too soon gone
Atlanta based blues singer and guitarist, Sean Costello, died yesterday, one day shy of his 29th birthday. This is not right.
Access Atlanta article: Costello found dead
categories: music
tags: blues, Sean Costello, untimely death
posted by what at 09:49 pm
Such sad news.
Just like cream rises to the top — Costello’s soulful, aching music seemed to rise up out of a pool of heartbreak. Now it is us — his fans, who hold the heartbreak. Thanks for posting this tribute. His Delta blues was pure essence-no race .. no color … all soul. Sean would grab you and freeze you unable to move til he was done. And like the real greats at this art seem to do…. he’d wash you a little cleaner somehow.
Definately a loss.
Does anyone know how he died? I’m in Atlanta, but haven’t really been keeping up with the news. This is really sad. I know a lot of people here who greatly admired him.
My question is why was he staying at the Cheshire Motor Inn if he lived in Atlanta? That’s a way seedy motel on a scary street. I have to wonder…
I heard about this on Bluesville on XM Radio. They played a concert of his for about an hour. Bill Wax said that they were declining to say how he died, but that the family encouraged donations to bipolar associations in lieu of flowers.
This is a tremendous loss.
Found this on the internet
“I did a quick Google Search on the Cheshire Motor Inn in Atlanta and came up with the following customer comments:
“If cruising is your thing then this is the place for you. There are 3 buildings but they’ve never offered to put me up in the ‘cottages’ and its just as well. If you are looking for discretion and privacy then choose the back building.”
“This place is the worst hotel or whatever it is! The drawers were filled with roaches! The closet was filled with urine smell. Which reek throughout! Disgusting and despicable! No one should enter! I would not let my dog lay on this floor.”
“No, the Cheshire is not the Ritz. But it is not marketed as the Ritz. It is also not a place to take children. Furthermore, this area of Atlanta has nothing that is geared toward children To me, this is a good thing.”
“Small roaches in the bathroom but I could have lived with that. This place is a cruise area for gay men. The curtains at the front window would only close with about a 1/4 inch gap remaining. Men would go by the window and peek in all night long. One man actually knocked on my door while I was asleep and asked if I wanted company. I advised him no and then he told me about this being a “gay cruise area.’”
“I stayed there the weekend of February 20, 2004. Two friends, both male, were in the room adjacent. That Saturday morning, a heavily tattooed man with multiple earrings and a nosering walked right into their open door. First he asked to borrow a pen. Then he asked if they would like some ‘southern hospitality’ (his words). When they politely declined, he repeated the offer.”
It sounds like the Cheshire was the perfect place for a bluesman to hang his hat for a few nights before hitting the road for the next show. You can paint his death as depressing, but, Christ, while he surely died too young, it sounded like he died doing exactly what he wanted to do. He could afford to make a living with music, he was traveling, putting out music on small labels where he obviously had total creative control, more famous musicians were playing with and seeing him all along the way …”
My point is that he lived in Atlanta…why would he be staying at the Cheshire Inn if he had a home here already?