Launch.com
November 19, 1998
Storefront Hitchcock Hits The Street With R.E.M.'s Buck
by Michael Sullivan
Robyn Hitchcock was joined by R.E.M.'s Peter Buck for some old-fashioned busking last night in downtown New York City at the premiere of Storefront Hitchcock. The concert documentary by acclaimed director Jonathan Demme (Stop Making Sense, Silence Of The Lambs, Beloved), which showcases the eccentric English singer-songwriter, was preceded by an introduction by Demme and an acoustic performance by Hitchcock and Buck of the former's "Chinese Bones".
Following the movie, the people leaving the theater were greeted on the sidewalk by Hitchcock (on acoustic guitar) and Buck (on banjo), who serenaded the assembled crowd of about 75, including Demme, Lou Reed, Laurie Anderson, and Buck's bandmate Michael Stipe. The pair performed for about 25 minutes, closing with The Soft Boys' "Queen Of Eyes", at which point Hitchcock declared, "We're off to get drunk now."
Demme filmed Storefront Hitchcock last year inside an abandoned storefront on 14th Street in New York City. It contains footage of Hitchcock performing a range of material, including four new songs -- "1974", "Let's Go Thundering", "Where Do You Go When You Die?", "No, I Don't Remember Guildford" -- and such older favorites as "I'm Only You", "Glass Hotel", and "Airscape". A soundtrack is available on Warner Bros. Records.
Aside from the street appearance, Hitchcock is scheduled to play a show under the billing of his "His Britannic Majesty, Queen Elvis" at New York's Mercury Lounge on Friday.
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