Hilly and CBGB’s were great. Hilly made a wonderful contribution with his life. FUCK YOU LANDLORDS who tore him down. YOU SUCK. CBGB’s was the greatest place. So kind to musiciams; new and established. What a great place and a great life. We love you HILLY!!

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We will miss you, Hilly. You were a great friend to musicians and to rock and pretty much responsible for giving new artists a venue and a home for more than thirty years. What great memories I have thanks to you. All love, Liz

We will miss you, Hilly. You were a great friend to musicians and to rock and pretty much responsible for giving new artists a venue and a home for more than thirty years. What great memories I have thanks to you. All love, Liz

That sucks.
I am slightly peeved at the extra coverage on him compared to Tony Wilson.

RIP Hilly. thank you for everything. long live CBGB!

I think JJJ was using irony/sarcasm there, Charlie. Or maybe not. Who the hell knows.

Fans and admirers of Mr. Kristal are invited to offer condolences to his family at an online Guest Book on Legacy.com, which attracts 10 million visitors monthly.

Mr. Kristal’s Guest Book is at:
http://www.legacy.com/GB/Gue stbookView.aspx?PersonId=93522 658

MUSIC IS EVOULUTION THERE TRIPLE J AND WITHOUT THE BANDS THAT PLAYED CBGB’S, BANDS LIKE WHITE STRIPES WOULDN’T EXIST. I AM YOUR GENERATION AND AS FOR THE OTHER TWO WHAT THE HELL DO THEY HAVE TO DO WITH CBGB’S OR MUSIC OR THE WHITE STRIPES? OH YEAH, THEY DON’T

,,,,,most things “present” are/were influenced (sp?)by the past,,,,,have some respect for a man who stood out from the crowd and provided a space for emerging rock and roll icons that have influenced most music we hear today.

He means NOTHING to my generation.I care about Paris Hilton,Lindsay Lohan & REAL music like THE WHITE STRIPES!

Slow news day RS? Who cares!

He never booked any BLACK METAL bands! FVCK HIM!

Big whoop! Slow news day???

First they take his club….then he dies. It just ain’t right! Sad day for Rock and Roll…..

Farewell to he who saved Rock n’ Roll.

First Anthony Wilson, now Hilly. What a bummer of an august.

hey fake “Hilly Kristal” (first post below),,,,,,so does a shitty attitude,,,,,

Rest in peace, Hilly. By giving Television, Patti Smith, Talking Heads, Ramones, and Blondie (to name but a handful)an outlet for their creativity, you helped change the face of popular music. Until 1978 I was listening to Styx, Boston, and Kiss. I can never thank you enough.

Godspeed and God bless Hilly,
You gave us something real, something alive, something loud.
They can renovate CBGB’s, put in shiny tile floors, a mirror in the bathroom, tear up the stage, they can make you up, put you in a box, and lay you down six feet in the ground…but you’re still making noise, noise that won’t go unheard.
And we’re still listening, Hilly, we’re still listening…
Cheers to you!

I am greatful to say I went to the venue three times.. Twice to see a friend’s band headline, and another to see Apollo Sunshine. The place was such a great evironment for live music, especially the quality of the sound system. Hilly will be dearly missed, and his legacy will live on through the music of the artists he helped to nurture.

P.S. if they decide to save old Yankee stadium as a meuseum or some shit, then they need to fuckin; resurect CBGB’s in the Bowery. NYC should have NO double standards like that.

Now, HERE’S a great man. CBGB’s was a rock and roll institution. They broke the Talking Heads, The Police, Blondie, The New York Dolls, The Ramones, Elvis Costello, etc. Ther was no other club like this one. Not The Rainbow Room, not The Whiskey. RIP, Hilly, you’ll definitely be missed !!!

Sad news, this. I remember making a pilgrimidge to the club in 2004. It was a Friday afternoon, CBGB’s was closed for business but one of the doors was open. I walked in, Hilly was sitting in his office and was on the phone. Clearly I shouldn’t have been there, and I quickly left. Cool to see him.
RIP Hilly

Smoking kills! Bitches!