Not really new news but it’s still sinking in…god they’ve been talking about closing CBGBs for ages but they never did. But now it’s gone.
And Hilly made his departure at about the same time…which made a certain amount of sense to me.
But how am I supposed to look NYC in the eye without CBs in it???
If they put in a Starbucks I swear to god I will burn it down (there’s already one on Haitgh Ashbury).
Can anyone supply an English translation of the OP? 
Well, CBGB is apparently some club in NYC that is “the home of underground rock”.
Not a clue who Hilly is, though.
And I don’t get the reference to Haight Ashbury. They have one of those in NYC?
Color me confused…
Roddy
Well CBGB’s closed nearly two years ago, so your hipster wannabe cred is minuscule or you’re amazing in your abilities to procrastinate. I suppose the OP accomplished something in announcing that, but I’m guessing that isn’t the point.
I suppose Starbucks can rest easy considering that John Varvatos isn’t in a the barista business, and let’s face it, Starbuck’s business reports haven’t exactly been glowing lately.
No Jean, no money!
Hilly was CBGB’s owner - he died about a year ago. CB’s was closed after an ongoing lease dispute that involved a lot of pig-headedness on both sides (as far as I can tell), but one of the major reasons that the whole thing fell apart was that Hilly was clearly in the process of dying.
I miss CB’s, too. It was one of the best places in New York for new bands - it treated them fairly AND it had a great sound system and sound/stage support. It was home base for a lot of freaks, and a lot of my friends worked there. At closing time, the strangers would be thrown out, the gates would be closed, and all the rest of us would hang out and drink free for a couple more hours. Hilly never seemed to care - he was making plenty of money off the tourists.
One of my favorite memories: I’m a goth chick by nature, but I was hanging out with some friends working at CB’s on some random night with a lot of rap bands (bronxcore? I can’t remember what they called it). The band is trying to excite the audience:
band: “Is New York in da house?”
crowd: “YEAH!”
band: “IS NEW YORK IN DA HOUSE?”
crowd: “YEAH!!!”
band: “IS NEW YORK IN DA HOUSE?”
bartender yells: “THE HOUSE IS IN NEW YORK, ASSHOLE!”
sigh.
Some interesting (and oddly beautiful) panoramic shots of the bar are here. The men’s room almost looks like it’s a Byzantine mosaic or something – believe me, a photo is the only way to appreciate it.
My band opened for The Pixies there some 22 years ago, which may have been the apogee of whatever hipster cred I wanted to claim. I wish I could honestly say I missed the place, but I don’t think I’d been in for 15 years before it closed.
We had a couple wannabe CBGBs around here, they’re closed now. Shame too, with games like Guitar Hero and Rock Band being so popular I could see a new generation of rock fans looking for live shows.