It's probably not an overestimation to say that CBGB is one of the most important music venues on the planet. And when we say 'is' we mean 'was' because CBGB died last night following a farewell set by Patti Smith.
Thanks to an argument about rising rent prices, CBGB owner Hilly Kristal lost his lease, and CBGB closed its door for the final time last night after a lifetime spent nurturing the New York punk scene and then dining off it with T-shirt sales for 20 years. But don't worry because CBGB went out in glorious fashion, plus it's only a matter of time before CBGB Las Vegas opens too, apparently.
In its heyday, CBGB was the breeding ground for an extraordinary amount of musical talent. Without CBGB, great bands like The Ramones, Talking Heads and Blondie would have had nowhere to play. But last year Hilly Kristal lost his lease to to club due to rapidly-inflating rent prices, which meant the legendary venue had to close. Obviously we weren't at last night's CBGB-closing set by Patti Smith – it would have meant missing Make Me A Supermodel on Channel Five, and we have to get our priorities straight – but this is how BBC News reported it:
Patti Smith said CBGB was more a "state of mind" than a venue and other clubs would replace it. "We can have CBGB in our hearts, but the new generation is going to have their own places to play," said the 60-year-old singer during her Sunday night gig. "They're going to find some shit hole and play in it like we did." Her set included a cover version of Do You Remember Rock N Roll Radio? by The Ramones… The club's founder and owner, Hilly Kristal, was reflective on the demise of his club. "The emotions are very mixed, you put 30 years of your life into something and it becomes your home. I mean I've probably been here more than I have in any other place for all these years. It's like all of a sudden getting kicked out of your home." Kristal now vows to take CBGB to Las Vegas.
Before it closed, CBGB had become more of a punk museum than a functioning music venue – with critics noting that people only went there to buy T-shirts anyway – so perhaps a move to Las Vegas might be for the best for CBGB. After all, if people want to learn that punk's not dead and eat something called a Blondie Burger while they watch a bunch of girls in bikinis dance in formation to Now I Wanna Sniff Some Glue, then it's the only sensible option, really.
Read more:
Legendary punk club CBGB closes – BBC
[story by Stuart Heritage]