SPEAKER_00 0:00

I'm Andrew Steele, and I am the father of Andrew Lee Steele Jr. and Matthew Scott Stele. Welcome to the Beautiful Party.

SPEAKER_01 0:36

I'm still here in Colorado. And you were here in Colorado. And we recorded what we believe to be an entertaining episode about your two sons. But it it it turned out, probably to nobody's surprise, that we got the facts not exactly perfect. No. And so uh we're gonna try again. We got a little got a little input, and we're gonna talk about your two boys.

SPEAKER_00 1:07

Absolutely. You know, both of them were jump born in the month of June, four years apart. And uh, I tell you, they are different, daylight and dark. Andy, a premature baby, in the incubator for almost two months.

SPEAKER_01 1:33

So was I I don't think I was in an incubator for two months, but I was six weeks or so premature.

SPEAKER_00 1:38

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 1:38

That so you know what you remember that? I remember what that feels like. That's Andy and I combined over that.

SPEAKER_00 1:45

Yeah, that's the truth. He was he was a quiet and shy child, which you know brought us. This is not a real baby, this is a like a perfect baby. You know, he was easy to discipline, very few issues with him, you know.

SPEAKER_01 2:10

But uh so you're spoiled, so you decide to have another one.

SPEAKER_00 2:15

Yeah, spoiled. That's the truth. You know, so so four years later we have uh this little wiry. Uh I think he plugged himself in on every now and then at the receptacles because he was a go-getter. I mean, you couldn't stop him. Matthew was uh unbelievable, um, so interesting, so artistic in every way, every way. But Andy, somewhat. They were similar, like both of them played in the band at McGill for four years, different instruments. They they both loved to work, regardless of what it was. Uh I don't want I I want to say they weren't scholars, they didn't make all A's, but they really enjoyed the benefits uh after a fashion graduating from this school, that school.

SPEAKER_01 3:33

But you didn't have to drive them for that.

SPEAKER_00 3:35

No, uh-uh. No. Absolutely.

SPEAKER_01 3:38

No, we're gonna end up talking about how Matthews made music a profession, but it seemed like from the notes that it it may have started with with Andy.

SPEAKER_00 3:49

Yeah, you know what's uh uh my older brother is doing this now, and why can't I do the same thing? Well, it was a yeah, a reason for that, and uh and and we just couldn't make it make things work. Uh for both at the same time, you mean? Both at the same time, and and it and it was to up to Andy to come forth and say, I don't think this is my bag, this is my calling, this is my what I enjoy doing. But at that time, Matthew did step up and uh and tried his hand at it. And like I said, both of them played in the band uh at McGill and played different instruments, and Matthew ended up playing the keyboard. I believe it was in concert band, but that that and the uh piano lessons kind of sparked something, and to the degree that we as parents had to tell him this is great, this is good, we you know, we are proud of you, but you gotta get outside and play.

SPEAKER_01 5:27

Oh, go outside and do something fun. Physically, yeah. Yeah, you have to act like a kid. Well, but look, that happens today with kids, but it's video games, so at least he was at least he was working the mind in a in a musical way back then. That's the truth. So both of them through McGill were in the band. Uh obviously uh for Matthew that continued into college. Correct.

SPEAKER_00 5:52

See, he had uh was appreciative of the fact that, you know, if it wasn't for Andy, he wouldn't be playing the piano. But then again, if it wasn't for Andy's great uncle, he would never have thought about going into college uh uh becoming a pharmacist. Matthew, on the other hand, he was he was more or less not to uh to go off into left field or right field. He always stuck with that piano, and for some reason or another, he enjoyed it. So we got to enjoy in it as well.

SPEAKER_01 6:39

Yeah. Well, I think that's a calling. Not all of us, very few of us have a true calling. So it sounds like it did. Now you mentioned Andy in in pharmacy. Uh obviously he's not a pharmacist today. Yeah. What was that path and how did he end up where he is?

SPEAKER_00 6:55

We thought for sure, uh, at the time, you know, both of them worked during their years in high school. Andy worked at uh several jobs, uh, but one of the jobs that he was the uh he was there quite about two years, I think, was a pharmacy tech. And that's where we got that idea, and he got that idea, I reckon, to become a pharmacist. It was the uh the studies, the chemistry and uh uh that he couldn't grasp. And uh and there again he said to himself, that's not my bag. On the other hand, with Matthew, he was looking for, I guess, guidance, and and we found that, well, you gotta have a piano teacher, and that we did. He went through three piano teachers, and the last one, Debbie Hall, gave him a like free reign in playing the piano. Just play what you want to play, and I recollect one recital Matthew played in, and he showed up with no music to play this piece, and then they introduced him and said he's playing this piece by Fleetwood Mac. It was crazy, but I don't believe anybody knew who Fleetwood Mac was. I'm sure they did at that point. But uh the title of the song was Songbird, and uh not having music, Ms. Hall couldn't correct him. So, and I think he knew that, but it was great, it was awesome. Uh he was at his end with that type of uh instructions, that type of guidance, and uh and came to us and said, What's next? We can we move on? And we thought, you know, he was wanting to do something different. No, he wanted more, more guidance, more teaching. And uh and we found out then uh in high school, he was through the band, he was not being fulfilled. And uh so we went to South Alabama and found uh the uh dean of music and uh we convinced or he convinced himself, Dr. Alan Bush, that they that he needed to take on this young fella. And uh he did. He did. He took him on and uh Matthew graduated from uh South Alabama.

SPEAKER_01 10:21

He not only went to Faulkner first though, right?

SPEAKER_00 10:25

Oh yeah, you know, and that's that's a that's a you know a little bit off the wall. I didn't even remember that. But I said to both of them, because both of them had money set aside for college, I said, if you go and get your basics there, you'll you'll do a lot better in and a university. Nor did I ever think for one minute me going there had anything to do with it. But I sure did have fun there.

SPEAKER_01 11:09

So you went to Faulkner as well?

SPEAKER_00 11:11

As well. Actually, I went there the first year. It was named Faulkner, it was named Yancey before that. Hmm. I did not know that. Yeah, you know.

SPEAKER_01 11:25

So so now we got uh get them through college, and then it's time to go work. Uh Matthew's path is a little um more consistent because he kept working in music. What did what did And Andy do after college?

SPEAKER_00 11:44

Well, that was uh generally when you get through with college, you graduate, you'd come back home. He wouldn't have any of that. He said, I want to get in an apartment up here, and and I want to continue to work, and I think it was with the pharmacy that he did that, but not that long. And he went into other areas. I think that was around 2000, year 2000, and uh and he worked for Compass Bank uh and uh in the mortgage department, and uh and about then he got laid off and he hollered at me and said, I don't know what to do up here right now. And what do I do? I said, Well, just pack your bags and come on down to Florida with me. And we hired him on as a temp at the church I was working at.

SPEAKER_01 12:50

He worked and made some money, and probably got highly motivated to figure out something else.

SPEAKER_00 12:56

Something else, yeah. But actually it came to him at something else, and that was through Teresa, my sister, and uh Terry Faye, Jackson, both of them working at progressive, and uh and got him on there, working at progressive, and I, you know, it's like I thought it was awesome, and he's still there today, 20 years later. As the newness wore off, he found out that he could advance in different departments, different jobs, and found out he got real good at it. You know, in college at Montevala, Andy got into uh developing uh websites, and he was doing that on the side. Now, I had no idea what websites were, you know, and uh and how to develop one, but but he got real good at it, and evidently that helped him at progressive. Uh and and uh and of course he did the other jobs like wait on tables. Uh he worked with a fella for a while there that owned his own company and they sold uh Cajun seasonings. That's that was interesting to me, and I I wanted to to use those Cajun seasons.

SPEAKER_01 14:36

But um But Progressive is stuck, so he's been in the Birmingham area for a long time now.

SPEAKER_00 14:42

Oh, yeah, absolutely.

SPEAKER_01 14:44

And then back to Matthew, when he what was his first because it's it sounded like he did kind of a lot of work with different churches and things, but where was the first post-college I have a degree in music now or piano performance?

SPEAKER_00 15:01

Well, it it was like m making ends meet. Even though he was still at home, uh I told him, I said, this is not a free ride anymore. If you're out there working, you're bringing in money, and that money don't go in your all go in your pocket. And and I think he understood that right off the bat, but he worked uh playing the piano at several places, and uh and one of the jobs uh that he did was at uh the Adams Mark Hotel, and that gave him uh I want to say the confidence of playing in front of people. Now, I I do know that that when he started playing at St. Dominic's and uh and the Holy Family, uh those two churches, it was easier because because he knew somebody at both those churches. Now the other churches, not so much, but he was only temporarily employed at those those churches. I think he was more permanently employed at St. Mary's in the end, because that's when he made his move in going to some other place, just like his brother. Leave town. He didn't want to be home anymore. And uh I feel I feel uh like it was it was a growth spurt, you know, of what do you call it? Uh uh I gotta get out of Dodge. I can't spread your wings and do your own thing. Yeah. And uh and of course he did other things, you know, other than that. He played, he worked at Barnes and Noble and the Explorium, and uh uh uh he got his uh he graduated in 2005, got his bachelor's in music, and he also took voice under Linda Zogby and organ music under Kevin Davis. And he at that time he did uh uh two mass settings. It's like following the Liturgy of the Mass. He did the music and uh and uh for it, and uh one was in honor of Saint Dominic's and the other was in uh a mass of exhaustation. And they were published by the uh Collegeville, Minnesota. It's their own their own uh you can go on it and and pull it up and and uh request it to be put in the missile if if uh if you're still using it at at your church.

SPEAKER_01 18:17

So that's a that's a it's almost as impressive as being the person that does the music for our podcast.

SPEAKER_00 18:24

Absolutely. I don't know why. He didn't mention that in the notes. He would I can't I can't bring everything into the picture. That's right.

SPEAKER_01 18:40

Which I want him to upgrade that. Well, uh, you know, we have a we have a bias, so it's okay. But anyway, so so that was around 2011, and it wasn't long after that that he made the big move to New Jersey, right?

SPEAKER_00 18:54

Yeah, that's the truth. I think where'd this come from? But he got good at doing his resume over and over again, and and so Father Bob at St. Peter and Paul in Hoboken, New Jersey. That's right across the Hudson River from Lower Manhattan, got his resume and called him, talked him into flying up. He interviewed, he uh played the piano, played the organ, and uh sure enough, ended up there. In January of uh I think it was twelve, no, eleven, and of end of uh eleven. It was um January the second. We loaded up a van, we rented it, and it was full. I mean to the top, and drove up there in two days. This was January the second. Snow three feet high on either side of the road, twelve degrees, and I'm pumping gas in that that van. And I said, No, no one in their right mind should do anything of the sort, but you do what what you can for your sons for your kids, and that's uh that was uh six six years he was at St. Peter and Paul. And he had several uh VA concerts, several Christmas concerts on his belt. And he brought it all together. He brought the musicians together, twenty or twenty-five musicians, the choir, choir members, uh people who did periodic parts of uh of uh off-Broadway shows. He brought it all together. And uh we uh at least I came up there every six months and and made him feel good about the family coming around. Every now and then I grabbed Andy and and brought him up there as well. But then, you know, I thought Andy had uh hit a plateau, you know, working it progressive, maybe it was just just not right for him. But uh somewhat at the same time he was looking not to rent anymore to To buy. Lo and behold, he bought a house built in 1959. I thought, wow. So with the help of that big family of mine, and I'm telling you, everybody was included. No one was. I even thought about, I remember distinctly at least one or two times your dad, Ron, came up with his old trailer, and we moved Andy. Now I told Andy, after three moves, I'm not gonna help you. But run but Ron convinced me I needed to do one or two more. So but uh if it wasn't for Donnie, Billy, Jerry, Teresa, Mark, Bailey Cook, even Johnny, even Johnny came up. I don't think we could have done what we did in renovating that whole house. The whole house. We turned it into a uh three-bedroom, two full baths, large den, large kitchen, patio off the back, and it sold for more than three times what he paid for it.

SPEAKER_01 23:40

How many years later did he sell it? How long was he in the house?

SPEAKER_00 23:43

11 years. I couldn't believe that is. Well, eleven years he lived there. It was I said uh uh, you know, if he would have said in the beginning, this is what we're gonna do for the next 11 years. No way.

SPEAKER_01 24:02

Oh, you just still done it.

SPEAKER_00 24:04

Stop it. That's the truth. It's it was something else.

SPEAKER_01 24:09

All right, so that's Andy, and I assuming he bought another house and still there, and then and then Matthew stayed six years or so at Saints Peter and Paul, and then moved to Saint Teresa for about six, seven years until until just last year. Now you have him back near you, right?

SPEAKER_00 24:28

Yep, absolutely. I've just that that I couldn't believe as well. You know, you move from a church that has a huge congregation, the fit was perfect. At least that's what I've seen since July. Uh he's uh he's going through a huge amount of changes within the church. He's I want to say gotten back into the groove around home. And that's what I think he was wanting to do, get back close to home. But at the same time, he wanted challenges, and uh and Christ the King has offered that. I'm excited for him. He's he's really he's really uh advanced in that area.

SPEAKER_01 25:25

And you mentioned uh uh Andy also sings in a chorus.

SPEAKER_00 25:30

Oh my gosh, for years, for years I thought if only his older brother, who I know uh well, could whistle a tune not like me now, you have that recording, but he could whistle a tune unreal. I mean it's beautiful, but has yes joined a 50 member group and this group has been around for 25, 30 years, if I'm not mistaken, and sing in the Birmingham area. And uh and I think they do like two concerts a year. One in the spring and one in the winter. So he he uh he and he's enjoying that. Now I'm gonna try to get them together. Yeah, right. Can you imagine both of them singing together? I don't know. Maybe one day. Maybe one day.

SPEAKER_01 26:40

Maybe they'll be inspired by hearing this and think, you know what we need to do? Yeah. Get together and sing for dad. That's the truth.

SPEAKER_00 26:49

Yeah, sing for dad. You know, I I I I feel like Matthew has uh st is still in the in the moving towards uh having a home somewhere and I think it's gonna be in Baldwin County rather than Mobile County. But on the other hand, Andy you know uh you don't know he lived in Alabaster when he was going to Montevala college. Now he moved back to Alabaster, and that's where his home is now, and it's a beautiful home. Completely renovated there again, with Theresa's help. My gosh. Mark's help, Bailey's help. It was a family affair. It really was. And uh and your mama's been up there. It's uh beautiful home. Yeah. Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 28:01

Well, um, I think we've I think you've told the story well. I think I'm grateful and for you that your kids are close enough now. I mean, sure you enjoyed going to New Jersey, but uh probably not in the winter, and it's nice to have them both close enough to see you on a regular basis.

SPEAKER_00 28:19

Oh, yeah, absolutely. You know, both uh both Andy and I both have had the the experience, and it wouldn't happen if Matthew didn't do what he did, to go up north and experience that that uh different type of living. Uh very, very fast, fast living. But at the same time, Matthew had to do something, and that's where he went. I really appreciated that. And I appreciated the family that Matthew developed up there. I don't think Matthew wants to come back. Especially because of the weather. Yeah. Absolutely.

SPEAKER_01 29:10

Well, I'm glad we did this. I'm glad even if it took a second cut at it, because um what came through the last time for sure was how proud you are of both of them. So I'm glad you got to take a few minutes and tell the story and get recorded. They will have uh and I love them, no further input on whether or not we publish this or not, Mr. Nott. If they have adjustments, I'm available for them to come and tell their side of the story.

SPEAKER_00 29:38

That's that's that's what I I figured that from the last recording about my second chance in life. Hey, if you want to add something to it, come on.

SPEAKER_01 29:52

Come on down. Unless Matthew decides to rescind his permission for the theme music, and then I'll probably do whatever he wants me to do. I like our theme music.

SPEAKER_00 30:02

I like it too. I mean, I really enjoy it. I mean, look, I don't shut it off before it's in the end, but I'd like to hear something new. And I'd love for him to get with his cousin Bailey. But I'll let them work that out.

SPEAKER_01 30:24

Let's let them work that out. I think this this may be the uh I'm not ever gonna say the last episode for a while, but uh I think I think you and I have done what we can do. And uh unless somebody besides me and you is interested in more, uh, you know, this will be it for a while. So but we're always here if they need to tell their side of the story.

SPEAKER_00 30:46

Absolutely. I think uh, you know, I got this information in front of me, and I feel certain I haven't missed anything.

SPEAKER_01 30:56

Yes, but you're old, so there's no telling.

SPEAKER_00 30:59

So I'm not far behind. I think he says the old man. Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 31:05

Yeah. Okay. Well, good job. We're gonna get this all dolled up and put it out there. I'll I'll post this one and the one about your second chance family. Here here shortly. And then uh I look forward to hearing what Matthew and Andy and everybody else think.

SPEAKER_00 31:22

Oh, yeah, I guarantee you you're gonna hear you you it it may not be recorded uh or whatever, but I think I think I need to get a I got a a little tape recorder. I think I'll record what my stepdaughters and stepsons say about it. That might be an interesting thing to hear.

SPEAKER_01 31:42

That's another episode. Anyway, whatever everybody thinks, the the party's beautiful in many different ways. So, Andrew, thank you for doing this one more time.

SPEAKER_00 31:53

Thank you, Mark. I appreciate you. I love you, man. Love you. And I hope your puppy dog gets better and better.

SPEAKER_01 32:01

He's doing okay. He is uh he is now officially a one-eyed dog, uh, but it doesn't seem to really bother him all that much. So I think he'll be fine. But thank you for that. I'll let him know you asked about it.

SPEAKER_00 32:11

And say hello and give Melissa.

SPEAKER_01 32:16

All right, love you, Andrew.

SPEAKER_00 32:18

Love you,