My husband and I were having a discussion tonight about Phelphs Lounge on Oakland Ave. in Detroit.
Does anyone remember it? When did it closed? Is the building torn down?:)
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My husband and I were having a discussion tonight about Phelphs Lounge on Oakland Ave. in Detroit.
Does anyone remember it? When did it closed? Is the building torn down?:)
Saw BB King there, sometime in the late '70s I believe. Great show, quite a bit different from the work he did in the big showrooms. A comfortable place with some very nice people.
The building is still there on Oakland, vacant but secured/locked. The Phelps Lounge sign is still on the front. Some of the brick facing has been removed from the structure.
The Phelps Lounge hosted many, many important blues and R&B acts -- local and national. It began, I believe, in the late '50s, but its earlier incarnation [[1930s and '40s) was the Bizerte Bar, a jazz club.
Rumor has it that Eddie Phelps is still alive, although very elderly.
I think the brick started separating from the building on it's own. It was laying all over the sidewalk fora while. Saw Billy Paul there around 1980 or so, it was a nice place back then.
Yikes, have not thought about that place in a while... I'm not a bar person but I know the names, makes me thing about some other deep-dish west side bars like Chucks Millionaires Club [[LOL!) and Club Watts Mozambique, Latin Quarters, Club West off Lyndon? The Cotton Club on Livernois etc.!Quote:
Originally Posted by Claire
Is the Mozambique still open?
I hear the place is [[if still open) now a rough and tough "we scan you at the door for guns" low rent male dancer strip joint... or maybe that's Henry's Palace down the road. Ugh! Though about 20+ years ago I went to see Denise LaSalle and Bobby Blue Bland etc. blues review there - standing in the rain to get in... and it was ok. They would later play the Fox which was of course nicer by far.
In any event Fenkell has taken a bad turn along where both places are located in the last decade.Quote:
Originally Posted by Claire
Music lovers and Urban explorers, the front door of the Phelps Lounge has been broken into. BB King played there. George Clinton turned the Parliments into the Funkadelics there. The building is on Oakland Ave just N of Holbrook. Get your cameras and go exploring and maybe save a little history. The building has been locked up tight for 40 years. Although, even 10 years ago old man Phelps used to go in there once a week on Saturday to check it out. I did walk into the entrance. It was a mess inside. Lots of water damanger. Plaster just about all gone. The rounded, wavy bar was still there down all one side of the building. Some of its table top thrown to the side. The rounded ceiling ouline followed its outline in a way popular in the '40's & 50's.
Apex Lounge is still on Oakland and was open last I checked.
I remember Phelps very well...it was across the street from Schvitz Health Club..Does anyone know if Schvitz is still operating? I haven't been there in a long time...the building is still there.
Phelps is a later incarnation. Originally it was the Bizerte Bar, fabulous 1940's jazz joint which featured the amazing Lorenzo Lawson, and Alberta Adams, among others. I always wanted to snoop around the basement and see if any memorabilia from the 40's was there...or just take photos....that stretch of Oakland was the west side equiv. of John R - Broad's Club Zombie was also on Oakland.
http://www.wxyz.com/dpp/entertainmen...%27s-east-sideQuote:
Originally Posted by MidTownMs
and all along i thought it was just a swingers club.......
During weekdays it was a men's health club. Friday's was couples only and Sunday was for women.Quote:
Originally Posted by Goose