| 6th January 2007 11:28 PM |
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| parmeda |
I'm afraid my annual pilgrimage might be coming to an end 
But I am happy that some of my RO friends had the pleasure to stop in while they were here visiting!
I have tickets to one of his shows at the end of the month
...such a dying breed, it's sad if they squeeze Buddy outta here and can't help him relocate 
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BLUES FOR BUDDY - South Loop club will close in June, but bluesman vows to reopen Buddy Guy's Legends
January 5, 2007
Chicago SunTimes
BY DAVE HOEKSTRA - Staff Reporter
On Thursday -- the same day the Rock and Roll Hall of Famer opened his annual monthlong residency at his legendary club, Buddy Guy's Legends at 754 S. Wabash -- he announced the club will close sometime around June.
In between shows, he will be searching for a new club location.
"People better catch me while they can," Guy said in a Thursday interview. "Who knows where we will be next January?"
Guy said he wants to stay in the South Loop. The city is working with Guy on relocation.
"I even looked at the old E2 club [2347 S. Michigan] two weeks ago," Guy said. "I'm having a contractor go in there to see if they can turn it into a blues club. There's two or three buildings near there the city recommended I look at."
Planning and Development spokeswoman Connie Buscemi added, "Buddy is very important, in terms of not only blues but in the overall feel for Chicago. We'll work with him as long as it takes, until he finds something that's suitable to him."
Guy opened his current club in June 1989, when the neighborhood was south of nowhere.
Scouting locations
He had been checking out the historic George Diamond Steakhouse building, 630 S. Wabash, until it was gutted by fire in October.
"Next week, I'm looking in the [original] Maxwell Street, which is where the blues started," said Guy, who turned 70 last year.
"But I'm skeptical about where you go now, especially with DUIs. If you put a blues club out west or way out south, it's disaster. People used to drive from Joliet and Gary, and they don't do that anymore. And public transportation doesn't run all night like it did in the heyday of Muddy Waters, when you could hop on a bus and go out and catch a few drinks."
Columbia College has been planning to build a student center at the site of Legends ever since the land was donated to the school in 1999. At one time Guy was going to move to the northeast corner of Balbo and Wabash. He was unable to build a 700-seat club on that space because of a snag with a lakefront board that approved neighborhood aesthetics.
Columbia College media relations director Micki Leventhal said the school's two-year extension on Guy's lease expires May 31.
"We don't have the picks and shovels out," she said Thursday. "We're not ready to start construction on June 1. We're willing to be flexible, but eventually we need this space for expansion."
Guy loved his 754 S. Wabash location because of its proximity to downtown and hotels.
"If I can't find another spot in the South or West Loop, I don't know what's going to happen," Guy said.
Another club closed -
This is the second big hit on the Chicago live music scene in the last two weeks.
Joe Segal's historic Jazz Showcase closed on New Year's Eve.
"People from all over the world know about Legends," Guy said.
"When you get off the plane in Detroit, you hear Motown; when you get off the plane in Memphis, you hear Elvis. When you get off the plane here, there's one horrible painting of Muddy, [Howlin'] Wolf and [Little] Walter sitting in a corner. I've mentioned that to the mayor.
"What are we doing with our history?"
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| 7th January 2007 01:00 AM |
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| glencar |
That was right around the corner from the Hilton! Too bad about the closing. |
| 7th January 2007 10:25 AM |
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| LadyJane |
That sucks!!!! 
We had fun at Legends at both Chicago Summits.
Damn shame.
Good Luck Buddy.
LJ. |
| 7th January 2007 11:10 AM |
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| GotToRollMe |
quote:
glencar wrote:
That was right around the corner from the Hilton! Too bad about the closing.
That little walk I took from the club back to the hotel is one of my favorite memories of that trip. The clear cold air, the sky, the moon - the city at night. *sigh*
Hope he finds another location.
[Edited by GotToRollMe] |
| 7th January 2007 12:17 PM |
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| PartyDoll MEG |
Aw..that's sad Parmy...Hope he finds another good spot!!! Gotta keep the blues alive in the Windy City... |
| 7th January 2007 01:34 PM |
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| nankerphelge |
I remember the bouncer at that place.
He loved us!! |
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