Art Chowder March | April 2018, Issue 14 | Page 52

I
t’s a bit like finding that final missing
jigsaw piece which completes the
puzzle. If you compare this analogy to
the dynamic and vigorous live music
and entertainment scene in the Inland
Northwest, Spokane has now completed
its full musical picture by slotting one
final element right into the heart of Lilac
City.
Local music enthusiasts already enjoy
being surrounded by an abundance of
live musical genres spanning pop, rock,
blues, folk and country. Now, thanks
to a novel and ambitious initiative,
downtown Spokane can justifiably boast
that it truly has soul, neatly packaged in
its own beautiful new home called the
House Of Soul.
Focusing on the wide-ranging appeal
of memorable Motown classics, along
with countless soul favorites from Stax,
Atlantic, New Orleans and Philadelphia
Soul recordings, Spokane’s House Of
Soul brings the music to our doorstep,
where it is performed live on stage
in this lavishly appointed nightclub
restaurant.
Located at 120 North Wall Street in
downtown Spokane, the building
originally was a historical bank of
old. When the bank relocated some
six years ago, the building’s owner
Tom Stiritz was approached by an
entertainment conglomerate, which
leased and repurposed the vacant area
into a bar venue and named it The Vault.
The venture however never really met
expectations and eventually was forced
to close. Two years ago Tom decided to
give the venue an exciting and decidedly
expensive new lease on life, by investing
in prestigious new furnishings, fixtures
and fittings, to create an illustrious music
club and restaurant, renaming it The
Reserve.
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ART CHOWDER MAGAZINE
The venue lived up to its promise
by offering live local and regional
music, along with elegant dining in a
fashionable setting. Amongst the wide
variety of musical genres taking to the
stage at The Reserve, there was one band
that definitely caught Tom’s attention
because they stood out with their
contrasting and individualistic musical
stylings.
That band was Spokane’s acclaimed
soul and R&B group Nu Jack City,
fronted by flamboyant founder-musician
and vocalist Max Daniels. Max has
been a significant figure in Spokane’s
live music scene for well over two
decades and has been at the forefront of
presenting exciting and colorful soul and
Motown styled shows in and around the
Inland Northwest.
Max admits that initially it proved to be
a bit of an uphill struggle to generate
any kind of interest in his chosen genre
of music in the Spokane area. He sensed
some level of resistance from other
musical acts around the city, who may
have felt that their brand of music held
more significance than his. But Max’s
single-minded determination drove
him to persist and keep plugging away
regardless of any obstacles.
Oddly, during this developmental
period, Max discovered that North Idaho
seemed to be far more receptive to his
live soul and R&B shows, so he tested
the waters by opening a small soul club,
which attracted a measurable level of
interest and gave him the incentive to
effectively break into the Spokane music
arena.