Girlfriend, Live from the famous 1990s Irish coffee house on St. Mark's Place, Cafe Sin-e. Photo by Tom Legoff.
The original Sin-é, located at 122 St. Mark's Place in Manhattan's East Village, was a small café that served food, coffee, and Rolling Rock beer. It was opened by Irish immigrant Shane Doyle in 1989. The early days saw a number of
Girlfriend, Live from the famous 1990s Irish coffee house on St. Mark's Place, Cafe Sin-e. Photo by Tom Legoff.
The original Sin-é, located at 122 St. Mark's Place in Manhattan's East Village, was a small café that served food, coffee, and Rolling Rock beer. It was opened by Irish immigrant Shane Doyle in 1989. The early days saw a number of poetry readings and acoustic sessions. One group that began to attract a wider audience on Saturday nights was The Clumsy Cabaret, a late-night gathering that drew musicians (including many of New York's anti-folk scene) after gigs. Acoustic music sessions took place in a spontaneous and creative atmosphere. Patrons included emerging writers, photographers, artists, designers and musicians. Later, as a more established venue, performers played for tips.
Seasoned performers such as Sinéad O'Connor, Jeff Buckley, October Project, Marianne Faithfull, Shane MacGowan, Hothouse Flowers, The Waterboys, Allen Ginsberg, Susan McKeown, Star Drooker and the band Native Tongue also appeared at Sin-é, giving impromptu performances. The stage was an area where tables were cleared away against a wall.
The informal atmosphere and regular audience were instrumental in creating a fertile musical scene that flourished until Sin-é closed in 1996. Jeff Buckley's first release was the EP Live at Sin-é (1993), while a double album, Live at Sin-é (Legacy Edition), was released in 2003.
Legendary NYC jug band, Porkchop, was featured on Saturday nights. The band included Chris Lafrenz on mandolin and vocals, animation icons Mike DeSeve (accordion/vocals) and Brian Mulroney (washboard/vocals), and Strokes guru J.P. Bowersock on guitar.
Source: Wikipedia