Greenwich Village, the East Village, and NoHo, with their charming streets, historic landmarks, and vibrant culture, are neighborhoods that beg to be explored on foot. Whether you’re a seasoned New Yorker or a curious visitor, there’s no better way to soak in these incredible neighborhoods’ rich history and artistic energy than by taking a walking […]
After years of effort by Village Preservation, the historic No. 50 West 13th Street is now on the path to NYC landmark designation. The Greek Revival row house between Fifth and Sixth Avenues has several different histories worthy of note: leading 19th-century Black businessman and abolitionist Jacob Day ran his business here and owned the […]
Westbeth Artist Housing opened in 1970. It is located in the Far West Village, and spans an entire city block bounded by Washington, Bank, West and Bethune Streets. Westbeth was not only the country’s first project to provide subsidized housing for artists, but is also one of the first examples of the large-scale adaptive reuse […]
Hip Hop at 50This is the fifth in a series of posts that celebrate the 50th Anniversary of the Birth of Hip Hop. Our exploration takes us to the seminal places of Hip Hop’s early days in our neighborhoods and introduces some of the instrumental figures in the downtown world of Hip Hop. Negril Nightclub: 181 2nd Avenue […]
Hip Hop at 50This is the fifth in a series of posts that celebrate the 50th Anniversary of the Birth of Hip Hop. Our exploration takes us to the seminal places of Hip Hop’s early days in our neighborhoods and introduces some of the instrumental figures in the downtown world of Hip Hop. Negril Nightclub: 181 2nd Avenue […]
This is the fourth in a series of posts that celebrate the 50th Anniversary of the Birth of Hip Hop. Our exploration takes us to the seminal places of Hip Hop’s early days in our neighborhoods and introduces some of the instrumental figures in the downtown world of Hip Hop.
The song “Good Times” by disco-funk band Chic is more than just a catchy tune that encapsulates the carefree party spirit of the late 1970s. Ranked number 68 on the list of all time great songs of the rock era by Rolling Stone magazine, it not only epitomized the disco era, but quite quickly helped […]
Hip Hop at 50This is the second in a series of posts that celebrate the 50th Anniversary of the Birth of Hip Hop. Our exploration takes us to the seminal places of Hip Hop’s early days in our neighborhoods and introduces some of the instrumental figures in the downtown world of Hip Hop. The Museum […]
Hip Hop at 50This is the first in a series of posts that celebrate the 50th Anniversary of the Birth of Hip Hop. Our exploration takes us to the seminal places of Hip Hop’s early days in our neighborhoods and introduces some of the instrumental figures in the downtown world of Hip Hop. While the […]
“A long time ago in the 1960s, a young white girl from Ohio committed herself to being a revolutionary,” begins a short feature documentary about Patti Astor and her FUN Gallery (see within). FUN Gallery opened originally in the tiny basement storefront at 229 East 11th Street in 1981, later moving to 254 East 10th […]
This is one in a series of posts marking the 50th anniversary of the designation of the Greenwich Village Historic District. Click here to check out our year-long activities and celebrations. Put on your walking and dancing shoes! As we’ve noted once or twice on Off the Grid, the Village’s musical roots are deep and unforgettable, […]
On November 20, 1981, The Clash’s genre-defying record ‘This Is Radio Clash’ was released. The band’s last stand-alone single, it presaged not only the direction the band would go in years to come, but also the direction of much of popular music in the decades which followed.
Twenty-three years ago, New York Magazine was worried about the Village. And they weren’t the only ones. On August 16, 1993, The Village Under Siege ran on the cover with an accompanying image of the Washington Square Park, unlit and ominous against the bright, glittering lights of downtown’s skyscrapers. The article detailed a rowdy, often […]
On September 6, 1981, the infectious and other-worldly sound of Tom Tom Club’s “Genius of Love” was unleashed upon the world. The song became a club hit on both sides of the Atlantic, and in the decades since its synthetic riffs have become among the most recognizable, and the most sampled, in pop music history. […]
