Growing
up, I had three main passions – travel, sports, and music. For some reason or another, I visited my
first Hard Rock Café in Paris while on a high school trip. Since then, I have begun collecting t-shirts,
shot glasses, and other little trinkets along the way whenever I find a Hard
Rock Café along my travels. With a couple of days to kill in Detroit before the
Winter Classic, I decided to check out Hard Rock Café in Detroit. Established on November 10, 2003, Hard Rock Café Detroit is located right in downtown Detroit just a few blocks West of
Hockeytown Café. Specifically, it is located right across from Campus Martius Park where the annual
D-Drop is held.
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| Hard Rock Cafe Detroit |
Rather
than review the food, I’d prefer to highlight some of the Rock n’ Roll
memorabilia that you can find at this particular location. And let’s be honest here – it’s really the
memorabilia that draws in fans like me to this restaurant, anyway.
The Detroit Rock City Stained Glass Window
Right
near the main entrance is a wall mural that just sticks out like a sore
thumb. You literally cannot miss
it! At first, I noticed the members of
KISS. But, upon closer inspection, I
realized this mural paid homage to Detroit’s biggest musical acts, including Stevie
Wonder, Kid Rock, the Supremes, Alice Cooper, and Ted Nugent.
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| The Detroit Rock City Stained Glass Window |
Ted Nugent’s Guitar
Ted
Nugent is about as “Michigan” as you can get with his love for hunting, his
passion for guitar, and his hard line Republic views. He definitely is a reflection of the middle
class that lived in Detroit in its hey-day during the 50s and 60s. At this particular Hard Rock Café, you can
see his 1963 Gibson Byrdland that he used from early in his career up until
1975. In fact, this guitar was used as a
model for the entrance design for Hard Rock Café Detroit.
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| Ted Nugent's 1963 Gibson Byrdland |
Alice Cooper’s Black Leather Jacket
Best
known for hits like “School’s Out” and “I'm Eighteen,” Detroit’s “Godfather of
Shock Rock” donated his black leather jacket to his hometown Café location. I almost wanted to bow down to this piece of
Alice Cooper memorabilia and shout out “we’re not worthy,” but I don’t know how
many people in the restaurant would have remembered this
Wayne’s World
reference!
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| Alice Cooper's Black Leather Jacket |
Stevie Wonder’s “Hotter Than July” Braille
Tour Book
You
can’t mention Stevie Wonder’s name without remembering the impact that Motown
Records had on local Detroit R&B acts in the 1960s. Blind since birth, Stevie Wonder has one of
the biggest pop music influences of the later 20th Century. As a kid, I remember listening to “I Just
Called to Say I Love You” all the time on the radio, thus he was literally one
of the first musical influences I had in my life. It was pretty cool, then, to see his Braille tour
book from his “Hotter Than July” tour, which detailed his day-to-day itinerary.
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| Stevie Wonder's "Hotter Than July" Braille Tour Book |
The Smokey Robinson Corner
First
achieving fame with the Miracles back in the early 1960s, Smokey Robinson was
one of the first musical acts signed by Motown Records. He would eventually go on a long and
prosperous career as both a writer and producer for the label, penning such
hits as “My Girl” and “My Guy.” The Hard
Rock Café Detroit has several pieces of Smokey’s memorabilia, including hit
records and a silk suit he once wore on a television show.
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| The Smokey Robinson Corner |
Diana Ross’ Gold Dress
Detroit
native, Diana Ross, achieved fame as lead vocalist for the Supremes in the
1960s and is one of the first Divas to achieve legendary status on a global
scale. Are you starting to notice a pattern
here between the 1960s, Motown Records, and the rise of African-American
musicians? Such an epic time in pop
culture! Of course, I had to snap a
picture of the gold dress she wore on the 1991 LP cover for “The Force Behind
the Power.”
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| Diana Ross' Gold Dress |
Sponge’s Autographed Guitar
This
was personally my favourite highlight of the memorabilia wall at Hard Rock Café
Detroit. A rather obscure Detroit band
that had a couple of minor hits in the mid-to-late 90s with “Plowed” and “Wax
Ecstatic,” Sponge was one of the few rock bands that I listened to in high school. As my eyes laid upon this autographed guitar
that they donated to the Café, a huge smile shone on my face as I reflected
fondly back upon my teenage years.
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| Sponge's Autographed Guitar |
The Madonna/Kid Rock/Eminem Corner
Rather
than list each one separately, I figured I would put them all together at
once. As you exit Hard Rock Café Detroit,
you will see a section dedicated to some of Detroit’s biggest musical acts in
the modern era, particularly Madonna, Kid Rock, and Eminem. Aside from some photos and records, you will
have a chance to see one of Kid Rock’s guitars, Eminem’s blue running pants
that he wore on the cover of Newsweek, and a dress once worn by Madonna back in
the early 90s.
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| The Madonna/Kid Rock/Eminem Corner |
Due
to a lack of time, Nick and I never got the chance to visit the original Motown
Records studio while we were in Detroit.
However, Hard Rock Café Detroit was a suitable alternative. Of the 10+ Hard Rocks I have visited in the world,
Detroit’s was hands down my favourite one so far simply because of the
homage toward local musicians.
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| Hard Rock Cafe Detroit - Music for Life |
To
visit this café, you can find it here:
Hard Rock Café Detroit
45 Monroe Street
Detroit, MI 48226
Phone: (313) 964-7625
