DON'T RIP CBGB, IT'S STILL ROCKIN
By LITTLE STEVEN
August 11, 2005 -- WHEN I went to England for the first time, I took
a trip to Liverpool to see the Cavern Club. Someone had turned it
into a parking lot. As I gazed at the slabs of concrete which had
replaced the club where The Beatles were discovered, all I could
wonder was, "How stupid can people be?"
It was a big mistake then, but looking back now, it was an obvious
act of insanity. You know the Liverpool City Fathers have been
kicking themselves ever since, and the guy who knocked the club down
is probably depressed they didn't let him pave over Big Ben and the
Tower of London, too.
Sure, the town recently put a few Beatles statues up and they rebuilt
the club nearby, but there is no way they can replace the hundreds of
millions of dollars that the original club would have brought in from
tourists alone.
CBGB has debuted more famous bands than any other rock club in
history. As far as a real working venue, CBGB is the only rock 'n'
roll tourist stop in the world. No other club has that claim to fame,
so much so that the mayor of New York featured it in his TV
commercial for the 2012 Olympics.
It was Hilly Kristal's policy of only having bands that play original
music as well as his ability to nurture talent that made the club an
important incubator of bands for the music industry. CBGB is one of
the few clubs that an aspiring band does not have to pay in order to
play. Where most clubs have an over-21 policy, CBGB matinees are open
to everyone over 16, and if you bring your folks, under 16 as well.
In turn, all of those bands that have become famous through the help
of CBGB - including the Patti Smith Group, the Ramones, the Police,
Blondie, the B-52's and the Talking Heads - have sold tens of
millions of records and created thousands of jobs for the music
industry and New York City.
CBGB continues to showcase some of the best current bands, from Green
Day to the Strokes, Shooter Jennings to Mooney Suzuki, Hank Williams
III to Ted Leo & the Pharmacists.
Those like Mary Huhn who regard CBGB as simply a club whose prime has
come and gone are not looking at the big picture. It represents
rock 'n' roll, and although rock 'n' roll may never be mainstream
music again, anyone who thinks rock 'n' roll is over is as wrong as
people thinking we are going to give up on CBGB.
When I asked the Charms, a very new up-and-coming band from Boston,
to play, they jumped at the chance. Like so many young bands, they
had always dreamed of playing CBGB.
What Hilly Kristal has done for New York City and the music industry
would have gotten him knighted had he opened his club in England. The
support for Hilly and the club spans every aspect of our culture,
from the fans to the bands, the local community, historical
preservationists and everybody else I have talked to.
CBGB embodies the spirit of New York City. It is the symbol of hope
for bands all across the world. The club represents the opportunity
that, with a little talent and a lot of hard work, you can go from
nowhere to everywhere.
No restaurant, caf?, or shoe store could ever replace the value that
CBGB brings to New York City. And that value will only continue to
grow.
Just ask the guys in Liverpool.
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Last week, Post writer Mary Huhn argued that it's time to let CBGB
die. Steven Van Zandt, guitarist for the E Street Band and "Sopranos"
wiseguy, is working to save the club and wrote this rebuttal.
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