakota Building," says Athena of Project Save CBGB.

Widely acknowledged by music critics as the birthplace of the Punk and Underground Rock movement, CBGB's is also credited with launching the careers of some of the most important artists in musical history - including The Ramones, Talking Heads, Patti Smith Group, Television, and Blondie. More recently, CBGB's has become a shrine to punk's departed music heroes - the club resides adjacent to the street corner designated by the City of New York as Joey Ramone Place.

"Project Save CBGB" was organized with the intention to keep CBGB's on the Bowery, and to preserve it for future generations. We invite you to join us in requesting landmark designation for 313-315 Bowery, under the guidelines established by the New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission.

Labels: CBGB