I'm not fittin to dwell on shit, but a lot of the places we played so many years ago are gone. Many closed, more have been bulldozed.

I'm not about to get as nostalgic as I tend toward, but the Heartland Cafe was a huge part of Chicago and the cultural center of Roger's Park for more than 40 years. I knew they closed at the end of 2018, but I just got word they were razed and something new will take the place of the old building.

And so it goes.

Here's a little of the history. Me and the Cafe met a few times when they took a chance on Five Year Jacket. I really liked the place and I recall two things about the first gig we did there:

1. One of the finest compliments I ever received. 

2. This absolute poem of a girl I that took me about 10 beers and the entire evening to talk to. At the end of the night all I could manage was to walk by and say "Excuse me. It took me all night to tell you that you're beautiful. I have to go, now."

These two things are not related. Here's a history of the joint.