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Oh me, oh my — Labor Day Weekend already. Where
did the summer go? Now it’s off to fall, and we’re closing in
rapidly on the end of 2007, with those pesky holidays and a new year to
remind us how quickly time flies — whether you’re having fun or
not. For several years now we’ve published a
band/musician directory on the Illinois Times Web site, but you may have noticed that the names and
contact numbers are rather outdated. So pay attention, all you musicians;
we’re updating the listing, and we need you to send the appropriate
information to us at musiciandirectory@illinoistimes.com: contact name,
phone number, e-mail address, Web site, a short description of your
band’s style, and other pertinent tidbits you feel we should include.
Attach a nice .jpg or suitable digital photo while you’re at it, and
we can use it in the Pub Crawl listing, too. See how easy it all is? Now if
we can just get a law guaranteeing minimum wage for musicians passed. When I talked with Roger Wainwright in the Miller
tent at the Illinois State Fair, he reported sold-out shows and great
responses for David: You and I, his musical that debuted in Jacksonville the first of
August. Now another local musician has produced music for the stage. Mark
Mathewson, a talented bluegrass guitarist and excellent songwriter, adopted
traditional gospel songs and hymns such as the score for The Trip to Bountiful, and his
daughter Molly sings during the performance. The drama (it’s
definitely not a musical), written by Horton Foote and directed by
Phil Funkenbusch, opened last weekend at the Theatre in
the Park in New Salem and continues through this weekend.
We mustn’t forget that in Springfield Labor Day
weekend means the Ethnic Festival, held on the Illinois State Fairgrounds
in the Ethnic Village area. There’s always plenty of food and live
music, and you may see a few motorcycle enthusiasts drifting in from the
Springfield Mile race, held at the grandstand racetrack. Rumor has it that
the long-awaited Redneck-American Booth debuts this year, celebrating the
salt of the prairie with a refrigerator stocked with white bread, cheap
baloney, and single slices of American cheese — you leave the door
open as you make your own sandwich without the aid of utensils. A David
Allan Coe impersonator performs, throwing in a few Bellamy Brothers songs
for the older generation and Montgomery Gentry tunes for the youngsters.
The alcoholic beverages served include PBR in a can and shots of Cabin
Still on the side. Yee-ha-ha-ha. Of course I’m just joking — right? All you lovers of free jazz should be sure to check
out the End Times Trio at the Underground City Tavern, around 8 p.m.
Tuesday, Sept. 4. The night of creative expression through jazz music will
feature James Ilgenfritz, a bassist from New York City.
Contact Tom Irwin at tirwin@illinoistimes.com.
This article appears in Aug 30 – Sep 5, 2007.
