The Commercial Appeal - Go Memphis
Punk, hard rock, metal fans shouldn’t miss these landmarks
The majority of those crazy Sunset Strip stories you hear about motorcycles in hotel lobbies, flying televisions and the Hollywood Vampires took place in West Hollywood. Back then, it was a seemingly “anything goes” unincorporated section of Los Angeles County. Since 1984, West Hollywood has been a separate city. And if you’re looking for music history, there’s no other place quite like it in Southern California.
Up-and-coming acts still play legendary venues like The Roxy, Viper Room and Whisky a Go Go. There’s even a walking tour dedicated to the hidden history and overall debauchery of the pre-grunge Sunset Strip.
For this piece, we’re giving you a list of hotels, bookstores and concert venues that you can still visit. And, besides decades of music history, they all have one thing in common: to this day, you never know who you might run into at any one of these legendary West Hollywood landmarks for punk, hard rock and metal fans.
Andaz West Hollywood (the former and current Riot House)
The former Continental Hyatt House at the corner of Sunset and Kings has changed names a couple of times since Keith Richards dropped a TV out of room 1015. Nowadays, it’s the Hyatt concept hotel, Andaz.
While you’ll no longer have to dodge flying TVS as you stroll down Sunset, the current managers are not above capitalizing on the property’s notoriety. The hotel’s Riot House Bar & Restaurant faces Sunset Boulevard and serves breakfast and dinner. Their breakfast menu includes quotes from former frequent guests Little Richard and Robert Plant. The latter’s quote is conveniently placed above the libations section.
Book Soup
Its slogan is “Bookseller to the Great and Infamous.” If you own 20 rock star bios, chances are Book Soup hosted book signings for half of them. This is the largest independent bookstore in West Hollywood. Every week, there’s at least one book signing or reading.
Recent metal icons have included Rob Halford and Anthrax bassist Frank Bello. In addition to having one of the most impressive collections of classic album-focused 331⁄ books, they also sell
3 vinyl.
Le Parc Suite
Le Parc Suite is where Ozzy Osbourne holed up for months after being fired from Black Sabbath. The year was 1979, and the future reality TV star thought his life was over. So he checked in at a hotel that a broke, fading rock star with a yearly drug habit in excess of his average fan’s annual income could ill afford.
Instead of enjoying this retreat-like hotel at the corner of Sherwood and Knoll, the Ozzman rarely left his onebedroom suite. He claims that he only opened the door for pizza delivery and his dealer.
Mystery Pier Books
While neighboring Book Soup appeals to bibliophiles in general, Mystery Pier Books is compact and exclusive. Many of their first-edition books predate the United States itself. Celebrity patrons include Elvis Costello and Jimmy Page. The latter is a well-known collector of Aleister Crowley memorabilia. The Led Zeppelin guitarist who was partially responsible for the unofficial name change of the nearby Hyatt House has bought multiple first-edition Crowley works from LA County’s most spellbinding indie book store.