Seeing now well-known musicians perform back when they were still playing small sweaty rooms holds special cache among fans. Being ahead of the curve like that. The music equivalent of buying Apple or Google stock when it was still cheap.

During its run from 2017 to 2022, SideTracks Music Hall made many such memories. In addition to hosting legends like Sebastian Bach, Jason Isbell, Brother Cane and ex-Mötley Crüe frontman John Corabi, SideTracks brought more than a few future stars to Huntsville.

Not bad for a no-frills cuboid strip-mall space with a capacity of around 350 to 400, on downtown Huntsville’s outskirts. Below are five of the many artists whose profiles elevated significantly since performing at SideTracks.

GRETA VAN FLEET

As part of a promotion with local radio station Rocket 91.5 FM, tickets for Greta Van Fleet’s October 11, 2017 SideTracks gig were priced at just $9.51. The show sold-out within minutes. At that time, Greta Van Fleet — a band in their late teens and early 20s from Frankenmuth, Michigan — were ascending with their debut single “Highway Tune,” which evoked the hard-blues magic of early Led Zeppelin.

Stacey Ogle Courson was front row center for GVF’S SideTracks show. “It was amazing because except for Josh (Kiszka, the band’s frontman) they were almost shy and unsure, but they were so good,” Courson says. “They sounded [live] just like their recorded music, which was pretty amazing.”

For Courson, a Huntsville resident and nurse by trade, the highlights of Greta Van Fleet’s 12-song that night were the folk-pop song “Flower Power” and cathartic, closing encore “Safari Song.”

Before the show, the band milled about SideTracks, getting food and drinks, among the fans gathering. Courson asked singer Josh Kiszka for a selfie, for which he enthusiastically obliged. That kind of accessibility and gratitude from a rising band, she says, “gets fans hardcore — and they don’t leave [the band ever].”

Courson’s other favorite shows at SideTracks include then-rising Southern rockers Bishop Gunn and classic Sunset Strip band L.A. Guns. “SideTracks was such a cool venue,” Courson says. “Shane brought in a lot of cool shows, really something special.”

Shane Bickel, who was general manager/talent buyer at SideTracks, says the Greta Van Fleet dudes were, “just down to earth, humble guys. But you could see greatness was in their future, coming their way.”

Since SideTracks, GVF – comprised of Josh Kiszka, brothers Jake Kiszka on guitar and Sam Kiszka on bass/keyboards and family friend Danny Wagner on drums – have become hard-rock’s biggest young band. They’ve won a Grammy, had best-selling albums and toured the world. This year, Greta Van Fleet will return to Huntsville, with a spring show at Orion Amphitheater, an 8,000-capacity venue.

RED CLAY STRAYS

In September, Red Clay Stays will headline three nights at Nashville’s storied Ryman Auditorium. Three.

The Mobile-founded band’s sound stirs Sun Records roots with razor-wire alt-country. Their sultry ballad “Wondering Why” has been streamed more than 47 million times on Spotify. AL.com has been tracking Red Clay Strays since 2017, when they made our “25 essential Alabama musicians to know” List.

Bickel booked Red Clay Strays at SideTracks after first hearing about them from a friend who saw the band at iconic beach venue Flora-Bama.

The band played SideTracks multiple times. “They give you they’re all whether they’re playing in front of 50 people or they’re gonna play at Red Rocks [Amphitheater, elite live music venue in Colorado] or something.”

SIERRA FERRELL

She’s getting coverage from Rolling Stone, Billboard and other top music outlets. She crushed with a fiddle-forward performance on Jimmy Kimmel recently, too.

Way before that, Americana ascendent Sierra Ferrell played SideTracks. Bickel says even back then Ferrell was, “this tiny little person with a huge personality with a huge voice.” Standout Ferrell tracks like “In Dreams,” have now been streamed scores of million times on Spotify.

After one of her SideTracks shows, West Virginia native Ferrell and her band weren’t done. Bickel says, “They went out in the parking lot and played for another hour. Absolutely amazing talent.”

PRISCILLA BLOCK

Priscilla Block has almost 2 million followers on TikTok. Her pop-savvy country ballad “Just About Over You” is about to hit 60 million streams. Before that, Nashville-via-Raleigh talent Block sang at SideTracks.

“Priscilla is the party,” Bickel says. “When she walks in the room you know it’s time to crank it up. She could be sitting at the bar with you drinking a Busch Light and taking a shot of Jack Daniels, but once she walks onstage, it’s all energy and she’s just throwing it back to the crowd. I think younger people are more attracted to new music when they relate to [the artist].”

SideTracks was ahead of the curve of more than a few rising country acts. Others who played there and are now making big moves include Kameron Marlowe, who packed out the Von Braun Center’s 1,600-capacity Mars Music Hall last week. Ella Langley, who will open for Riley Green’s upcoming VBC arena show, did a SideTracks gig. They also had Colter Wall, Charlie Crockett, Charles Wesley Godwin and more.

JOHN 5

Last year, John 5 scored one of rock’s biggest gigs as the new guitarist for Mötley Crüe. Before that, John 5, aka John Lowery, was known for his six-stringing with Rob Zombie and Marilyn Manson, studio work with musicians ranging from Lynyrd Skynyrd to Wilson Phillips, and a shredder solo career.

Along the way to Crüe stadium stardom, John 5 played a packed 2021 SideTracks show.

“He really enjoyed the room,” Bickel says of John 5. “He thought it sounded great. Just a super nice guy who’s played small rooms, big rooms, and, man, he didn’t treat us no different. He came in there and gave it his all, and people were blown away to see that guy in such a small environment.”

To operate SideTracks, Bickel teamed with local service industry icon Eddie Yessick. Bickel says, “There was a lot of music I wasn’t into or listening to and he introduced me to something new, so we would bounce ideas and bands and music off each other.

“We didn’t always agree on everything. But that’s the great part of it. We figured out what we agreed on to get to the next step.”

Before SideTracks, Bickel cut his teeth in music booking and promotion at local venues like Furniture Factory, Sammy T’s and 11th Frame, often working with Birmingham-based promoter Steve Hall, who’s bringing metal icons Judas Priest to Huntsville’s Von Braun Center this spring.

Working at SideTracks afforded Bickel surreal moments like picking up ex-Skid Row singer Sebastian Bach at his hotel to go get some Chick-fil-A before Bach’s 2019 show at SideTracks.

“Growing up,” Bickel says, “Sebastian Bach was a rock idol for me. Then he gets in a car with you and you ride down the road and you’re like, man, he’s just a human like I am — he’s just super talented in front of a lot of people.”

During its five-year or so run, SideTracks Music Hall gave Huntsville a crucial, club-sized room dedicated to live music that’s yet to be filled again. Almost eight years into a planned reboot of legendary local dive Tip Top Cafe, that venue is yet to open. Meridian Arts Club, a 350-cap room by Orion Amphitheater’s team, originally aimed for a summer 2022 debut. Meridian’s been pushed back at least twice and doesn’t appear near the finish line yet.

In addition to hosting rising and veteran touring acts, SideTracks hosted plenty of Huntsville-area bands and artists. Standout local underground music cavalcade Sluice Fest was held there in its early years. SideTracks’ closure and the resulting void inspired a book about the venue, self-published by local resident/photographer Bud Gambrell in 2023.

After SideTracks, Bickel continued to put on notable local shows under the name of SideTracks Productions. He did a recent well-received Rocket Republic Brewing show with ‘80s hard-rock heroes Trixter. On March 22 at Furniture Factory, he’s bringing in Southern alt-rock cult-faves Drivin’ N’ Cryin’.

“I’m trying to keep my ears open to everything,” Bickel says. “And really grow [the SideTracks Productions brand], stay busy and be a small part in the music scene. Not looking for a spotlight on me by any means. But I definitely would like to have a small part in putting music anywhere and everywhere in Huntsville.

“Kudos to Mars [Music Hall], kudos to the [Von Braun] Civic Center. Kudos to the [Orion] Amphitheater. There’s a lot of people doing big things. But there’s also a lot of people on a smaller scale that are really helping grow the scene.”

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