However, the building hasn't always proved lucky for everyone. Aretha Franklin's musical director and band leader, King Curtis, lived in one of the apartments in the early 70s. He worked with John Lennon on the Imagine album on the ground floor of the townhouse, because the pool provided excellent acoustics, according to the New York Post.

But on an August night in 1971, Curtis went outside to try to fix an issue with his fuse box. He confronted a man loitering on the building's steps and a fight broke out. Curtis was fatally stabbed, aged just 36. His star-studded funeral was presided over by Jesse Jackson and, in 2000, he was posthumously inducted into the Rock and Rock Hall of Fame.

With such a storied past, we can't wait to see what the future holds for this iconic New York gem.

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