Smashing good time at Hard Rock
BILOXI - The sun was hot but it was pretty cool outside the Hard Rock Casino Biloxi on Saturday as guitars were smashed to open the resort almost two years later than originally planned - thanks to Katrina.
Hard Rock was just days from opening when the hurricane hit Aug. 29, 2005, destroying the casino barge and damaging the hotel.
For Hard Rock to rebuild even though it wasn’t able to open and earn even a nickel before the storm, “That’s Biloxi spirit, right there,” said Biloxi Councilman George Lawrence.
Dignitaries and celebrities alike smashed about 35 guitars under the huge Hard Rock sign on June 7, 2007 as planned. The resort actually opened last Saturday.
One of the owners and partners David Ross said, “I’m very happy with the way the market is receiving it.” Hard Rock Biloxi is a local spot with lots of local employees, he said, “and it’s their place.”
Ross watched Katrina smash into the Hard Rock on Web cams. His parents and friends came to share Saturday’s grand opening celebration with him.
Kid Rock rocked Hard Rock Live on grand opening night, leading off with Led Zeppelin’s “Rock and Roll.” Before the end of his second song, “Son of Detroit,” he had played the crowd with as much dazzle as the glitzy trim on his black suit and let his long, blond hair down.
The opening of Hard Rock shows the country Biloxi is working its way back from the storm, said Mayor A. J. Holloway, and doing it in a big way. Borrowing a line from The Rolling Stones he declared, “I know it’s only rock ‘n’ roll - and I like it.”
Source: Sun Herald