Untitled Document
In a feeble attempt to answer the often-asked
question of “Hey, what’s going on?” let’s check on
upcoming shows and concerts in the area. This is not a complete schedule
— nor is it meant to be. These picks reflect my tastes; that’s
why they pay me the big bucks. Let’s start with the Coal Miner’s
Daughter herself: Loretta Lynn plays the Peoria Civic Center (309-673-8900)
on March 13. If that’s not enough, Gordon Lightfoot performs there on
April 2. Maybe it’s just me, but those sound like some very cool
shows — opportunities to hear two classic performers.
Remember the hard-rocking pop band FireHouse, which
surfaced in 1990 with the Top 10 hits “Don’t Treat Me
Bad” and “Love of a Lifetime,” making the group’s
self-titled debut album a multiplatinum success? By the time FireHouse
released a third album for Epic Records, in 1995, they were very popular in
Southeast Asia. As the ever-changing American hit parade moved away from
power pop into whatever the next year’s model would be, FireHouse
continued touring and releasing records in other parts of the world. In 1998 they joined with fellow rockers Quiet Riot,
LA Guns, and others on the Rock Never Stops tour across America and
released their fifth CD, which marched to the top of the charts in Japan.
Since then they’ve survived and done quite well in America, Japan,
Southeast Asia, and India, continuing to tour and release CDs on Pony
Canyon Records, the group’s own label. Coming up in mid-February they
play a couple of shows in Tokyo and Osaka with those most righteous of
power balladeers, Night Ranger, and they’re in the process of making
record No. 9. It’s really incredible, in the volatile world
of entertainment, that a simple rock quartet from North Carolina, formed in
1989, could hit the big time on the American charts during the early 1990s
and continue performing to this day, with the exception of the bassist,
with all of its original members. They’ll be in Springfield on
Friday, Feb. 15, at Club Chrome with the Lost Boys, Scott Joseph Phares, Decimation, and
The Dogs Divine. Mark Tate, proprietor of the Luthier Shoppe (1717 W.
Wabash Ave., 217-546-1615) invites one and all to a free guitar clinic
featuring the spectacular pickings of Andy Timmons at 7 p.m. Thursday, Feb
7. Those poor souls who are unfamiliar with Timmons’ work can visit
YouTube and other online sources to see the brilliant player sizzle on the
six strings. Practice, practice, practice — and come see how
it’s done.
On Saturday, March 1, down in quaint yet spirited
Mount Olive, you have the delightful opportunity to see a couple of
America’s finest singer/songwriters when Tom Russell and Gretchen
Peters take to the stage in historic Turner Hall (307 W. Second South St.).
Russell, a perfectly cantankerous and wonderfully robust performer, teams
with Peters, who penned the modern country classic “Independence
Day,” to take the town by storm. Call Ed Becker at 217-999-7674 for
information and tickets.
And that’s not all, folks, but, me-oh-my, it’s all we got space for
here.
Contact Tom Irwin at tirwin@illinoistimes.com.
This article appears in Feb 7-13, 2008.
