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.

Pre-sale tickets go on sale this Tuesday for Paul McCartney’s Got Back North American Tour 2025, which kicks off in Palm Desert, CA on September 29. Other stops include Las Vegas; Minneapolis; Tulsa; New Orleans; Atlanta; Nashville; and Montreal. The long and winding road ends with concerts at the United Center on November 24 and 25, which means Chicago area fans will have something fun to talk about with their families at Thanksgiving dinner.

Chicago’s multi-faceted and quite often humorous covers band EXPO ’76 has a gig this Saturday night at SPACE in Evanston. Robert Cornelius and Susan Voelz will be joining in the fun as special guests.

After taking a short break, Graham Nash is back on the road for the summer dates of his U.S. More Evenings And Stories 2025 Tour. He’s performing in Hampton Bays, NY tonight, Port Chester, NY tomorrow, and Woodstock, NY on Sunday. See his official Facebook page or website for the full schedule.

Singer-guitarist Mike Cohen has become a familiar face at the Tuscan Market and Wine Shop in Arlington Heights, and he’ll be back tomorrow night performing favorites from the Great American Songbook. This time out he’ll be joined by bassist Ed Hasse and drummer Doug Marocco. All that swinging music will start at 7:00 pm.

The Journey – Part 3, coming out tomorrow, 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 Southport Art Fest returns this Saturday and Sunday on Chicago’s north side. In addition to 100 artists displaying their work, there will be live music on both days, including Special Guest Dolph Chaney And The Phins at 4:00 pm on Saturday.

Gina Birch from the adventurous Brit band The Raincoats has an album titled Trouble coming out tomorrow. She’s 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.

The Chicago Artisan Market will take place indoors this Sunday from 11:00 am to 5:00 pm at 401 Morgan Street in the Fulton Market neighborhood. The event promises Food, Fashion, Home and Art.

Founding members Duke Erikson, Dave Benton, Joel Tappero, and Butch Vig of the indie rock band Spooner will reunite for a 50th Anniversary show this Saturday at the Atwood Music Hall in their original hometown of Madison, WI. Musicians Pauli Ryan and Alex Drossart will help out, and there will be more special guests. The Sean Michael Dargan Trio show will be the opening act.

The Lincoln Square Ravenswood Chamber Of Commerce and The Old Town School Of Folk Music will present their annual Square Roots festival this weekend. The performers include Calexico; Ted Leo And The Pharmacists; Mekons; Alejandro Escovedo; The Lone Bellow; Heartless Bastards; Cesar Rojas And The Chi-Town Playboys; Ike Reilly Assassination; and Natalie Bergman. The festival will be held on Lincoln Avenue between Montrose and Wilson.