Johnny Ramone of the Ramones electric guitar from 1977, photos by Marla Cimini
For my recent visit to Cleveland’s Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum, I brought along the rocker in the family: my husband, Chris, a guitarist and music buff, who also blogs about musical gear and equipment.
This was our second pilgrimage to this shrine to rock, which is marking its 15th anniversary, and it didn’t disappoint.
As devoted fans of The Boss (and proud New Jerseyans), we especially looked forward to From Asbury Park to The Promised Land, the special exhibit on Bruce Springsteen covering two floors of the museum. But we also left no stone (or “rock,” for that matter) unturned, as we explored the museum’s permanent collection, which spans five additional floors.
A highlight for Chris was the Les Paul exhibition tracing the lifetime of inventions and accomplishments by one of the genre’s founding fathers. The exhibit features not one but two circa 1959 Les Paul guitars, a year in which only 643 were produced by Gibson; one is owned by Duane Allman, the late co-founder and guitarist for the Allman Brothers Band, and the other by Gary Rossington of Lynyrd Skynyrd fame.
Bruce Springsteen's 1957 Chevrolet Bel Air convertible
Chris also had to be pulled away from the museum’s cache of original, handwritten lyrics by seminal figures like Jimi Hendrix and The Clash.
Other rare pieces include the Beatles’ costumes from the Sgt. Pepper Lonely Heart’s Club Band album; Jeff Beck’s Fender Esquire guitar, and Janis Joplin’s Porsche (complete with psychedelic paint job).
For anyone disappointed by U2 canceling this year’s tour, the band’s U2 3D movie, which was shot during its 2005-06 Vertigo outing, is a must-see. It’s well worth the extra $3 (over the regular $22 admission fee).
Finally, as a long-time Springsteen fan, I admit to being skeptical of whether the special exhibit would offer anything new on this well-documented subject.
I found myself engrossed by the displays, which include songwriting notebooks bursting with hand-written lyrics; two of Springseen’s classic cars (including a 1960 Corvette); his black-and-white flannel shirt from the album cover for The River, and those hard-to-forget, faded jeans from Born in the U.S.A.
The I.M. Pei-designed Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum
Of course, what’s a Bruce collection without his guitars? Happily for Chris, several of them are on display, including a beautiful Gibson J-200 acoustic, and the iconic 1959 Fender Telecaster pictured on the cover of Born to Run and seen at countless concerts; a huge thrill for any aficionado.
Whether you’re a rock animal or just a casual fan, you should head to this temple by the shores of Lake Erie and say, “Hello Cleveland!”
A good read: The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame: The First 25 Years
Our Readers Comment…