Slumgullion

Check out yesterday’s Weekend Reminders post for events happening this weekend.

American garage rock masters The Chesterfield Kings are heading overseas for their “First UK Dates In Decades” according to a recent Facebook post from band member Andy Babiuk. With the impressive British rockers The Len Price 3 as their opening act, The Chesterfield Kings will perform in Glasgow on June 15; Leeds on June 16; Liverpool on June 17; and London on June 18. We’re Still The Same, their first album in 15 years, was released in 2024.

The Electric Prunes recorded “I Had Too Much To Dream”—one of the all-time best garage rock songs—back in 1966 and scored a major hit. It was sad to learn yesterday that the band’s lead vocalist James Lowe has passed away. I still remember hearing this song for the first time on WLS in Chicago, and being so awestruck, I wrote down the title, band, and time I heard it.

In related sad news, the rock and roll world also lost vocalist-guitarist Rick Derringer, who first achieved fame as a member of The McCoys when their song “Hang On Sloopy” became a Top 40 hit in 1965. He would later launch a successful solo career with the hit “Rock And Roll, Hoochie Koo,” and perform with Johnny and Edgar Winter.

Rock In Paradise, James and Rick.

It looks like director Justin Fielding’s long-awaited documentary The Power Pop Movie is moving closer to being released. According to a recent Facebook post from executive producer David Bash of International Pop Overthrow fame, The Power Pop Movie is pretty much a complete film, and Fielding “will be working on licensing shortly.”

Singer-guitarist Dag Juhlin, a member of several Chicago area bands, has been releasing new solo albums on his Bandcamp page over the past year. The latest, Who’s Your Favorite Clown?, with a cover illustration of Bozo and Ringmaster Ned, offers six parables set to a variety of arrangements. The lyrics are consistently sharp and clever, and conjure a feeling the games we’re playing these days could lead to serious trouble.

Welcome back. The Twigs, AKA fraternal twins Laura and Linda Good, have a special pop-up show coming up in Brooklyn, NY on June 13. Apparently, we’ll get more specific information in the near future. The former Illinois residents started their career as The Good Twins before morphing into The Twigs and releasing a few albums of fetching indie/techno pop around the turn of the century.

Chicago independent radio station CHIRP 107.1 FM has a summer fundraiser titled Sounds Like Chicago - Conversations About Music, Life And Our City coming up on June 11. The event will take place at Trigger in the Irving Park neighborhood, with Sound Opinions radio personality/journalist Jim DeRogatis serving as moderator. Guests will be Toni Preckwinkle; Kelly Leonard; Beverly Kim and Johnny Clark; Mindy Segal; and Doug Sohn.

A new five-track, ten-inch vinyl E.P. of R.E.M.’s iconic first single “Radio Free Europe,” is being released to celebrate the 75th anniversary of the actual United States Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, which broadcasts news and information to various countries. The E.P. already can be downloaded on Bandcamp; and it can pre-ordered alone or in various bundles from the band’s official website.

The Chicago Blues Festival, an annual event since 1984 and believed to be the world’s largest blues festival, returns to Millennium Park for the long weekend of June 5 – June 8. Mavis Staples will be among the headliners, and there will be a centennial tribute to the late B.B. King. Opening day will take place at the Ramova Theatre at 3520 S. Halsted and feature performances by Bobby Rush and Billy Branch And The Sons Of The Blues.

Chicago area fans can check out the Jason Narducy and Dag Juhlin Celebrate Pete Townshend’s (Belated) Birthday performance at Hey Nonny in Arlington Heights, IL on June 21. Tickets recently went on sale for a late show that will start at 9:30 pm; tickets for the original 7:00 pm show are quickly selling out.

The Journey – Part 3, due out on July 11, will wrap up The Kinks’ 60th Anniversary Anthology series with a selection of songs from their 1977 – 1984 recordings. Available as two LPs, two CDs or as a download, it will include hits such as “(Wish I Could Fly Like) Superman,” “Come Dancing,” “Better Things,” “A Rock And Roll Fantasy,” “Low Budget,” “Destroyer,” and “Sleepwalker.” The Journey – Part 3 will also feature live recordings of “Till The End Of The Day,” “Where Have All The Good Times Gone,” “Apeman,” and other Kinks favorites.

The 49th annual Fest For Beatles Fans - Chicago will take place on the weekend of August 8 –10 at the Hyatt Regency O’Hare. WXRT DJ Terri Hemmert will once again serve as MC; and this year’s special guests will include drummer Simon Kirke from Bad Company and Free; Jim McCarty from The Yardbirds and Renaissance; British Invasion hit maker Billy J. Kramer; 1960s model/Carnaby Street scene celebrity/author Jenny Boyd; author Yvonne Innes, whose Dip My Brain In Joy: A Life With Neil Innes celebrates her marriage to the late writer-musician-actor; and actor Eddie Deezen from the I Wanna Hold Your Hand comedy flick. There will be performances by Liverpool; The Weeklings; The Taxmen; Phil Angotti And Friends and other bands. A recent Fest For Beatles Fans email stated, “The Fest For Beatles Fans 2025 Chicago is dedicated, with love, to Joey Molland.” The late Badfinger founding member was a Fest special guest on several occasions.

Congratulations to singer-songwriter Phil Angotti on the recent release of his latest album. Notebook Head, a well-crafted collection of 10 acoustic solo performances can now be downloaded on his Bandcamp page, and will be available on CD in a few weeks. All the tracks sound like winners, but “Wreck Of The Rowboat Named Harold” is particularly impressive in a Bob Dylan vein. Sure enough, the Info tab states it was inspired by the Dylan film A Complete Unknown.

Wolf Alice’s North American tour will kick off on September 10 in Atlanta. The London-based indie rock band will return to The Vic in Chicago on September 26; other stops on the tour include Washington, DC; Philadelphia; Boston; Montreal; Toronto; Dallas; Denver; and Los Angeles. Wolf Alice has a new album titled The Clearing coming out August 29.

“Leitmotif,” the fourth song Chicago-based singer-songwriter AJ Rosales has released from his upcoming album Phasedrift on Bandcamp, continues the string of melodic acoustic songs with well crafted, introspective lyrics. Once again, listeners will likely be reminded of vintage Neil Young as Rosales supplies all the vocals and instrumentation. It might be the last preview we get since Phasedrift is due out on June 20.

Ringo Starr And His All Starr Band’s 2025 Tour will include a show at the Chicago Theatre on September 10. Starr’s latest album, Look Up, finds him working in a Country and Western vein, but it’s likely he and his mates will be covering all kinds of music, including Beatles tunes.

Chicago Shakespeare Theater, which recently imported the Kinks bio musical Sunny Afternoon from England, is now offewring another pop music fueled show. 42 Balloons, written by Jack Godfrey, utilizes a 1980s-inspired score to tell a tale based on an actual 1982 event when a Los Angeles man attached weather balloons to a chair and sailed upward. It’s directed by Ellie Coote, with choreography by Alexzandra Sarmiento and orchestra ad music supervision by Joe Beighton. 42 Balloons will run at Chicago Shakespeare Theater through June 29.

Wild Honey Foundation, the California-based 501(c)(3)non-profit that frequently supports worthy causes by staging all-star concerts, will combine with The Zevon Family in presenting Join Me In L.A.: The Songs Of Warren Zevon With The Wild Honey Orchestra on October 24 at new venue The United Theater on Los Angeles. The event will celebrate Zevon’s Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame induction, and raise funds for the Asbestos Disease Awareness Organization (ADAO) and The Ed Asner Family Center, which assists the autism-neurodivergent community. Information on participating acts will likely be revealed in the near future.

The Psychedelic Furs With Special Guest Gary Numan Tour is coming to the Auditorium Theatre in Chicago on October 4. Other stops on the tour include Seattle, Sacramento, Los Angeles, Denver, Washington, D.C., Boston, and Brooklyn.

Chicago area vocalist Gerald McClendon “The Soul Keeper” has a concert coming up at The Des Plaines Theatre in Des Plaines, IL on June 14.

Paul Weller’s Find El Dorado collection of reinterpretations of other artists’ material will be released on July 25. Robert Plant and Noel Gallagher are among the musicians who helped on the album.

Local publisher Numero Group has released Dante Carfagna’s two-volume, 732-page set Soul Music Of Illinois. The website states Soul Music Of Illinois “chronicles over 3200 artists, 1200 record companies, and 10,000 individual releases between the years of 1960 and 1990.”

The Kooks’ June 9 concert in Chicago has been moved from The Salt Shed to The Vic Theatre. As noted in a Jam Mail email, “all previously purchased tickets valid for new venue.” The English rock band kicked off the North American leg of its All Over The World Tour this past Tuesday in Montreal, and recently released its latest album Never/Know.

Tethered Together, the fourth album from Chicago band Push Puppets, is now available in digital and CD formats on Bandcamp. Push Puppets specialize in melodic, well-crafted indie rock, and this time out, they’ve enlisted four classical musicians and a trio of horn players. It’s also interesting to note that long-time Chicago music scene veterans Steve Frisbee and Tommi Zender helped out on this album.

As reported on the Brooklyn Vegan website, Gina Birch from the Brit band The Raincoats has an album titled Trouble coming out on July 11. She’ll be backed by musicians Marie Merlet and Jenny Green. It’s the second solo effort from Birch, who’ll head out on tour with The Miki Berenyi Trio (led by the former Lush founder) this fall. They’ll be in Chicago on October 17 at Lincoln Hall.

Weekend Reminders

Thursday posts focus on events that were previously mentioned on Broken Hearted Toy, and are taking place during the upcoming weekend. Plus, the occasional event taking place this weekend that has just come to my attention, or concert tickets going on sale.

Congratulations to The Jayhawks on selling out their Saturday night and Sunday night shows this weekend at The Old Town School Of Folk Music in Chicago. There are still a few tickets left for their 3:30 pm show on Sunday. The Minneapolis-Saint Paul, MN band will likely tap into its most recent album XOXO, as well as the new Dark Country solo album from vocalist-guitarist Gary Louris.

The WXRT Live From The XRT Concert Archives series continues tomorrow night at 9:00 pm with a September 14, 1979 performance by The Clash recorded at the Aragon Ballroom in Chicago. The concert can be heard on  93.1FM; 93XRT.com; and the Audacy app.

International Pop Overthrow - Liverpool wraps up this Sunday at The Cavern Pub and The Cavern Club.  If you can’t be there in person, the website is a convenient way to discover new music. Coming up next will be International Pop Overthrow - Stockholm, which takes place on the weekend of June 6 – 8 at the Encore venue.

Montrose Saloon on Chicago’s north side has an impressive four-act showcase coming up tomorrow night that will feature the catchy indie rock bands Falling Stars, The Spindles, and Penthouse Sweets, as well as the mysterious Bronco Bama, which is apparently named after how a little girl mispronounced the president's name in 2012.

The feature-length documentary Bono: Stories of Surrender, which is described as The Tall Tales Of A Short Rock Star on the official U2 website, will stream tomorrow on Apple TV. The film is based on Bono’s solo tour for his fascinating memoir, Surrender - 40 songs, one story. A seven-inch, three-track vinyl EP featuring live recordings from his show will also be available to order tomorrow.

Adventurous prog rock musician and The Luck Of Eden Hall founding member Gregory Curvey, AKA Custard Flux, has a new album titled Enter Xenon coming out this Sunday. Judging from the seven tracks currently available for preview on Bandcamp, Custard Flux will be taking listeners on another wild, imaginative ride.

Chicago-based blues singer-guitarist Rob Moore will perform songs from his new album Chicago Dog at the Windy City Hot Dog Fest this year. The album was engineered and mastered by musician/producer Ellis Clark, and features members of Liquid Soul. Moore’s set kicks off on the Community Stage at 6:00 pm this Saturday. The Windy City Hot Dog Fest runs May 30 – June 1 in Chicago's Portage Park neighborhood.

Incoming

A new five-track, ten-inch vinyl E.P. of R.E.M.’s iconic first single “Radio Free Europe,” is being released to celebrate the 75th anniversary of the actual United States Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, which broadcasts news and information to various countries. The E.P. already can be downloaded on Bandcamp; and it can pre-ordered alone or in various bundles from the band’s official website.

Kelly Hogan and Scott Ligon, whose extensive musical resumes include being members of Chicago’s critically acclaimed pop music vocal band The Flat Five, will perform together tomorrow night (Wednesday) at The Hideout on Chicago’s north side.

International Pop Overthrow - Liverpool kicked off this past Sunday and will run through this coming Sunday at The Cavern Pub and The Cavern Club. Chicago’s own bands Who’s This Mary and Phil Yates And The Affiliates are among the acts involved, as is The Jeremy Band from Kalamazoo, MI. The entire schedule is on the official website, with links to most of the participants. If you can’t be there in person, the website is a convenient way to discover new music.

The WXRT Live From The XRT Concert Archives series continues this Friday night at 9:00 pm with a September 14, 1979 performance by The Clash recorded at the Aragon Ballroom in Chicago. The concert can be heard on 93.1FM; 93XRT.com; and the Audacy app.

Montrose Saloon on Chicago’s north side has a four-act showcase coming up this Friday that will feature Falling Stars, Bronco Bama, The Spindles, and Penthouse Sweets.

Singer-guitarist Dag Juhlin, a member of several Chicago area bands, has been releasing new solo albums on his Bandcamp page over the past year. The latest, Who’s Your Favorite Clown?, with a cover illustration of Bozo and Ringmaster Ned, offers six parables set to a variety of arrangements. The lyrics are consistently sharp and clever, and conjure a feeling the games we’re playing these days could lead to serious trouble.

The feature-length documentary Bono: Stories of Surrender, which is described as The Tall Tales Of A Short Rock Star on the official U2 website, will stream this Friday on Apple TV. The film is based on Bono’s solo tour for his fascinating memoir, Surrender - 40 songs, one story. A seven-inch, three-track vinyl EP featuring live recordings from his show will also be available to order on that day.

Prog rock musician and The Luck Of Eden Hall founding member Gregory Curvey, AKA Custard Flux, has a new album titled Enter Xenon coming out this Sunday. Judging from the seven tracks currently available for preview on Bandcamp, Custard Flux will be taking listeners on another wild, imaginative ride.

Chicago-based blues singer-guitarist Rob Moore will perform songs from his new album Chicago Dog at the Windy City Hot Dog Fest this year. The album was engineered and mastered by musician/producer Ellis Clark, and features members of Liquid Soul. Moore’s set kicks off on the Community Stage at 6:00 pm this Saturday. The Windy City Hot Dog Fest runs May 30 – June 1 in Chicago's Portage Park neighborhood.

Sunday Papers

The Journey – Part 3, due out on July 11, will wrap up The Kinks’ 60th Anniversary Anthology series with a selection of songs from their 1977 – 1984 recordings. Available as two LPs, two CDs or as a download, it will include hits such as “(Wish I Could Fly Like) Superman,” “Come Dancing,” “Better Things,” “A Rock And Roll Fantasy,” “Low Budget,” “Destroyer,” and “Sleepwalker.” The Journey – Part 3 will also feature live recordings of “Till The End Of The Day,” “Where Have All The Good Times Gone,” “Apeman,” and other Kinks favorites.

Happy Birthday to Ralph Covert, who formed the Chicago-based band The Bad Examples over three decades ago, and despite some lineup changes, has ensured their albums are always filled with catchy and clever indie rock songs. Covert is also known for his series of Ralph’s World children’s albums, which serve up important lessons set to fun arrangements. Lately, he’s been treating his Facebook followers to interesting and funny anecdotes from his many rock and roll experiences.

International Pop Overthrow - Liverpool kicked off today and will run through next Sunday at The Cavern Pub and The Cavern Club. Chicago’s own bands Who’s This Mary and Phil Yates And The Affiliates are among the acts involved, as is The Jeremy Band from Kalamazoo, MI. The entire schedule is on the official website, with links to most of the participants. If you can’t be there in person, the website is a convenient way to discover new music.

Congratulations to singer-songwriter Phil Angotti on the release of his latest album on this very day. Notebook Head, a collection of 10 acoustic, solo performances can now be downloaded on his Bandcamp page, and will be available on CD in a few weeks. All the tracks sound like winners, but “Wreck Of The Rowboat Named Harold” is particularly impressive in a Bob Dylan vein. Sure enough, the Info tab states it was inspired by the Dylan film A Complete Unknown.

Ringo Starr And His All Starr Band’s 2025 Tour will include a show at the Chicago Theatre on September 10. Starr’s latest album, Look Up, finds him working in a Country and Western vein, but it’s likely he and his mates will be covering all kinds of music, including Beatles tunes.

Montrose Saloon on Chicago’s north side has a four-act showcase coming up on May 30 that will feature Falling Stars, Bronco Bama, The Spindles, and Penthouse Sweets.

Tickets are now on sale for the Wolf Alice North American Tour, which kicks off on September 10 in Atlanta. The London-based indie rock band will return to The Vic in Chicago on September 26; other stops on the tour include Washington, DC; Philadelphia; Boston; Montreal; Toronto; Dallas; Denver; and Los Angeles. Wolf Alice recently released a new single titled “Bloom Baby Bloom” and has a new album titled The Clearing coming out August 29.

Chicago Shakespeare Theater, which recently imported the Kinks bio musical Sunny Afternoon from England, has another pop music fueled show coming up. 42 Balloons, written by Jack Godfrey, utilizes a 1980s-inspired score to tell a tale based on an actual 1982 event when a Los Angeles man attached weather balloons to a chair and sailed upward. It’s directed by Ellie Coote, with choreography by Alexzandra Sarmiento and orchestra ad music supervision by Joe Beighton. 42 Balloons opened yesterday and will run at Chicago Shakespeare Theater through June 29.

The Psychedelic Furs With Special Guest Gary Numan Tour is coming to the Auditorium Theatre in Chicago on October 4. Other stops on the tour include Seattle, Sacramento, Los Angeles, Denver, Washington, D.C., Boston, and Brooklyn.

Tickets are now available for a second Jason Narducy and Dag Juhlin Celebrate Pete Townshend’s (Belated) Birthday performance at Hey Nonny in Arlington Heights, IL on June 21. The late show will start at 9:30 pm; tickets for the 7:00 pm show are quickly selling out.

The feature-length documentary Bono: Stories of Surrender, which is described as The Tall Tales Of A Short Rock Star on the official U2 website, will stream on May 30 on Apple TV. The film is based on the Bono’s solo tour for his fascinating memoir, Surrender - 40 songs, one story.

Chicago area vocalist Gerald McClendon “The Soul Keeper” has a concert coming up at The Des Plaines Theatre in Des Plaines, IL on June 14.

Paul Weller’s Find El Dorado collection of reinterpretations of other artists’ material will be released on July 25. Robert Plant and Noel Gallagher are among the musicians who helped on the album.

Tethered Together, the fourth album from Chicago band Push Puppets, is now available in digital and CD formats on Bandcamp. Push Puppets specialize in melodic, well-crafted indie rock, and this time out, they’ve enlisted four classical musicians and a trio of horn players. It’s also interesting to note that long-time Chicago music scene veterans Steve Frisbee and Tommi Zender helped out on this album.

Wild Honey Foundation, the California-based 501(c)(3)non-profit that frequently supports worthy causes by staging all-star concerts, will combine with The Zevon Family in presenting Join Me In L.A.: The Songs Of Warren Zevon With The Wild Honey Orchestra on October 24 at new venue The United Theater on Los Angeles. The event will celebrate Zevon’s Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame induction, and raise funds for the Asbestos Disease Awareness Organization (ADAO) and The Ed Asner Family Center, which assists the autism-neurodivergent community. Information on participating acts will likely be revealed in the near future.

Local publisher Numero Group has released Dante Carfagna’s two-volume, 732-page set Soul Music Of Illinois. The website states Soul Music Of Illinois “chronicles over 3200 artists, 1200 record companies, and 10,000 individual releases between the years of 1960 and 1990.”

Online applications are now available for those interested in being part of YippieFest 2025 at Chopin Theatre on Chicago’s north side. The freewheeling, in-person entertainment event will return for its seventh year on the weekend of August 22 – 24. The long-running sketch/musical comedy group Famous In The Future will once again host YippieFest, which is inspired by the annual Abby Fest that was staged by Mary-Arrchie Theatre for several years.

Adventurous prog rock musician and The Luck Of Eden Hall founding member Gregory Curvey, AKA Custard Flux, has a new album titled Enter Xenon coming out on June 1. It can be pre-ordered on Bandcamp, and the first three tracks are already available to purchase and download.

The Kooks’ June 9 concert in Chicago has been moved from The Salt Shed to The Vic Theatre. As noted in a Jam Mail email, “all previously purchased tickets valid for new venue.” The English rock band kicks off the North American leg of its All Over The World Tour on May 27 in Montreal, and recently released its latest album Never/Know.

Chicago-based blues singer-guitarist Rob Moore will perform songs from his new album Chicago Dog at the Windy City Hot Dog Fest this year. The album was engineered and mastered by musician/producer Ellis Clark, and features members of Liquid Soul. Moore’s set kicks off on the Community Stage at 6:00 pm on Saturday, May 31. The Windy City Hot Dog Fest runs May 30 – June 1 in Chicago's Portage Park neighborhood.

Weekend Reminders

Thursday posts focus on events that were previously mentioned on Broken Hearted Toy, and are taking place during the upcoming weekend. Plus, the occasional event taking place this weekend that has just come to my attention, or concert tickets going on sale.

The Austin Community Tavern in Steger, IL will offer the potent double bill of Sunshine Boys and The Webstirs this Saturday night. There’s no cover charge, and both bands can draw material from splendid albums of original indie rock for their sets. It will also be a family affair as Dag Juhlin is a member of Sunshine Boys and Gregg Juhlin is with The Webstirs. Both of these lads were members of The Slugs, one of Chicago’s early punk bands.

Happy Birthday to musician-artist-promoter Jonathan Lea. I first came across his band The Jigsaw Seen on various artists tribute albums to The Bee Gees, Henry Mancini, The Hollies, and The Left Banke. The group also did well on its own albums of original material, and Lea would later tour with Dave Davies from The Kinks. He’s more recently recorded with the all-star band Tall Poppy Syndrome, and has worked with Carla Olson from The Textones and Allan Clarke from The Hollies. 

The always engaging duo Sparks will release a new album titled Mad! tomorrow in vinyl, CD, and cassette formats. Sadly, their latest tour won’t bring them to Chicago. 

Fans of Chicago rock and roll circa the mid 1960s might have a willingness to check out The New Colony Six tomorrow at Hey Nonny in Arlington Heights. The band racked up hits such as “I Confess,” “I Will Always Think About You,” and “Things I’d Like To Say” back in the days when WLS and WCFL ruled the Chicago airwaves.

Tickets are now on sale for the Wolf Alice North American Tour, which kicks off on September 10 in Atlanta. The London-based indie rock band will return to The Vic in Chicago on September 26; other stops on the tour include Washington, DC; Philadelphia; Boston; Montreal; Toronto; Dallas; Denver; and Los Angeles. Wolf Alice recently released a new single titled “Bloom Baby Bloom” and has a new album titled The Clearing coming out August 29.

PureSoul will present Stevie Wonder’s 75th Birthday Celebration: Songs In The Key Of Life, A Tribute this Sunday at City Winery Chicago. The 7:00 pm event, taking place the day before Wonder’s actual birthday, will feature PureSoul's Chicago Allstars performing his 1976 double-LP masterpiece.

Ascendant, the Chicago-based soul band that’s been giving audiences spirited performances for 20 years, will release a new single titled “Love Saved My Life” tomorrow. Including alternate versions in an EP format, it’s a follow up to their 2022 critically acclaimed album Illuminate: YELLOW.

The Band Calderisi, one of the many impressive acts at the recent International Pop Overthrow - Chicago event, have a 5:00 pm set next Sunday at the outdoor Belmont-Sheffield Music Festival on Chicago’s north side.

Incoming

Photo of Pete Townshend and Roger Daltry from The Who Facebook page.

Happy Birthday to Pete Townshend, a true icon who’s excelled as a member of The Who, a solo artist, an author, and creator of rock operas. Take a few minutes to check out social media and you’ll see several fans and fellow musicians posting tributes. The Who’s The Song Is Over North America Farewell Tour starts August 16 in Sunrise, FL and will finish on September 28 in Las Vegas. The 14-concert tour will include a stop on September 7 at the United Center in Chicago.

Chicago area fans can check out the Jason Narducy and Dag Juhlin Celebrate Pete Townshend’s (Belated) Birthday performance at Hey Nonny in Arlington Heights, IL on June 21. Tickets recently went on sale for a late show that will start at 9:30 pm; tickets for the original 7:00 pm show are quickly selling out.

The Band Calderisi, one of the many impressive acts at the recent International Pop Overthrow - Chicago event, have a 5:00 pm set next Sunday at the outdoor Belmont Sheffield Music Festival on Chicago’s north side.

The 49th annual Fest For Beatles Fans - Chicago will take place on the weekend of August 8 –10 at the Hyatt Regency O’Hare. WXRT DJ Terri Hemmert will once again serve as MC; and this year’s special guests will include drummer Simon Kirke from Bad Company and Free; Jim McCarty from The Yardbirds and Renaissance; British Invasion hit maker Billy J. Kramer; 1960s model/Carnaby Street scene celebrity/author Jenny Boyd; author Yvonne Innes, whose Dip My Brain In Joy: A Life With Neil Innes celebrates her marriage to the late writer-musician-actor; and actor Eddie Deezen from the I Wanna Hold Your Hand comedy flick. There will be performances by Liverpool; The Weeklings; The Taxmen; Phil Angotti And Friends and other bands. A recent Fest For Beatles Fans email stated, “The Fest For Beatles Fans 2025 Chicago is dedicated, with love, to Joey Molland.” The Badfinger founding member was a Fest special guest on several occasions.

Fans of Chicago rock and roll circa the mid-1960s might have a willingness to check out The New Colony Six this Friday at Hey Nonny in Arlington Heights.

PureSoul will present Stevie Wonder’s 75th Birthday Celebration: Songs In The Key Of Life, A Tribute this Sunday at City Winery Chicago. The 7:00 pm event, taking place the day before Wonder’s actual birthday, will feature PureSoul's Chicago Allstars performing his 1976 double-LP masterpiece.

“Leitmotif,” the fourth song Chicago-based singer-songwriter AJ Rosales has released from his upcoming album Phasedrift on Bandcamp, continues the string of melodic acoustic songs with well crafted, introspective lyrics. Once again, listeners will likely be reminded of vintage Neil Young as Rosales supplies all the vocals and instrumentation. It might be the last preview we get since Phasedrift is due out on June 20.

Saturday Slumgullion

See Thursday’s Weekend Reminders post for events taking place this weekend.

The Hoodoo Gurus will celebrate the 40th anniversary of their second album Mars Needs Guitars with an event on September 19 at The Barracks in North Head Manly in Sydney, Australia. They will perform the entire album in order and then move on to a variety of garage rock selections from their illustrious and zany career. Their Facebook post states, “THIS WILL BE THE ONLY TIME WE WILL BE DOING THIS ANYWHERE so get in quick to secure your ticket.”

Tickets are now available for a second Jason Narducy and Dag Juhlin Celebrate Pete Townshend’s (Belated) Birthday performance at Hey Nonny in Arlington Heights, IL on June 21. The late show will start at 9:30 pm; tickets for the 7:00 pm show are quickly selling out.

Billy Idol’s recently released album Dream Into It gives him new songs to perform on his current series of concerts, along with “White Wedding,” Rebel Yell,” “Eyes Without A Face,” and other hits. It’s A Nice Day To . . . Tour Again! with Special Guest Joan Jett, hits Nashville tonight. Other cities scheduled on this international tour include Cincinnati, Toronto, London, Philadelphia, Munich, New York, and Los Angeles. The Credit Union 1 Amphitheater in Tinley Park, IL show is set for August 14, not May 20, as I’ve been incorrectly posting here.

Ascendant, the Chicago-based soul band that’s been giving audiences spirited performances for 20 years, will release a new single titled “Love Saved My Life” on May 23. Including alternate versions in an EP format, it’s a follow up to their 2022 critically acclaimed album Illuminate: YELLOW. Ascendant will likely showcase “Love Saved My Life” during its June 11 show at City Winery Chicago.

Wild Honey Foundation, the California-based 501(c)(3)non-profit that frequently supports worthy causes by staging all-star concerts, will combine with The Zevon Family in presenting Join Me In L.A.: The Songs Of Warren Zevon With The Wild Honey Orchestra on October 24 at new venue The United Theater on Los Angeles. The event will celebrate Zevon’s Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame induction, and raise funds for the Asbestos Disease Awareness Organization (ADAO) and The Ed Asner Family Center, which assists the autism-neurodivergent community. Information on participating acts will likely be revealed in the near future.

Adventurous prog rock musician and The Luck Of Eden Hall founding member Gregory Curvey, AKA Custard Flux, has a new album titled Enter Xenon coming out on June 1. It can be pre-ordered on Bandcamp, and the first three tracks are already available to purchase and download.

In the past few days, Wolf Alice has released a new single titled “Bloom Baby Bloom,” shared a video of that song, and announced their next album— The Clearing—will drop on August 29. But wait, there’s more. The London-based indie rock band will kick off a North American tour on September 10 in Atlanta, and return to The Vic in Chicago on September 26. Other stops on the tour include Washington, DC; Philadelphia; Boston; Montreal; Toronto; Dallas; Denver; and Los Angeles. November will bring a series of shows in European; including Sweden, Denmark, Germany, Poland, France, Czech Republic, and Hungary.

Ringo Starr And His All Starr Band’s 2025 Tour will include a recently added show at the Chicago Theatre on September 10. Starr’s latest album, Look Up, finds him working in a Country and Western vein, but it’s likely he and his mates will be covering all kinds of music, including Beatles tunes.

Montrose Saloon on Chicago’s north side has a four-act showcase coming up on May 30 that will feature Falling Stars, Bronco Bama, The Spindles, and Penthouse Sweets.

The Who’s The Song Is Over North America Farewell Tour starts August 16 in Sunrise, FL and will finish on September 28 in Las Vegas. The 14-concert tour will include a stop on September 7 at the United Center in Chicago.

Chicago area vocalist Gerald McClendon “The Soul Keeper” has a concert coming up at The Des Plaines Theatre in Des Plaines, IL on June 14.

As reported on the Brooklyn Vegan website, Gina Birch from the Brit band The Raincoats has an album titled Trouble coming out on July 11. She’ll be backed by musicians Marie Merlet and Jenny Green. It’s the second solo effort from Birch, who’ll head out on tour with The Miki Berenyi Trio (led by the former Lush founder) this fall. They’ll be in Chicago on October 17 at Lincoln Hall.

Tethered Together, the fourth album from Chicago band Push Puppets, and their first since Allegory Grey back in 2022, is now available in digital and CD formats on Bandcamp. It includes three singles that were released over the past few months, along with seven other tracks. Push Puppets specialize in melodic, well-crafted indie rock, and this time out, they’ve enlisted four classical musicians and a trio of horn players. It’s also interesting to note that long-time Chicago music scene veterans Steve Frisbee and Tommi Zender helped out on this album.

The Kooks’ June 9 concert in Chicago has been moved from The Salt Shed to The Vic Theatre. As noted in a Jam Mail email, “all previously purchased tickets valid for new venue.” The English rock band kicks off the North American leg of its All Over The World Tour on May 27 in Montreal, and recently released its latest album Never/Know.

PureSoul will present Stevie Wonder’s 75th Birthday Celebration: Songs In The Key Of Life, A Tribute on May 25 at City Winery Chicago. The 7:00 pm event, taking place the day before Wonder’s actual birthday, will feature PureSoul's Chicago Allstars performing his 1976 double-LP masterpiece.

Singer-guitarist Phil Angotti is well known on the Chicago music scene for his tribute shows to Pete Townshend, The Beatles, The Bee Gees, The Zombies, and other worthy acts, but he’s also pretty impressive performing his own material. Angotti recently posted on Facebook that he has a new acoustic album titled Notebook Head coming out soon. As with his previous two releases, it will be available on Bandcamp.

The feature-length documentary Bono: Stories of Surrender, which is described as The Tall Tales Of A Short Rock Star on the official U2 website, will stream on May 30 on Apple TV. The film is based on the Bono’s solo tour for his fascinating memoir, Surrender - 40 songs, one story.

Chicago-based blues singer-guitarist Rob Moore will perform songs from his new album Chicago Dog at the Windy City Hot Dog Fest this year. The album was engineered and mastered by musician/producer Ellis Clark, and features members of Liquid Soul. Moore’s set kicks off on the Community Stage at 6:00 pm on Saturday, May 31. The Windy City Hot Dog Fest runs May 30 – June 1 in Chicago's Portage Park neighborhood.

IPO - Liverpool will run May 25 – June 1 at The Cavern. The entire schedule is on the official International Pop Overthrow website, with links to most of the participants. If you can’t be there in person, the website is a convenient way to discover new music.

The Band Calderisi, one of the many impressive acts at the recent International Pop Overthrow - Chicago event, have a 5:00 pm set next Sunday at the outdoor Belmont Sheffield Music Festival on Chicago’s north side. The group specializes in energetic and catchy original material, embellished with tight harmonies.

Kinks fans from around the globe get to express their admiration for the band in author Chris Kocher’s new book Thank You For The Days: Fans Of The Kinks Share 60 Years Of Stories. Those fans include musicians such as Jonathan Lea, John Wesley Harding, and Ron Sexsmith, along with other professionals who’ve worked with The Kinks over the years. Thank You For The Days is now available on Amazon.

Folk rock legend Paul Simon will perform at the Chicago Symphony Center May 21 – 24. 

Local publisher Numero Group has released Dante Carfagna’s two-volume, 732-page set Soul Music Of Illinois. The website states Soul Music Of Illinois “chronicles over 3200 artists, 1200 record companies, and 10,000 individual releases between the years of 1960 and 1990.”

The always engaging duo Sparks will release a new album titled Mad! on May 23 in vinyl, CD, and cassette formats. After a world tour that will take them across Japan and Europe, Ron and Russell Mael will arrive in Atlanta, GA on September 5 to kick off an American tour that will include 15 dates. Chicago is not among the cities on the U.S. tour, which is likely to leave fans here, well, Mad!

Weekend Reminders

The Go-Go’s are among the major acts performing at The Cruel World Fest.

Thursday posts focus on events that were previously mentioned on Broken Hearted Toy, and are taking place during the upcoming weekend. Plus, the occasional event taking place this weekend that has just come to my attention, or concert tickets going on sale.

The Cruel World Festival kicks off this Saturday in Pasadena, CA. Headline acts include New Order; ’til tuesday; The Buzzcocks; Nick Cave And The Bad Seeds; The Go-Go’s; Devo; OMD; Garbage; Alison Moyet, Blancmange; Stereo MC’s; Midge Ure; and Madness.

Tickets are now available for a second Jason Narducy and Dag Juhlin Celebrate Pete Townshend’s (Belated) Birthday performance at Hey Nonny in Arlington Heights on June 21. The late show will start at 9:30 pm; tickets for the 7:00 pm show are quickly selling out.

Wolf Alice’s new single “Bloom Baby Bloom” is now available on Spotify, Amazon, iTunes, and other streaming sites. The London-based indie rock band, led by vocalist-guitarist Ellie Rowsell, has also released a video for “Bloom Baby Bloom” that can be viewed on YouTube. A collaboration with director Colin Solal Cardo and choreographer Ryan Heffington, it finds Wolf Alice exploring new territory with a Broadway musical approach that might remind some people of Bob Fosse. The band also announced today that a next album, titled The Clearing, is due out August 29.

The 101.7 FM CHIRP Radio Music Film Festival at The Music Box Theatre on Chicago’s north side opened tonight with a 7:00 pm screening of the Brian Eno documentary Eno. The festival runs through Sunday with Angelheaded Hipster: The Songs Of Marc Bolan And T. Rex and Times Square tomorrow night; Lifers: A Local H Movie and Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story on Saturday; and Save The Children and I Am Trying To Break Your Heart on Sunday. See the festival website for additional information.

Hung Up On A Dream, director/musician Robert Schwartzman’s 2023 documentary covering The Zombies’ entire career, is now showing in American theaters. It was screened at the AMC theaters in Chicago and suburban Illinois earlier this week; and will be screened tomorrow in New York and Los Angeles. The film features the British Invasion band’s most recent live performances, along with archival footage.

Singer-guitarist Rachel Drew will perform with John Szymanski, Michael Krayniak, and Jason Batchko tomorrow night at FitzGerald’s Sidebar in Berwyn, IL. Drew’s most recent album, Old Sky New, was released in March 2024, and she has a brand new cover of The Replacements’ “Swingin Party” on her Bandcamp page.

Wild Honey Foundation, the California-based a 501(c)(3)non-profit that supports various worthy causes by staging concerts, will join The Zevon Family in presenting Join Me In L.A.: The Songs Of Warren Zevon With The Wild Honey Orchestra on October 24 at the United Center on Los Angeles.

Chicago singer-guitarist Michael Steven Cohen will perform selections from the Great American Songbook this Saturday night and next Saturday, May 24 at the Chicago Prime Italian restaurant in Schaumburg, IL.

Tellin’ Tales Theatre will present Divercity: Breaking Through this weekend at the Goodman Theatre/Alice Center for Education and Engagement in downtown Chicago. The show will feature solo performances by writers, artists, and advocates with disabilities. Tellin’ Tales Theatre’s mission is “to shatter barriers between the disabled and non-disabled worlds through the transformative power of personal story.”

Incoming

Ringo Starr And His All Starr Band’s 2025 tour will include a recently added show at the Chicago Theatre on September 10. Starr’s latest album, Look Up, finds him working in a Country and Western vein, but it’s likely he and his mates will be covering all kinds of music, including Beatles tunes.

Montrose Saloon on Chicago’s north side has a four-act showcase coming up on May 30 that will feature Falling Stars, Bronco Bama, The Spindles, and Penthouse Sweets.

The Who’s The Song Is Over North America Farewell Tour starts August 16 in Sunrise, FL and will finish on September 28 in Las Vegas. The 14-concert tour will include a stop on September 7 at the United Center in Chicago.

Ascendant, the Chicago-based soul band that’s been giving audiences spirited performances for 20 years, will release a new single titled “Love Saved My Life” on May 23. Including alternate versions in an EP format, it’s a follow up to their 2022 critically acclaimed album Illuminate: YELLOW. Ascendant will likely showcase “Love Saved My Life” during its June 11 show at City Winery Chicago.

Wolf Alice’s “Bloom Baby Bloom” single, due out this Thursday, will be the London-based indie rockers’ first new music since their adventurous album Blue Weekend dropped in 2021. Hopefully, “Bloom Baby Bloom” will be soon followed by a full album.

Hung Up On A Dream, director/musician Robert Schwartzman’s 2023 documentary covering The Zombies’ entire career, is coming to American theaters this month. It will be screened at the AMC theaters in Chicago and suburban Illinois tomorrow, and on Friday in New York and Los Angeles. The film features the British Invasion band’s most recent live performances, along with archival footage.

The Cruel World festival kicks off this Saturday in Pasadena, CA. Headline acts include New Order; ’til tuesday; The Buzzcocks; Nick Cave And The Bad Seeds; The Go-Go’s; Devo; OMD; Garbage; Alison Moyet, Blancmange; Stereo MC’s; Midge Ure; and Madness.

Tellin’ Tales Theatre will present Divercity: Breaking Through this weekend at the Goodman Theatre/Alice Center for Education and Engagement in downtown Chicago. The show will feature solo performances by writers, artists, and advocates with disabilities. Tellin’ Tales Theatre’s mission is “to shatter barriers between the disabled and non-disabled worlds through the transformative power of personal story.

Sunday Papers

Ellie Rowsell: Who knows what she’ll do next?

Wolf Alice’s “Bloom Baby Bloom” single, due out this Thursday, will be the London-based indie rockers’ first new music since their critically acclaimed album Blue Weekend dropped in 2021. That effort proved once again how emotionally convincing lead vocalist-guitarist Ellie Rowsell can be, whether she sings like an angel or screams like a banshee. Hopefully, “Bloom Baby Bloom” will be soon followed by a full album.

Singer-guitarist Phil Angotti is well known on the Chicago music scene for his tribute shows to Pete Townshend, The Beatles, The Bee Gees, The Zombies, and other worthy acts, but he’s also pretty impressive performing his own material. Angotti recently posted on Facebook that he has a new acoustic album titled Notebook Head coming out soon. As with his previous two releases, it will be available on Bandcamp. 

The Cruel World festival takes place in Pasadena, CA on May 17. Headline acts include New Order; ’til tuesday; The Buzzcocks; Nick Cave And The Bad Seeds; The Go-Go’s; Devo; OMD; Garbage; Alison Moyet, Blancmange; Stereo MC’s; Midge Ure; and Madness.

It’s only fitting that Chicago-based blues singer-guitarist Rob Moore will perform songs from his new album Chicago Dog at the Windy City Hot Dog Fest this year. The album was engineered and mastered by musician/producer Ellis Clark, and features members of Liquid Soul. Moore’s set kicks off on the Community Stage at 6:00 pm on Saturday, May 31. The Windy City Hot Dog Fest runs May 30 – June 1 in Chicago's Portage Park neighborhood.

As reported on the Brooklyn Vegan website, Gina Birch from the Brit band The Raincoats has an album titled Trouble coming out on July 11. She’ll be backed by musicians Marie Merlet and Jenny Green. It’s the second solo effort from Birch, who’ll head out on tour with The Miki Berenyi Trio (led by the former Lush founder) this fall. They’ll be in Chicago on October 17 at Lincoln Hall. 

Tellin’ Tales Theatre will present Divercity: Breaking Through on the weekend of May 16 – 18 at the Goodman Theatre/Alice Center for Education and Engagement in downtown Chicago. The show will feature solo performances by writers, artists, and advocates with disabilities. Tellin’ Tales Theatre’s mission is “to shatter barriers between the disabled and non-disabled worlds through the transformative power of personal story.

Sony Pictures Classic has announced the critically acclaimed rock and roll documentary Becoming Led Zeppelin will be back on big screens in selected theaters for another limited run. 

The Handcuffs have a gig coming up on June 27 on the Patio at FitzGerald’s in Berwyn, IL. The Chicago-based indie rockers have four albums to draw material from, as well as songs that will be on their next release.

The Smithereens, with guest vocalist Marshall Crenshaw, have a summer-opening gig at the Wonder Bar in Asbury Park, NJ on June 21. It’s part of the N2S North To Shore Festival.

The Stockport Music Story organization honored the late Eric Haydock—who played bass for The Hollies back in their early years—with a plaque at The Red Bull pub last week. A special poster by artist Vivian Lally commemorating this event will be available from the Stockport Music Story website soon. Stockport is a large town in Greater Manchester, England. Lally has several rock musician portraits available on her Etsy page.

UK-based music historian/author Peter Checksfield’s new book The Hollies - Elevated Observations: The Graham Nash Years 1963 – 1968 is available on Amazon in hardcover, paperback and kindle versions.

IPO - Liverpool will run May 25 – June 1 at The Cavern. The entire schedule is on the official International Pop Overthrow website, with links to most of the participants. If you can’t be there in person, the website is a convenient way to discover new music.

The feature-length documentary Bono: Stories of Surrender, which is described as The Tall Tales Of A Short Rock Star on the official U2 website, will stream on May 30 on Apple TV. The film is based on the Bono’s solo tour for his fascinating memoir, Surrender - 40 songs, one story.

Billy Idol’s It’s A Nice Day To . . . Tour Again! series of concerts, with special guest Joan Jett, kicked off in Phoenix, AZ and will include a stop at the Credit Union 1 Amphitheater in Tinley Park, IL on May 20. Other cities scheduled to have a nice day include Houston, Tampa, Nashville, Cincinnati, Toronto, Philadelphia, and New York. The final date is September 25 in Los Angeles.

Tickets are now on sale for the 99 Years Of Rock ’N Roll X And Los Lobos show on October 16 at the Auditorium Theatre in Chicago. Each of these Los Angeles groundbreaking bands will feature all original members. The date is part of a tour that kicks off on July 19 in Denver, and includes stops in Salt Lake City, Toronto, Kansas City, Milwaukee, and Seattle.

Folk rock legend Paul Simon will perform at the Chicago Symphony Center May 21 – 24.

Kinks fans from around the world get an opportunity to express their admiration for the band in author Chris Kocher’s new book Thank You For The Days: Fans Of The Kinks Share 60 Years Of Stories. Those fans include musicians such as Jonathan Lea, John Wesley Harding, and Ron Sexsmith, along with other professionals who’ve worked with The Kinks over the years. Thank You For The Days is now available on Amazon.

The Chicago Blues Festival, an annual event since 1984 and believed to be the world’s largest blues festival, returns to Millennium Park for the long weekend of June 5 – June 8. Mavis Staples will be among the headliners, and there will be a centennial tribute to the late B.B. King. Opening day will take place at the Ramova Theatre at 3520 S. Halsted and feature performances by Bobby Rush and Billy Branch And The Sons Of The Blues.

The Cincinnati, OH publisher Ruffian Books has released a new one titled 500 Essential Pop-Punk Albums - From Blondie To blink-182, offering more than 550 pages of famous and lesser known artists. It’s available for $29.95.

The always engaging duo Sparks will release a new album titled Mad! on May 23 in vinyl, CD, and cassette fomats. After a world tour that will take them across Japan and Europe, Ron and Russell Mael will arrive in Atlanta, GA on September 5 to kick off an American tour that will include 15 dates. Chicago is not among the cities on the U.S. tour, which is likely to leave fans here, well, Mad!

Online applications are now available for those interested in being part of YippieFest 2025 at Chopin Theatre on Chicago’s north side. The freewheeling, in-person entertainment event will return for its seventh year on the weekend of August 22 – 24. The long-running sketch/musical comedy group Famous In The Future will once again host YippieFest, which is inspired by the annual Abby Fest that was staged by Mary-Arrchie Theatre for several years.

Hung Up On A Dream, director/musician Robert Schwartzman’s 2023 documentary covering The Zombies’ entire career, is coming to American theaters starting May 11. It will be screened at the AMC theaters in Chicago and suburban Illinois on May 13; and on May 16 in New York and Los Angeles. The film features the British Invasion band’s most recent live performances, along with archival footage.

Local publisher Numero Group has released Dante Carfagna’s two-volume, 732-page set Soul Music Of Illinois. The website states Soul Music Of Illinois “chronicles over 3200 artists, 1200 record companies, and 10,000 individual releases between the years of 1960 and 1990.”

Peter Asher, who was half of the popular British Invasion duo Peter and Gordon before moving on to a highly successful career as a producer, also continues to perform music himself. His multimedia show A Musical Memoir of the 60s and Beyond comes to The Old Town School Of Folk Music May 16.

Fans of Chicago rock and roll circa the mid 1960s might have a willingness to check out The New Colony Six on May 23 at Hey Nonny in Arlington Heights.

Weekend Reminders

Thursday posts focus on events that were previously mentioned on Broken Hearted Toy, and are taking place during the upcoming weekend. Plus, the occasional event taking place this weekend that has just come to my attention, or concert tickets going on sale.

Pete Townshend released an 8-CD box set titled The Studio Albums a few months back that includes all his solo works. You won’t hear that many of his songs at the Izaak Walton Preserve in Homewood, IL this Saturday night but you’re still bound to have fun. Presented by the Homewood Arts Council, the event celebrates Townshend’s birthday a little over a week early, with four well-known Chicago area musicians providing the entertainment. Phil Angotti, Dolph Chaney, Rick Rizzo and Sam Vicari will each perform a set of solo Townshend and The Who material. The Izaak Walton Preserve is located at 1100 W. Ridge Road in Homewood.

Led by vocalist-guitarist Jay Farrar, alternative rock/country group Son Volt will likely perform songs from its 2023 album Day Of The Doug this Friday and Saturday at FitzGerald’s in Berwyn, IL. Friday’s show is indoors and Saturday’s is outdoors; both are sold out. These guys can also tap into several previous albums, dating back to their 1995 debut Trace.

Chicago singer-guitarist Michael Steven Cohen will perform selections from the Great American Songbook on consecutive Saturday nights from May 10 through May 24 at the Chicago Prime Italian restaurant in Schaumburg, IL.

Chicago’s multi-faceted and quite often humorous covers band EXPO ’76 has a gig this Saturday night at the Austin Community Tavern in Steger, IL.

It’s a sure sign that warmer weather is on the way when the riverside venues in Chicago start opening. The City Winery Riverwalk opens this Saturday.

I Love A Starman In A Uniform. Super Creeps and Damaged Gods will be paying tribute to David Bowie and Gang Of Four respectively tomorrow night at Montrose Saloon on Chicago’s north side. On Saturday night at that same venue, The Power Pop Shoppe radio program will present the Remembering 1975 Live Music Event with local acts Bishop’s Daredevil Stunt Club, Rolling Numbers, The Dry Look, Staff Infexion, Super X, Keke, and Marina performing their favorite songs from 50 years ago.

Translator, the band that gave us the classic indie rock song “Everywhere That I’m Not” in 1982, will release Live at the Farm, San Francisco 1986 tomorrow. The album includes two new songs recorded in 2023 by band members Steve Barton, Robert Darlington, Larry Dekker, and David Scheffin.

Stompin’ Grounds Cafe, the Lake Zurich venue that’s become a favorite morning spot for my wife Pam and me, is presenting an Adopt-a-Latte Puppy And Dog Adoption Event this Saturday from 10:00 am to noon.

Incoming

Congratulations to David Bash on another successful International Pop Overthrow - Chicago at Montrose Saloon this year. As the nine-day festival wrapped up this past Saturday night, I caught the first three acts: Mike Cohen with bassist Rich Williamson and drummer Joe Rossi; 45 Souls; and The Spindles. Each gave an impressive performance, and the party atmosphere was augmented by the camaraderie among so many musicians hanging out at the club. Those vibes were just as strong a week earlier when I caught performances by The Jeremy Band, Monte Carload, The Emily Chloe Quinn Ensemble, and The Band Calderisi. If Montrose Saloon was closer to my home, I would have checked out a lot more bands. That sentiment goes for Montrose Saloon’s schedule in general.

Next up for Mr. Bash is the May 25 – June 1 IPO - Liverpool festival in the UK. The entire schedule is on the official International Pop Overthrow website, with links to most of the participants. If you can’t be there in person, the website is a convenient way to discover new music.

Speaking of England, The Stockport Music Story organization honored the late Eric Haydock—who played bass for The Hollies back in their early years—with a plaque at The Red Bull pub yesterday. “He was one of the first British musicians to have a Fender Bass VI, a six-string bass which he played in Manchester band The Deltas,” the Stockport Music Story noted in a Facebook post. Stockport is a large town in Greater Manchester, England. A special poster by artist Vivian Lally commemorating this event will be available from the Stockport Music Story website soon. Lally has several rock musician portraits available on her Etsy page.

In related news, Peter Howarth, who’s been the lead vocalist for The Hollies since 2004, has a solo show coming up on August 23 at at The Exchange in Sturminster Newton. For those unfamiliar with the English countryside, Sturminster Newton is a town in Dorset, on the River Stour and the Blackmore Vale.

And, just as a reminder, UK-based music historian/author Peter Checksfield’s new book The Hollies - Elevated Observations: The Graham Nash Years 1963 – 1968 is available on Amazon in hardcover, paperback and kindle versions.

Back here in Chicago, Alison Moyet will perform at the Vic Theatre on the city’s north side this Wednesday. Moyet started her career as half of Yazoo (known as Yaz in America) and went on to a successful solo career with hits such as “Love Resurrection” and “All Cried Out.”

Chicago’s beloved covers band EXPO ’76 will perform at the Prairie Moon restaurant in Evanston, IL as the venue celebrates its 23rd anniversary this Thursday. There will be drink and dinner specials all night, and the live music starts at 8:00 pm. There’s no cover charge, but reservations are recommended. Two days later, EXPO ’76 will perform at the Austin Community Tavern in Steger, IL.

Translator, the band that gave us the classic indie rock song “Everywhere That I'm Not” in 1982, will release Live at the Farm, San Francisco 1986 this Friday. The album includes two new songs recorded in 2023 by band members Steve Barton, Robert Darlington, Larry Dekker, and David Scheffin as bonus tracks.

Sunday Papers

Bono photo from official U2 website.

The feature-length documentary Bono: Stories of Surrender, which is described as The Tall Tales Of A Short Rock Star on the official U2 website, will stream on May 30 on Apple TV. The film is based on the Bono’s solo tour for his fascinating memoir, Surrender - 40 songs, one story.

EXPO ’76 will perform at the Prairie Moon restaurant in Evanston as the venue celebrates its 23rd anniversary this Thursday. There will be drink and dinner specials all night, and the live music starts at 8:00 pm. There’s no cover charge, but reservations are recommended. Two days later, EXPO ’76 will perform at the Austin Community Tavern in Steger, IL.

Alison Moyet will perform at the Vic Theatre this Wednesday. Moyet started her career as half of Yazoo (known as Yaz in America) and went on to a successful solo career with hits such as “Love Resurrection” and “All Cried Out.”

The 15th Annual Blue Whiskey Film Festival started last week and will run through May 13 at venues in Chicago, Elk Grove, and Downers Grove.

Tickets are now on sale for the Tom Rush July 29 concert at The Old Town School of Folk Music.

Billy Idol’s It’s A Nice Day To . . . Tour Again! series of concerts, with special guest Joan Jett, kicked off this past Wednesday in Phoenix, AZ and will include a stop at the Credit Union 1 Amphitheater in Tinley Park, IL on May 20. Other cities scheduled to have a nice day include Houston, Tampa, Nashville, Cincinnati, Toronto, Philadelphia, and New York. The final date is September 25 in Los Angeles. 

Tickets are now on sale for the 99 Years Of Rock ’N Roll X And Los Lobos show on October 16 at the Auditorium Theatre in Chicago. Each of these Los Angeles groundbreaking bands will feature all original members. The date is part of a tour that kicks off on July 19 in Denver, and includes stops in Salt Lake City, Toronto, Kansas City, Milwaukee, and Seattle.

Paul Simon will perform at the Chicago Symphony Center May 21 – 24.

Performers scheduled for this year’s Riot Fest in Chicago range from punk pioneers such as Sex Pistols, The Pogues, Marky Ramone, The Damned, The Effigies, Shonen Knife, and The Buzzcocks to more recently formed acts such as The Linda Lindas and Inhaler. Green Day, Jack White, The Beach Boys, Weezer, The Cribs, Dropkick Murphys, Sparks, and Rilo Kiley are among the other acts coming to Douglass Park on the weekend of September 19 – 21.

Kinks fans from around the world get an opportunity to express their admiration for the band in author Chris Kocher’s new book Thank You For The Days: Fans Of The Kinks Share 60 Years Of Stories. Those fans include musicians such as Jonathan Lea, John Wesley Harding, and Ron Sexsmith, along with other professionals who’ve worked with The Kinks over the years. Thank You For The Days is now available on Amazon. 

The Radio Soul!: The Early Songs of Elvis Costello Tour, featuring Costello and The Imposters, is coming to the Chicago Theatre on October 16. The 22-date tour kicks off on September 18 in Bethelem, PA—with American singer-songwriter Charlie Sexton as a special guest—and wraps up in Omaha, NE on October 22.  

The Big Star Quintet has three concerts coming up in July. The lineup comprises original Big Star member Jody Stephens; along with Mike Mills from R.E.M., Jon Auer from The Posies, Pat Sansone from Wilco, and Chris Stamey from the dB’s. They’ll be in Germantown, TN on July 19; Nashville, TN on July 20; Minneapolis, MN on July 23; and at my house on July 25 to celebrate my birthday. Just kidding about that July 25 gig.

Bruce Springsteen plans to release an 83-song collection of previously unreleased material titled Tracks II: The Lost Albums on June 27. Springsteen’s website states the project will be available “in limited-edition nine LP, seven CD and digital formats.” It will also include a 100-page, cloth-bound hardcover book. Springsteen will also release a less ambitious set titled Lost And Found: Selections from The Lost Albums offering 20 highlights on two LPs or one CD. 

The 40th Annual Printer’s Row Lit Fest will take place on September 6 and 7 in the southern area of downtown Chicago. Poet/fiction writer/essayist Sandra Cisneros will this year’s headliner.

The Chicago Blues Festival, an annual event since 1984 and believed to be the world’s largest blues festival, returns to Millennium Park for the long weekend of June 5 – June 8. Mavis Staples will be among the headliners, and there will be a centennial tribute to the late B.B. King. Opening day will take place at the Ramova Theatre at 3520 S. Halsted and feature performances by Bobby Rush and Billy Branch And The Sons Of The Blues.

The Cincinnati, OH publisher Ruffian Books has released a new one titled 500 Essential Pop-Punk Albums - From Blondie To blink-182, offering more than 550 pages of famous and lesser known artists. It’s available for $29.95.

Detroit-based singer-songwriter Jeremy Porter will bring his Spring 2025 Solo-Acoustic Tour to the Lakeview Uncommon Ground venue in Chicago this Wednesday. Porter, whose songs mix catchy melodies with dark humor, will share the bill at Uncommon Ground with Phil Yates and Gary Camaro.

I’m proud to share the news that my nephew Joe Flamm will co-chair this year’s Taste of the Nation for No Kid Hungry, along with fellow successful chef Diana Davila, on June 27. The event will be held at Rockwell On The River (3057 N. Rockwell) and feature 50 chefs and mixologists. Several well-known Chicago area restaurants will be involved, including Joe’s Rose Mary and il Carciofo; and Diana’s Mi Tocaya Antojeria. General Admission is $150, while an All Access Pass is $200 

The always engaging duo Sparks will release a new album titled Mad! on May 23 in vinyl, CD, and cassette fomats. After a world tour that will take them across Japan and Europe, Ron and Russell Mael will arrive in Atlanta, GA on September 5 to kick off an American tour that will include 15 dates. Chicago is not among the cities on the U.S. tour, which is likely to leave fans here, well, Mad!

Todd Rundgren’s July 13 concert at The Riviera Theatre in Chicago will be part of his Still Me (Still We) Tour. The 22-date tour kicks off on June 21 in Cranston, RI, and will also include stops in Syracuse, NY; Cincinnati, OH; Kalamazoo, MI; Minneapolis, MN; Cleveland, OH; and Orlando, FL. 

Online applications are now available for those interested in being part of YippieFest 2025 at Chopin Theatre on Chicago’s north side. The freewheeling, in-person entertainment event will return for its seventh year on the weekend of August 22 – 24. The long-running sketch/musical comedy group Famous In The Future will once again host YippieFest, which is inspired by the annual Abby Fest that was staged by Mary-Arrchie Theatre for several years.

Hung Up On A Dream, director/musician Robert Schwartzman’s 2023 documentary covering The Zombies’ entire career, is coming to American theaters starting May 11. It will be screened at the AMC theaters in Chicago and suburban Illinois on May 13; and on May 16 in New York and Los Angeles. The film features the British Invasion band’s most recent live performances, along with archival footage.

Local publisher Numero Group has released Dante Carfagna’s two-volume, 732-page set Soul Music Of Illinois. The website states Soul Music Of Illinois “chronicles over 3200 artists, 1200 record companies, and 10,000 individual releases between the years of 1960 and 1990.”

Peter Asher, who was half of the popular British Invasion duo Peter and Gordon before moving on to a highly successful career as a producer, also continues to perform music himself. His multimedia show A Musical Memoir of the 60s and Beyond comes to The Old Town School Of Folk Music May 16.

The Color Purple - The Musical is coming to the Goodman Theatre in Chicago starting June 21. The production will be directed by Lili-Anne Brown, with book by Marsha Norman, and music and lyrics by Brenda Russell, Alee Willis, and Stephen Bray.

Garbage, the band that gave us songs such as “Stupid Girl,” “I’m Only Happy When It Rains,” and “I Think I’m Paranoid,” have a Happy Endings Tour with special guest Starcrawler coming this fall. It kicks off on September 3 in Orlando, FL, and will include a stop at The Salt Shed in Chicago on September 29. Let All That We Imagine Be The Light, the band’s eighth album, is due out May 30.

Chicago-based, guitar-powered instrumental band Outronaut recently released an extensive and ambitious new tune titled “Demonic Republic.” Check it out, along with other previous gems on the Outronaut Bandcamp page.

Aimee Mann has a 22 1/2 Lost In Space Anniversary Tour with guest Jonathan Coulton coming this summer. It opens on June 5 in Cranston, RI and wraps up at the Riviera Theatre in Chicago on June 27.

Translator, the band that gave us the classic indie rock song “Everywhere That I'm Not” in 1982, will release Live at the Farm, San Francisco 1986 this Friday. The album includes two new songs recorded in 2023 by band members Steve Barton, Robert Darlington, Larry Dekker, and David Scheffin as bonus tracks.

IPO - Chicago: Second Half Of The Double Bill Finale

Vintage Photo of Mike Cohen and Jeff Janulis Performing as The Abbeys from Mike Cohen’s Facebook page.

One sure thing about Mike Cohen’s set at tomorrow night’s International Pop Overthrow - Chicago  finale at Montrose Saloon is that he won’t have trouble finding the venue. Cohen has literally performed there 100 times as a solo act and as part of various bands. He’s also a Chicago - IPO veteran at its various locations dating back to the days when he led The Abbeys with vocalist-guitarist Jeff Janulis. As to what he’s got planned for tomorrow, here’s a recent Facebook post. “I have played the IPO some 26 times in those long years. Pretty cool. I’ll be joined on bass by Rich Williamson and Joe Rossi will be on the kit. I’m playing a set of my songs. (I don’t get to do that very often.)” He’s done several Songs From The American Songbook gigs in recent years. 45 Souls consistently deliver melodic songs with harmony vocals, whether it’s on an energetic pop tune such as “It’s All Right,” a ballad such as “Lemoncholy Melondrop,” or a country and western number such as “This Is Life At Speed.” They’ve released six EPs over the years, all of which can be enjoyed on their website. The Spindles have spent several years on the Chicago club scene perfecting their British Invasion flavored power pop. Their recently released Wavelength album logically follows the same formula as their successful 2018 effort Past And Present; offering another entertaining mix of originals and well-chosen covers. Vocalist-guitarist Jeff Janulis was a band mate with the above-mentioned Mike Cohen in the power pop band The Abbeys.

Singer-songwriter Finn Swingley has performed as a solo act and in numerous bands over the years. He released the full-length album Pet Hates last year and The Wild Hunt in 2020. His offbeat observations are engaging, whether he’s dealing with a troubled relationship on “Ex-Lovers” or spinning a sailor’s journey on “The Captain.” Several musicians performed with him on those two albums, so it will be interesting to see if he has a full band tomorrow night. Detroit-based Big Stir Records artists The Incurables released their Inside Out And Backwards album of non-stop energetic and often humorous garage rock in 2024. The highlights included “Soda Pop,” a bass-driven tribute to the fizzy beverage, and the hard-edged rejection voiced in “Go Away.” As the title of their 2021 album National Absurdatory suggests, The Embryos view life through satiric glasses. That album had plenty of highlights, and so does their 2024 effort Selling What You Want To Buy. There’s the humorous country weeper “Desiree,” the 1960s flavored silly dance number “Do The Donkey,” and the blistering but catchy satire “He’s A Hypocrite.” Who’s This Mary? has the honor of bringing this year’s IPO - Chicago to a close with their midnight performance. The Chicago scene veterans bill themselves as “celebrated globe-trotting power pop sons,” and place a particular emphasis on Britpop.

Check the official International Pop Overthrow website for the full Chicago 2025 schedule. You’ll also find links for most of the acts who’ll be participating this year. Even if you can’t attend in person, it’s a great way to discover new music. Many of the acts have Bandcamp pages, so it’s possible to already have some favorite songs before you even see the band perform.

IPO - Chicago: First Half Of The Double Bill Finale

Photo from Free Joel Facebook page.

International Pop Overthrow - Chicago will wrap up its 2025 run at Montrose Saloon with a pair of showcases tomorrow; one in the afternoon, and then the finale at night. Looking at both sets for this last day serves as a reminder of the eclectic approach IPO Founder David Bash takes in choosing the acts he’ll present. This year, I’m breaking Saturday’s sets into two separate posts. Here’s the lowdown on the afternoon acts.

The band Sensational Gnus is a fairly new (or gnu if we’re staying in pun mode) band comprising “two CPS teachers and two CPS middle schoolers, helped out by a ringer violin player and an awesome trumpet player.” Their Facebook page also hints at a connection with the LaRue DeVille band, which features former members of The Red Wigglers. A bit hard to follow, but if they’re as adventurous as The Red Wigglers, this set should be fun. The power pop band The Thin Cherries have released two albums and a few singles dating back to 2017, with material ranging from the mysterious “I Love Your Ghost” to the catchy though still a bit unsettling “Weird World.” The band’s vocalist-guitarist Steven Delisi has released solo music they can also perform. Otter Petter have been releasing music for 15 years, with their latest recording being last summer’s Cobwebs EP. Their melodic and guitar-driven pop songs, such as “The Rest Of The World” and “Surfer Girls” have made them long-time favorites at IPO - Chicago.

Indiana natives Free Joel create hard-edged funk rock originals such as “Another Day” and “Can’t Sleep,” along covers such as The Beatles’ “Yer Blues” and Franz Ferdinand’s “Take Me Out.” They’ve got an energetic stage presence led by vocalist-guitarist Noah Martin, and have released five singles and an EP since 2023. The Indiana talent continues with Status Foe, a quartet that performs hard-edged rock with a message on the Indianapolis music scene. On “Learn It For A Fee,” lead vocalist-guitarist Colby Holmes offers nothing-ventured-nothing-gained advice while the song remains melodic. Other impressive songs in that vein include “Lenses Of Greed,” and “Propagate.” Judging from the Satellite Union Facebook page, tomorrow’s set at IPO - Chicago will be the band’s first 2025 gig. These guys draw on classic rock of years past for melodic and guitar-powered songs such as “Mix Tape,” “Dirt Road” and “Leave My Heart,” so I’m sure they’ll do fine.

Check the official International Pop Overthrow website for the full Chicago 2025 schedule. You’ll also find links for most of the acts who’ll be participating this year. Even if you can’t attend in person, it’s a great way to discover new music. Many of the acts have Bandcamp pages, so it’s possible to already have some favorite songs before you even see the band perform.