BRINGING THE BLUES BACK
Man relaunching a South Side music venue aims to keep the music — and the charm — the same
When a well-known nightclub reboots under new management, the temptation to operate differently from the previous regime looms large.
Warren Berger, who in 2018 took over ownership of Lee’s Unleaded Blues, a popular blues bar in Grand Crossing (7401 S. South Chicago Ave.), heard similar refrains regarding the area surrounding the venue.
He wants Lee’s to stay the same — or at least retain some semblance of the charm that led so many blues aficionados to its doors over the years.
“At a point, we were discussing what we were going to do here with some people from the city, and a recommendation was made we should move the bar to another local area of greater concentration of development, but I felt very strongly that I wanted to keep it here; I think it’s an institution,” said Berger. “I can think of an example of where someone on the North Side took a really vintage, neat bar, and they bought it — a neighborhood institution — and they changed it.
“They upgraded it; it destroyed the charm of it — and people didn’t come there. They lost their crowd even though it was this fancy place now. You didn’t have the character. And that’s why this bar will continue to have the interior character that it has.”
Lee’s, which closed in 2015, was the go-to place for many of the city’s blues artists. Yvonne Davis took over the venue after the death of her husband, Stan Davis, a retired police officer, in 2010. Ray and Leola “Lee” Grey, Lee’s original owners, purchased the bar in 1983.
“When she [Yvonne Davis] took it over, business was still really good, but understand that in the bar business it takes a certain kind of an individual,” said Berger. “... You know that’s the life you live; you’re out there. A person who is used to getting up at 6 in the morning and going to work or something; you know that’s not their thing.”
Berger, who also owns Club Escape (1530 E. 75th St.), one of the few South Side-based bars that caters to an LGBT clientele, aims for an April relaunch for Lee’s.
As a finalist for the city’s Neighborhood Opportunity Fund grant, where $5.4 million is being shelled out to 32 local businesses, Berger is in line to receive $136,000 to rehab the club. His business is one of the first chosen by Mayor Lori Lightfoot’s administration for cash from the four-year-old program that draws money from downtown developers to help neglected South and West Side neighborhoods.
And Berger also received an assist from 5th Ward Ald. Leslie Hairston, who sought him out to relaunch the venue.
“Lee’s was one of the last blues clubs in Chicago; it was the last on the South Side,” said Hairston, who was a frequent patron of Lee’s; she saw performances from artists such as Shorty Mack. “Warren currently runs a club, has run a club for decades. Here in the ward, he has been a good business owner and has been a good neighbor.
“[Lee’s] was a staple in the neighborhood. People came from all around the world; it was packed. We should be able to enjoy the same amenities in our neighborhoods that we have in the past that other neighborhoods get to enjoy.”
Berger is also known for being the proprietor of the now-shuttered, popular neighborhood eatery named South Chicago Seafood, which garnered Berger the nickname “the live catfish king of Chicago” due to him wearing tuxedos while diving into a makeshift pool of catfish.
While Berger aims to retain the “charm” of Lee’s, he keeps in mind the effect the COVID-19 pandemic is having on would-be blues consumers; some folks may not want to jump back into the mix yet.
“I want people to be able to come here and remember that it’s not that much different than what it was,” said Berger. “I mean, the bar itself will be. Here’s the thing: Being in business, you have to upgrade some things so that you can service people in a better way. So the bar may be more compact and more efficient. But it still has to stay pretty much the way it is.”
With that being said, former customers are excited about Lee’s relaunch, Berger says.
“I have people now calling me,” said Berger. “[Hairston] had a community forum, and she introduced me . . . . So, yeah, there’s a strong interest.”
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Dear Lady: I see no reason for you to discuss this with the man you are currently seeing, unless it is to enlighten him that even well-educated, successful people can be gullible under the right circumstances. Fortunately for you, you weren’t seriously damaged by the person’s failure to repay you. (Other intelligent, but trusting, people have suffered irreparable damage.)
Because you feel you were taken advantage of, it couldn’t hurt to notify the authorities. Yes it’s embarrassing, but human beings make mistakes. If you were preyed upon and the person was a scammer, you might be doing someone else a favor by reporting it.
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Dear Only Wants: Creating boundaries is going to be a new experience for this young woman. While it may eventually be liberating, it probably won’t be comfortable in the beginning. Thankfully, she will have your grandson at her side to reinforce her.
Befriend her and listen when she needs to talk. With parents as controlling as you describe, she’s going to need all the support and validation she can get. When she needs to strengthen her backbone, remind (don’t lecture) her that as a married woman, her first priority must be her husband and — if they are blessed with any — her children, and repeat that important message often.
I AM A WELL-EDUCATED AND SUCCESSFUL PROFESSIONAL WHO IS SO ASHAMED OF THIS THAT I HAVEN’T GONE TO THE AUTHORITIES.
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