The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame's new home in SoHo

Photo credit: Urbanite

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By Ron Bishow

Special to amNewYork

Have you wondered what happened to the urinal from CBGB after the legendary rock club closed?

Well, it’s safe and sound along with thousands of other music artifacts at the brand new Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Annex in SoHo. While the museum will officially open Dec. 2, the public can get a first look during preview tours starting today.

The 25,000-square feet mini-museum, costing $10 million, sits in the brick-walled basement of an Old Navy store at 76 Mercer Street..

It is the first time the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame has extended its brand beyond the main museum in Cleveland, and New York City was the logical choice.

“New York City has been vital to the history of music, so having the museum here, especially in SoHo, was very important,” said James Henke, vice president of Exhibitions and Cultural Affairs for the museum.

Illustrating this point is a 26-foot scale model of Manhattan located in the “New York Rocks” gallery, which lights up in 24 places marking key locations in NYC rock history. The room also contains a CBGB installation and articles of clothing and other artifacts from New York musicians like The Ramones, Blondie and Patti Smith.

Artifacts from The Ramones and Blondie will be on displayThe Annex holds five other unique galleries with categories like “Roots & Influences” and “Moments to Movements,” and a special exhibit, “Revolution Rock: The Story of the Clash,” which originated at the Cleveland museum. The Clash is the first of rotating exhibits that will change around every six months.

“The goal is to not only give people a unique experience, but also just a taste that will drive them to head back to Cleveland,” Henke continued.

Visitors receive headsets when they enter the museum, but instead of hearing the voice of a virtual tour guide, you hear the music of the artist whose memorabilia you are looking at.

It takes about 90 minutes to go through the Annex with tickets costing $28. But for the preview tours that run through Monday, tickets will be reduced to $26. Visitors are let in 100 at a time at 15-minute intervals starting with a 10-minute movie in the “Immersive Theater.” Tickets are available at the box office or at www.rockannex.com.

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