Fest For Beatles Fans - Chicago And A Hollies Type Of Summer

Great graphic from The Fest For Beatles Fans website. But none of these guys is Terry Sylvester.

Tickets for Graham Nash’s solo show at The Arcada in St. Charles on July 28th went on sale today. My incredible wife Pam snagged two tickets, so we’ll be going to celebrate my birthday, which occurs three days earlier.

And now on to this year’s Fest For Beatles Fans - Chicago, which also involves a former member of The Hollies. Now if only the current lineup of The Hollies, which includes original members guitarist-vocalist Tony Hicks and drummer Bobby Elliott, would pay the Chicago area a visit, this could really be a summer for Hollies fans to remember. 

Last Sunday, on her Breakfast With The Beatles show on WXRT, Terri Hemmert announced the guests for this year’s Fest For Beatles Fans - Chicago. The information can also be found on the Fest’s official website. Hemmert will once again serve as Master Of Ceremonies as Fest For Beatles Fans takes place at the Hyatt Regency O’Hara in suburban Rosemont on the weekend of August 14 – 16th. This year, it’s not on the same weekend as Wizard World Comic Con - Chicago, which is held at the neighboring Donald E. Stephens Center. That makes it easier for those of us who like to attend both events, but the crossover of Beatlemaniacs and sci-fi nerds has been fun and fascinating in the past.

Fest For Beatles Fans - Chicago will once again present musicians, authors, artists, photographers, and music biz people who have some connection to The Beatles. Most are accessible to fans in both the general sense of watching them being interviewed in a large meeting room, and on a face-to-face basis at the autograph tables. Bob Eubanks, who produced Beatles concerts before hosting The Dating Game, and Jack Oliver, former president of Apple Records, are among this year’s guests. A huge marketplace with loads of music-related memorabilia is also a major draw. 

Singer-guitarist Terry Sylvester, who replaced Graham Nash in The Hollies, will make his second visit to the Fest For Beatles Fans - Chicago. He’s actually not in the Hollies photograph Fest For Beatles Fans is using on its website. Earlier this year, Sylvester was part of the British Invasion Tour that also featured Fest For Beatles Fans veterans Peter Asher, Denny Laine, Billy J. Kramer, and Chad and Jeremy. Sax player-vocalist Mark Riviera, who has toured with Ringo Starr and made an impressive Fest debut last year, is back again. Louise Harrison, George’s older sister, will also be on hand.

Some of the returning favorites include trivia master Wally Podrazik; producer-musician Mark Hudson, who has worked with Ringo Starr and other famous musicians; Beatles artist Eric Cash; Rob Shanahan, who served as Ringo Starr’s photographer; and authors Bruce Spizer, Jude Southerland Kessler and Dee Elias. Liverpool, one of the best Beatles tribute bands around, will continue its tradition of performing at Fest For Beatles Fans - Chicago, and Peter Max designed a colorful and imaginative poster that will be available for sale.

The Fest For Beatles Fans - Chicago website promises that additional guests will be announced soon. Tickets are $46.00 for Friday; $65.00 for Saturday or Sunday; and $169.00 for the entire weekend. I’m planning on doing a more extensive preview closer to the event.

The Rolling Stones From The Vault - L.A. Forum (Live In 1975)/From The Vault - Hampton Coliseum (Live In 1981)

Note: This review originally appeared in the Illinois Entertainer. 

Part Two

The Rolling Stones were in full hard rock mode at the Los Angeles show, concentrating on their more recent material, with only a snippet of “Get Off My Cloud” serving as a reminder of their earliest days. It was the first Stones tour for Wood, and he was particularly impressive cutting loose on “You Can’t Always Get What You Want” and “Wild Horses.” Sporting heavy makeup and wearing what looked like a red halter top under his white jacket, Jagger covered the entire stage while belting out his vocals. Fans will surely get a kick out of seeing him and this classic Rolling Stones lineup blasting through classics like “Gimme Shelter,” “Street Fighting Man,” “It’s Only Rock  ‘n’ Roll.” “Midnight Rambler.”

The band was more willing to embrace its British Invasion heritage in Hampton, VA, opening with “Under My Thumb” before seamlessly blending “Let’s Spend The Night Together” and “Time Is On My Side” with “Start Me Up,” and “Hang Fire” from its latest release Tattoo You. Making full use of a brightly colored stage that had walkways extending to the upper reaches of the Hampton Coliseum, The Rolling Stones conjured a party atmosphere with rollicking covers of “Twenty Flight Rock” and “Going To A Go-Go.” An added boost of punk energy was particularly evident on “She’s So Cold” and “Shattered,” but The Rolling Stones also delivered the hard rock goods on “Tumbling Dice,” “Honky Tonk Women,” and “Jumpin’ Jack Flash.”

The Rolling Stones From The Vault - L.A. Forum (Live In 1975)/From The Vault - Hampton Coliseum (Live In 1981)

Note: This review originally appeared in the Illinois Entertainer. 

Part One

These concerts, performed six years apart with the same core band members, prove that Rolling Stones fans can pretty much always get what they want. Mick Jagger, Keith Richards, Charlie Watts, Bill Wyman, and Ronnie Wood, backed by noted session musicians, including  Billy Preston, Ian Stewart, Ian McLagan, and Bobby Keys, rocked for over two hours at each of these gigs. The set lists were almost completely different each time out but given this band’s extensive repertoire, it’s likely everyone went home happy. 

Judging from the liner notes on the packaging, these DVDs from Eagle Vision could be the opening salvo in a series of live concerts pulled from the official The Rolling Stones archives. The footage for both has been restored and the sound remixed. Hampton Coliseum (Live In 1981) was directed by Hal Ashby and Tom Trbovich for a pay-for-view TV event, and is the more polished of the two. L.A. Forum (Live In 1975)  was filmed by The Record Plant, and while the images are blurry from time to time, like Hampton Coliseum (Live In 1981) it offers an onstage view of one of the greatest bands in rock history.

Slumgullion

Ooh, it’s so good to see this. A two-CD tribute to Cheap Trick featuring Lannie Flowers, Lisa Mychols, The Cry!, Bill Lloyd, Jeremy Morris, and several other current power pop acts, is available for pre-order from Zero Hour Records. The Aussie indie labels promises free bonus goodies if you act now. 

The What Four, a local quartet featuring Matthew Warren, Phil Angotti, Scott Ligon, and Casey McDonough, will be performing tonight at FitzGerald’s in Berwyn.

Phil Angotti will be performing on the first three Tuesdays at The Hideout in May. His May 5th show will be a tribute to Ray Davies and The Kinks, with special guests Ellis Clark and The Ivorys.

NXNWH. The Fox And The Hounds, an alt rock/theatrical band that recently played International Pop Overthrow - Chicago, and the Who tribute band Who’s Who are among the 45 local bands scheduled to perform this weekend at Edison Park’s first North By Northwest Highway Music Fest. Emerald Isle, Edison Park Inn, Firewater Saloon, and Moretti’s are the venues around the Chicago northwest side neighborhood that will be hosting the various acts. Tickets are $10 for a day. $25 for the weekend; and $3 for an individual show.

Tomorrow is Independent Book Store Day and 12 stores in Chicago will be joining in the celebration. The official website promises special offers, author events, raffles, and refreshments, and lists the different locations that will be involved.

Congratulations to alt rock/country band Dolly Varden on their 20th Anniversary. They’ll be celebrating with a show at the Old Town School of Folk Music tomorrow night.

The Kooks are in town for a concert at The Vic tomorrow night. The English band, which has always exuded a working class charm with its catchy songs, experimented with some funkier and techno sounds on its latest effort Listen.

The Everly Hillbillies, an Everly Brothers tribute side project fronted by Mike Cohen and Jeff Janulis of the power pop band The Abbeys, will be performing tomorrow night at Salt Creek Pizza in Elk Grove.

There’s a nice big color photo of Crosby, Stills and Nash in the On The Town section of today’s Chicago Tribune, referring to their two shows next week at the Chicago Theatre. But someone should tell the person who wrote the blurb that it was Joni Mitchell who composed “Woodstock.” As noted earlier this week on BHT, Graham Nash will soon embark on a solo tour that will bring him to the Arcada Theatre in St. Charles on July 28th.

In that same section of today’s Trib, rock critic Greg Kot has an interview with Paul Natkin about the iconic photographer’s current Paul Natkin: Superstars exhibit at the Ed Paschke Art Center on Chicago’s northwest side. Admission is free, and the exhibit runs through June 14th.

Congratulations to musician/producer Jeff Lynne on getting a star on the Hollywood Walk Of Fame.  

Rain - A Tribute To The Beatles will run for one week in Chicago, at the Bank Of America Theatre from May 20 through the 24th.

Kate Pierson of The B-52’s has a gig coming up at City Winery Chicago on July 21st.

Chicago Zine Fest takes place next Friday, May 8th, and Saturday, May 9th, at the Plumbers’ Union Hall on Washington Blvd. Friday will be devoted to a panel discussion and readings, while on Saturday there will be a Zine Exhibition showcasing zines, self-published books, and comics.

Fans of The Bangles can bid on an autographed acoustic guitar the band has donated to help support the Sweet Relief Musicians Fund. The auction ends next Tuesday, May 5th. 

Black Ensemble Theater is currently staging Sounds So Sweet, Rueben D. Echoles’ tribute to the girl groups over the decades. 

Congratulations to Heart’s Ann Wilson on her recent marraige to Dean Wetter.

Back when I was a kid, one of the coolest shows on TV, along with The Avengers, I Spy, and Mission: Impossible, was The Man From U.N.C.L.E. So it was interesting to read journalist Rebecca Keegan’s interview in last Sunday’s Chicago Tribune with the stars of director Guy Ritchie’s new film concerning agents Napoleon Solo and Illya Kurakin. Even though the movie update of The Avengers several years ago was disappointing, something about the U.N.C.L.E. update looks like it could recapture that 1960s allure.

It Was Romance - It Was Romance

The first version of It Was Romance was simply singer-songwriter/standup comic Lane Moore recording stark reflections on relationships, using an odd assortment of instruments. Fans might have worried that Moore’s emotional power would be diluted once she started working with other musicians, but the new band’s self-titled debut proves to be anything but watered down. The seven songs find Moore exploring a variety of approaches with guitarist Alejandro Triana, drummer Angel Lozada, and bassist Jeff Connors, while still delivering intensely personal material with her distinctive voice.

Moore’s conversational and slurred vocals on “But Not Forgotten” could be a late-night, alcohol-flavored phone call to an estranged lover, as she admits she should have done more to keep their relationship going. There’s an ambiguous vibe here, as though the main thing separating these two is not having enough time for each other. A lack of commitment also fuels Moore’s frustration on “It’s Like You’re Not Even Trying,” a raw song that starts simply and slowly until the full band creates a driving arrangement. The shimmering epic “Hooking Up With Girls” is built on atmospheric keyboards and a steady beat led by Lozada.

A cover of the Tusk era Fleetwood Mac song “Storms” features a convincing Stevie Nicks impersonation as Moore channels the singer’s conflicted emotions toward a forbidden relationship.

The energetic first single “Philadelphia” and “Come Home,”with its revved-up, guitar-driven coda, both tap into new wave, and prove Moore definitely made the right decision is forming a full band. It Was Romance will be released next Tuesday.

The Catholic Girls - Kiss Me One More Time

Back in 1982, The Catholic Girls created a power pop gem with the catchy “Boys Can Cry” from their self-titled debut album. They’ve been back together for a while now, and the recently released Kiss Me One More Time shows lead vocalist-rhythm guitarist and main songwriter Gail Petersen hasn’t lost her touch for crafting love songs with indelible melodies. It’s surprising though that some of the material on Kiss Me One More Time is so serious for a band that seems like it would be more fun.

On “Shame On You,” Petersen uses apocalyptic imagery to chastise a guy who jilted her, while on “Only Guilty,” she mixes the Salem witch trials with forbidden love. “Where’s The Logic,” which the CD jacket notes is a tribute to the late Leonard Nimoy, also deals in tragedy. All three of these songs, as well as the title track, succeed because of their energetic and melodic arrangements. Kiss Me One More Time only gets bogged on a pair of lengthy ballads.

On the lighter side, “Down At The Shore” adroitly taps into 1960s surf music for a tale of a woman who tosses aside a failed relationship and hits the beach looking for a new love. “Breaking All The Rules” celebrates the empowerment that playing rock can give young women with lines like, “Girls get electric; Girls rock and roll/It saves my life and saves my soul.” The song ends with some spirited, Ramones-style shouts of “Hey Ho!” A live version of the bawdy “Young Boys” brings some welcome hijinx, and there’s also a live acoustic take on the still classic “Boys Can Cry.” 

Kurt Baker Combo - Muy Mola Live!

Portland singer-guitarist Kurt Baker is a household name on the power pop scene, from his days with The Leftovers, as a solo artist, and with his side project The New Trocaderos. The recently released Muy Mola Live! (available from Kool Kat Musik) was recorded on a Monday night at Salty Peet’s Rock Shack in Kenosha, Wisconsin and offers an energetic mix of originals and well-chosen cover versions. Although other reviewers have beat me to the punch on this, there’s just no way to avoid describing Muy Mola Live! a party.

Actually, “Partied Out” is one of a dozen high-speed songs served up by The Kurt Baker Combo on this release. With its revved-up guitars and infectious melody, it qualifies as textbook power pop, as does the celebratory concert opener “Weekend Girls.” The frenetic “Aorta Baby” borders on punk, while “Everybody Knows” and “Don’t Look Back” have more of a 1960s Top 40 vibe. The Kurt Baker Combo dips back into that decade for faithful, if a little more guitar-driven, covers of The Searchers’ “Love Potion #9” and The Beatles’ “Cry For A Carajillo.” Baker engages the crowd throughout the performance with comments like, “You know, we’re having a blast!” and “Everybody knows how to have fun!” Judging from Muy Mola Live!, the crowd in Kenosha was definitely having fun that night.