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Here are my suggestions for a weeklong binge of live
music. Start at 6 p.m. tonight, Thursday, with a visit to
the lovely Inn at 835, on South Second Street, and listen to the delightful
sounds of the Angel Brown Band. At 9 p.m., head to the Underground City
Tavern for a show by singer/songwriter Noah Earle, from outside Columbia,
Mo., and our very own Ben Bedford. Earle is wild, witty, and wonderful
— a fine lyricist and a splendid folk/blues guitarist who recently
placed first as a solo performer in the Kansas City Blues Challenge.
Bedford’s latest CD, Lincoln’s Man, earned him a spot at a songwriter retreat in Sweden this
May, with a seven-show tour of Denmark and Sweden booked directly after the
retreat. Friday evening around 6, come say hi to me and Bill
and Raoul at Floyd’s Thirst Parlor. I know it’s shameless
self-promotion, but what the heck, it doesn’t happen very often. Then
take off for the Loft to check out the Oohs, a great rock band complete
with stellar local musicians, glorious four-part harmonies, dynamite
original tunes, and unbelievable classic covers.
Saturday night, you’re faced with tough
entertainment choices. New Orleans transplant and Springfield’s
reigning funky music-meister, Roger Kimball, brings his brilliant band of
hometown heroes to Jazz Central Station at 9 p.m. Thornhill, which packed
’em in for a recent CD-release show at the Hoogland Center for the
Arts, rocks out at Newt’s from 9 p.m.-1 a.m. Craig Russo’s
Latin Jazz Project returns to the Loft, getting started at 8:30 p.m. You
get to be the decider. On Sunday, rest is out of the question.
Award-winning, truly famous Americana songwriters Tom Russell and Gretchen
Peters perform at Turner Hall in Mount Olive (217-999-7674) at 6 p.m. Ed
Becker, a longtime friend of Russell’s and co-host of Songwriters Showcase on
community-radio station KDHX (88.1 FM) in St. Louis, set up the show to
catch the touring musicians as they pass through central Illinois on the
way to Kansas City. Simultaneously the Springfield Jazz Society hosts its
Third Sunday series at the VFW on Old Jacksonville Road, with Real Time, a
groovy jazz/blues trio, as musical guests. There’s plenty of
dance-floor space in this venue. On Monday, stop by the Brewhaus at 6 p.m. for the
Jambalaya Jam, a tasteful jazz open stage hosted by the talented Frank
Parker. Then saunter on over to the Alamo about 8:30 p.m. for a blistering
night of blues jams by local stars Suzy and the Smokers at the Illinois
Central Blues Club’s weekly gathering. Take Tuesday off and rest up a bit. You deserve it. Wednesday evening at 5:30, check out jazz saxophonist
Frank Trompeter’s alter ego as a lounge singer in Frank’s
Discount Lounge Act at the In Bed by Ten concert series, hosted by MICE at
the St. Nicholas Ballroom, Fourth and Jefferson. Then you’ll be done
by 8 — and in bed by 10, as promised — to rest and recuperate
from your week of live music in Springfield.
Contact Tom Irwin at tirwin@illinoistimes.com.
This article appears in Apr 12-18, 2007.
