Heebie Jeebies at CBGB's: A Secret History of Jewish Punk by Steven Lee Beeber

From the Publisher

Based in part on the recent interviews with more than 125 people —among them Tommy Ramone, Chris Stein (Blondie), Lenny Kaye (Patti Smith Group), Hilly Kristal (CBGBs owner), and John Zorn—this book focuses on punk’s beginnings in New York City to show that punk was the most Jewish of rock movements, in both makeup and attitude. As it originated in Manhattan’s Lower East Side in the early 1970s, punk rock was the apotheosis of a Jewish cultural tradition that found its ultimate expression in the generation born after the Holocaust. Beginning with Lenny Bruce, “the patron saint of punk,” and following pre-punk progenitors such as Lou Reed, Jonathan Richman, Suicide, and the Dictators, this fascinating mixture of biography, cultural studies, and musical analysis delves into the lives of these and other Jewish punks—including Richard Hell and Joey Ramone—to create a fascinating historical overview of the scene. Reflecting the irony, romanticism, and, above all, the humor of the Jewish experience, this tale of changing Jewish identity in America reveals the conscious and unconscious forces that drove New York Jewish rockers to reinvent themselves—and popular music.

Vanity Fair

Mines a vein in punk's needle-marked history that no one else has explored and is highly recommended.

Columbia Daily Tribune

Uses sociological and historical analysis to relate how punk, its artists and CBGBs inherited the Jewish tradition from each other in a synergetic fashion.

Metroland Holiday Gift Guide

This isn't merely a look-who's-Jewish tour, but an exploration of Jewish identity in the second half of the 20th century.

The Villager

Entertaining, engrossing, and provocative.

American Jewish Life Magazine

Digs so deep and thus paints so vivid a picture of . . . the Jewish experience.

Publishers Weekly

In this welcome addition to the annals of punk, journalist Beeber does a commendable job of illuminating the Jewish backgrounds of many of punk's pioneers, including Joey Ramone (Jeffrey Hyman), Tommy Ramone (Tamas Erdelyi), as well as Lou Reed, Lenny Kaye, Blondie's Chris Stein, CBGB owner Hilly Kristal right up to the heir-apparent to the Jewish-punk crown, the Beastie Boys. The scene was centered in 1970s New York's Jewish Lower East Side, so it's fitting that punk might have a strong Jewish tradition. Beeber ably cobbles together interesting biographical sketches of the preeminent Jewish punks, rather astutely placing the punk rockers among the pantheon of Jewish entertainers, including the controversial comic Lenny Bruce. He also neatly ties the irreverent punk ethos to the American Jewish experience. Still, the book overreaches at times, straining under the weight of too much tangential cultural history and an overly academic tone. Beeber, however, has clearly done his homework, with more than 100 primary interviews and a clear grasp of the Jewish traditions within which he places punk. And just in time: with "Jewish-owned punk landmark" CBGB slated to close on September 30, Beeber's book will open a hidden chapter for many fans. (Oct.) Copyright 2006 Reed Business Information.

Library Journal

Punk is Jewish-that's the central tenet of Beeber's (editor, Awake!: A Reader for the Sleepless) Heebie-Jeebies. Whereas most punk histories focus on England as the "true" epicenter of punk, Beeber's work posits an alternative punk time line rooted in New York City that begins with Lenny Bruce and ends with the new Beastie Boys album. Chapters on the Ramones, the Dictators, CBGBs, and Suicide are revelations, even to the seasoned punk fan. However, many of Beeber's subjects (e.g., musicians Jonathan Richman, Richard Hell, and Martin Rev) declined to be interviewed, and that's a shame, as this lack of primary sources damages the book somewhat. Beeber is left to theorize and conceptualize, often moving away from "secret history" and more toward cultural studies. That said, strong writing and even stronger subject matter keep one enthralled. Pair this with Legs McNeil and Gillian McCain's seminal Please Kill Me: The Uncensored Oral History of Punk or Victor Bockris's New York-centric Beat Punks anthology to provide another perspective on punk's Lower East Side roots. Recommended for larger public and academic libraries.-Matthew Moyer, Jacksonville P.L., FL Copyright 2006 Reed Business Information.

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