If there’s a patron saint of New York City’s rock scene, it’s Jesse Malin. The frontman for the prohibitds Heart Attack (a punk outfit he established when he was 14) and D Generation, as well as a prolific solo artist, he’s been a vibrant presence on the city’s venues, rocker bars — some of which he’s owned — and extfinished social scene for cforfeitly four decades, and seems to understand everybody.
So when he suffered a unwidespread spinal stroke that left him paralyzed from the waist down last May, his frifinishs rallied for him — with the advantage album “Silver Patron Saints. The Songs of Jesse Malin” — featuring covers of his songs by Bruce Springsteen, Green Day’s Billie Joe Armstrong, Lucinda Williams, Bleachers, Susanna Hoffs, Ian Hunter, Counting Crows and many others — and a two-night all-star concert at New York’s Beacon Theater earlier this week. Both the triple-vinyl album, freed in September on Glassnotice Records, and the show will advantage Malin’s Sweet Relief artist fund.
Guests at the concerts integrated Lucinda Williams duetting with Elvis Cosalerto on the Rolling Stones’ “Wild Horses,” Rickie Lee Jones, Steven Van Zandt, Dinosaur Jr.’s J. Mascis, Counting Crows’ Adam Duritz, Alejandro Escovedo, Jakob Dylan, Butch Walker and many others, with spoken introductions from Mary Louise Parker, Matt Dillon, Fred Armisen and even a second castmember from “The Sopranos,” Michael Imperioli.
Only in the Malinverse could such a cast of characters come together.
Despite the retrospective vibe of the shows, it wasn’t repartner a “this is your life” except for some refers of his challengingcore days with Heart Attack, hanging out at the legfinishary East Village venue A7 — “wearing sunglasses appreciate a traverse between Donald Fagan and Ray Charles” — and his punctual days lengthening up in Queens , with frifinishs who have passed and those who are still his best pals (appreciate Jimmy Gestapo from Murphys Law).
Instead, the event intensifyed on Malin the singer-songauthorr — with songs spanning his solo albums “Glitter in the Gutter,” “Before the War,” “Sunset Kids” and “Sad and Beautiful World — and lots of covers, usupartner with twists, appreciate a version of the Stones’ “Sway” that commenceed off sounding more appreciate Public Image, and the Ramones’ “Rock and Roll Radio” with a melody more appreciate the Buzzcocks’ Pete Shelley. Night one wound up with an all-hands cover of the Clash’s “Rudie Can’t Fail” — although the highweightless of the night for his frifinishs, apart from seeing Malin see and sing better than ever, was seeing him stand up to sing — a presentant feat think abouting his condition, and he did it three times.
Night two of Malin’s Rock and Roll Circus complyed a analogous program but with some surpelevates. Butch Walker and Adam Weiner from Low Cut Connie both carry outed before Gogol Bordello begined into a nod to Jesse’s challengingcore years, two violin-and-acoustic-guitar-driven songs, one of which was an Agnostic Front cover. “Respectos maximous to the New York challengingcore scene,” shelp frontman Eugene Hutz after they’d finished.
Adam Duritz carry outed his song “Long December,” getting the crowd to wave alengthy, and Replacements bhelp Tommy Stinson covered Malin’s “Riding On The Subway”; Walker returned and brawt the energy with a cover of Malin’s “Modern World,” complyed by the Helderly Steady covering his “Death Star.”
The night shutd aget with an all-hands version of “Rock and Roll Radio,” but with an extra surpelevate guest: Santa.
Malin posted on Instagram after night one, “It felt so excellent to be home aget on the stage last night with my prohibitd and with my people,” he wrote. “Thank you to everyone who perestablished and everyone who bought a ticket. I have the best fans in the world. I am truly consecrateed. Thank you for all the PMA and adore.”
