There have been a number of articles on CBGB (some of which I have linked to in this blog). This is the best one -- particularly if you want to understand club culture. Developing a club that survives and becomes a cultural landmark is not easy. A number of factors are involved, which this three-part article explores.
PopMatters Music Feature | CBGB: "... Kristal not only let the bands pick the opening acts to share the bill with them, but also what songs were going to be on the jukebox and even who was collecting money at the door. The groups would even swap members or break off into new bands. A scene developed where the ‘punk’ label was slapped on it even though you’d have to search hard to find a more disparate group of bands; an amazing role-call of talent which included Television, the Patti Smith Group, the Ramones, Blondie, Talking Heads, Richard Hell and the Voidoids. Other than the success and / or recognition they achieved, what also made these groups unique were that they were enormously influential, even today. You might even call them visionaries. New York had built up a music scene that wasn’t just getting national attention but also international recognition, especially in England, whose own punk scene would have been unimaginable otherwise."
PopMatters Music Feature | Part 2: Adapting to Change: "... while CBGB’s was an undeniable part of history, it was no longer as vital as it once was to the local music scene. Simply, there wasn’t a scene there anymore and too few shows booked there drew in anyone but the rabidly faithful. To many, CBGB’s became a living relic."
PopMatters Music Feature | Part 3: Burn It Down "As such, maybe CBGB’s memory will stand as a cautionary example. It’s a reminder for the rest of the clubs to be savvy instead of too complacent or cocky—especially with ever-skyrocketing rents and an increasingly adversarial local government constantly threatening their lives. Having a website, MySpace page, 100-CD jukebox and newsletter / mailing list should be second nature by now for any club. Even along with a prosperous merchandising business, that alone wasn’t enough to keep CBGB’s going.
"As one-time CBGB’s denizen David Byrne noted, concerts are the one thing that cyberspace isn’t able to co-op (at least yet), but that doesn’t necessarily mean that fans will flock to a venue no matter how strong its rep is or how far back it goes. The Lounge/313 area was a good start but that wasn’t enough, either. You also need more outreach, not just to other music organizations but also to your own neighborhood and the larger city area including other clubs, arts organizations and civic groups for starters and to always restlessly look for and try out new opportunities and ideas, even if some of them flop. Also, in a harsh, dog-eat-dog environ like Gotham, you also have to put aside some pride and egalitarian spirit to pack in the patrons with known musical entities, at least sometimes, while preserving a unique identity if you want to stay around. Highbrow institutions from the ever-innovative BAM to the more traditional Lincoln Center know this too well and struggle with this problem every year. If smaller rock venues don’t do the same, they’ll wind up like CBGB’s, only they may not have a city out West to relocate to....
"Talk to any NYC club owner and they’ll regale you with the same problems: the dreaded cabaret laws, the housing crunch, liquor licenses, noise laws, getting visas for musicians from overseas, health care for their employees and many other considerations and headaches. No matter how many new clubs open up (and close down), the same kind of forces that helped usher CBGB’s off the local map are still in play and still threaten the vitality of the music scene in New York. There are groups like the New York Nightlife Association and a burgeoning NY Music Commission (which I’m involved in) who want the music scene to thrive and grow, but that will only work if a network of club owners, musicians, promoters, labels and fans can convince the city (not just the government but also the constituents) that it’s in everyone’s best economic, social, and cultural interest to keep Gotham a music-friendly locale."
cbgb
New York
live music
clubs
music scene
economic development
music promotion
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment