Someone posted this on Facebook today (albeit without a photo credit, sadly) and it's just such a smashing image of the place, I thought I'd share it. Click on it to enlarge.
The first time I went here was in 1982 to see Devo on the Oh, No It's Devo tour. Some time after that, it was closed and completely re-modeled and re-invented as the quintessential big 80's club. In that iteration, I saw Public Image Ltd., Fishbone, The Dead Milkmen, 2 Live Crew, Digital Underground and a neck-snapping triple bill of Foetus, The Unsane and Cop Shoot Cop.
Today, the footprint of the Palladium plays host to a soulless NYU dorm (churlishly still referred to as The Palladium) with a Trader Joe's on its ground floor. By my estimation, the iconic spot where Paul Simonon smashed his bass guitar, as captured by photographer Pennie Smith for the cover of London Calling, is somewhere at the end of the produce section.
Who did YOU see here?
Below is frankly goofy 3D reconstruction of its iteration as a nightclub...
Hey, I was at that Devo show. It remains one of my favorite concerts. I was in the first row or so of the balcony, right where Mr. M clambered down that rope during the "Jocko Homo". I was sure the balcony was going to collapse - I could feel it bouncing up an down, but what is rock'n'roll w/o a feeling of danger (a bad concert, is what). I found a Devo fan site on-line that had a tape of the concert but I am afraid to possibly spoil the memory of that event. 39 f'n years...
- RM
Posted by: r malce | March 16, 2021 at 03:19 AM
Now I am remembering Julian's Billiards, another hangout of mine in that era.
- RM
Posted by: r malce | March 16, 2021 at 03:20 AM
Sadly, I never saw a show or even set foot in the place although I had tons of opportunities to do so, BUT I do have a nice b&w photo of it that I took in the late 90s. Even though it was way before my time in NYC I would've loved to have seen some of those Zappa/Baby Snakes era shows that happened there.
Posted by: URLBrenner | March 16, 2021 at 03:52 PM
Funny you should mention... the only time I went when it was still a theater was to see Zappa. Maybe '80, or '81? Halloween or thereabouts. It was the Crush All Boxes tour, an album I don't think ever got a US release. Went once after it became a club too, but not for a gig. Hung at Julian's occasionally--went to a party for Rev. Horton Heat there, met him, but he was a little too drunk to chat. Nice guy nonetheless.
Uh... Wild Cat Mens Wear... LADY BOY???
Posted by: the G | March 16, 2021 at 09:05 PM