Here it is in fine fashion as we roll into August 2018 with Mars and the moon at midnight behind us, plus good music and fine times straight ahead. Who could ask for more?
This weekend Decatur is hosting their fabulously famous “Celebration” from Friday through Sunday. It all happens in the downtown area with eight show stages, a carnival, arts-and-crafts booths, gobs of food and drinks, plus plenty of vendors with various sundries to peruse during their 33rd annual event. Headliners include Gretchen Wilson (I’m pretty sure she’ll sing “Redneck Woman” and “Here for the Party”), hiphop sensation, producer and now actor T.I.
(he’s in Ant-Man and the Wasp), rock band Daughtry (Chris Daughtry hit it big on “American Idol” and now has his own band), plus Christian music acts Crowder and Jonathan McReynolds (the DC always brings in a good bunch from this genre), and several more acts including “emerging” new country act Broseph (they’re local), Jeremiah Johnson Band (St. Louis guys doing original Southern rock-tinged blues), Draw the Line (an Aerosmith tribute band), and several regional and local bands to fill up the stages for three days of nearly-constant live music.
In terms of area action inside the bars, clubs, beer gardens and wineries, how about checking out some of these bands doing what they do best? On Thursday The Station and The Mazed rock the Curve Inn with all-original rock songs that will have you sit up and take notice of the scene. On Friday for the Red Beard Brigade’s “Red Dirt First Fridays” at Danenberger Family Vineyards on the “Wine Rocks” stage, Red Shahan brings his Fort Worth, Texas, sensibility with him wherever he goes to sing about “Men and Coyotes” and other stuff. Springfield’s own Josh Catalano, fresh off a successful Downhome Music Festival, opens up the show for Red and Company. The Collective featuring Melanie Dennison and Kortney Leatherwood (the rest of the band is dang good, also) play Long Bridge on Friday evening. Go to the band’s Facebook page (like it, of course), then check out the video of a hip and cool acoustic version of the Doobie Brother's “Long Train Running” for a quick taste of the group. They’re also one of those area bands playing the Decatur Celebration, scheduled at 5 p.m. on Sunday.
Saturday night gives us the darklyregal Black Queen regaling us with Queen songs at the round bar for a George Rank’s performance at 9 p.m. The Loops do the outdoors at Crows Mill Pub for a fantastic, fun time of modern rock and pop songs done well and correctly, while Rockhouse continues to vehemently rock the house with a slide into Third Base. A couple of other familiar classics drop in with The Suburban Mystics popping into Craft Beer Bar and Thornhill being Thornhill (thankfully) out in Rochester at the Walnut Street Winery.
On the Sunday afternoon circuit Amy Benton appears at Sheedy Shores as a singer-songwriter and a mother (yeah!); The MojoCats blues the breeze at Weebles; The ColdPeppers heat up Indian Creek Farmstead near Petersburg; Sarah Schneider adds it up at 3Sixteen in Chatham; while Tom Beverly and Geoff Ryan ride into Trails End in Curran. Brandy Kristin & the Revival are making a weekend of it with a show at Lake Springfield’s Prop Club for the final “Rumble around the Lake” on Thursday, the Curve Inn on Saturday, and again at the Curve Inn on Sunday with Chris Sorenson and Live Wire for a “Rock N Ride” benefit.
Well, that does it for this week besides the 1,001 other things going on.
Contact Tom Irwin at [email protected]
