Going To Bat For Disadvantaged Kids

There may be no crying in baseball but there will be a lot of rocking connected with the sport tomorrow night when the  Hot Stove VIP Party And Concert returns to Metro in Chicago’s Wrigleyville neighborhood. Presented by The Foundation To Be Named Later, the annual event raises funds by bringing together several musicians under the HSCM All Stars banner. Pearl Jam frontman and Cubs fanatic Eddie Vedder was a last-minute addition to a lineup that also includes Jimmy Chamberlin from Smashing Pumpkins; Freda Love Smith from The Blake Babies; John Stirratt from Wilco; Jason Narducy from Split Single; Max Spiegel and Curt Morrison from Tributosaurus, and Cheap Trick drummer/Rick Nielsen offspring Daxx Nielsen.

Current President of Baseball Operations for the Chicago Cubs Theo Epstein and his brother Paul created The Foundation To Be Named Later 10 years ago when they were still based in Boston. Theo will be on hand for the HSCM festivities tomorrow night, along with Cubs broadcaster/musician Len Kasper, and noted sportswriter Peter Gammons. WXRT morning man Lin Brehmer will share hosting duties with Mike O’Malley and Joel Murray. Tickets for The Hot Stove Cool Music VIP Party are now sold out, but anyone interested in helping The Foundation To Be Named Later in its work can contact the organization through the official website. Len Kasper does a short bit called Len And Lin on Brehmer’s show every Monday and Friday throughout the baseball season, so it’s a safe bet they’ll have a lot to say about this concert/fundraiser on the morning after.

A Hollies Summer In Chicago - But There Was A Better One

Thank God for eBay. That’s where I purchased this promo shot.

In a June 24 post here on Broken Hearted Toy, I officially declared this A Hollies Summer In Chicago, due to an upcoming solo concert by Graham Nash at The Arcada in St. Charles on July 28, and Terry Sylvester being a guest at this year’s Fest For Beatles Fans - Chicago on the weekend of August 14 – 16. I noted that two former members of The Hollies performing in the area within a few weeks of each other was a rare occurrence, and one worth celebrating. But for longtime Hollies fans, the summer of 1983 will always be the one to remember.  

Nash had recently joined his former mates vocalist Allan Clarke, guitarist-vocalist Tony Hicks, and drummer Bobby Elliott for the What Goes Around. . . album and The Hollies embarked on a U.S. tour to support it. The reunion garnered favorable coverage in the media although critics regarded the album itself as a missed opportunity. At least Dave Schulps in Rolling Stone described “If The Lights Go Out” as “a peppy love song for the nuclear holocaust,” and praised a cover of The Supremes’ “Stop In The Name Of Love” and the techno-oriented “Take My Love And Run.”

The Hollies were booked to perform at Soldier Field as part of that year’s ChicagoFest. The popular summertime festival had been held on Navy Pier (the old Navy Pier, not the current tourist trap) for five years and was always a blast. Whatever political infighting was responsible for the venue being switched resulted in a new version that failed to attract nearly as many visitors. There was a boycott going on that year as well. This despite an eclectic schedule that offered a number of worthy acts. In addition to The Hollies, ChicagoFest IV featured Jerry Lee Lewis, The Temptations, The Turtles, Stevie Ray Vaughan, The Beach Boys, Buddy Guy and Junior Wells, Tito Puente, The Association, Koko Taylor, Chicago, King Sunny Ade, and The Four Tops. 

A thick fog rolling in off Lake Michigan by the time The Hollies took the stage that August evening added a dream-like sensation to their performance. I had already seen The Hollies in 1972 at the Auditorium, but Nash had been long gone at that point and Clarke was on hiatus. Clarke’s temporary replacement, the deep-voiced Mikael Rikfors was a compelling vocalist, but that show couldn’t compare with one with both Nash and Clarke back in the fold. This was for the most part the classic Hollies lineup (minus Bernie Calvert or Eric Haydock on bass) and they were delivering their hits at full power. Bassist Steve Stroud, rhythm guitarist Alan Coates, piano player Pete Anderson, and keyboards player/songwriter Paul Bliss comprised their backup band. 

The Hollies also covered Nash’s CS and N classics “Teach Your Children” and “Wasted On The Way,” with Nash, Clarke, and Hicks combining beautifully on the harmonies. I was in a crowd that had gathered on the field in front of the stage, and there was definitely a party atmosphere. One guy, in a Talking Heads t-shirt, kept jumping up and down in sheer joy. The Hollies’ last song that night was an extended take on “Long Cool Woman In A Black Dress” propelled by Hicks’ riveting guitar playing. I remember the band sliding into the rock standard “Shakin’ All Over” after some extensive jamming, although the version of “Long Cool Woman In A Black Dress” on the Archive Alive! CD (recorded later during the tour in Cincinnati) doesn’t include that bit.

Sometimes being a Hollies fan in America can be a solitary experience. But as the crowd filed out of Soldier Field with several people pumping their fists in the air and chanting, “Hol-lies! Hol-lies! Hol-lies,” I felt vindicated. 

Note: While I remember the Hollies portion of ChicagoFest IV very well, I referred to a series of reviews written by Chicago Sun-Times rock critic Don Mcleese back in 1983 for other details. I still have those reviews saved in one of my media notebooks.     

The Webstirs - Now You've Really Done It

Note: This review originally appeared in the Illinois Entertainer.

If the term quirky had never been used to describe a pop band before, it would have to start with The Webstirs. These Chicago-based power pop veterans have always been more likely to sing about the mysterious disappearance of some guy named Maurice Klybatzia than contemplate the joys and sorrows of relationships. They’re masters of clever wordplay who wrap their observations within catchy melodies. Now You’ve Really Done It is their fifth and most consistent release.

“Saving The World,” an energetic fable augmented by a horn section, describes drinking, buying guns, and tangling with the sons of a warlord. The gritty “Haymarket Riot” provides a history of Chicago’s political uprisings, and asks, “Who is left for you to trust?/When the monument has turned to dust.” On “Farther You Can Fall,” The Webstirs craft an indelible melody behind the sobering thought that no matter how bad things may look, they’re bound to get worse. “Ghosts” is a blistering satire on the music business (“They took some pride in it before it fell apart”) while “Bright Sunshine” evokes The Rolling Stones in its hard-edged depiction of trying to succeed in Hollywood. Amidst all this turmoil, The Webstirs serve up the joyful romance of “Mystery Spot.” Now that’s what you call being quirky.

Slumgullion

Happy 4th Of July Weekend!

It’s going to be a tie-dyed 4th Of July this year in Chicago, with the three-day Fare Thee Well event taking place at Soldier Field. There are a number of Grateful Dead-related festivities going on around the city, so Deadheads should check out the local papers as well as radio station WXRT’s website for info about screenings, parties, and special programs being offered over the weekend. WXRT will replay the Fare Thee Well concert for each day at midnight. 

Grateful Dead fans might also run into Chicago-based artist Kelsey Skutnick selling copies of her 18 x 24 Grateful Dead 50 print for on the near Soldier Field.

When I declared this to be A Summer Of The Hollies last week, I had no idea that a new book would play a prominent role. The road is long: THE HOLLIES STORY, by Brian Southall, is now available on Amazon in paperback and Kindle form. Southall is no stranger to writing about rock and roll’s biggest stars, having authored or co-authored books about The Beatles, Pink Floyd, Jimi Hendrix, and The Bee Gees. Various Facebook pages associated with The Hollies have been buzzing about THE HOLLIES STORY, and they all seem to be happy with it.

This past Monday I did a post stating that The New Invaders show at Lake Ellyn Park in Glen Ellyn could qualify as an official A Summer Of The Hollies event because the local copy band has been known to perform Hollies tunes at their shows. Guitarist-vocalist Jimmy Herter informed me via a recent email that The New Invaders will be playing some Hollies songs at its 4th Of July concert this Saturday from 1:00 to 2:30 PM. 

The 2015 Hometown Fest in Palatine is underway, with 17 bands scheduled to perform over the 4th of July weekend. Serendipity, a band comprised of five young women who play originals and an eclectic selection of covers, perform today at 5:00 PM, and Hot Rocks will paying tribute to The Rolling Stones  on Sunday at 5:30 PM.

Weezer, with supporting act St. Motel, will be the first of five major live performances scheduled to take place at the Petrillo Music Shell when Taste Of Chicago begins next Wednesday in Grant Park. The other acts are Erykah Badu on July 9; The Chieftans, Paddy Maloney, and Special Consensus on July 10; the XRT sponsored Spoon, Houndmouth, and Madisen Ward and The Mama Bear on July 11; and Maze featuring Frankie Beverly on July 12.

Chicago Tribune film critic Michael Phillips recently lamented the failure of the Brian Wilson bio-pic Love And Mercy to compete with blockbusters like Jurassic World and Inside Out at the box office. A great way to remedy that problem would be to see Love And Mercy and catch Brian Wilson live at Ravinia this Monday, July 6. He’ll be performing with fellow Beach Boy Al Jardine and Blondie Chaplin. Rodriguez, the subject of another critically acclaimed documentary, Searching For Sugar Man, will also be on the bill that night.

A belated happy birthday to Deborah Harry who celebrated a day after the occasion by performing in concert with Blondie at Ravinia on July 2nd.

The Smithereens will be serving up classic power pop when they perform next Saturday, July 11 around 7:00 PM on the Main Stage at Roscoe Village Burger Fest on Belmont between Damen and Oakley. The Handcuffs and The Fabulous Thunderbirds are also playing that day. Catfight is among the bands slated to perform on Sunday.

The very first Artfest Michigan Avenue takes place next Friday through Sunday just outside the Chicago Tribune building, overlooking the Chicago River. Over 100 juried artists will be displaying their work, and admission is free.

Whitewolfsonicprincess has a gig at Club Lucky next Sunday, July 12 as part of the Bucktown Garden Walk. Waning Faith; Brooke Bartlett & The Blue Lines; Matthew Morgan and The Family Band; and Kurt Michaels Continuum featuring Alain Quinn will also be performing. The event is sponsored by Chicago Acoustic Underground and Club Lucky.

Guitar-driven power pop band The Bishops’s Daredevil Stunt Club has a record release show for their full-length album Rock N Roll Motorcycle Dinosaur at the Bottom Lounge July 18th. I’ll be reviewing their 12-song effort in the near future.

Even though Chrissie Hynde never responded to my invitation for her to bring a few chapters of her memoir to my writers group for a critique, I still have to plug Reckless - My Life As A Pretender now that it’s available for pre-order from Penguin Random House. This is destined to be one of the most fascinating rock and roll books of the year. Hopefully, there will be a book-signing tour.

Singer-guitarist Danny Cozzi of the local indie rock trio All The Wine has an acoustic show coming up at Mutiny in Logan Square on July 11, and there will be a full-band show at Silvie’s Lounge on July 17. See this past Wednesday’s post for my review of All The Wine’s Summer Parade EP.

The Irish American Heritage Fest  takes place next Friday through Sunday at the Irish American Heritage Center on Chicago’s northwest side.

The 6th Annual Blue Whiskey Independent Film Festival will run July 19–26, with events scheduled at the Cinema Star Grill in Arlington Heights and Cutting Hall in Palatine. The film festival usually takes part in Palatine’s 4th of July parade and hands out schedules to people in the crowd.

Glow-In-The-Dark Dead

Photo from The Seventh Ring Of Saturn website.

With Fare Thee Well and all its related activities going on in Chicago this weekend, Deadheads could justifiably proclaim, as Wavy Gravy did at Woodstock, “We must be in heaven, man!” Although if that were literally true, Jerry Garcia would be in their midst, greeting everyone with a benevolent smile. It’s definitely a time for the tie-dyed crowd to snap up t-shirts, caps, and an amazing variety of mementos that are available online and at retail outlets. Here’s an item that flies a bit under the radar.

The Northampton, MA prog rock band The Seventh Ring Of Saturn has provided a way to simultaneously celebrate The Grateful Dead’s 50th Anniversary and A Summer Of The Hollies In Chicago with its new seven-inch single. Pressed on white glow-in-the-dark vinyl, one side has The Seventh Ring Of Saturn covering Jerry Garcia and Robert Hunter’s “Mountains On The Moon” from the Grateful Dead’s groundbreaking 1968 Aoxomoxoa album, while the other side has their hypnotic rendition of a Hollies rarity from the Graham Nash era called “All The World Is Love.”

“Mountains On The Moon” has a sparse arrangement similar to the original, but The Seventh Ring Of Saturn takes a more electric approach, with intricately layered vocals and a touch of sitar. “All The World Is Love” previously appeared on the Re-Evolution FDM Sings The Hollies tribute album put out by the UK indie label Fruits de Mer in 2013. It was one of my favorite tracks on a collection where current artists took risks with classic pop songs and succeeded. (See my two-part review, March 6 and 7, 2013.)

The Seventh Ring Of Saturn’s second album Ormythology, was released earlier this year, and featured classic neo-psychedelic songs like “Burning A Hole” and “Face.” See my April 16th, 2015 post for a full review.

All The Wine - Summer Parade

The Chicago-based indie rock trio All The Wine released their debut Summer Parade in 2014, a year after they had formed. The EP’s pleasant title stands in direct opposition to vocalist-guitarist Danny Cozzi’s tales of relationships breaking apart at the seams. Cozzi’s knack for compelling lyrics, along with the energetic instrumentation he creates with drummer Matt Scott and bassist Danny Stankus keeps these four songs from becoming too maudlin.

There’s a running theme throughout Summer Parade about couples envisioning California as a paradise but splitting before they can attain it. “I should have known you’d go away,” Cozzi sings on “Faith,” the dark but enticing first track. “Cause I’m not enough for anyone I know.” On the heavier “Landlocked” he notes, “You’re dressed like you’re leaving tonight” and adds,“What would do without my love to hold you up?” The beguiling “Denver” showcases the way All The Wine crafts elaborate arrangements that shift through various tempos.

The fast-paced “I’m Tired, I’m Wasted, I Love You, Darling!” sounds like the name of a movie or theatre farce, but it evokes the way Bruce Springsteen portrays relationships that have lost their spark. “We were gonna take to the streets and run to California/I was gonna marry you and never let you down,” Cozzi recalls before conceding, “Looking back, we could have done a few things better.” After some rousing musicianship, “I’m Tired, I’m Wasted, I Love You, Darling!,” as well Summer Parade ends with the heartbreaking question, “How will we get to California now?”

Cozzi has an acoustic show coming up at Mutiny in Logan Square on July 11 and there will be a full-band show at Silvie’s Lounge on July 17. All The Wine’s second EP Heavy Lights is due out later this year.

The Jangle Band - “Kill The Lovers”/“This Soul Is Not For Sale”

Australian power pop musician Joe Algeri has worked on a variety of projects in recent years, including his solo work under the name The JAC and being part of the international trio The Britannicas. As a musician and producer, he draws heavily on 1960s pop arrangements and frequently takes an off-kilter view of love and life in general. The Jangle Band is a brand new outfit that features Algeri teaming up with Jeff Baker and Ian Freeman, who are veterans of 1980s Australian bands like The Palisades, Mars Bastards, The Rainyard, and Header.

The trio recruited an additional three musicians as the recording proceeded, and the result is a two-song, download-only single that’s available at no charge on Algeri’s Bandcamp page. On “Kill The Lovers,” which he wrote, Algeri sets the idea of swapping a fading romance for a new platonic relationship to jangling guitars (hence the band name) and a catchy mid-tempo arrangement that recalls “Rain” era Beatles. Like much of Algeri’s previous work, the song offers lush, harmony vocals.

“This Soul Is Not For Sale” is a new composition from Baker and Freeman that adroitly taps into the harmonies and Rickenbacker guitars immortalized by The Byrds. Well-crafted lines like, “I may be weary/This cup of fire drained/But I will never fade away/If this light alone remains” encourage fighting for what you believe in, although the actual crisis taking place in the song is open to interpretation. All in all, The Jangle Band earns its name on both of these tracks.

Algeri is currently producing a solo effort for his fellow Britannica, Chicago area musician Herb Eimerman.