Opening Bash Benefits VH1 Save The Music
NEW YORK--(Business Wire)--
And the bands played on... The worlds of music and fashion fused
on Thursday night (4/17) as John Varvatos celebrated the opening of
his second New York City boutique at 315 Bowery, a space that formerly
housed the seminal underground music club CBGB's. In a flashback to
the club's legendary past, an electrified audience of 600 music lovers
partied to the blaring sounds of an all-star lineup of bands, with
100% of the ticket proceeds from the evening benefiting the VH1 Save
The Music Foundation. The event raised over $30,000 for the charity.
The extraordinary concert line-up featured The Losers Lounge --
the popular live music collective led by former Psychedelic Furs
keyboard player Joe McGinty -- as the ultimate back-up band to some
incredible performances by Clem Burke, Keanan Duffy, Alan Vega, Ronnie
Spector, Ian Hunter, Cheetah Chrome, Joan Jett, and Handsome Dick
Manitoba. Full band performances came from Care Bears on Fire (the
junior rockers from Park Slope), Pop Girls Etc, D Generation (their
first show in 10 years), and The Hold Steady closed the evening.
The night really revved up when Wayne Kramer of MC5, fresh from
his gig uptown and accompanied by Tom Morello, Slash, Jerry Cantrell,
Perry Farrell, Joseph Arthur, and Sen Dog from Cypress Hill, took the
stage for an impromptu jam session.
The space, open for just 12 days, was transformed into a club once
again -- cleared out for the night and stripped down to its original
four walls and a large stage, temporarily replacing the existing
smaller one. The 25-foot mahogany cash wrap reclaimed its original
purpose as the bar it once was in a pub on 14th Street (and prior to
that on the Bowery). The new bathroom, now adjacent to the old
greenroom which is the store's current Tailor Shop, thankfully retains
none of its original "charm."
Reeling from the performances, an ecstatic John Varvatos said,
"I'm not sure who had more fun - the audience or the musicians. The
power of rock 'n' roll showed its face here tonight."
Tickets to the eagerly anticipated event were sold out within two
days of being listed, and the eclectic crowd included such scene
makers as Bobby Cannavale, Bob Gruen, Breckin Meyer, Damien Fahey,
Danny Fields, Gina Gershon, Jacob Dylan, Matt Pinfield, Mick Rock,
Michael Stahl-David, Timothy White, Zoe McLellan, and Zoe Kravitz.
Backstage, four generations of musicians, ranging in age from 11
to 70, hung out sharing stories of old and new. The energy of the
club's past permeated the air as the crowd of artists spilled into
back alley, reminiscent of years past. "We needed someone like John
Varvatos to be the glue to pull something like this off," said Clem
Burke of Blondie. Ian Hunter commented, "It is a pleasure to play for
John and for such a great cause. I never did CB's. Hilly wouldn't let
me in, so we are doing it tonight."
Ronnie Spector noted "I loved the vibe of seeing Ian & Joan Jett
back on the bus before going on stage, hanging out, laughing, everyone
kidding, seeing people I haven't seen in years telling stories, seeing
the old crowd: Jesse, Arturo and Joey's crowd. It was amazing. It was
as if the spirit of CB's came back for one last rave up."
The evening's sponsors were Converse, Gibson, CORZO Tequila,
Luckybeer, OZ Water and Red Bull.
The newest Varvatos store is a cultural haven and music venue
featuring vintage clothing, records and audio equipment, music
memorabilia, books and limited edition John Varvatos clothes. John
scoured the globe for rare finds and relevant music memorabilia, and
cherry-picked from his own collections of rare vinyl and picture
discs, books and vintage audio equipment.
The VH1 Save The Music Foundation is a nonprofit organization
dedicated to restoring instrumental music education programs in
America's public schools, and raising awareness about the importance
of music as part of each child's complete education. Donate. Educate.
Rock.
CBGB OMFUG (Country, Blue Grass and Blues and Other Music For
Uplifting Gormandizers) was founded in 1973 and quickly forsook its
namesake musical styles to become a forum for rock and punk bands
including Blondie, Talking Heads, Television, Patti Smith Group,
Richard Hell & the Voidoids, The Ramones, and Green Day. The club
closed in October 2006. The final show on its stage was performed by
Patti Smith.
*****Photos available through PatrickMcMullan.com.
John Varvatos Bowery
315 Bowery
New York, NY 10003
212-358-0315
Store Hours:
Noon to nine daily
Noon to six Sunday
For John Varvatos Enterprises
Donna Faircloth
VP Corporate Marketing & Communications
212-812-8008
Donna_faircloth@vfc.com
or
Dace Morris
Public Relations
212-812-8050
Dace_morris@vfc.com
Copyright Business Wire 2008
