Some of the steps up until this point:
April 27, 2007 A day or so after returning from a trip to Southeast Asia, something jars me awake in the middle of the night, and I find myself sitting up in bed in the "guest room" at my parents’ house with a fully formed vision (location and everything) of the music spot I need to open in South Philly. I had never thought about doing this before. (Only a couple people know what the original location I had in mind was. Needless to say, it didn't work out.)
April 28, 2007 I call Miss P. and share the plan with her. Miss P. is my buddy, a former coworker, and a soul mate. She’s also one of my guides to the Philly jazz scene and a veteran of Pep’s, the Showboat, and the Aqua Lounge--some of the great gone-but-not-forgotten Philly jazz clubs. She says she’s been saying we should do this for years. She’s in.
April 30, 2007 I return to Philly and, during a round of backgammon, I inform old friend Ben about my plans and invite him to bring his years of restaurant experience (and, perhaps, his woodworking skills) on board.
May 1, 2007 I begin trying to determine who owns the seemingly abandoned property that appeared in my initial vision.
May 2, 2007 The bureaucratic part of the process begins with an innocent email to [email protected]. It’s a 3-sentence description of the business, followed by this question: “Can you tell me all of the licenses I would need to start such a business?”
early May 2007 I have a great phone conversation with my grandfather Bob. He’s very excited about my plans, especially since he’d always been encouraging me to start some sort of music-related business. He shares a little of his wisdom, gleaned from 50+ years as a real estate developer. He offers to come down to Philly and visit some properties with me.
May 3, 2007 I make my first inquiry about a property.
May 7, 2007 Back to work delivering Indian food... and the property search continues...
May 30, 2007 Bob, my grandfather, dies at the age of 87.
Summer 2007 One of the many properties I consider is 1713 McKean St. Anna Maria, who owns the building with her husband, only wants to lease me the 1st floor. The space is too small. I move on.
October 2007 Anna Maria and I talk again. It seems we’ve both been wondering about the possibility of my leasing the whole 2-story building and removing a portion of the 2nd floor, creating a balcony-like area on the 2nd floor. She’s into it. 1713 McKean starts to look like a better option.
October 31, 2007 I contact the chair of the Newbold Neighbors Association’s Planning & Zoning Committee. We meet a couple weeks later, and I feel even better about bringing my concept to Newbold.
November 7, 2007 As we walk to my car after meeting with Miss P.’s friend in Councilwoman Verna’s office, we have a moment of synergy. We’ve given the venue a name, one that pays tribute to my grandfather and her father, both named Bob.
December 2007 I decide to go with 1713 McKean and begin looking for an architect.
January 2008 Lease negotiations begin.
February 26, 2008 Lucky Old Souls, the radio show, debuts on G-town Radio, with music from Arnett Cobb, Billy Eckstine, Wynonie Harris, Ruth Brown, Dexter Gordon, the Ravens, and more. The name is an amalgam of the song title “That Lucky Old Sun” and the expression “old soul.”
June 9, 2008 I go on my first date with Q. There’s ice cream, CD shopping, cocktails, sushi, great live jazz (Leon!), and a late night walk. We soon fall in love.
August 2, 2008 While half asleep in a hostel in Toronto with Miss P., I discover there might be a problem with our chosen name. A few weeks later, I confirm it: The name we’ve chosen means “white man” in several West African languages. Oops.
September 6, 2008 I run into Lizzie, an old college friend, at a Fringe Festival dance performance. She’s a year out of architecture school now, and she wants to help.
September 11, 2008 After many months and a variety of delays due to a variety of factors, the lease is finally signed. The now nameless establishment will be at 1713 McKean St.
September 2008 Lizzie begins working on the initial plans.
6 Comments
Hi. I'm Matt. Some people call me Feldie. Lucky Old Souls is my dream, my baby.... The concept is rooted in my passion for music and my firm belief in the power of music to bring people together. Over the past couple of years, many of the specifics of my vision have changed, but that central premise has remained. I've been in rooms where a crowd has been collectively blown away by the immediacy of a live performance. I've been in bars where the groove has led people with little in common to talk and laugh and dance together. Music is magic. |