Dee Dee Ramone's guitar and leather jacket
Photo: Hard Rock

The worldwide Hard Rock Cafe chain is opening its vault of music memorabilia to offer the public a glimpse at its treasures, trinkets and trophies. And while ogling such items as Jim Morrison's leather pants and the over-the-top capes worn by Elvis and Elton John, music fans can also brush up on their rock history.

The Hard Rock Vault in Orlando, Florida, will give patrons a peek at its collection, spread out over 17,000 square feet, at a "soft launch" on Monday (December 23), though music fans must wait until January 16 for the official ribbon-cutting, according to a Hard Rock spokesperson. Among the items on display are B.B. King's "Lucille" guitar, Dee Dee Ramone's guitar and black leather jacket, Buddy Holly's signature horn-rimmed glasses, the motorcycle jacket and boots Bruce Springsteen wore on the cover of his Born to Run album, and the two items that started it all for the Hard Rock franchise — the guitars of Eric Clapton and Pete Townshend that hung above the bar in the original Hard Rock Cafe in London (click for photos).

Besides the expected bric-a-brac that is similar to what hangs in Hard Rock Cafes around the world, the Vault offers a virtual time machine called the Total Immersion Tour that allows folks to journey through influential eras like the late '70s punk explosion ("The Back Alley"), the mind-bending '60s ("The Psychedelic Meltdown") and the British Invasion ("The Light and the Dark"), so named for two bands, the Beatles and the Rolling Stones, that were almost diametrically opposed in their approach, but together wound up changing the face of music forever.

And what nest of nostalgia would be complete without an homage to Elvis? "The King's Chamber" is the place to go to find items from Presley's early days as a wide-eyed, blues-loving kid from Tupelo, Mississippi, on through his bejeweled reign over the Las Vegas strip.

• The Doors
• Buddy Holly
• B.B. King
• Dee Dee Ramone
• The Ramones

Michael Jackson performs with the Jackson 5 on "American Bandstand" circa 1973  
Photo: Dick Clark Productions

Two of the most popular music shows in TV history are expected to arrive in American living rooms next year — one returning to the small screen after lying dormant for 12 years, and the other making the trip over from the U.K.

ABC plans to mark the 50-year anniversary of "American Bandstand" with a two-hour special hosted by Dick Clark and scheduled for spring, according to a spokesperson for Dick Clark Productions. Clark, 71, will highlight performances from the show's four-decade run and introduce some of the most memorable moments involving the weekly guests and the dozens of dancing young people that collectively served as the show's co-stars.

Many consider "American Bandstand" a key ingredient in early rock and roll's success by having brought the new genre into mainstream America's living rooms week after week. Among the artists whose careers were jumpstarted by the program are the Jackson 5, the Beach Boys and Buddy Holly.

The program that eventually became "American Bandstand" was first titled "Bob Horn's Bandstand" after its original host. It debuted locally in 1952 on WFIL-TV in Philadelphia. In 1956 a 26-year-old Dick Clark took the reins, and in August of the following year ABC renamed the show "American Bandstand" and began airing it nationally. The first song played was indicative of things to come — Jerry Lee Lewis' "Whole Lotta Shakin' Goin' On." The last episode of "American Bandstand" aired in 1989.

Meanwhile, "Top of the Pops," a 37-year-old weekly British program that examines the weekly singles chart, is staging an invasion of U.S. airwaves next year. The WB has commissioned a pilot episode of the hour-long show, and if it meets with the approval of network executives, "Top of the Pops" will begin airing domestically, according to Andrew Solt Productions, co-producers of the show along with the BBC.

Each week the show ends with a live performance by the artist with the #1 single, and Solt said the same will hold true for the U.S. version. Performances will primarily take place in a Los Angeles studio, or, if the artist is on tour, a traveling camera crew will come to them. Footage shot at the "Top of the Pops" London studio could also be used.

The producers are currently in talks with Billboard to license the music-industry trade magazine's weekly singles chart.

• The Jackson 5
• Buddy Holly
• Jerry Lee Lewis