Rhino Factoids: RIP, CBGB

On October 15, 2006, one of the most famous concert venues in rock history held its final performance, which means that today marks the eight anniversary of a lot of music fans waking up to the end of an era and a world without CBGB...well, sort of, anyway.

When CBGB opened in 1973, owner Hilly Kristal had a vision that the venue would spotlight country, bluegrass, and blues music, which – just in case you never knew – is what the initials in the club’s name stand for. While musicians falling into those genres no doubt played there over the course of its 30+ year run, it became much more well known for having helped usher in the New York punk scene of the ‘70s, with its stage providing a space for some of the early gigs by Blondie, the Ramones, Television, Talking Heads, Patti Smith, and many, many others.

“CBGB is a state of mind,” said Smith, as she played one of the club’s last-ever shows. “There’s new kids with new ideas all over the world. They’ll make their own places — it doesn’t matter whether it’s here or wherever it is.”

As has often been the case, Smith was right: although the original club may be gone, there’s been a CBGB iheartradio station, there’s now a CBGB Music Festival, the club’s awning resides in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, and as of late year, the site of the club was added to the National Register of Historic Places. There was also a movie released last year about the origins of the club, with Alan Rickman playing Kristal, but…well, let’s move on, shall we?

For our part, we’ve pulled together a playlist featuring some of the artists who either got their start at the club or played some seminal shows there. Give it a listen, and remember the good times.