The Hideout way has been to take it day by day.

So it is hard to believe that the beloved Chicago music club and social incubator opened in 1996 as a musical venue. It doesn't seem that long ago that I was drinking shots of tequila with Tim Tuten and Katie Nicholson during the smoky 1990s Thursday night jazz sets at Weeds, 1555 N. Dayton.

They would talk of their dream of buying the gritty frame and tar-roofed bar just north of Weeds where Nicholson's father Tom liked to have a drink after selling rocks for Vulcan Materials Co. along Route 66 in McCook, Ill. Their dreams came true and also stayed grounded.

The Hideout is heavy mettle on the easy listening near north side......