Oldest Jazz Joint in the US

"If walls could talk!" screamed Jackson to the white painted ceiling. Jason face sadly looked towards the ground as he threw the towel over his shoulder and let out a sigh. The brick wall, the glass windows, and striped décor drew in attention of the lost and weary but now it draws in everyone, every soul.

My grandpa and I grew up in Detroit and he has been through a couple owners and has seen things but not everything. He just knows or feel the lost and weary is scared away from this old place with no place to go. I know or feel he is just a wise old man who has lost it.

What would would the walls say "If walls could talk"? I bet the walls has seen the invisible, well things done behind closed doors anyway. I walked around the lounge peering at every wall, seeing dried paint covering the past, history actually. Yes, the Bakers Keyboard Lounge has been continuously running since nineteen thirty four, I bet so much has happened in between his time and mine. I am no researcher and I hate reading books so ill never know I guess only "if walls could talk." I walked back over to the counter to count out the till thinking "why not research? Nah!" I laughed thinking out loud. "Swing low sweet chariot coming forth to carry me home swing low sweet chariot coming forth to carry me home," my grandpa sang from the kitchen in such a baritone melody. I laughed out "if walls could talk would you want the walls to witness that old man?!"

"Walls can talk! its the human unappreciation of a everlasting structure in life." Looking sharp and quickly I looked over each shoulder all around to find no one. "Look at him looking all around, what's up with him? He has really lost it!" I was at this point confused "okay now who is in here?" Grandpa came out the back "boy what are you out here rambling on about lets go thirty minutes until closing time." I turned around, very observant of my surroundings, closed the till drawer and went to get the broom and mop. I got to the closet and turned on the light got the mop, broom, some bleach and then "why don't you try getting some baking soda, vinegar, hot water, and soap," "yes we could use a good cleaning its been decades!" I heard rambling on. I took the broom in front of me and tip toed around as if I was hunting prey, listening for the lingering voices. I peered around the corner and jumped out "aha!" I exclaimed as I pushed the broom aggressively into the air but nothing. "This guy has totally lost!" laughed the invisible person at this point. "I totally lost it?!" I said with a look insinuating the craziness I felt. "Did he hear us?" said the mysterious voice.

"This is insane Walter he can hear us!" "He said it Walker! If walls could talk three times!" I heard voices say in excitement. "Are the walls really talking right now? Grandpa!" I yelled, slipping on my shoestring running to the back. Boom! Landed right on my back, "Jason are you ok? What is going on?" my grandpa said lowly. You could hear his voice shaking he was terrified,

Jason: "woah grandpa the walls are talking!"

Jackson: "Are you serious Jason we have so much to do and I have all this paperwork I can not deal with the drug habit right now."

Jason: "Drug habit?"

Jackson: "Yes the ally smell like strong parsley weeds"

Jason: "Grandpa that is medicine not drugs and we have more serious things to deal with right now! The walls are talking. Come with me now."

Walter and Walker: "Jason!"

Jason: "You don't here that?"

Jackson: "Really Jason lay off the drugs and do your job so we can leave. Now I am going to the back to finish up paperwork, do not disturb me!"

My grandpa slowly walked to the back as I stood in disbelief. My hands on my hips and shaking my head I slowly turned around. I stared blankly at the walls questioning every belief I had in my life and swimming through photogenetic memories, just confused.

Walter: "It is a pleasure Jason we have not connected to a human since nineteen ninety-six and it gives us great..."

Walker: "Great nothing! Humans are a waste of space and are selfish beings, destructive..."

Jason: "Wait a minute. Who are you? How is this possible?"

Walter: "Well Jason I am Walter and this over here on the other half is Walker. We are the structure Gods of this lovely Jazz home. Centuries ago all walls were able to communicate with humans. Humans would lay there hands and the soft side of there cheeks to our walls and be able to feel all the history and wisdom a wall had to offer, hearing our whispers of advice. With our knowledge humans were able to mix that feeling up with intuition and was able to feel the powerful energy in whatever room they connected with. This gave them the opportunity to choose between being around positive or negative energy."

Walker: "And you could believe how many selfish humans chose to waddle in negative energy right Jason. Structures would be torn down and our spirits would linger over our home area and not to rest until another structure is built. We would settle into our new structure and keep history that we always knew."

Walter:` "When we do this it gives humans the energy of that area in general because each structure is different, each human is different, each owner but our knowledge never changes more is just added. So you don't just feel or hear the whispers of Bakers Keyboard Lounge but structures before it."

Walker: "You know if your that kind of spiritual person who believe in bad structure, bad structure, good structure, bad structure, good structure, bad bad, bad, good..."

Jason: "Okay! Okay! I get it. Defiantly would choose not to linger around that area though sounds like the next structure something bad happens (laughing)." So why aren't humans able to touch and hear or feel you now?

Walker: "A human! and this place is the only structure that suffers this curse. A Jazz witch from New Orleans came over in nineteen seventy four to talk to Clarence, the owner, about his connection to his lounge and how it was so successful in exchange to stop his sickness. Now Clarence sold this building on and off but it wasn't until the day he left nineteen ninety six, Ill never forget (sadly)."

Walter: "We saw that witch lady meet him in the back. He came out and touched us only to feel nothing or hear our whispers of good bye. He could only explain; the witch lady tricked me she didn't just want information on how we worked so well and been so successful, she wanted to stop it and I only found out after she gave me a guarantee natural causes death. So I just wanted to let you know I love you old building. You are beautiful souls not trapped but purposely put in the walls to protect and give humans wisdom. You are important, maybe more important. The curse is you can only communicate with humans if they say "if walls can talk" three times."

Walker: "We met Clarence at fifteen, his dad Chris opened this place in nineteen thirty four starting off with just sandwiches and beer. Then the most devastating thing happened Chris died of a stroke. After he passed away Clarence had to take over."

Walter: "But boy did he turn this place around I mean so much beautiful music filled the air lost souls, positive souls, and negative souls flooded the doors fifties through the seventies. Clarence celebrated the jazz pianist Art Tatum. He helped pick the club’s first grand piano in the 1950s. We experienced Fats Waller, Louis Armstrong, Tommy Flanagan, and George Shearing even more it was a beautiful time."

Walker: "The most beautiful night was when Nat King Cole came or the night got exciting when Ella Fitzgerald showed up to meet Tommy Flanagan and sang the night away. Yes that time was the best of what we seen."

Walter: "Except that one night when Eddie Jefferson was shot. He was from New York sixty years old and shot in the chest nineteen seventy-nine. That night I remember we lost all faith in Humans."

Walker: "When Clarence gave us that news about the curse we could not even say good-bye. He left a a photo on the wall that read "say if the walls could talk and maybe they will." He couldn't give the whole rule or the witch would of noticed she told him to tell no one or the day he does he will die." We waited years for someone to say it three times in a roll so we could give him a message but with the way humans talk we found out the day he passed away on that day September twenty eight, two thousand three. He was ninety three, a natural death as the witch promised."

Walter: "So we were never able to tell him how we felt loved and appreciated by him or that we didn't blame him. There was no human like Clarence he was one of the few we actually loved."

Walker: "One of few that was a good human being and deserved to walk this earth."

Jason: "How was the both of you so close? Was you close with his father also?"

Walter: "We were close with Chris he touched us as soon as he bought this structure. He cleaned us every night as he played lovely Jazz music. Clarence would come visit before he worked here."

Walker: "He would lay his head against the wall, close his eyes, and sing before he started his homework every time. Though we couldn't but talk he talked to us anyway. He volunteered to take over cleaning and he cleaned us up until the day before he left."

Walter: "Your grandpa started working here in nineteen fifty six and we connected with him also. He was close friends with Clarence and he has been here every since he started. They cleaned walls together laughed and did the books, they made jokes and included us too. We all laughed so much, when Clarence left Jackson was devastated and he couldn't even find a friend in us anymore because of the curse."

Walker: "Eighty three and still comes in to do the books. He has been through so many great moments here, you should read up kid. It was one thing we forgot to mention about the curse once we are able to talk to you we will always be able to but you can not tell another soul or you will die. Kind of like the first thing you did when you found out."

Walter: "Well that was our fault we didn't recognize you said it three times otherwise that would of been the first thing we said after our greetings."

Jason: "Well that's a bit extreme!"

Walker: "Well your not suppose to technically know and that's why its called a curse duh."

Jason: "Well. Anyways wonderful story and all but if my grandpa knows you so well how come he didn't believe me when I said you were talking?"

Walker: "That's easy!"

Walter and Walker: "Amnesia!"

Walter: "When he lost connection with us the day of the curse he didn't know what to do to get it back. With him not having us, Clarence, and not too mention this place crawls with positive and negative energy but the lost don't seem to linger anymore. You know? People who came because they need to not because they wanted. Your grandpa needed this place he had no family, we were his family and now you."

Jackson: "Jason are you ready we have to lock up?"

I was sitting on the table legs crossed just gazing at the walls smiling. This was the most perfect night, this night explained why I feel so at home at this place. My grandpa came and sat in the chair next to me and gazed at the walls. He laughed "man I miss Clarence, "If walls could talk" Jason they could tell you a history I cant even remember. They would tell you all the things I forgot but held so dear and now I'm a eighty three year old man with amnesia!" he laughed. A tear fell down his wrinkled old cheek, he shut off the lights and said, "only If walls could talk." We ended up sitting there laughing all night because before he flipped the light switch back on and heard I told you so he heard.

Walker and Walter: "Jackson!"

https://www.bakerskeyboardloungedet.com/about-us/

https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2003-sep-30-me-passings30.2-story.html

https://www.cbsnews.com/detroit/news/the-stories-behind-the-worlds-oldest-jazz-club-bakers-keyboard-lounge/

https://aaregistry.org/story/bakers-keyboard-lounge/

https://www.nytimes.com/1979/05/10/archives/eddie-jefferson-60-jazz-lyricist-slain-after-leaving-detroit-club.html