Incoming

The Songs To Learn And Sing 2024 - The Very Best Of Echo And The Bunnymen tour has been racking up sold out shows across the U.S.A., and there’s good reason to believe the one scheduled at The Riviera Theatre in Chicago on May 26 will go the same route. Those who want to sing along on classic new wave material such as “Lips Like Sugar,” “Rescue,” “The Back Of Love,” and “Do It Clean” should purchase their tickets soon. Other stops on the tour include Philadelphia, Boston, Detroit, Denver, and San Francisco.

This year’s Ravinia Festival in Highland Park kicks off in less than a month with the Return of The Flock concert taking place on June 7. The event will be of special interest to longtime followers of the Chicago scene, as one of the area’s more adventurous bands reunites behind original members violinist Jerry Goodman and bassist Jerry Smith. Multi-instrumentalist Howard Levy, who won a pair of Grammy Awards as a founding member of Bela Fleck & the Flecktones, will be joining them onstage. The Flock’s groundbreaking jazz-rock arrangements earned the band a contract with Columbia Records, resulting in a self-titled album in 1969 and Dinosaur Swamps in 1970. Sadly, as with many midwestern acts, The Flock never achieved the national success it deserved. 

“CYCLES Per SECONDS,” a track from the upcoming remastered edition of the 1981 debut album by The dB’s Stands For Decibels, will be available to stream on assorted platforms this Friday. The entire album is coming out June 7 in a remastered edition on colored vinyl, and is available to pre-order on the via the Propeller Sound Recordings website.

Courtesy Patrol, one of the several hundred bands Chicago-based singer/guitarist Dag Juhlin performs with, will be at Friendly Tap in Willow Springs, IL this Thursday night. A recent Facebook post promises, “A free-form and unregulated romp through a bustling bazaar of song.” Juhlin’s mates in this operation are Chris Neville and Jon Paul, with Jason Batch as a special guest.

An original concept recording of Ladyship The Musical has an official release date of July 12. It’s based on the true story of how England shipped women convicts to Australia from 1789 to 1841. The music and lyrics were composed by Linda Good and Laura Good. The sisters first started performing as The Good Twins on the Chicago club scene, and later formed the alt rock band The Twigs.

As heard on Terri Hemmert’s Breakfast With The Beatles show on WXRT this past Sunday morning, Jay Goeppner and his band Backdated will perform at the Jam For Junebug benefit this Thursday at the Arlington Ale House in Arlington Heights, IL. The event will help June Kenoe with medical expenses. Backdated is well known on the Chicago area music scene for its spirited renditions of some of the best 1960s and 1970s rock songs.

 

Actor Michael Shannon continues to balance his successful, Oscar nominated work on Hollywood films with the theatre scene in Chicago. He’s back on his home turf at A Red Orchid Theatre for the world premiere of writer-director Levi Holloway’s experimental drama Turret. Shannon can also occasionally be found performing tributes to cult rock stars in Chicago area music venues. 

Singer-guitarist Michael Steven Cohen will perform reimagined vintage love songs from the Great American Songbook this Friday night from 7:00 to 9:00 pm at the Tuscan Market And Wine Shop in downtown Arlington Heights.

I dropped by the Mariano’s in Palatine yesterday and picked up a copy of the Chicago Chefs Cookbook. It’s being published by Chicago Chefs Cook, a non-profit that taps into Chicago’s restaurant community to provide humanitarian relief for worthy causes. The cookbook will benefit the local organization Chi-Care. My nephew Joe Flamm, who runs the Rose Mary restaurant, is among the chefs participating.