August 17, 2011

Tonight I’ve decided to go to the sister bar of the International Bar, The Coal Yard for our Swizzle Stick Tuesday night out on the town. I haven’t been back there since I did a trip on the 365 Bar Crawl and met Shannon and Clacky in there. I’d say I’m overdue for a visit. And for a drink or three as well. To the Coal Yard!

Oh shit, two steps out of the subway car and I'm hit with this.

Aaaahhhh!

Okay, here we are, 1st Avenue in the East Village, almost there.

Nothing yet, but I think that will be rectified in a minute or two.

And here we are at the Coal Yard.

Like its sister bar, The International Bar, it's one of the darkest bars in town. I think I see a familiar face there at the bar.

It's Tyler with his friend Hank holding down the right end of the bar.

And here's the lovely bartender Amanda, serving me a gin and tonic. Let's check out the swizzle stick.

It's your basic black straw.

Simple, dark and sturdy, much like the bar itself. Two more for the collection.

Lit up bottles on display behind the bar.

A shot of the circular wooden bar that frames the inside of the place.

A long wooden railing runs the length of the wall opposite the bar.

Like its sister bar, The International, the jukebox here is one of the best in town. Tunes run the gamut from The Rolling Stones, Jerry Reed, The Cars, MC5, Bob Dylan and everyone in between.

I love the vintage Blatz sign.

Coaster artwork from patrons hang below it.

Ian serves me up a Little King's beer in a can.

Amanda's busy behind the bar.

Kurt was seated next to me and it turns out he's a photographer visiting New York from Jacksonville, Florida. We had a few drinks and a nice chat about New York City. Check out his website and photos here: Kurt Rogers Photography.

And one look out the front window and I'm headed for home. See you tomorrow after dark.

The Swizzle Stick Collection So Far
Thanks to all of you who have donated, it’s grown to be a great collection. I’m going to get some sort of a case to house them in.

Coal Yard Bar
102 First Avenue (@6th St. )
212-677-4595

Further reading: Jeremiah’s Vanishing New York, EV Grieve, NY Press and Shecky’s.

You Might Also Like: Jay and The Americans, Jay and Silent Bob and Jay and Laura (The Marriage “Edu-tainers!”)

Four Other Yards
Scotland Yard
Word’s Longest Yard Sale
A Yard of Ale
The Yardbirds

Five o'clock in the mornin', I'm all ready up and gone,
Lord I am so tired, how long can this go on?

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Bonus Pudding Face From Jaws!

Jaws sent in his own version of the creepy Pudding Face. Aaaahhhh!

August 15, 2011

Four words: Chillmaster Dance Party Four!

Since the Mars Bar is closed, we decided to meet at the International Bar.

The crew for the Chillmaster Dance Party 4. From left: Goggla, Yours Fooly, Eric, Kate, anonymous271 and The Duncester.

Victoria's already inside and we're in trouble because we're a little late. The Chillmaster is all about punctuality.

At first he pulls the curtain down. Oh no, could the fourth party be over before it begins?

After I get a stern talking to (somehow the blame always falls on me!), The Chillmaster relents and lets us in.

We brought him a present and a card from Goggla's online shop which we all signed.

The Hennessy is opened...

And it is poured. Let the party begin!

A toast between us all begins the party.

And here's a printout of the EV Grieve post that started it all! To EV Grieve!

The Chillmaster puts on the music and the party begins.

Some of the bottles on the legendary Chillmaster coffee table.

It's always fun saying hi to the people passing by in the street who stop and listen to the classic soul music blaring out the window.

The Chillmaster's daughter and her friend outside the window showing off some new shoes.

The classic lighter that Victoria gave him at the first party is still working.

The Duncester and the Chillmaster cutting the rug.

Goggla and Chillmaster grooving on the couch.

Eric chills in the Chiller chair.

And Gumby takes his turn too.

A shot of Victoria saying goodbye through the window. The first to arrive and the first to leave.

Kate, Chillmaster and Goggla in a group hug on the dance floor.

The last arrival was Grayson who lives down the street.

I'm not sure what this dance move is I'm pulling, but it's obvious I've had a few Hennessy's!

Grayson and the Chillmaster toast drinks.

Groovin' to the music!

Night falls on the Chillmaster window to the world.

Time for the red light to be lit. This is the sign of a true special occasion in the Chillmaster Lair!

And BOOM, it's on!

And the party takes on a pleasant magenta hue.

A true red light district.

And in the end, Gumby is always the last man standing. Thanks to everybody for coming and to the Chillmaster for hosting another great party! See you tomorrow after dark!

Further reading: EV Grieve, The Gog Log, Neither More Nor Less, One More Folded Sunset, Slum Goddess and Single Linds Reflex.

You Might Also Like: Winking, Blinking and Nod.

Four Soul Music Websites
Soul Music
Rare Soul Grooves
A History of Soul Music
Stax Museum

 

Nobody knows the trouble that I’ve seen,
Nobody knows my sorrow.

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Bonus photo by Bobby Williams

EV Grieve photographer Bobby Williams sent me this shot of The Chillmaster in his window. Thanks Bobby!

August 6, 2011

As some of you know, there was a problem with the comments section here the last couple of days and it was driving me fucking nuts. I pestered the shit out of the support staff at Squarespace and they’re probably kicking themselves that I picked them as a host. People's comments weren’t showing up and it was stressing the shit out of me, I had visions of everyone abandoning this blog. Well, the support people at Squarespace are great and they did find a bug and patched it and most people seem to be able to comment again. Jaws can’t and I’m not sure about Biff, but we’ll see what happens tomorrow. (Update: Jaws is posting again and I bet Biff will be able too as well. Finally! I had a two day massive obsession fest over this.) The end of my work night sucked too and all I want to do is have a beer or seven and chill the fuck out. Now where should I go to chill out? Hmmm...

Okay, it's off into the night we go.

Okay, I've been staring at this ad in the subway station for about eleven minutes now. What the fuck is this? I mean I know it's an ad for Jello pudding, but what does the hell? "You never forget a Pudding Face?" What does that even mean? And why did they capitalize the words, "Pudding Face?" Why would I ever eat pudding again after seeing this monstrosity of an ad? The answer is simple, I won't! What the fuck is a Pudding Face?

Oh shit...it's a whole campaign. I got a feeling this could haunt me in the future. I thought it was bad when Bill Cosby was their spokesman. Pudding Face? Fuck.

Boy, I'm really not having a good streak of luck lately. I thought I'd go to the Chillmaster's and chill out with him and some of his classic soul music, but his window is shut down and it's not even midnight! I'm going to have to give him shit about this at the next Chillmaster Dance Party.

I decided to get a bag of beer and just wander around the East Village and take some photos.

Okay, the first beer is bagged and ready to go. I put a straw in it to give it a more soda-like look in case I encounter a cop. Kind of pathetic, I know.

And here we go for a leisurely stroll around the Lower East Side.

Wow, that's a fully loaded psychic window.

These three pretty ladies were chilling on their stoop, so I thought I'd stop and say hi.

I asked them their names and they are (from left): Luninisa, Georgia Peach and Poison Puss. They were really nice and they know of the Chillmaster. They read about him on EV Grieve and said they'd stop by the next Chillmaster Dance Party on the 14th of this month.

Like a magnet I was pulled to the now shuttered Mars Bar.

Shit, Terry's art got tagged.

Mike Grey's tribut to Hank got blacked out last week and now it's been retouched somewhat.

A note to Myriam on the sidewalk.

I'm going to try and get some shots of the inside from the window up here.

The bar's gone, but some of the graffitti and empties remain.

Sad.

According to the DOH, there's over 17,000 fruit flies in that blue cup alone! Danger, danger!

Some people were nice enough to stop and take a photo of Gumby and I toasting the Mars Bar.

A photo of the photo takers. Thanks!

Here comes the wrecking ball!

Thanks for the memories Mars Bar! Goodnight everybody and see you tomorrow after dark.

Further reading: EV Grieve, The Gog Log, Neither More Nor Less, One More Folded Sunset, Slum Goddess and Single Linds Reflex.

You Might Also Like: The Onion, An Apple and A Fish.

Five Things People Do To Relax
Drink
Nap
Masturbate
Masturbate with Bob Crane
Bludgeon Bob Crane

When it comes to men like you I know the score,
I’ve heard it all before.

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Bonus Photo By Bobby Williams!

Bobby takes shots for EV Grieve’s blog and snapped one of the Chillmaster the other day. He sent me the original and here it is. Thanks Bobby and keep up the great work!

August 3, 2011

Tonight another great East Village bar bites the dust. EV Grieve reported yesterday that tonight is the last night for Banjo Jim’s to be open. Banjo Jim’s had live music every night of the week with no cover charge and decent prices at the bar. A new bar is moving in and it’s supposedly going to be an "artisanal neighborhood cocktail bar" tentatively called, The Wayland. It’s supposed to open in the fall and I’ll check it out when it does. But for now, let’s go and say goodbye to Banjo Jim’s.

A crowd has gathered outside of Banjo Jim's on the last night of the saloon's existence.

And here we are, the last night of Banjo Jim's. Let's go inside and see what's happening.

It was crowded inside as expected.

Singer/songwriter is the last person to play on Banjo Jim's stage. He was great and you can check him out here: Aaron Short.

Kevin was the friendly bartender on duty for the last night of Banjo Jim's.

The view of the bar from my perch.

Kevin plays on...

As the crowd listens and takes photos.

Happy feet!

Flyers from gigs gone by line the front window.

The new owners of the bar say that they're hoping to keep this piano. We'll see.

The weather-beaten red stools are part of the charm in here. I doubt they'll survive the re-opening.

A shot of the other end of the curly-Q bar.

The corner of the bar has a comfortable couch lining the walls.

Aaron's set was coming to a close...

He dedicated the last song to Banjo Jim's. It was the theme of Cheers. Listening to it and thinking of bars that had closed since I moved here—The P&G, Stoned Crow, The Rum House, Fedora, Mars Bar—I admit I got a little teary eyed thinking about it. Lots of friendly places with kindred spirits on both sides of the bar are closed and they've either been shuttered or replaced with grim replicas of what they once were. I wonder what this place will be like in six months?

I chatted with Aaron after the show and congratulated him on a good set and for giving Banjo Jim's a decent last night's show.

Aaron packs up...

And it's out the door. Goodnight everybody and see you tomorrow after dark.

And so another door closes in the East Village. In the fall it will reopen and artisanal cocktails will be flowing in this space. Actually, one of the new owners, Robert Ceraso was answering questions in the comments section at EV Grieve and he was being nice and civil, even to wiseasses like me. He promised five buck bottles of Budweisers and at least one beer in the four dollar range. He seems like a nice guy. So did Ted Bundy. We’ll see what happens in the fall. Good luck to the former owners, bartenders, musicians and everyone who was connected to Banjo Jim’s. Another one down.

Further reading: EV Grieve, EVGif, Jim’s Roots and Blues and Now I’ve Heard Everything.

You Might Also Like: Blowing in the Wind, Dust in the Wind and Pissing in the Wind.

Four Banjo Players
Steve Martin
Earl Scruggs
Peter Tork
John Hartford

 

Dance with a hole in your shoe.

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August 1, 2011

Two of my favorite blogs are EV Grieve and Jeremiah’s Vanishing New York. They’re two great blogs about New York and I’ve found many kindred spirits at both of them through their comments section and even met some of them in person. And tonight I’m meeting another. Crazy Eddie is always good for a laugh with his witty comments and I take his observations on New York City to heart, because he’s lived in the East Village for his entire life. He picked the spot to meet at and guess what? It’s a bar! And it’s called Percy’s, so it’s off we go.

And here we go down 14th street. Even though it's 7:45, it's still bright out, one of the few things I hate about summer, it gets dark too late.

Union Square Park is filled with people. Note the walking texter, God I hate that!

This sign always makes me think of Dr. Ruth's vagina.

And speaking of EV Grieve, whenever I see a vacant lot, I think of ET.

I keep meaning to come here some night to this coffee shop. It looks about as old school as you can get.

And here we are, Percy's Tavern. Let's check it out.

Since it's a Sunday, there's plenty of seats at the bar. This is why Sunday's are my favorite night to go out.

And Sarah, the lovely bartender on duty is quick with a beer.

A view of the bar from where I was sitting.

There's tables up in the front of the bar.

And a long communal table and stools line the wall near the window opposite the bar.

There's also outside tables to dine and drink at on the sidewalk.

A Guinness painting in the window.

An impressive list of the beers available at Percy's.

A long shot of the bar.

And here he is, the man of the hour, Crazy Eddie. I have to keep his real identity secret because, well, I can't tell or both my big toes would get broken and we don't want that to happen, now do we? But I did have a great time hanging out with Crazy Eddie, a kindred spirit and a life-long East Village resident.

There's Jameson on the walls...

Jameson on the bar...

And here the lovely Orla serves us up shots of Jameson.

Cheers...

And goodnight everybody and see you tomorrow after dark. Special thanks to Crazy Eddie for picking Percy's and hanging out with me. I hope to see you soon again!

Percy's Tavern
210 Avenue A (Between 13th & 14th St.)
212-473-7770

Further reading: Shecky’s, Beer Menu, Eugene and Metacafe.

You Might Also Like: Eden Bee, Aunt Bea and Beedababeedababeedaba ... That’s All Folks!

Five Other Crazy Things
Crazy Eddie
Crazy Little Thing Called Love
Crazy From The Heat
Crazy Cat Lady
Crazy

River deep, mountain high.

ARCHIVES

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July 26, 2011

Okay, tonight I’m off to a bar to search for something and this time it’s not a swizzle stick, that’ll be tomorrow night. Jaws designed some cool T-shirts with the patented, “Sip Ahoy” catch phrase that Uncle Waltie invented. I got one for myself and one for Uncle Waltie so tonight I’m going to go the International Bar and make the presentation. Eastward, ho! (And sorry about calling you a ho.)

Down into the subway we go...

And baboom! Through the magic of the internet, here we are in the East Village. The heat has finally broken and it's nice out tonight.

There's one little problem with this sign and the arrows pointing you where to play Lotto...

They point out to the street. Oh well, just watch out for traffic as you're picking your winning numbers.

Here we are at the International Bar and there's Uncle Waltie in the window!

He was seated window-side with Bill. Time to present him with the Sip Ahoy t-shirt.

Sip Ahoy!

And here we are modeling the shirts. Great work, Jaws!

Uncle Waltie has his on and here we are, brothers in Sip Ahoy land!

Okay, let's take tour of the bar and see what's shaking.

Here's Tyler at the bar.

Some of the lit up bottles behind the bar.

And look who's on the other side of the bar for a change...

It's Molly along with John on the left and DJ Mojo on the right. Cheers!

The Sip Ahoy sign I brought in the other week is a permanent fixture of the bar now. And I'm proud of that!

Here's Aislings, the super cute bartender for the evening. What a great smile!

Joe works the door and hasn't thrown me out yet, so the night is going good.

And as we make our way full circle back to the window, here's Uncle Waltie with the lovely Barbara.

Let's put some tunes on the jukebox.

The Yardbirds! I once drove to Memphis with the Yardbirds drummer, Jim McCarty, I'll have to write about that one of these days.

I had to put on a few Neil Young songs in honor of Al!

You know it's a true East Village jukebox when they have the Dictators, "Go Girl Crazy" on the jukebox.

And my last few selections were a few Sam Cooke songs.

Okay, after several rounds it's time to say, "Sip Ahoy" and head home.

Goodnight everybody and see you tomorrow after dark.

International Bar
120 1/2 First Avenue (Near 7th St.)
212-777-1643

Further reading: Jeremiah’s Vanishing New York, EV Grieve, Downtown NYC Bar Project and Jaws the Cabbie Online Store.

You Might Also Like: Jungle Juice, Jungle Gym and Jungle Jim.

Five Famous Catch Phrases
“These go to 11.”
"Yeah, that's the ticket."
"Is that your final answer?"
"Whassup?"
"Houston, we have a problem."

I can't get your love, I can't get satisfaction,
Uh-oh, little girl, psychotic reaction.

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July 21, 2011

EV Grieve reported yesterday that a new Subway sandwich store was celebrating a “Grand Opening” on Avenue B in the East Village. The Mars Bar gets shut down one day and a fucking Subway opens the next. It pretty much sums up the direction of this city and it gives me the goddamned heebie jeebies. This city is being overrun by chain stores and restaurants and soon it’s going to be one big fucking strip mall.

The thing I don’t get is why people in New York eat in a place like Subway? When I lived in Peoria, I ate at Subways and other chain restaurants because sometimes the closest place to get a fresh sandwich was miles away. I guarantee you there’s a deli within two blocks of this shithole, that serves better sandwiches and they’re locally owned and run. I’ve decided to get the same sandwich at both places then bring them home and do a comparison study.

We're taking a subway to a Subway. Irony at its finest hour.

Okay, through the magic of the internet you're spared a subway ride that included a screaming baby on the car and the mother leaving the kid in the stroller, pretending to be oblivious to the whole thing. People, if you're going to breed, be responsible for your little monsters. I was going to transfer to the L train, but decided just to get off here at Union Square and hoof it over to Avenue B.

And it's off we go. Holy moley, it looks like I'm having an acid flashback here!

As usual there's a line stretching out into the street at Artichoke. The pizza here is supposed to be real good. I'll never know, though. I'm not about to wait in line for fifteen minutes to get a fucking slice of pizza.

And here we are, the grand opening of Subway in the East Village. It doesn't look too grand to me, but let's check it out anyway.

Look at this sign in the front window. It looks like someone vomited between two slices of bread. Barf-O-Matic.

It's tiny inside and looks like every other Subway chain. Cookie cutter restaurants with cookie cutter menus.

For drinks you get your choice of something from the soda fountain...

Or bottled soda or water from this cooler. I decided to get my drink at the next place. I'm guessing there will be beer there. Goodbye Subway, I hardly knew ye, and thank fuck for that.

Okay, I've got my shittly little sandwich from Subway. Now, less than a block away...

Is Brother's Candy & Grocery.

Now these look like my kind of sandwiches!

They have about anything in here you would want...

Including fresh sandwiches from this counter.

The have a whole wall of coolers with drinks. And they've got beer here!

And everyone's friendly in here, this fellow even posed for a photo while holding my purchases. Okay, time to head home and take the comparison test.

Okay, we'll look at the Subway sandwich first, which is packaged in this gaudy clear Subway bag.

And here's the sandwich. You don't see any meat sticking out of it for good reason...

There's just three slices of pre-sliced ham inside this flat-ass sandwich. It's got less meat in it than Karen Carpenter had on her bones two days before she died. And the yellow stuff you see is mainly mustard, I asked for cheddar cheese and they put about a teaspoon of shredded cheese on this sandwich. Time for the taste test.

While I'd like to say it taste's like shit, I really can't. It just tastes like nothing. There's not enough ham to taste and it just tastes like you're eating a bread sandwich. And while the bread is fresh, there's no taste to it. Just white bread. How fitting.

And now on to the Brother's sandwich. It comes packaged in this black bag. Nice, it almost looks like black leather.

Now that's a goddamn sandwich! It's spilling off the plate!

Inside there's slices of fresh cheddar cheese and piles of ham. And lettuce and spicy mustard to boot. Let's take a taste...

Delicious! And a local business a half a block away from the evil and substandard Subway. I think my point is proved. Now it's time for dessert.

I think I mentioned that Brother's sells beer! Goodnight everybody and see you tomorrow after dark.

Brother's Candy & Grocery
542 E. 14Th St. (@ Avenue B)
212-473-8308

Further reading: EV Grieve, Dead Tree Media, Endless Gibberish and The Suck Report.

You Might Also Like: Good Morning America, Good Afternoon Mr. Gibson and Goodnight Irene.

Other Chains
Chains
Chain Letter
Chain of Fools
Alice in Chains
Chain Lightning

You don't realize that it's all compromise,
And the problems are so overrated.

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July 18, 2011

Three words sums up today’s post: Chillmaster Dance Party Three! (And a shoutout and thanks to our friend EV Grieve who got the ball rolling with this post.)

The Chillmaster Dance Party Pre-drinks happen here at Mars Bar, which is still open. Unbelievable! And there's Ray out front.

And there's Hank in his chair, it's going to be a sad day when this is gone from this corner. Let's go inside.

There's Shawn and Lindsay at the bar.

And here's the whole crew, from left: Kate, Goggla, Yours Fooly, Shawn and Lindsay. We're ready to let the chilling begin!

Here's the infamous Chillmaster window and soul music is wafting from it.

The Chillmaster chair is empty...what the fuck?

All of a sudden we hear a, "Hey!" and it's the Chillmaster standing behind us!

Once inside it's the traditional pouring of the Hennessy...

And the music blasts...

The table is well stocked for the party.

Lindsay and the Chillmaster share a laugh...

And the dancing begins!

Kate, Chillmaster and Lindsay take a break for a photo.

The Chillmaster and I clowning around.

And here's the Chillmaster's daughter, Anastazia. It was her 18th birthday so we all sang "Happy Birthday" to her.

Father and daughter, nice!

And here's Victoria, who's a little late due to work.

Victoria and the Chillmaster trade hellos...

And hugs, it's all about the love in the Chillmaster den!

It's always fun to watch the people go by the Chillmaster's window.

Shawn is chilling the fuck out in the Chiller chair.

And Gumby takes his turn.

Easy Ed shows up on the scene and the party is complete!

Ed and the Chillmaster grooving to the tunes.

And the last arrival is Chanel...

Who gets into the swing of things immediately.

Dance, dance, dance!

The Chillmaster grooves with Gumby!

And one last shot for the road. Thanks to the Chillmaster and everybody for showing up and making the Chillmaster Dance Party III a total blast as always! Goodnight everybody and see you tomorrow after dark.

Further reading: EV Grieve, The Gog Log, Neither More Nor Less, One More Folded Sunset, Slum Goddess and Single Linds Reflex.

You might also like: Patti Smith, Patty Smyth and Patty Melt.

Four Other Masters
Masters Golf Tournament
Masters of War
Master Cleanse
Master Of Their Domains

I know a change is gonna come,
Oh yes it will.

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