The Wabash Cafe

March 18, 1994  Fire claims the Wabash Triangle Cafe

So, for the first time in about a week I didn’t really do a lot of writing yesterday. Instead, I spent several hours doing some research. It really started out as a search for a picture of the cafe (no luck, other than the picture of the fire above), but eventually it became a half day spent following any links I could find that dealt with the Wabash and it’s patrons. And while the information wasn’t vast, there were some gems to be found. I eventually even started looking into the Wabash Railroad company, as the cafe was named after the Wabash Railroad hub that used to reside where the Metro Link station is just east of The Pageant.

Why is this important to the album? Well, The Wabash Cafe is not at this stage of writing a concept album per se, but there is a definite vibe and feel that I want to achieve with both the album and this website that is informed by the places and people who have been focal points of my life. The Wabash Triangle Cafe, the old Haven coffee house in Maplewood, late nights at the old Denny’s on 44 & Lindbergh – sometimes places become more than just where you hang out. When the right mix of atmosphere and personalities get together they become a whole greater than the sum of its parts, a community, that can enrich your life. I hope to achieve something like that with this project.