Friday, Jul. 30, 2010
COMMENTARY Magazine picks Mutual Musicians Foundation as one of the greatest bars in the country
By STEVE PENN
The Kansas City Star
By STEVE PENN
The Kansas City Star
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ReprintA popular men’s magazine has recognized Kansas City’s Mutual Musicians Foundation as one of the “greatest bars” in America.
The August issue of Playboy magazine mentions the Mutual Musicians Foundation in its “Guide to America’s Greatest Bars.” Eighteen other establishments are listed, including Chicago’s Map Room, Detroit’s Cliff Bell’s, Las Vegas’ Bootlegger Bistro and Miami Beach’s Raleigh Martini Bar.
Guitarist Will Matthews, president of the Mutual Musicians Foundation, is pleased with the distinction.
“It’s great and awesome to be mentioned in Playboy,” Matthews said. “It doesn’t get too much better than that. Millions of people see that magazine all over the world. That’s some wonderful publicity.”
The Mutual Musicians Foundation at 1823 Highland Ave. was the home to Local 627, the African-American Musicians Union. The building has been designated a National Historic Landmark and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Now it can add “Best Bar” to the list of distinctions it has received over the years.
“We absolutely love it,” said Anita Dixon, the foundation’s vice president. “Our whole image is that of a performance hall.
“And we are. But we’ll take being one of the best bars in the nation. We sent Playboy a thank you and told them to do a story on just how important the foundation really is. We’re more than a bar.”
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Kansas City-based WillCo Technologies is sponsoring the District Rhythms summer concert series now under way in the Power & Light District.
The company stepped forward to sponsor the concerts as a way of educating the community on the work it does. WillCo Technologies is an energy-efficiency company that provides information technology solutions to government and industry.
The District Rhythms series on Sunday evenings will be a combination of rhythm and blues, American and old-school funk music. Rose Royce performs on Sunday. Alexander O’Neal and Cherrelle will perform Aug. 8.
The concerts begin at 6 p.m. on the KC Live stage. The concerts are free and are open to the public 21 years and older.
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Human rights activist Alvin Sykes has received another award.
On July 10, Sykes received the President’s Award from the Missouri Legislative Black Caucus Foundation during its meeting in St. Louis. The award was given for distinguished lifetime achievement and service.
The award states: “To Alvin Sykes for a lifetime of service, for a heart full of passion, for his tireless fight for the respect and dignity of every human being and for making an indelible mark on the landscape of civil rights in America.”