Road Trip! The Empire State, Part 3: This Ain't No Mudd Club

Hey there, how was your weekend?  Well rested?  Today's experiment with the kids involves oxidization and we're using apples and Fruit Fresh (and killing two birds with one stone and calling it snack) in case you're interested.  Ready to head out again?

As the title says, this ain't no Mudd Club but we are stopping at CBGB and we'll have to set the wayback machine for it.  CBGB actually stands for Country, Blue Grass and Blues so of course it's the place where The Ramones got their start.  From 1973 till it closed in 2006 it was the center of the hardcore punk scene.  Of course we're going to start off with my favorite Ramones song, "Sheena Is A Punk Rocker."  Yes, Joey, New York City really does have it all.

Blondie played CBGB a lot, too, and man when I was in junior high school this was one of the weirdest songs I'd ever heard.  Who the heck was Fab Five Freddie?  And that DJ was pretty cute.  As it turned out the DJ was artist Jean-Micheal Basquiat and Fab Five Freddie was strutting around in a top hat and was supposed to be an alien.  I don't think people realize now how truly groundbreaking this was in 1981.

The final artist to play CBGB on it's very last night was Patti Smith.  In the late 70s she co-wrote "Because the Night" with Bruce Springsteen.  This is one of my very favorite songs ever.

Cafe Wha? is still where it's been since the 50s.  While it's most closely associated with the folk scene -- Dylan and Peter, Paul and Mary played there -- it wasn't exclusively a folkie haunt.  Kool and the Gang?  Why not?  "Summer Madness" is an awesome song.

The only cite I can find for the Velvet Underground's having played at Cafe Wha? is on wikipedia but you know what?  I'm going with it.  The coolest band ever and "Sweet Jane" is another favorite. 

All right, tomorrow we're going to hear some jazz.  Have a great day, whatever you're doing!