David Cain is an artist, and with that title bears the weight of discovering ways to make ends meet both creatively and financially. As the president and chief employee of UMEDIA, his multimedia company, and the composer/musician/producer behind Senses, his progressive jazz/rock band, Cain combines artistic dreams into business realities using creative talents to make […]
Music
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September selections
Hello friends out there somewhere. Thank you for being a reader and taking the time to digest these few words for whatever purpose you choose. And with that let me also congratulate myself for starting into my ninth year of writing Now Playing columns. You can see how these two things are likely related. Now […]
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The Station
As The Station, a Springfield-based national touring funk/rock/jam band, celebrates 10 years of being together as a functioning unit in 2009, the nucleus of Dave Littrell (vocals, guitar, sax) and Dave Carter (drums, percussion) with Kevin Lemen (guitar) announces the addition of Springfield bassist, Jeff Cunningham, to the lineup. The Chatham native who plucks the […]
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Flatland
The founding triumvirate of Flatland — Jerry Reno, Bill Dunlap and Gordy Cotter — began playing music together in grade school, shall we say, many years ago. The group, based in west central Illinois around White Hall in the Jacksonville area, formed as Flatland Band in 1980 and continues going strong nearly 30 years later. […]
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Celebrating the travels of Henry Miles
For those of you lucky enough to have heard Henry Miles play the saxophone, enough said. For those of you unfortunate few who haven’t, please make the effort soon. Henry recently was diagnosed with a terminal illness and musicians, friends and fans have organized a couple benefits for the brilliant musician over the next few […]
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Bryan Lee and the Blues Power Band
Lauded as one of the finest blues guitarists performing today by none other than Eric Clapton and encouraged in his youth by the legendary Muddy Waters, Bryan Lee holds high the mantle of the blues as a creative and artistic empowering force for good times and decent living. Lee lost his eyesight at age 8, […]
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Labor Day to-do list
Well here we are again at the seasonal crossroads of the Labor Day weekend. With this three-day celebration, dedicated to the working people of America, but commemorated by all classes, we proclaim a final tribute to summer festivities and prepare to act autumnal. And with that gloriously overblown introduction here are several events loaded with […]
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Black Magic Johnson
You don’t talk about blues bands in central Illinois without first mentioning Black Magic Johnson. The sizzling quartet, fronted by drummer Reggie Britton who sings lead vocals and plays harmonica, has been hanging around town in some form or other for about six years. Specializing in Delta and Chicago-style electric bar blues, the rest of […]
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I got the Blues & BBQs Blues
The blues style of music originated as a form of deep therapy that allowed people to self-proclaim problems through lyric, rhythm and melody in the hopes of dispelling those troubles. The blues is a way of singing out the bad stuff, somewhat like talking to a friend about tough times, not that it makes the […]
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Walter Trout
Walter Trout may not be a household name, unless your household revels in the history of rock blues from the mid-to-late 20th century. In that case you’d know Trout as an exceptional blues guitarist who spent time working and playing with the likes of John Lee Hooker, Canned Heat and John Mayall’s Bluesbreakers before setting […]
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Final fair fling
Okay I give up. I’m trying to find something else to cover other than the Illinois State Fair for this week’s blathering, but not much else is a-coming into the column coffers. Sobeit, let’s head back out to the fairgrounds one more time. Unfortunately, a couple of my personal favorites perform on Thursday, the day […]
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Ultraviolet
Ultraviolet began with Suzie Stephens’ desire for a live band at her birthday party. For Suzie it just so happened she wanted to be the singer in the band so she started her own and played the party. That was a few years back and personnel has changed some with the current lineup listing Stephens […]
