Jimmy Webb has been described as the angel of Saint Mark’s, and he earned that title with every fiber of his soul. The famed stylist and friend to a myriad of rock n’ roll misfits passed away from cancer yesterday at 62.
The cheerful, kindhearted Webb was open about his earlier struggles with drug addiction and homelessness, and eternally grateful for his opportunities to overcome them. He did everything with great zeal. His flair for styling evolved over the years as he created outfits for clubbing at places like Studio 54. He got clean in 1999 and finally landed his dream job at Trash and Vaudeville. From there, Webb cultivated a broad, appreciative clientele as well as countless wonderful friendships. From the seasoned stage vets, to the disgruntled teens needing a safe place to vent, to little kids just discovering The Ramones, Jimmy embraced them all.
Photo by Alice Teeple
“I’ve lived through so many times and not a lot of people are left,” Jimmy told Downtown Magazine in 2018. “The reason I keep dancing and the reason this store is here, and the reason I’m so blessed by people like Debbie and Iggy and Slash, is because I carry on and I dance for all of those who aren’t here to dance anymore. They all touched me in a very special way.”
Jimmy Webb’s knack for styling brought him a special kind of fame amongst the rock n roll set, the alt kids, the punks and the pop stars. He outfitted everyone, made everyone feel special, and knew just what would make a person shine their brightest. Jimmy’s looks have been featured in Rolling Stone, Vogue, MTV…and the streets of the East Village. In 2017, he opened his own boutique, I NEED MORE.
Downtown’s editor in chief, Deb Martin, knew Jimmy for years, often helping him out in I NEED MORE. In 2018 Jimmy made an appearance in Downtown Magazine. She fondly reflected on their close friendship:
“Jimmy loved with his entire self, and when he loved you he loved you and was the most loyal friend. But he also had a finely-tuned bullshit meter and some of the best laughs we ever had were about the con-artists and grifters we have known. He loved authenticity because he was wickedly, fiercely authentic.
I will forever miss his long, frequently hilarious voicemails and texts. I will miss his kindness and his love. I will miss his laugh. We were spending a lot of time together in the past year or so, and I treasure every single moment. My office was just a couple of blocks from the store so I would pop over whenever I could just to give him a hug and share a laugh or see if he needed anything. I helped him plan his last big event, Footprints in February—Debbie Harry and Iggy Pop put their hands and feet in cement inside the store, Hollywood-style. He emailed me the guest list and asked me if I thought it was ok. I told him that no one could dream up a better downtown guest list. It turned out to be the party of the century. But then all of Jimmy’s parties were the best because of Jimmy and the gigantic love that he showered on everyone. He touched so many lives. But that night in particular was filled with love and light. It took a lot out of him and even though we had a lot of fun planning it, there was also a touch of sadness because I think we all knew that it could be the last party. He had been battling cancer for several years, he was a fighter, he muscled through it, but it was taking its toll.
The last time I saw him was at the end of February, a couple of days after the party. I had already started to quarantine but I had to pick up something at the store. He wasn’t feeling well but he had to go in. He called me from the car and we met at I Need More. We talked about the party and had a great laugh as we always did. He told me, “I’m so glad you came in today, you always make me laugh and I really needed to laugh.”
It was the great joy of my life to make Jimmy Webb laugh. I feel so lucky to have called him friend, and I’m sad for anyone who didn’t have the chance to know this remarkable man.
The world is a little less brilliant today, but I know Jimmy wouldn’t want us to be sad. Well, maybe just a little sad, but not forever. He would relish all the tributes pouring out from all over the world but he would also tell us, the people he loved, that we have to carry on for him. I will forever be grateful to have loved and to have been loved by Jimmy Webb. I will keep on dancing for him, until the end of my time here on Earth.”
With Debbie Harry
With Iggy Pop
With Debbie Harry
With photographers Bobby Grossman and Mick Rock
With Amos Poe
With Jim Jarmusch
With Henry Rollins and Duff McKagan
With the Gruens
With Bob Gruen
With Iggy Pop
With Godlis and Bobby Grossman
With Debbie Harry and Chris Stein
With Danny Fields
Thank you, Jimmy, for all you gave us. We shall miss you.
Just ask Jimmy Webb, owner of rock boutique I NEED MORE, tucked on the quieter side of Orchard Street in the LES. Webb, immediately recognizable by his punker coiffure, tattoo sleeves and bright smile, had the wonderful idea to immortalize the footprints of his friends Iggy Pop and Debbie Harry in concrete.
On 24 February, he made it happen. With Iggy Pop in town for the Tibet House Benefit, Webb and his army of PR, managers, and the fantastic I NEED MORE staff welcomed Iggy Pop and Debbie Harry to the hot pink emporium with unbridled enthusiasm. As each person filed in one by one, they were greeted with cheers and big hugs from Webb.
Iggy and Debbie are immortalized on either side of the counter. Iggy was reluctantly persuaded to not cannonball into the concrete, although one could understand the temptation. Debbie gingerly stepped in wearing a pair of gorgeous red heels, and embellished her autograph with her signature X’s. Both pairs of shoes were given to Jimmy Webb as gifts, and will be on display at I NEED MORE, along with other amazing music memorabilia, unique pieces of art fashion, rock photography, and merch from your favorite bands.
Amongst the fans in the crowded shop were Henry Rollins, Duff McKagan of Guns N’ Roses, Chris Stein, David Johansen and Mara Hennessey, famed photographers Bob Gruen, Godlis, Bobby Grossman, Roberta Bayley and Mick Rock; Danny Fields, Jim Jarmusch, Amos Poe, Sara Driver, and Nina Alu.
ST. MARK’S PLACE HAS GHOSTS. It has a vibe. It has changed, but this is New York, change is what we do. Every generation believes it was better “back in the day,” but one thing remains true. You might have to search a little harder for that East Village cool, but it’s here if you pay attention.
TRADITION B&H Dairy, on Second Avenue and St. Mark’s, has been serving kosher specialties since 1938, when the East Village was largely an Eastern European Jewish neighborhood. Pierogies, split pea soup, and borscht are just some of the delicacies on the menu. Every order comes with a stack of their delicious challah and a generous smear of butter. below: If you wander around the East Village long enough, you will eventually find Jim Power—The Mosaic Man— creating his public art. His work memorializes historic places and moments in Greenwich Village history.
St. Mark’s was the home place for the Beats in the 50’s, the hippies in the 60’s, and the punks in the 70’s and 80’s. In the 90’s the anarchists took over, and today the street—and the neighborhood—is in transition. It’s definitely more luxurious than when the New York Dolls posed in front of Gem Spa, but the history remains.
Like many New York locations, the story of St. Mark’s begins in the 1600’s, on tranquil farmland owned by one of New York’s first families, the Stuyvesants. It has a Hamilton connection too— Al Junior purchased the townhouse at 4 St. Mark’s Place in 1833, and he lived there with his family and his penniless mother for 10 years. It sold in 2016 for $10 million, but for years it housed Trash and Vaudeville, the first purveyor of Dr. Martens in this country.
Street photographer David Godlis has seen the neighborhood change in the 30 years he has lived on St. Mark’s. We wandered the street together, shooting, talking, and looking for that East Village magic. “The street is always there,” he says. “No matter what the storefront is, it’s the same street where Dylan walked, where Kerouac walked, where the Dolls walked, and where we are walking, right now.” DT
ON THE STREET Godlis made some of the most iconic images in music history when he trained his lens on the stage at CBGBs, but he has also documented New York’s street life, especially on downtown streets like St. Mark’s Place, where he has lived for over 30 years.
CHANGING TIMES Godlis shares a love for his neighborhood with fellow residents like Lenny Kaye of Patti Smith Band-fame and fellow punk-photographer Roberta Bayley. “Everything was happening here. For a street photographer, this was the place.”
GRAND HOTEL The St. Mark’s Hotel, formerly the Valencia, housed the Five Spot on the ground floor, where jazz great Thelonious Monk started his career.
JUNIOR’S PLACE Alexander Hamilton Jr. lived in this 1833 row house, which later became the home of the legendary punk shop Trash & Vaudeville.
LASTING MEMORIES Though the street has welcomed many new eateries in recent years, some of the old favorites—like Khyber Pass—remain
J-BEAUTY Japanese lifestyle and beauty store Shibuyala opened its first New York store on St. Mark’s this year.
THEATRE PEOPLE Theatre 80 was once a speakeasy owned by gangster Walter Schieb, where people like Thelonious Monk, John Coltrane, and Frank Sinatra performed. In the 70’s it became a revival movie theater—Billy Crystal once served as an usher—and it now hosts a combination of live performance and film.
SEARCHING FOR ST. MARK’S Search and Destroy is a punk clothing emporium that has survived the “gentrification” of St. Mark’s. Next door, 19 St. Mark’s was home to Andy Warhol’s Exploding Plastic Inevitable, featuring the house band, The Velvet Underground, with members Lou Reed and John Cale, among others.
BARFLY Holiday Cocktail Lounge has been around since 1965, and was a hangout for poets and intellectuals such as neighborhood residents W.H. Auden and Leon Trotsky
POETIC W.H. Auden lived in an apartment at number 77. He had no running water so he reportedly used the facilities at the Holiday, next door.
STROLL “I loved this street because it really felt like a boulevard. The buildings are set back so the sidewalks are wide,” says Godlis. “it felt so open.”
SHARING IDEAS Another street photographer shares his work— printed on priority mail labels—with Godlis.
ALT LIFE St. Mark’s has long been known for its “anything goes” attitude. In its heyday, the street was once lined with tattoo and piercing parlors, although few remain today.
ROW HOUSES In the early 1800’s the street was lined with terracotta and brick row houses, occupied by some of New York’s wealthiest residents. Later the area was home to an influx of immigrants including Germans and Eastern European Jews. The neighborhood still has some vestiges of those earlier residents.
LE JAZZ HOT Jules Bistro has been a St. Mark’s fixture for 25 years, serving up the classics like pommes frites and escargot, to the tune of nightly live jazz.
CLUB KIDS Club 57 was a hangout and performance space for the likes of Cyndi Lauper, Keith Haring, Klaus Nomi, Fab Five Freddie, Rupaul, Madonna, and countless others.
ALCATRAZ On the corner of Avenue A and St. Mark’s, punk dive bar Alcatraz is now chef Alex Stupak’s tequila bar and tortelleria, Empellón al Pastor.
GET PHYSICAL The tenement buildings at 96-98 St. Mark’s were famously featured on Led Zeppelins’ Physical Grafitti album in 1975.
NO EGGS NO CREAM Allen Ginsberg, Abbie Hoffman, Madonna, The New York Dolls, Jack Kerouac, The Ramones, Patti Smith, William S. Bouroughs—have all darkened the door of the most famous newsstand in New York history. Get an egg cream and a newspaper, and bask in the knowledge that you are keeping that history alive for future generations.
OF BOOKS AND SOCKS The Sock Man, a St. Mark’s institution, moved from his original location at number 27 when the landlord tripled the rent. He is now located further down the street. His neighbor, East Village Books, a secondhand book shop that also carries some records, has been in the neighborhood since 1994.
TENEMENT LIFE In the 1900’s the 4- and 6-storey tenements were built to house immigrants, replacing many of the row houses of the previous century
JAVA STOP Three generations of the Longo family have owned Porto Rico Importing since 1958. They sell 130 varieties of coffee beans from 28 countries.
TATTS Pioneering tattoo artist John Shaw—son of jazz great Artie Shaw—started tattooing in a Bowery basement in the 70’s and opened Fun City in 1976.
ON THE STREET Cafe Mogador opened in 1983, and is a popular local favorite, serving up Moroccan and Israeli dishes and a classic East Village, bohemian vibe.
SEARCHING FOR ST. MARK’S Search and Destroy is a punk clothing emporium that has survived the “gentrification” of St. Mark’s. Next door, 19 St. Mark’s was home to Andy Warhol’s Exploding Plastic Inevitable, featuring the house band, The Velvet Underground, with members Lou Reed and John Cale, among others.
RIOTOUS LIVING The protest phrase, “Die Yuppie Scum” originated during the 1988 riots in Tompkins Square Park, at the eastern terminus of St. Mark’s Place.
NIGHT OWL Street photographer David Godlis was born in New York City in 1951, and he picked up his first camera, a Pentax Spotmatic, in 1970. He has been shooting photographs ever since. He moved back to the city with his Leica in 1976, landing on St. Mark’s Place. He stumbled into the burgeoning punk scene at CBGBs, where he photographed legendary bands such as Blondie, Patti Smith Band, The Ramones, the Talking Heads, and Television. His photographs, collected in his book, History is Made at Night, capture the emergence of the punk rock scene in the East Village and the Lower East Side of New York City. Godlis says, “I was up in Boston at school, and taking pictures, and I wondered why they weren’t as good as Garry Winogrand’s photos and then I realized, it was because I wasn’t in New York.” He continues, “New York is designed for photography. If you stand on a street corner you can take a horizontal shot of the people walking towards you and it’s a great shot. Or you can take a vertical shot and get the buildings in—also a great shot. Winogrand used to say, ‘just pay attention to the four corners of your frame. If you can’t see it, it isn’t in the shot.’” Godlis’s book and photographs are available through his website, godlis.com, and at I Need More, 75A Orchard Street, NYC. DT
NEW YORK, NEW YORK - JUNE 05: Atmosphere during the Mae McKagan Capsule Collection Launch At I NEED MORE the Mae McKagan Fall/Winter 2019 Capsule Collection Launch at I NEED MORE on June 05, 2019 in New York City. (Photo by Gonzalo Marroquin/Getty Images for Mae McKagan Fall/Winter 2019 Capsule Collection)
Eighteen-year-old designer Mae McKagan debuted her new Capsule Collection last night at an exclusive event hosted by Downtown and I NEED MORE, Jimmy Webb’s punk rock boutique in the Lower East Side.
NEW YORK, NEW YORK – JUNE 05: Atmosphere during the Mae McKagan Capsule Collection Launch At I NEED MORE the Mae McKagan Fall/Winter 2019 Capsule Collection Launch at I NEED MORE on June 05, 2019 in New York City. (Photo by Gonzalo Marroquin/Getty Images for Mae McKagan Fall/Winter 2019 Capsule Collection)
Downtown’s editor-in-chief Deb Martin said of the event, “Downtown Magazine is so proud to support young talent like Mae, who has designed a capsule collection that is cool, elegant, and edgy all at the same time.”
NEW YORK, NEW YORK – JUNE 05: Deb Martin, Mae McKagan during the Mae McKagan Capsule Collection Launch at I NEED MORE on June 05, 2019 in New York City. (Photo by Gonzalo Marroquin/Getty Images for Mae McKagan Fall/Winter 2019 Capsule Collection)Grace A. Capobianco, Susan Holmes-McKagan, Deb Martin
In attendance at the boutique party were many big names in music and fashion, including McKagan’s parents, Duff McKagan of Guns N’ Roses, and Susan Holmes-McKagan, the American model and now author, as well as her sister Grace McKagan, the frontwoman and lead singer of The Pink Slips. Debbie Harry and Ewan McGregor also attended, among many others who came to show their support of her collection.
The event was lively and packed with guests, with rosé provided by Bosman Family Vineyards and Wines for the World, and hors d’euvres provided by Emmy-winning chef Erwin Schröttner and his Lower East Side mainstay, Cafe Katja.
Duff McKagan expressed awe for his
daughter’s talent, and her passion for her creations, sharing that she’d had a
passion for fashion from a very young age.
NEW YORK, NEW YORK – JUNE 05: Susan Holmes – McKagan, Mae McKagan, Grace McKagan and Duff McKagan during the Mae McKagan Capsule Collection Launch At I NEED MORE the Mae McKagan Fall/Winter 2019 Capsule Collection Launch at I NEED MORE on June 05, 2019 in New York City. (Photo by Gonzalo Marroquin/Getty Images for Mae McKagan Fall/Winter 2019 Capsule Collection)
Jimmy Webb, owner of I NEED MORE, also spent the evening gushing about McKagan’s talent. Webb helped to make McKagan’s dream of being a fashion designer into a reality by partnering with her for this collection. “I love the whole McKagan family, they are in my heart forever, and I’m so proud that Mae chose my baby, I NEED MORE, to launch her line,” Webb said.
NEW YORK, NEW YORK – JUNE 05: Mae McKagan and Jimmy Webb during the Mae McKagan Capsule Collection Launch at I NEED MORE on June 05, 2019 in New York City. (Photo by Gonzalo Marroquin/Getty Images for Mae McKagan Fall/Winter 2019 Capsule Collection)
Despite the excitement of her debut in the fashion world, McKagan was the picture of focus and humility as she received a stream of well-deserved praise throughout the evening, on top of looking effortlessly elegant in a pale pink corset top of her own creation in collaboration with designer Veritée Hill.
NEW YORK, NEW YORK – JUNE 05: Susan Holmes – McKagan, Deborah Harry and Mae McKagan during the Mae McKagan Capsule Collection Launch At I NEED MORE the Mae McKagan Fall/Winter 2019 Capsule Collection Launch at I NEED MORE on June 05, 2019 in New York City. (Photo by Gonzalo Marroquin/Getty Images for Mae McKagan Fall/Winter 2019 Capsule Collection)
“Pouring my heart and soul into this line has changed my mindset and life!” She wrote in an Instagram caption today, between sentiments of gratitude towards her family and supporters.
The line itself is sophisticated,
and perfect for ambitious young women of her generation, featuring pieces like
a powder blue power suit, a modern-punk plaid pencil skirt, and several other
items, including the corset she wore to the event.
NEW YORK, NEW YORK – JUNE 05: Atmosphere during the Mae McKagan Capsule Collection Launch At I NEED MORE the Mae McKagan Fall/Winter 2019 Capsule Collection Launch at I NEED MORE on June 05, 2019 in New York City. (Photo by Gonzalo Marroquin/Getty Images for Mae McKagan Fall/Winter 2019 Capsule Collection)
The capsule collection is available exclusively in-store at I NEED MORE, 75A Orchard Street in the Lower East Side.
