Saturday Slumgullion

A new album from The Zombies is on the way.

The recent passing of Jeff Beck sent shockwaves through the music scene, from longtime fans to the biggest stars. They all shared treasured memories on social media of his immense talent and friendly nature; whether they had seen him perform in concert or worked with him in a recording studio. Rock In Paradise, Jeff.

Depending on when you see this, you might be able to catch the Chicago-based tribute band Led Zeppelin 2 celebrating the 50th anniversary of Houses Of The Holy at House Of Blues at 7:30 tonight. The tribute band was featured on WGN’s Daytime Chicago this past Thursday.

Songs Of Surrender - The Reimagined Album, due out March 17, is now available for pre-order on the official U2 website. It’s related to vocalist Bono’s SURRENDER: 40 Songs, One Story memoir, although the tracks (chosen from U2’s extensive catalog) will be different from the book. And every track will sport an arrangement completely different from the original recording. Also, there’s a really cool animated promo video on the official U2 Facebook page. 

Phil Angotti, John Perrin, John San Juan, and Casey McDonough will perform the entire Revolver album during their Beatles Brunch show tomorrow, January 15, at City Winery Chicago. A second set will feature other Beatles material. General admission is $12; the music/brunch combo costs $37. I’ve seen Angotti and the lads cover The Beatles several times over the years, and they always do a splendid job. 

The Zombies’ new album Different Game is due out March 31, and is now available for pre-order on various streaming sites. The first single, “Dropped, Reeling And Stupid” features Rod Argent’s jazzy keyboards while Colin Blunstone’s soulful voice is as impressive as ever. There’s a colorful animated video of it on YouTube. 

 The 26th Annual Fillet Of Solo Festival opened yesterday and will run through January 22 at Lifeline Theatre on Chicago’s far north side. The performers include Nestor Gomez; The Sweat Girls; Tekki Lomnicki; and The Lifeline Storytelling Project. Tickets for individual performances are $12, festival passes are $60.

Congratulations to Joni Mitchell on being selected as this year’s recipient of the Library of Congress Gershwin Prize for Popular Song. The award honors artists who have had a positive influence on music. Mitchell will receive the prize at a tribute concert in Washington, D.C., on March 31. PBS stations will air the event.

Veteran Chicago-based journalist Mark Caro has been interviewing celebrities on his engaging Caropop podcast series (I particularly liked his chat with The Zombies vocalist Colin Blunstone) for a while, and now he’s ready to do one before a live audience. His interview with actor/improvisor David Pasquesi will take place on January 18 at SPACE in Evanston. Pasquesi is known for his roles on the TV series Veep and The Book of Boba Fett, as well as for his live TJ and Dave improv shows with T.J. Jagodowski in Chicago and New York. General admission to the SPACE event is $12.

As noted on the Rock Blues Muse Instagram site, legendary composer-musician Taj Majal will release a new album titled Savoy on April 28.

The intriguing combination of versatile musician Jason Narducy and acclaimed musician/actor Michael Shannon (most recently seen in the George And Tammy biopic) will perform songs by The Modern Lovers at SPACE on January 19. Both performers have roots in the Chicago area, and will be joined by various friends for this show. 

Chicago Sinfonietta will present the Thunder: MLK Tribute Concert at 3:00 pm tomorrow at the Wentz Concert Hall in Naperville, and at 7:30 pm at the Symphony Center in Chicago on Monday. The concerts will include compositions by Carlos Simon; Valerie Coleman; and Kathryn Bostic.

GRR Live!, a new DVD and 2-CD set that captures The Rolling Stones performing with special guests at the New Jersey’s Prudential Center in 2012, is now available from the band’s official online store. The 23 tracks include “Gimme Shelter” with Lady Gaga; “Going Down” with John Mayer and Gary Clark Jr.; “Who Do You Love?” with The Black Keys; “Midnight Rambler” with former band member Mick Taylor; and “Tumbling Dice” with Bruce Springsteen.

The January 19th edition of Sing For Your Supper will be held at the Foundation Tavern and Grille on Chicago’s north side. The featured artists will be Hannah Frank, The Sideshowmen, Justin Frosch, Shadowfields, Lance Brown, Patrick Reninger and Jos Davidson. 

This one is almost five months away, but I wanted to share the news that Continental Drifters, the critically acclaimed alt rock/country band whose members include Peter Holsapple, Susan Cowsill, and Vicki Peterson, will perform at The New Orleans Jazz And Heritage Festival on May 7. It would be nice to see a new album from these guys at some point.

The Webstirs will have a vinyl release party for their latest, self-titled album on February 10 at FitzGerald’s Sidebar in Berwyn. There will be no cover charge.

Singer-songwriter Katie Toupin, a former member of Houndmouth and now a solo artist, has a tour coming up that will bring her to the Golden Dagger venue in Chicago on March 8. The other gigs will be in Lexington, KY; Nashville, TN; Kansas City, MO; Louisville, KY; Tulsa, OK; Newport, KY; St. Louis, MO; and Fort Worth, TX.

Chicago-based power pop band Thrift Store Halo has been garnering a lot of airplay for their “Don’t Have To Love You” single on indie radio these days, and it will be part of a triple bill with indie rockers Turning Birds and psych rockers The Means (of production) on February 11 at Gallery Cabaret. Showtime is 9:00 pm; Gallery Cabaret is located at 2020 N. Oakley in Chicago.

Congratulations are in order for Henry Diltz, the photographer whose portraits of The Doors and  Crosby, Stills and Nash became iconic album covers. He’ll receive a Trustees Award from The Recording Academy (Grammy Awards people) on February 4 for his contributions to the music industry. Diltz also photographed The Eagles, Joni Mitchell, The Hollies, The Lovin’ Spoonful, Jackson Browne, and other major artists of the 1960s and ‘70s. CSNY - Love The One You’re With, a 272-page hardbound book featuring 1000 images Diltz took of the super group, will be released by the U.K.-based Genesis Publications  in June.

 

In addition to the above mentioned Henry Diltz, Ann and Nancy Wilson from Heart will receive a special honor when The Grammy Awards ceremony takes place on February 4. Congratulations to the Wilson sisters on their Lifetime Achievement Award from the Recording Academy.

Having found success with his full-length effort Relative last year, filmmaker Michael Smith is set to co-direct a new short film titled Paper Planes with Alyssa Thordarson later this month. The film is based on Thordarson’s original screenplay, and it will be shot by DP Pouya Shahbazi. Production begins later this month.

Paul Rock’s Wild Honey Foundation, which consistently finds interesting ways to bring musicians together for fundraising events, has another winner coming up for 2023. The Wild Honey Orchestra And Lenny Kaye's 50th Anniversary Celebration of Nuggets takes place on May 19th at the Alex Theatre in Glendale, CA. Tickets are not available yet.

The fourth annual Winter Mini Fringe, an offshoot of the Elgin Fringe Festival, will be staged at the Elgin Public House on January 21. The event features the comedies Party Cops and It’sThat Time Of The Month, along with Cats That I Know presented by Danny Wightkin. Admission is $15 per show or $30 for all three. The event kicks off a 4:00 pm and is being produced by Side Street Studio Arts with support from the Elgin Cultural Arts Commission, and Elgin Public House.

Tickets are now on sale for The Chicago Independent Venue League’s CIVL Fest coming to various locations around the city February 8 – 26. The event will help fund Venue Staff and Artist Mental Health Programs; Venue Safety Initiatives; and Equal Access And Equity Campaigns. The full schedule is yet to be worked out, but so far, the venues involved are Beat Kitchen, Berlin, Harold Washington Cultural Center, Metro, Patio Theatre, Reggies, Rosa’s Lounge, and Sleeping Village.

The immersive exhibit Bob Marley: One Love Experience, having already made stops in London and Toronto, will come to the Ovation Hollywood venue in Los Angeles on January 27. Its features include photography, music, concert videos, and a One Love Forest.