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The U.K.-based Genesis Publications has a massive treasure coming for Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young fans who are willing to shell out some big bucks. CSNY - Love The One You’re With is a 272-page hardbound book featuring 1000 images taken by world-class photographer Henry Diltz and 34,000 words from 20 contributors. The Deluxe Edition has a £495 pre-order price tag, and the regular amount goes up to £545. The website doesn’t make it clear if there’s a lower-priced non-deluxe version. I’ve never been one who has a lot of cash, but I did buy a similarly themed and priced Diltz Genesis book titled California Dreaming a number of years ago, and I can attest that you definitely get your money’s worth.  

In the meantime, I bought a ticket to one of Graham Nash’s three 60 Years Of Songs And Stories dates coming up at the Old Town School Of Folk Music in Chicago next April. Tickets for those April 25, 26, and 28 concerts went on sale this morning and it looked like they were going fast.

The Birdhouse Museum Of Bridgeport and Project Onward are presenting The 19th Annual Art On Cardboard Show on the 4th floor of the Project Onward Gallery at 1200 W. 35th Street. Participating artists were encouraged to “Take a junky old box and transform it into a transcendent work of art!” There was a reception tonight from 6:00 to 9:00 pm.

Ringo Starr has created a colorful video for “Everyone And Everything”, an uplifting new song written by Linda Perry. The clip’s imaginative mix of live action and animation touches on some historic moments in Starr’s career. “Everyone And Everything” is on his latest release EP3, which is available on 10 inch vinyl, CD, cassette, and various streaming services.

The 28th Annual Black Harvest Film Festival runs through November 27 at The Gene Siskel Film Center. The festival will present 20 feature films and 25 short films, plus over 15 filmmakers will make personal appearances.

Micky Dolenz is in the Chicago area this weekend for an 8:30 pm show at The Arcada in St. Charles on Saturday, and a 5:00 pm show at The Des Plaines Theatre in Des Plaines on Sunday. His fans can also enjoy the 55th anniversary 4CD/1 seven-inch single boxset edition of The Monkees album Headquarters that’s now available exclusively from The Monkees official website. It features outtakes, demos, and newly mixed songs from the original Headquarters.

The Chicago Reader will celebrate five decades of being the city’s best-known free paper with a 50ish UnGala at Museum Of Contemporary Art on November 30. The event will take place on three floors, with four stages with live entertainment, food and beverages from the museum’s own catering service, and raffles. Guests will have the opportunity to purchase exclusive 50ish anniversary merchandise. Tickets start at $25.

The Bad Ends, a new quintet of Athens, GA music scene veterans that includes Bill Berry from R.E.M., has released a second video from its upcoming album The Power And The Glory. “Thanksgiving 1915” is a decidedly untrendy clip that imagines the band members working in a diner. The earlier video, “All Your Friends Are Dying,” takes a similarly comic working class approach (until the zombie swimmers show up). Both songs feature melodic, guitar-driven  arrangements. 

Tickets are now on sale for the Hey Nonny Women’s Jazz Festival coming to the Arlington Heights venue on the weekend of January 6 – 8.

Seinfeld has existed only in reruns for several years now, but the classic sitcom has generated fresh content in a series of clips on Instagram. Actor Larry Thomas, best known for denying his delicious soup to unworthy customers, takes on a different role as a professor promoting the curriculum at the fictional Seinfeld Academy. It’s a clever way to feature Seinfeld scenes fans love and keep them coming back to those reruns. I met Thomas years ago when he was a celebrity guest at a Wizard World convention in Chicago. He agreed with my assessment that his “No soup for you!” is one of the most quoted catch phrases in TV history.

Chicago-based rockers Kevin Lee And The Kings will hold their Annual Christmas Bash on December 10 at the Chicago Loop Sports Bar And Grill in Streamwood. 

Brett Morgen’s critically acclaimed David Bowie film Moonage Daydream is now available in digital, Blu-Ray, and DVD formats.

Congratulations to Columbia College in Chicago on coming in at number one on The Hollywood Reporter’s The World’s Best Music Schools, Ranking listings. Berklee College of Music in Boston, USC Los Angeles Thornton School of Music, Juilliard School n New York, and UCLA Herb Alpert School of Music in Los Angeles came in second, third, fourth, and fifth, respectively.

Paul McCartney’s ambitious collection The 7" Singles Box is due out December 2. It’s packed in a wooden crate and features 80 seven-inch vinyl records covering the former Beatle’s output from 1971 to 2022. That includes picture sleeve hit singles with their original b-sides, as well as songs that have never appeared in the seven-inch format before. There’s also a 146-page book. The 7" Singles Box is priced at $611.98 and will be limited to 3,000 copies available on McCartney’s website. 

Blue Heaven, a tribute to blues artists such as B.B. King, Howlin’ Wolf, Big Mama Thornton, and Muddy Waters, is running through November 27 at The Black Ensemble Theatre. Tickets range from $50 to $55; Black Ensemble Theatre is located at 4450 N. Clark.

Those Pretty Wrongs, the duo of Big Star drummer Jody Stephens and guitarist Luther Russell, has just released a video of the melodic pop song “Paper Cup.” The song is from the album Holiday Camp, which is due out soon on Curation Records.

The interactive attraction Harry Potter: Magic At Play opened last Friday at Water Tower Place on Michigan Avenue and will run through May14, 2023.

Congratulations to Monty Python on the smashing success of their Kickstarter campaign to fund the Monty Python’s Cocurricular Mediaeval Reenactment Programme. Over 15,000 backers have raised $1,933,426.

 

Chicago-based indie rock band The Webstirs are looking to fund a vinyl release of their latest, self-titled effort via an Indiegogo campaign. I reviewed this album when it was released on CD in May, and noted it “proves [The Webstirs] can still be counted on for clever lyrics set to catchy arrangements.” I also suggested the band draws inspiration from Chris Difford and Glenn Tilbrook’s well-crafted compositions for Squeeze.

The Concert For George documentary featuring major rock stars honoring George Harrison will return to theaters for one night only on November 29. That date marks the 20th anniversary of when the original event took place.

Famous In The Future, the sketch comedy group I co-founded in 1989 and performed with through 2008, will present its first Christmas-themed show on the weekend of December 15 –17 at The Den Theatre.  Tickets are now on sale for A Judy Christmas, which cast member Desiree Burcum describes on Facebook as an opportunity to “join Judy in her studio audience in 1963 as she navigates her holiday special and her own musical ghosts of Christmas.”

Artist Vivienne Boucherat is selling art and lyric sheet prints based on songs from the Odessey and Oracle album by The Zombies on her website. Prices range from $60 to $120

Women Sing The Who, the Bandcamp page that features women artists covering songs originally done by the iconic English rockers, recently posted its latest entry. Actress/singer-songwriter Mare Winningham brings an easygoing, tuneful approach to “Let My Love Open The Door.” Technically, that’s not a Who song—it’s from lead guitarist Pete Townshend’s 1980 solo effort Empty Glass—but why complain when the result is so enjoyable. Winningham is joined by former Wings guitarist (and frequent Fest For Beatles Fans guest) Laurence Juber, bassist Paul Marshall, and drummer Benjamin Lecourt. Carla Oloson joins Marshall on backup vocals. Olson, first known for her work with The Textones, kicked off the Women Sing The Who series last May with her rousing take on “I Can See For Miles.” It only costs $1 to download “Let My Love Open The Door,” and all proceeds benefit The Who’s charitable organization Teen Cancer America.

The Dungeons And Dragons inspired play The Twenty-Sided Tavern is now running at the Broadway Playhouse at Water Tower Place just north of downtown, and will be there through January 15. The show has previously sold out previous engagements in Edinburgh, Pittsburg, and New York.

This year’s Black Friday Record Store Day takes place next Friday, November 25. The complete list of limited-edition vinyl treasures can be found on the official website, and as usual, there’s something for fans of just about every genre.

The 2022 Aidan Celebration Open House Party will take place tomorrow night at the Shea home at 817 S. Fairfield in Elmhurst. The Aidan Shea Foundation supports the Lurie Children’s Hospital, Northwestern Medicine’s Lefkofsky Pediatric Intensive Care Unit, and the University Of Illinois Law School Aidan Shea Memorial Scholarship. Plus, two new programs will benefit from this year’s event—the Illinois-based nonprofit Foster Progress and the 2023 Celtic Irish American Academy in Galway, Ireland. The open house will feature live music by singer-guitarist Scottie Long.