Fests and the rest

Here we go to that special place in time between the state fair whirlwind and Labor Day weekend, on the cusp where summer meets the fall.

The Old Capitol Blues and BBQ festival, voted the best fest in town several times by readers of Illinois Times in the “Best of Springfield” contest (By the way, it’s that BoS time again), takes center stage in the big-time entertainment event of the weekend. The folks at The Alamo, longtime hosts of the Illinois Central Blues Club Monday night performances, now run the festival and are dedicated to keeping the blues true and the BBQ local and tasty.

Headliners (at 10 p.m.) include Chicago’s renowned, dynastic blues master Ronnie Baker Brooks on Friday and the world famous Fabulous Thunderbirds on Saturday, leaving no doubt that Alamo owner Barry Friedman is serious about bringing big-name blues to the streets of Springfield. Also included on Friday’s bill is the fabulous Mary Jo Curry at 6 and bluesman Marquise Knox at 8, with Marquise making an encore presentation inside The Alamo from midnight to 2:30 a.m. On Saturday starting at 4 p.m., catch our best area blues bands vying for a chance to represent the ICBC at the 2017 International Blues Challenge held annually in Memphis. At 8 p.m. Joe Moss takes the stage followed by those truly fabulous T-birds with Tom Holland driving it home from midnight to 2:30 inside. That’s a heck of a lineup, folks. With 30-some BBQ entries and other food vendors as well, it looks like Barry and Amy, along with the Alamo staff and sponsors, are set to keep this event the most popular in our fair city.

Beyond the city limits we’re hosting our Clayville Music Festival on Saturday from noon to midnight at the Clayville Historic Site, about 10 miles west of town straight out Jefferson near Pleasant Plains. Now into our fifth annual music fest, we’ve included a car show/cruise-in along with our very first daylong Art Fair in the Trees. Theresa and I worked hard to get fine folk musicians such as our very own world-traveling singer-songwriter Ben Bedford; Chicago’s popular troubadour Mark Dvorak; Folkapotamas, a husband and wife duo from Boston; and the Big Blue Bluegrass Band featuring Millikin folks and friends. Plus Christy Bley, a member of Tonguesnatcher Revue and Adrian Belew’s band, drops in from Beardstown to join Eugene, Oregon’s friendly folk singer and multi-instrumentalist Chico Schwall for a set.

This year we’ve added a tent with bands and beer, starting with the lovely and talented Sally Weisenburg joined by the equally gifted and handsome Don Berbaum at 6 p.m. Then I’ll light up a Hayburners set followed by our Clayville Blues Revue at 8 with a guest so special I don’t dare mention his name. Then at about 9:17 p.m. the Texas Trucker Speed Fiends storm the stage to rile things up to the nth degree. We’ll also have music all day long at the art fair, including, among others, The Templetons and That Ol Coondog and the St. Andrew’s Society piping and dancing at 6 p.m. on the Broadwell upstairs porch. Plus the Don Buedel Memorial Music Gathering is open all day to old-timey music makers interested in keeping the traditional songs alive by sharing tunes in a group.

On Wednesday, Aug. 31, at 3 p.m., join in celebrating the triumphant return of Norb Andy’s as a downtown tradition with a grand opening ceremony. Mike Burnett and friends entertain afterwards and Norb’s, around since 1937, is back, restored and revived with food and drinks for all comers.

Happy end of August and welcome to September.

Contact Tom Irwin at [email protected].