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|  | 1385 E 25th Street
The House That Rocked
If the curators of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame act quickly enough, they can score a great new exhibit which might bring a little warmth and character to that giant space age toilet on the shore of Lake Erie. All they'd have to do is get over to 1385 E.25th Street, right off the Superior exit of I-90, downtown, and move a couple of old frame houses from the property before they're torn down.
Simple enough. And for their trouble, they would have a chunk of real Cleveland rock and roll history. To members of the Cleveland underground music scene, Thirteen-Eighty-Five, the address of the front house, serves as the common name for the entire property. This includes the famous alley, which runs along the north side, separating it from what was once the Colony Restaurant and is now radio station WZAK-WZJM, which recently purchased the property from its former owner, Alex Gorski.
As soon as Gorski, a Cleveland attorney and patron of the arts, bought the property in 1981, 1385 became a haven for various local musicians, artists and scene-makers. When asked for details about the history of the property, Gorski replied,"1385 speaks for itself. You don't need me." He was downplaying his role as landlord to a substantial portion of Cleveland's musical and artistic subculture for over 15 years.
Throughout the years, members of such bands as the Pagans, the Pink Holes, and the Floyd Band walked its warped floors and thrashed away in its medieval basement, fighting for space among the mountains of beer cans and debris. At one point every member of my old band, Starvation Army, and our girlfriends lived in the house at the same time. It wasn't exactly one big happy family. Local artist, Robert Richie (a.k.a. "Dick Head") lived in and around the house at various times. For several weeks he lived in a 1967 Plymouth Fury parked in front of the house. Richie rented the car, which stopped running shortly after its test drive, from Starvation Army's humanitarian drummer, Sean Watkins.
The convenience of living right downtown in your very own practice space, minutes away from Cleveland State University and numerous dive bars appealed to the musical and artistic types who made 1385 and its smaller companion, usually known as the Back House, their homes. The neighborhood, composed of small businesses among residential streets, is quiet and the people are civil, but generally keep to themselves.
In the two years I lived at 1385, the police were called only once. A Fourth of July celebration got out of hand, and one of the guests, in a patriotic frenzy, climbed into the vacant Colony Restaurant next door and liberated vast quantities of booze, which had been left behind. The fingerprint van pulled up the next morning and intensified our hangovers, but nobody even knocked on the door. The matter was forgotten about in a few days.
In return for the neighbor's tolerance, we always tried to end our band practices at a reasonable hour, and if we were going to be having a particularly large party,
we would inform them of the date and time and, of course, invite them. None of them ever showed up, but I think they appreciated the gesture.
It's possible that the neighbors actually felt safer knowing that there was a house on the corner where someone was guaranteed to be up and about at any time, day or night. The house served as a sort of neighborhood watch. Maybe not the most reliable crime deterrent, but a center of activity which might make someone think twice about breaking into a house or car on the street. For most of my stay at the house, we didn't even lock the front door because we only had one key between all of us.
In the last few years, 1385 has been the home to some of the first tenants who originally rented the space from Alex Gorski in 1982. They will also be the last tenants. By May 1, 1998, both 1385 and the Back House must be vacated to become victims of the wrecking ball. According to WZAK's General Manager Lee Zapis, the space will be used "for expansion". Tom Miller, former guitarist for Starvation Army now with Swank Motel and the New Caesars, first told me of 1385's fate. He also suggested that the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame be informed. We both laughed and shared memories of our old home, a place we grew to hate after a while and were glad to leave, but a place that seems to be part of our personal history as musicians and friends.
The only consolation I can find is that 1385 was bought and will be demolished by a radio station, not some other concern with no connection to Cleveland music and culture. It could have ended up as another parking lot for Cleveland State University, a fate shared by the old Cleveland Agora, the Pop Shop and the infamous pre- and post-gig drinkery, the 2300 club. What is it about the unsung cultural landmarks in Cleveland that makes them so attractive to the parking lot developers?
Thirteen eighty-five, with its ugly pale yellow paint job and its linoleum dining room floor depicting a crude map of the United States, is not a particularly impressive example of American craftsmanship from a bygone era. Instead, it is an old house that, for a time, captured the spirit of an rough and tumble independent music and art scene in Cleveland. For this it will be missed.
Who knows? Maybe the Rock Hall will return my phone calls after all.
(Fraser Sims)
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| | 1385 E 25th Street
1385 has 1,385 stories I'm sure... I'm going to tell number 1,385 the last one.
The bulldozer was on its way, I lived in the back house and Lair Lewis, Tim Allee and Tim Shaw were the last hold outs in the front house. As fate would have it we found another huge house with many apts. just a block away also awaiting a date with a bulldozer two yrs down the line, but thats another story. Anyway we were coming off a monster party binge weekend, the last one there. None of us had cars, so we actually took turns moving all our shit one trip at a time in a shoping cart. Shaw was the last to go cuz he was always the last to recover from a binge. Here's the skinny on Tim Shaw for those who don't know him .Tim was and is Clevelands premier black punk rocker, he knew all the songs went to all the shows, partied out of control. Sometimes he would even forget he was black. Once I was supposed to hook up with him at the warp tour show, and he started telling me what he would be wearing so I could find him in the crowd. I was like "Dude , wait, the only other black guy there is going to be Ice T, I think I'll be able to pick you out". That's Tim, So back to the last 1385 story. Tim at the time had long black dreads and wore an old army coat. He loaded up hiis shit and was pushing the cart down the street, When a BMW pulled along side him, the
window rolls down and its Linn Tolliver DJ from WZAK waving a twenty spot at him. WZAK had bought 1385 and the back house to demolish and make parking space. Tolliver thought the station had turned Shaw homeless. He apologized for the station and wanted to give Tim the twenty. Shaw, proud brother that he is, denied that he was homeless but Tolliver insisted he was and that he take it. So Tim takes the bill and says "Thanx The beer's on you tonight." 1385 out with a bang. Tim Shaw, "cheers dude!"
(Floyd)
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| | Cat City
If you were playing out back in the early 80's there was no better stop on the way to a gig than "Cat City". A visit with Bobby was sure to include some interesting people and some stimulating (almost esoteric at times) conversation. From local Cle gossip and politics to UFO's and conspiracy theories it was always a good time. People were always smiling at Bobby's house!!
(Bill DeGidio)
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