Before The Ritz

I've spent many a post on my fond reminiscences of the old Ritz on East 11th Street (now Webster Hall). For me, it was simply a pivotal spot for live music. Favorite performances I was lucky enough to witness there include a raging quadruple bill of the Circle Jerks, D.O.A, Toxic Reasons and Redd Kross, a couple of Dead Boys reunion shows, the Ramones circa Halfway to Sanity, The Mission UK, Murphy's Law, The Toasters, Urban Blight, Fishbone, Big Audio Dynamite, Squeeze, Bad Brains and an unholy slew of others.

In 1992, when the space turned into Webster Hall (reverting to the venue's original name, dating back to 1886), I was less enthused, but still went onto see a few shows there, including Redd Kross again, the Secret Machines (with David Bowie in attendance, smiling approvingly from the balcony) and even my beloved Killing Joke.

These days, it's fairly uncommon that I darken this particular venue's doors, but I do walk down that street on a fairly regular basis. The last show I was tempted to go to there was the infamous Cro-Mags gig that ended up in a bloody fracas.

In any case, I spotted the below photo from an excellent Facebook group called "Manhattan before 1990" and felt compelled to share it. This photo must have been taken at some point in the 1970s. As Casa Galicia, the space (which had formerly been a performance hall that hosted folks like Julie Andrews, Harry Belafonte and Carol Channing), became an operation devoted to presenting cultural events for people from Galicia, Spain. It was reborn as The Ritz in 1980.

More about The Ritz on Flaming Pablum:

Ritz Redux
Puttin' on the Ritz
Slaytanic Fitz at the Ritz in `86
Which Way to the Rock Hotel?
The Heart of the Summer
The Metromen Take the Ritz