March madness
NOW PLAYING | Tom Irwin
Looks like we’ve made it through the winter music doldrums as March comes in like a lion in the entertainment calendar world. Here are a few of the slew of upcoming happenings.
This Saturday the Illinois Central Blues Club commemorates 27 years of serving up the best in the blues to Springfield aficionados of this most enduring and popular musical American genre. Congratulations to club members past, present and future, and a special thank you goes to the charter members who sat down in March of 1986 with a vision and a few bottles of beer.
The ICBC hosts Jimmy Thackery and the Drivers as the headlining act with local favorites Back Pack Jones opening the show at 7:30 at the Knights of Columbus Hall, 2200 S. Meadowbrook. Thackery, known as one of the best blues guitarists performing today, hails from the Nighthawks, an epic blues band from the 70s and 80s. Back Pack Jones recently returned from Memphis and a semifinal showing at the 2013 Blues Foundation International Blues Challenge as our local representative from the ICBC.
The birthday bash is also used as a fundraiser to support Blues in the Schools/ Community programs. With admission $8 for members and $10 for non-members, make the smart move and join the ICBC, then get your discount and support this fine organization in the good work of spreading blues music to the our area.
In related news, Magic Slim, a revered and legendary figure in the field of traditional Chicago blues, recently passed on to that great blues club in the sky. Born Morris Holt in Torrance, Miss. in 1937, many considered Slim and his band, the Teardrops, to be “the last real Chicago blues band” for their authentic blues interpretations.
The Michael Taylor Trio performs at the long running Uptown Friday Night series at Robbie’s this week and includes Taylor on guitar and Bill Hart on bass (and likely tuba) with Mark Sanders on drums. Recently they called themselves Double Bill and Michael explained in an email that, “really we are Taylor and Hart + 1 – I liked the (other) name but am tired of trying to explain it, so we will just use our names from now on.” Taylor and Hart also now has a Facebook page featuring the “most excellent photography of Steve Truesdale” along with band information.
The Dirty Ernies, resurrected and revived with former KFD members, play Saturday at Catch 22 for the official after party of the Capital City Cage Wars. Patrons get into the club free with a ticket stub from the event. Donnie’s Homespun features national touring act Reverend Peyton’s Big Damn Band on Friday and next Friday hosts the Blue G’s CD release party. On March 11, The Black Sheep Café matches national touring bands Teenage Bottlerocket and Off With Their Heads with local popular groups The Timmys and Hospital Job for a big show. Keep up with Black Sheep business every Friday evening from 4 to 6 on WQNA 88.3 FM. Café Hope at Hope Presbyterian Church hosts an Open Mic Night on March 9 from 6 to 8:30 p.m. where “folks of all ages can come and sing, speak, recite, act, whatever they want to express themselves.” On March 19, the Lincoln Land Community College Feminist Activist Coalition and Department of Arts and Humanities invite the public to a private screening of the documentary film “I Am a Visitor in Your World” in LLCC’s Trutter Center. The film follows a young woman from Chicago who keeps a “cancer diary.” Two Springfield products, Scott Busch (editor) and Joel Styzens (music composer), are closely involved in the making of the film.
Keep March-ing on!!
Contact Tom Irwin at tirwin@illinoistimes.com.
