PHOTO COURTESY WWW.FACEBOOK.COM/ABELINCOLNCARSHOW/ The Abraham Lincoln Car Show Spectacular is the largest car show in central Illinois. Displays include the replica Lincoln Funeral carriage, 30-50 Pinto Stampedes, the Fordzilla Monster truck, Justin Allgaier’s #51 Nascar show car, the Sangamon County Sheriff MRAP vehicle, several “celebrity” movie cars – such as Christine and Bumblebee from the […]
central Illinois
Posted inMusic
A blue moon weekend
Deep Lunar Blue plays the Trails End Saloon in Curran on Fri., July 31 for a Blue Moon Celebration. I’m not sure if you can stretch a blue moon, like the one this Friday, the only one in 2015, into an entire weekend, but if you’re willing to go along with this cockamamie idea, so […]
Posted inMusic
June doings
The Randy Dandies Burlesque Troupe from St. Louis entertains at Homespun Republic on Sat., June 12. Here we go on a romp through the early summertime music adventures. Outdoors, indoors, coming home, homecomings, fundraisers, hell-raisers, queens of color, queens of burlesque, old guys, new tricks and much more all happening in the next several days. […]
Posted inMusic
F5
F5 Here’s one F5 central Illinois can be happy about seeing again, as the extremely popular band of some years ago rekindles the magic to bring back the sounds that filled dance floors at bars, festivals, fairs and all kinds of other venues. From December of 1996 to December of 2008, the pop/rock/rap/Top 40/hip-hop group […]
Posted inMusic
SOHO, blues and more
Chicago Loud 9 (cLoud9) plays at SOHO 11 on the SOHO stage 10 p.m., Sat., June 6, in downtown Springfield. PHOTO COURTESY CHICAGO LOUD 9 VIA FACEBOOK Welcome to the first weekend of June in 2015. If you wish your days be filled with music and your nights too, things appear to be working in […]
Posted inMusic
End of May music
Mary Jo Curry and Lori Kretzinger of Radio Twist play the Long Bridge Golf Course clubhouse on Sunday afternoon, May 31, 3:30 to 6:30 p.m. Now that the Memorial Day weekend festivities and commemorations are past, let’s turn our attention to the summer ahead as the outdoor activities heat up. Last week I mentioned the […]
Posted inMusic
Memorable Memorial music
Elvis Himselvis (Rick Dunham) performs with a full entourage and band, Sat. May 23 at the Hoogland Center for the Arts. I’m not even going to bring up the fact that we’re already at Memorial Day weekend for 2015. But let’s talk about all the music happening this weekend and beyond, enjoying that we are […]
Posted inFood & Drink
It ain’t over till it’s over
It happens every year. Every vendor at every farmers market will tell you the same thing: business drops off after Labor Day. Maybe it’s because parents are preoccupied with getting their kids back in school. Maybe it’s because even adults who don’t have school-aged children participate in organizations and activities that start their year’s calendar […]
Posted inArts & Culture
Most excellent adventure
Meet Ben Viele and Alexander Rodriguez. They are co-hosts of Los Angeles’s Universal Broadcasting Network Internet radio show “Happy Hour with Ben and Alexander.” So what are they doing in central Illinois and why are they putting on a show at the Hoogland Center for the Arts? Well, Viele’s hometown is in central Illinois and […]
Posted inFood & Drink
A salute to red, white and blue desserts
You can pretty much count on at least one version showing up in at least one cooking periodical every July: a white dessert decorated with blueberries and red raspberries or strawberries, or both. It’s not hard to figure out why. Blueberries are one of the few ways to have blue food that don’t involve food […]
Posted inArts & Culture
The poetry of food, farm and friends
Had the pleasure of heading out this weekend on an adventure and attending a Slow Food Springfield luncheon at Prairie Fruits Farm in Champaign. The wind (well, really wheels) carried us east from Springfield to Urbana and kept us cool under the June sun. It was a gorgeous day to see to the goats, pigs, […]
Posted inArts & Culture
Talent trove
Old Capitol Art Fair is one of the most beloved festivals in central Illinois. Join scores of art and festival lovers this weekend, May 18 and 19, on the downtown square for amazing and unique fine art creations. With more than 150 artists from across the U.S. in attendance, including 30 new artists, regular visitors […]
