 | Disappearing PlacesAn archive and collective map of places that no longer exist, at least not as they once did. |
CBGB & New York's Bowery
Posted On Monday March 26, 2007 By Marianne
I don’t have any photos of CBGB’s. I guess I thought it would be around forever and so I never took one. It once appeared in a comic about my life, so that’s the image I have here.
I moved to New York in 1982 and one of the first shows I went to was The Ramones at CBGB’s. I love saying that. I was 17 and just stood staring at Joey completely entranced. Of course, at that point the heyday of that scene was already over. The Mudd Club was closing. The Peppermint Lounge had moved. It was over for the originals. But CBGB’s just kept going. I remember seeing The Swans there at 3 a.m. I remember Sunday hardcore matinees. I remember wasting time in between shows by walking around the block and maybe getting pierogi at Kiev.
I was sad when CB’s finally shut down, even though the last time I had been there was probably a good 13 years earlier. I remember a friend in the mid-90’s telling me he went to a show at CB’s and looked around. All the young cool people were wearing plaid and all the old creepy guys were wearing black leather. He looked down and he was wearing black leather, so he ran home to change. I guess at a certain point places become the home for the generation that follows you.
Now I walk down Bowery and it’s filled with new luxury buildings. I don’t recognize it, and I don’t remember what had been there before. But, if I close my eyes, I can still see Joey.
Tags: bowery, cbgb, manhattan, nyc, punk, ramones