John Varvatos» Thursday Nite at 315 Bowery with Michael Monroe – John Varvatos: Men’s Designer Suits, Shoes, Bags, Belts, Cologne

Thursday Nite at 315 Bowery with Michael Monroe

John — Thu, 20 May 2010 19:19:03 +0000

Michael Monroe opened his set at 315 Bowery with Nothin’s Alright by the ultra hardcore fan favorite side project, Demolition 23. The rest of the set was peppered with Hanoi Rocks favorites like Motorvatin, Back To Mystery City, Boulevard of Broken Dreams and Malibu Beach. The crowd got to enjoy all the action of Monroe’s latest group, consisting of Sami Yaffa (Hanoi Rocks, NY Dolls) Ginger (The Wildhearts) and Steve Conte (NY Dolls).

Thursday Nite Live w/ Michael Monroe from John Varvatos on Vimeo.

Half way through the set, Michael cracked his head open on the overhead monitors and started bleeding. He didn’t seem to mind as he kept belting out the songs. Now if that ain’t Rock n’ Roll somebody please tell me what is?!!!!

The band even came back for a double encore of two of my favorites, Kick Out The Jams by The MC5 and Feel Alright by The Stooges. I’m just saying, you can take the guy out of Detroit, but you can’t take Detroit out of the guy!!

What I’m listening to now…..

John — Mon, 03 May 2010 18:53:15 +0000

Scott Morgan, Scott Morgan – Another gem from a true original. Scott makes Detroit proud.

Iggy and The Stooges, Raw Power – Down & dirty. Raw Power is “THE” seminal punk rock album of all time.

Jesse Malin & The St. Marks Social, Love it to Life – Jesse is one of the great American songwriters of our time. Love it to Life is his best album yet.

Peter Wolf, Midnight Souvenirs - The former J. Geils front man delivers another powerful album. Very cool, eclectic mix of songs.

Jimi Hendrix, Valleys of Neptune – The last studio recordings. It makes me miss Jimi even more.

Sweet Apple, Love and Desperation – J. Mascis from Dinosaur Jr.’s new group. Killer R ‘n R!!

The Beatles, In Mono – All 13 albums in glorious mono. The best sounding Beatles release ever.

Peter Frampton, Thank you Mr. Churchill - Peter’s back with a rockin’ set that leaves you wanting more.

BoDeans, Mr. Sad Clown – Milwalkie’s BoDeans deliver another great slice of Americana.

The Byrds, Untitled (Legacy Edition) – My favorite Byrds album. Expanded with additional live material. A must have.

A Gathering For My Friend, Jim Marshall

John — Thu, 08 Apr 2010 20:33:35 +0000

I had been in collaboration with two great photographers, Jim Marshall and Timothy White, who had just published a photography book called Match Prints. Over their twenty year friendship, Jim and Timothy discovered there were striking similarities in their work, despite the photographs being taken 30 years apart. We were set to kick off the Match Prints book tour at my Soho Store on Wednesday, March 24th, when Timothy called with news of Jim’s passing. As we were both trying to sort through all the emotions that come with losing someone unexpectedly, we didn’t know how to proceed with the evening’s event. Should we cancel? In the end, we decided to provide a place for people to see his iconic photos, hear friends speak of him and remember the history he captured and created.

Jim was a man of few words….Timothy explained, and most of them were “Fuck!” In his honor, the crowd gave the finger, mirroring Jim’s famous Johnny Cash photo.

We’ll miss you Jim. You left us too soon.

Fashion Week at 315 Bowery – Alberta Cross & Guns n’ Roses

John — Fri, 26 Feb 2010 18:25:35 +0000

New York Fashion Week usually means Bryant Park filled with white tents and the worlds’ most beautiful people who are escorted from their cars to the their seats…trying not to get any remaining slush from the winter storms on their trendiest footwear. Well, that may be a typical day for the rest of NY’s fashion seekers…but for us, it was a bit different. It was a night filled with a live performance by Alberta Cross and a surprise set by Guns n’ Roses. There wasn’t much room to be had at 315 Bowery on Thursday, February 11th….but no one seemed to mind as they pushed towards the stage to get a glimpse of the infamous Axl Rose - in his element!!

To quote the man himself, “This was the best F***ING show of our tour!!” Enough said.

After much anticipation….the crowd waited a near two hours after Alberta Cross performed to see Guns n’ Roses. But Axl didn’t disappoint when he arrived, making a b-line straight from his ride to the stage. The crowd cheered and moved closer to hear the opening song – “You’re Crazy”.

The hit list continued for two sweaty hours with songs including “Welcome to the Jungle”, “Paradise City”, “Mr. Brownstone”, “Sweet Child O’ Mine”, and “Nighttrain”. But don’t think for a minute that Alberta Cross didn’t bring their A game – cause they did and I’ve never heard them better. It looks like Petter’s been taking some notes…because he captured the audience like an old pro!

Grammy Party – John Varvatos Los Angeles Store

John — Fri, 19 Feb 2010 21:57:06 +0000

I was asked to design the exclusive t-shirt for the 52nd Grammy Awards. The inspiration was “We’re All Fans” which was a no-brainer for me because I am such a music junkie. On top of that, 100% of the sales goes to the charities MusiCares and the GRAMMY Foundation.

As a way to celebrate the Grammy’s, I threw a party at my Los Angeles store and had my new favorite “it” band, Alberta Cross, perform. The turnout was amazing… I got to catch up with some old friends, have drinks, raise money for charity and most importantly – jam out to some live music.

Check out the red carpet line up…..

I first saw Alberta Cross perform at Austin City Limits and knew instantly that they had a shot at becoming the next big band. I was thrilled to have them perform at the party. Their look and sound, to me, really reflects the early roots of Rock N Roll. This ain’t no glam rock band – they’ve got soul!

Alice has been a good friend for many years… it’s always fantastic to have a fellow Detroit native come out and support us!

You know it’s a party when Joel Madden from Good Charlotte shows up.

Two of the sweetest and most genuine people I know… Etty and Perry not only show up to support me – as they have in the past – they just chill with the crowd and enjoy themselves. Super down to earth and it’s such a breath of fresh air… no egos here!!

The Man, The Myth, The Legend… Dave Matthews. Alberta Cross will begin touring with him soon and he came out to show his love.

I got the thumbs up from Common on the T-shirt design… he rocked it at the party… good thing we didn’t get any shots together, as I was wearing it too!

Could you just throw up at these two? Not only are Rande Gerber & Cindy Crawford super attractive, they are amazingly kind and compassionate. My wife Joyce and I were happy to strike a pose with the former super model and her spouse.

I take it back… you know it’s a party when Matt Sorum and Duff McKagan (who escaped the photographer) from Velvet Revolver show up!!!

John Legend is a class act from top to bottom. This guy is super talented. It looks like he’ll be rocking it soon too.

As Alberta Cross took the stage, my man Petter lets it rip.
This shot says so much to me about Alberta Cross… dark, mysterious, magical and full of soul.

We packed them in… including the fire inspector!! In LA they actually follow the maximum capacity rules… can you believe it??

Peter Frampton – Born in Detriot Sirius XM Interview

John — Fri, 15 Jan 2010 01:46:04 +0000

Part one of my interview with Peter Frampton:

Part 2:

Me and Peter Frampton at Sirius XM recording an interview for my show “Born in Detroit”.

Denis Leary & the Enablers, Peter Frampton & I perform “Asshole”

John — Fri, 15 Jan 2010 01:43:16 +0000

I have always been a big supporter of Road Recovery and knew it would be a great collaboration when we decided to do a benefit at 315 Bowery NYC on their behalf. Road Recovery is a non-profit organization of entertainment industry professionals whose lives have been touched by addiction and now help young people work toward a healthy future through performance based-programs. We had Denis Leary & The Enablers along with Peter Frampton perform. The night was a success – we had a full house and were able to raise more than $20,000 for Road Recovery. You can check out their website at www.roadrecovery.org.

Denis Leary and his band, The Enablers, took the stage and treated the sold out crowd to such Leary classics as “A**hole” and “Traditional Irish Folk Song” as well as a soon to be classic version of the Faces song “Ooh La La” substituting the lyrics for “I wish that they had all of these drugs, when I was younger.”

Matt Pinfield emceed the event and rallied the crowd before Peter Framton took the stage.

The crowd heard many of his classics; “Baby I Love Your Way,” “Show Me the Way,” and “Do You Feel Like We Do?” Frampton closed his set with a beautiful rendition of George Harrison’s “While My Guitar Gently Weeps.”

After our stellar encore performance of “Asshole” I got to chat in the trailor with Denis and Peter. Here we are deciding who is the biggest Asshole. What do you know…it was a three way tie!

What I’ve been listening to lately…

John — Thu, 14 Jan 2010 02:39:55 +0000

Alberta Cross – Broken Side Of Time
My Favorite LP of the Year !!!!

Yo La Tengo – Popular Songs
Super cool groove…

Gomez – Out West – 2cd live set
One of the best bands anywhere !!!

Boxer Rebellion – Union
This is brand new…. You gotta take a listen

Flaming Lips – Embryonic
Another masterpiece…

Black Sabbath – Master of Reality
One of the heaviest riff albums in history…

Soundtrack of our lives – Communion
These boys from Sweden know how to rock

Badger – One Live Badger
One of my favorite albums of all time. Recorded in 1971

Velvet Underground – Loaded
Their most under rated but possibly their best

Tragically Hip – Yer Favourites
This is a best of from the BEST band in Canada.

Tommy Bolin- Teaser
Just listen and you’ll know why this is on this list

Thin Lizzy – Live and Dangerous
One of the best live albums …EVER. Get ready to rock.

Peter Frampton, playing acoustic guitar at Road Recovery Event at the JV Bowery NYC Store

John — Thu, 14 Jan 2010 01:40:08 +0000

Denis Leary & the Enablers, “Rehab” Road Recovery Event at JV Bowery NYC Store

John — Thu, 14 Jan 2010 01:38:36 +0000

It’s an honor supporting Road Recovery. The work they do is remarkable and I commend them. Denis Leary and The Enablers are unbelievable musicians and have the best sense of humor in rock n’ roll. And it goes without saying that having Peter Frampton on stage in our Bowery NYC store was a dream come true! I am thrilled to get the opportunity to use my passion for music to support such a noteworthy cause. When we opened here in the Bowery, our intention was to keep the music aspect of the space alive. Seeing Denis Leary & the enablers along with Peter Frampton on stage takes our intentions to another level. The energy and excitement for this event was amazing and we were proud to be apart of it.

Denis Leary & the Enablers, “Rehab” Road Recovery Event at JV Bowery NYC Store

Road Recovery is a non-profit 501(c)3 organization comprised of entertainment industry professionals whose lives have been touched by addiction and other adversities and now wish to make a positive contribution to the lives of others. Young people work toward a healthy future through mentoring and educational and live performance based-programs. To learn more, visit them at www.roadrecovery.org