Say it ain’t so, Joe. It’s time for the Illinois State Fair, isn’t it? Yes, that particular yearly event makes August seem steamier, attracts more flies than fairgoers, and turns the Northend into a parking lot. But it’s also a grand time to see your favorite local band on a big stage with big lights and big sound. And you can live it up with a bunch of beer and a big headache the next day from drinking way too much when it’s hotter in the beer tent than a three-dollar pistol. But, hey, it’s a tradition, right?
Fair time also means Springfield bars can stay open until 3 a.m., just because they can. Could someone please tell me when and how this mysterious law came to pass? It’s lots of fun for patrons, though bar owners find drinkers are creatures of habit, heading to the normal three o’clocks even when their favorite watering holes are open for another two hours. Bands, of course, play on. Most clubs are still saying the music stops at about 1, but if musicians are in front of a happy crowd more than likely you’ll get a little something extra.
While you’re at the fair proper, look for bands at the usual beer tents, one for Budweiser and one for Miller Lite, and at the Key West Morton Building, plus the Agri-Expo stage in the old Happy Hollow. And then there’s my personal favorite, the Twilight Ballroom, where the beer is cold, the dancing is hot, and the music is easy on the ears. Hear the last of the great swing, polka, and big bands that have played around this area for years (and years). So enjoy the fair while it’s here, and always remember, people travel from all over to attend the fair that we take for granted.
Last weekend’s Decatur Celebration was a smashing success. Mark Farner of ’70s rock band Grand Funk Railroad was a highly anticipated and well-attended show. I had the privilege of being the emcee at his 5:30 performance, and I watched the 55-year-old aging rock star jump around like a teenager with an air guitar, proudly tossing his waist length mullet for all to see. Farner said he still sings all the old songs in the original key and was writing new songs all the time, playing about 70 dates a year with his band N-R-G (that’s “energy,” get it?). He spends the rest of his time with his family on their 80-acre Michigan farm, living the good life and working for political and social changes he’d like to see in America.
Well, if you want to know what else is going on this week, I guess you’ll
have to check out the Pub Crawl. Is that fair enough?
This article appears in Aug 7-13, 2003.
