Flaming Pablum

Columbus was On Fire

Here’s another post not unlike this one wherein I extoll the merits of something that used to be in a different city, but it’s still kinda about New York.

Back in the late summer of 1985, I spent my summer soaking up as much of what I considered the atmospheric, bohemian cool of New York City as I could, knowing full well that I was shortly bound for the verdant wilds of Central Ohio in the fall to begin what would be my freshman year at Denison University. Suffice to say, I was not entirely psyched! I mean, I was excited about the school, but the thought of being deep in the heart of a Midwestern “flyover” state didn’t thrill me. Look, let’s face it — as a native New Yorker, I’m a born snob. The nearest city was going to be Columbus. I mean, sure — Akron has given the world Devo. Cleveland spawned Rocket from the Tombs, Pere Ubu and the Dead Boys. Cincinnati was home to …er….”WKRP.” What cool thing had ever come out of Columbus?

Well, to make a long story short, not only did I find many kindred spirits at Denison, but Columbus was a great town for exactly the type of shit I was into. I already waxed rhapsodic about its music scene on this post, but it bears repeating — between the Newport Music Hall and Stache’s (and a couple of other clubs like Neely B’s and Mean Mister Mustard’s), I caught shows by some of my favorite bands. And as I said back on that other post, most of those shows were better than the performances by the same bands I witnessed at home in New York City, mostly because Midwestern audiences weren’t as uptight, stuck-up and too-cool-for-school as they were (and remain) here in New York.

In any case, why am I talking about all this now? Well, a number of years back, I bought a few prints from a photographer who goes by the name JFotoman of one of my favorite bands — Cop Shoot Cop — playing in Stache’s. True to the nature of the venue, the photos were taken from a tight, intimate vantage point (seeing a band at Stache’s was like watching them play in someone’s downstairs rec room). Just recently, I discovered JFotoman’s archives online (you might remember the shot I posted yesterday of Pussy Galore’s Julia Cafritz). If you’re a fan of the independent, underground, “alternative,” punk and hardcore music of the 80’s, 90’s and beyond, you owe it to yourself to check out JFotoman’s pictures.

Not only did J. capture images from several of the shows I attended (I keep looking for myself in the crowd shots), but he completely captured the sweaty, intense vibe of places like Stache’s. But even if you’re not familiar with the venues in question — or even some of the bands — these photos are completely amazing.

Check them all out by clicking here. Tell’em Flaming Pablum sent ya!

No Guts, No Galore-y: Julia Cafritz Weighs In

Not to get all self-effacey on you, but I’m always amazed that people read this stuff. I mean, I know there are folks out there who care about the same sorta silly crap I do (like Bob Egan, EV Grieve and the like), but it never fails to surprise me that people chime in — least of all some of the principal players involved (most of whom would probably rather I got on with my life).

In any case, after multiple posts about the whereabouts of mid-to-late 80’s Pussy Galore in various pictures across the fair island of Manhattan, none other than the great Julia Cafritz herself joined the conversation this week, which pretty much blew a new part in my hair.

Regarding the pinpointing of Monica Dee’s group shot of the Pussy Galore gang perched around a table on the Forsyth Street median, Ms. Cafritz had this to say:

Ace detective work. I certainly do not remember where we took but yeah that would have been very close to our practice space. Here's the weirdest thing about Mr. Egan pinpointing that spot. See that school there. I taught at Satellite Academy, right there in the background, from 1997-2000. I never made that connection to that shoot. And I was the person in the band not drinking and doing drugs.

Regarding this week’s speculation, meanwhile, that Michael Lavine's shot below was taken at Inspiration Point, Julia (now Julie, btw) said simply: “Right on.”

Here’s a shot of the great lady in action, this snapped by JFotoman at Stache’s on High Street in Columbus, Ohio (a since-demolished venue I wrote at some length about back here).

My favorite aspect of this pic, honestly, beyond Julia’s endearing sneer, is the Redd Kross “Quit School” sticker on her guitar. I remember getting that same sticker in my copy of the Teen Babes From Monstanto e.p.. I’m also intrigued that she’s CROSSED IT OUT. Was there beef between the two bands? I posted a photo quiz, you might remember, about Redd Kross just last week!

To see more of JFotoman’s truly amazing archive of concert shots, be sure to check out his website here.

Meanwhile, here’s Julia at the mic, riding roughshod over a Devo cover. Buckle up!

Smithereens on 13th & 4th

I was sitting down to eat a bagel earlier and flicked on VH1 Classic, only to see the clip below pop up.

I always liked The Smithereens. I mean, they were never going to be a huge deal, but they pumped out a clutch of pretty great tunes along the way. Especially For You remains a great goddamn record, as far as I’m concerned.

In any case, here’s the clip for “A Girl Like You,” from their 1989 album, 11.

While it’s actually not one of my favorite tracks by the band, the video is shot entirely in the space that was formerly known as The Cat Club (then later the Grand and then, after that, about five or six different names before it was closed for good) off the corner of East 13th Street and Fourth Avenue.

I’ve talked about this space before (see below), but I saw some amazing shows here.  From Big Country, The Primitives and Ethyl Meatplow through Redd Kross, Cop Shoot Cop and Killing Joke, this room played host to a lot of great music.

It’s gone today, of course. The actual facade of the exterior is still there, strangely, but the space where all this happened is now part of the hugely expensive Hyatt Union Square Hotel….a venue I shall quite assuredly never spend a night -- let alone a thin red dime --  in.

Anyway, the beginning of the video is shot right on Fourth Avenue (across from what was briefly Pie Face). For the guitar solo, they go outside…..can you spot the Missing Foundation logo on the wall?

Enjoy…

More about that space....

4th Avenue Metal

Unlucky 13th

Getting Inspired ..... with Pussy Galore

Okay, here’s one I’m not going stress over very much.

A couple of weeks back, I was meandering around Lower Manhattan, trying to pinpoint the exact location of a shot of the mighty Pussy Galore circa 1987. With the help of Bob Egan, we eventually nailed that one down. In doing so, though, I remembered this other shot of the band from 1989 by one of my favorite rock photographers, Michael Lavine. That’s this shot…click on it to enlarge.

Yep, here’s drummer Bob Bert, singer/guitarist Jon Spencer, guitarist Kurt Wolf and singer/guitarist Julia Cafritz looking surly and ready for trouble between some incongruously regal Roman columns. Lavine’s credited the photo in the past as having been taken in New York, but for the longest time, I couldn’t imagine where.

….until it hit me.

I remember driving up the Henry Hudson Parkway, possibly en route to the Cloisters, and catching a fleeting glimpse on my left hand side of a random Romanesque structure overlooking the Hudson River. I figured that must be the place.

With a little creative Googling, I uncovered that the place I’d seen is a little something called Inspiration Point. You can find out more about that by clicking right here.

In any case, it’s a long goddamn trip to Inspiration Point from my little perch here in the Village, but maybe I’ll get up there at some point. In any case, I’m about 99% certain that’s where Lavine’s picture finds this incarnation of Pussy Galore provocatively slouching. It’s odd to think of Pussy Galore being this far uptown (they strike me as the types who’d have gotten light-headed if they strolled north of 14th Street, but that’s just fanciful projection).

What do you think?

Be sure to check out more of Michael Lavine’s photography, especially if you’re a fan of 90’s-era grunge.

And, just because….here’s a bit more Pussy Galore…

Bob on the Beeb

You’ve heard me talk about the great Bob Egan here many times before, mostly in regards to the Photo Quizzes. I even wrote a little story on NBC News about his singular talents back in the balmy, comparatively carefree days of 2012.

Well, the latest outlet to take notice of Bob Egan’s efforts is the BBC Radio, who profiled him for their “Digital Human series.” Here that profile (and see a nice gallery of Bob’s work) by clicking right here. 

 

Greene Street Then & Now, and the Return of Spectra

About twenty years ago, I peered out my living room window on East 12th Street to discover that it was a misty, atmospheric day after an early morning rainfall. As I had the day off, I grabbed my trusty Maxxum 400si…then newly fitted with a wide-angle lens, and set out to take some pictures.

While strolling around foggy SoHo, I found myself on Greene Street, strangely bereft of any cars. I raised my camera, pointed it to the south and snapped. A few days later, I repaired to the Spectra Photo Lab on LaGuardia Place and picked up my film, delighted to discover how certain ones had turned out, notably my Greene Street shot. That shot is below….

At the time, I was still finding my way with photography as an eager novice. I’d taken a crash darkroom course at the Maine Media Workshops in Rockport, Maine, so I had a vague idea of what I was doing, but being that I didn’t have access to a darkroom myself, I took all my film to Specta, and they always did an amazing job. While I could take credit for the composition, Spectra made my images positively shine. This Greene Street shot remains a particular favorite, so much so that I had the Spectra folks blow up a version and it now hangs on our living room wall. I love how you just make out the hint of the World Trade Center towers behind the street lamp.

As I mentioned in this post from 2008, when my first child was born in 2004, I switched to a digital camera out of sheer convenience, and sadly never went back. Clearly, I wasn’t alone, as the advent of digital photography basically seemed to put photo labs like Spectra out of business. They had to give up that massive space on LaGuardia Place as a result. It sort of broke my heart.

Six years later, however, I recently noticed that Specta has re-appeared at 333 Fifth Avenue just off 33rd Street. I’ve recently been kicking the idea around of shooting film again, so it might be time to go visit.

And just for the Hell of it, I was down on Greene Street again yesterday, and tried to replicate that earlier shot. Suffice to say, SoHo is no longer the same place that it was all those years ago.

Kross Purposes: Where Stood Redd Kross?

I had a longer piece in the works about my very first hardcore show, that being the Circle Jerks, D.O.A. and Redd Kross at the Ritz in 1985, prompted the discovery on the official Redd Kross page of a couple of pics from the show in question.

In any case, while looking for other documentation of this gig (which was, for all intents and purposes, a life-changing event for me), I stumbled upon the photo below by photographer Lisa Haun (who I mentioned in the last post). Possibly taken during at the same point as the show in question, it depicts the Redd Kross lads standing in a city park. Here it is below….

Now, I took one look at that shot and instantly believed it to be Tompkins Square Park. Unfortunately, on Haun’s on site, the photographer doesn’t give a lot of information.

My curiosity piqued, I took a stroll over to Tompkins Square to see if my hunch was correct. You’ll remember that only last week, I wrongly predicted a certain photograph of Pussy Galore had been taken in Tompkins Square (when, it turned out, the shot actually was take on the Forsyth Street median). I can’t get’em all right.

In this instance, however, I’m pretty confident that I have the right area, but I’m not sure I have the correct spot. I want to say that the band are pictured looking south towards 7th Street. Being that the shot probably dates back to the mid-80’s, though, it’s hard to verify. The trees don’t exactly match up. What do you think? Do I have it right?

Meanwhile, here's Redd Kross from around that same era...

Strangled in the Park: Slight Return

Just a quickie.

Whilst searching for clues regarding another curious photo (more about that soon), I stumbled across the below photo of Hugh Cornwell of the Stranglers.

I instantly recognized the sculpture behind the great man as being the one of Edwin Booth...which stands in the center of .....WAIT FOR IT....Gramercy Park, the location I'd pinpointed of that mystery (reversed) photo.

As such, I'm taking a leap --- given that Hugh is pictured wearing the same overcoat as in that previous picture -- and suggesting that they were taken during the same shoot. In that instance, I am then happy to give the proper credit to photographer Lisa Haun. See more of her absolutely excellent shots of musicians on this page....well worth your time.

Bohemians at the Gate: Finding Patti & Jim

Okay, after first posting the question yesterday, I didn’t immediately expect that the location of this picture was going to be that tricky to divine. I assumed that someone would have documented the specifics (especially since the photograph features the still-feverishly-revered Patti Smith) on the `net, but if so — I’ll be damned if I could find it, let alone the name of the photographer who captured the shot.

So, as I’m wont to do, I posted a link to the question over on Facebook, and a few of the usual suspects dutifully weighed in. Obviously there are hundreds of little enclaves, mewses, lanes and gated gardens on this island — it could have been snapped virtually anywhere in Manhattan. My old high school pal Lela suggested the gated mews on West 10th Street between Sixth Ave and Greenwich Ave — specifically Patchin Place. I’ve taken a number of shots of Patchin Place over the years (most recently with my kids), but I couldn’t be sure, so I strolled back over there….

As you can tell, the entrance to Patchin Place seems far too wide for it to be the same entry Patti and Jim are obstructing. That said, there is that little place around the corner on Sixth Avenue…that being Milligan Place...

Close, but no real cigar.

Filmmaker Karen Gehres, meanwhile, suggested looking on the other side of town, specifically an address on East 12th Street just east of Second Avenue, catty-cornered to storied Italian eatery, John’s. Here’s that address….

That didn’t fit either. For some reason, meanwhile, I had a nagging feeling that it might the entrance to that little cemetery on West 21st Street, just steps to the west of Sixth Avenue…..

Nope, not it either. Maybe it was MacDougal Alley off 8th Street?

Nope, that’s also way too wide.

Earlier in the day, meanwhile, I’d trekked through the heart of the Village, thinking it might be an address on Minetta Street, specifically 19. That looked really close, but the gate didn’t match up.

At this point, I was getting frustrated. Then again, I thought, being that the photograph of Patti and Jim was most likely taken at some point in the early-to-mid 1970’s, the probability that some specifics of the location had changed over the ensuing decades was pretty high.

Bob Egan of PopSpots had the same suspicion. As such, I started scouring the `net, looking for images of some of these addresses from decades past.

I thought about maybe skimming through “Serpico,” the 1973 Al Pacino film, given that the protagonist lives in a tiny apartment down Minetta Street.

Instead, however, I wisely ignored that hunch and repaired to the photo archives of the New York Public Library. With a single search of the term “Minetta,” up came the image below, courtesy of the Brown Brothers from 1925 of 19 Minetta Street. Check out that gate.

WE HAVE A MATCH!

Case closed. Here I am this morning in front of the new gate (invariably to the chagrin of 19’s current occupants).

In my searching, I also came across this curious track by Anton Newcombe (he of the excellent Brian Jonestown Massacre). Here's a BJM demo dubbed "Jim Carroll Meets Patti Smith (as slurred by a very drunk Anton Newcombe)". Enjoy....

Searching for Jim

A couple of weeks back, I was lucky enough to attend the Irish-American Writers & Artists, Inc’s benefit and cocktail party for their annual Eugene O’Neill Lifetime Achievement Award, in this particular instance honoring storied journalist/author Pete Hamill. As a long-time fan of Mr. Hammill’s, I had a great time (although I was shocked to see the author confined to a wheelchair following some sort of hip surgery). He certainly doesn’t need my help in evangelizing his work, but if you haven’t read any of Hammill’s stuff — even if you’re not feverishly steeped in all things New York City — you’re truly missing out.

In any case, this is the third such ceremony I’ve attended of this organization’s. My good friend (an accomplished author himself) Rob D. invited me to one a few years back, and I was hooked. The entire time I was at this past one, though, I was thinking of another great Irish-American writer/artist from New York City who I think would also be ripe for such an honor, were he sadly not already dead. That writer is Jim Carroll.

I’ve written about my fandom for Jim Carroll here before — most notably about the greatness of “People Who Died” — but the man was truly so much more than that solitary song (and the less said about the cinematic adaptation of “The Basketball Diaries” the better).

As with Pete Hamill, I’m not exactly going out on any precarious limbs espousing Jim’s celebrated books like “The Basketball Diaries,” “Forced Entries,” or his posthumously published “The Petting Zoo.” All his work — to say nothing of his music with the mighty Jim Carroll Band — is worth your time. I’m particularlly fond of his 1991 spoken word album, Praying Mantis. It’s probably out of print by this point, but it’s a sincerely a great listening experience.

Anyway, maybe his material is a little on the dark, gritty and frankly druggy side, but I think the IAW&A, Inc. ought to tip their hat to ol’ Jim. He certainly earned it.

With all that in mind, I have two thing to expound on. First up, I did a random search earlier in the evening on Halloween (before I escorted my little children on their search-&-feverishly-consume mission of Trick-or-Treating) and found this gem. Here’s a crazy-rare clip of the Jim Carroll Band tearing through “People Who Died” at San Francisco’s legendary Mabuhay Gardens in 1978.

Given Jim’s cemented status as being New York City to the very bone, I figured I could probably dig up some photographs of the man in and around Manhattan, but you’d be surprised — there doesn’t seem to be much out there. There are multiple great shots of the JCB rocking out onstage with Keith Richards (photographed at the Trax, a club up on West 72nd Street….no longer there, obviously), but otherwise, the best photograph of Jim Carroll in Manhattan that serves my usual purposes (i.e. can you spot the location?) is this one below…

Pictured with the similarly inclined Patti Smith (I’ve already written enough about her, no need to delve further), here’s an early shot of a hirsute Jim Carroll standing in front of a gate. I have scoured the net, but can find no credit for this image. I have zero idea who took it, but given the length of Jim’s hair, it probably dates back to the early 70’s, comparable to this picture of him taken by photographer (and former Warhol superstar and whip-dancer) Gerard Malanga in 1971.

Quite similar to this shot of Patti with Robert Mapplethorpe, (which turned out to be taken on Washington Mews), I feel certain that his photograph was taken in Manhattan. But…the question remains….where was this shot snapped?

Have at it, campers...here's a larger version.....