Mojo - The Music Magazine

New York rocker-turned-troubadour Jesse Malin defends his couturier pal John Varvatos, the new tenant of what was once legendary Bowery dive, CBGB’s…

As the sun goes down in New York City on one of the first days of Spring, rock’n’rollers, punks and fashionistas gather outside 315 Bowery – once the home of legendary underground rock‘n’roll club CBGB’s. The venue closed two years ago and remained vacant until the landlords found a tenant up to the challenge of harnessing the spirit of the last 30 years. Tonight the building reopens in a manner appropriate with the spirit of the place: with a rock’n’roll show starring some of the greats of the CBGB pantheon.

Gentrification, a word that I thought only applied to my fair city, has become a worldwide infection. So when fashion designer John Varvatos took over the space with the aim of opening one of his many clothing stores, a lot of people were very sceptical. I would have been one of them if I didn't know John. He grew up in Detroit and remembers being blown away by the MC5, The Stooges and Alice Cooper. He’s someone who wears his rock’n’roll heart proudly on his sleeve. He's put Ryan Adams, Joe Perry, Iggy Pop, Alice Cooper, Cheap Trick and many others in his gritty black-and-white, Danny Clinch-photographed ad campaigns.

He's presented rock’n’roll shows in his stores starring the likes of Ian Hunter, Jackson Browne, Wayne Kramer and myself, donating the proceeds to various charities like VH1’s Save the Music Campaign - a program that aims to put instruments in the hands of NY students across the city. I wish I’d had this program when I was growing up instead of the 40-ounce beer in the brown paper bag or an offer to turn a trick as a male prostitute.

It would be hard for anybody to take over the CBGB's space without criticism, and frankly, it could have been a Starbucks or a bank. But John left the walls still covered with fliers, graffiti and historical slime. He added posters of many of the artists that played there and he sells vinyl, turntables, punk rock books and even has an Elton John Captain Fantastic pinball machine amongst his stylish suits, shirts and revamped Converse Chuck Taylors. He keeps a stage and band equipment set up at all times and plans to launch a radio station. Yeah, it's not CBGB's, and hey, we probably lost a lot the gentrification war in the '90s to Giuliani's chain store Disney makeover, but the history of this place remains of vital importance to me and my friends.

Opening the show were two young and super-promising bands: the 12-year-olds from Brooklyn, Care Bears On Fire, and NY City's new downtown darlings The Pop Girls Etc. Joining them on the bill at my high school piss-house alma mater location was the glam rock’n’roll hero and poet Ian Hunter. Ian got up with the Loser's Lounge house band led by super New York keyboardist Joe McGinty, and blasted through Once Bitten, Twice Shy, Central Park N’ West (one of my favourites from his Mick Ronson days), Roll Away The Stone, and of course, the Bowie-penned Hunter signature tune, All The Young Dudes. Ian has power and passion. He's still skinny and is one of the nicest, down-to-earth men of rock royalty you will meet. He kicked the crowd’s ass and they loved it.

Joan Jett then slammed through Bad Reputation. Ronnie Spector sang a tear-jerking version of Johnny Thunders’ You Can't Put Your Arms Around A Memory and The Ronettes’ classic Be My Baby. Ramones producer Daniel Ray banged away on guitars and Bruce Springsteen's bass player Jeremy Chatzy built a wall of sound. Cheetah Chrome of legendary punk outfit the Dead Boys – the quintessential CBGB's house band, managed by the late Hilly Crystal – played Sonic Reducer with Dictator and Satellite DJ Handsome Dick Manitoba. Tom Morello joined Cypress Hill. Joseph Arthur played a beautiful In The Sun and Perry Farrell took the stage to perform an earthquaking version of Mountain Song (with Slash on lead guitar!).

Along with Joseph, The Hold Steady are one of my new favourite bands. By the time they plugged in, I was pretty bombed on the free tequila and sweaty from playing a set with my old band from the '90s, D-Generation. We hadn’t played together for 10 years. It was a magical, happy, sad and “I guess we've changed a lot but some things are still exactly the same fuckin' way” reunion. Wayne Kramer then stepped up to the plate and delivered a scorching version of Kick Out The Jams. Alan Vega gave us a wonderfully trippy art-soul version of ? & The Mysterians’ 96 Tears, while Jerry Cantrell tore into Thin Lizzy's Jail Break. Later in the evening a pretty English woman kissed me on the cheek. As photographer Bob Gruen shot pictures of us, I asked her who she was: “Patti Boyd,” she replied.

It seemed like nothing could stop a night like this. It’s what I imagined the rock’n’roll revues of the ’50s and ’60s were like – great acts slamming out just two or three of their best tunes – and as the night drew to a close, we all ended up at a new clubhouse, The Bowery Electric, one block away on Joey Ramone Place.

I still miss CBGB's, Joey Ramone and sometimes I even miss New York City. But CBGB lives, in a way, and we have John Varvatos to thank for that.

Jesse Malin
2008

Jesse is currently touring the UK and plays Manchester Academy 3 on Wednesday (May 13) and London's ULU on Thursday (May 15)

For more information, head over to www.myspace.com/jessemalin