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Chicago Memories: Hat's Off To Rich Koz

Before digital cable television and the Internet, there was UHF. In addition to rounding out our entertainment options and being the inspiration for a highly underrated "Weird" Al Yankovic movie, the television channels that occupied the numbers north of 13 on our dials (yes, youngsters... some sets even had a separate physical dial for the UHF...

Change Of Address.... Hell Yes!

Sometimes we even surprise ourselves. On the heels of three great shows at the Mambo Room, The Barn is preparing to bring the party to a new venue this spring.Starting in May, we cross the border into Brookfield and plan two shows at the legendary Brixie's. Quite simply, this venue is an institution. For 76...

A Word About Prizes

You may have noticed from our poster that we are offering prizes for "best and worst" performances at Live Band Karaoke at The Mambo Room on Saturday, March 13. Perhaps you are curious as to what exactly this means. This was intentionally left ambiguous to (a) give us some time to figure it out and (b)...

Riffing With A Hootenanner: A Conversation With Tim Lydon

Despite that fact that the Chicago version of Live Band Karaoke has been gigging since 2002, LBK has existed under-the-radar even for some hardcore live music junkies and karaoke fans. Admittedly, I too was curious about the ins and outs of a constantly performing live karaoke band. Recently, I had a chance to touch base with...

Hometown Pride

Nothing about music or karaoke in this post, but I did want to link to this story that was featured in Friday's Tribune.I think it sums up our town quite nicely -- a cozy village with cosmopolitan flair. Glad The Barn can be a part of it.

So What's Your Poison?

Is it 80's glam rockers Poison? Maybe you're more of a country fan and want to try your hand at a Rascal Flatts tune. Something obscure? Something popular? Slow? Fast? Unintelligible? Lucky for you, we've got them all...The Barn is proud to announce that The Hootenanners will be performing the role of musical jukebox...

I Did It My Way: 6 Wild Karaoke Stories Ripped From The Headlines

Browsing the New York times a couple weeks ago, I came across the following story -- Sinatra Song Often Strikes a Deadly Chord. Apparently, murder has become such a common result after a poor performance of "My Way" in the Philippines, that it warrants its own subcategory of crime: "My Way Killings". A closer read...

Three Little Birds: The Ark Band Recap

Once again, The Barn turned up the heat in La Grange, transforming The Mambo Room into an island paradise on a chilly Winter night. Combining The Ark Band's dramatic backdrop with The Barn's full scale light show, the crowd got a chance to leave behind the outside world and let the power of...

Introducing... The Ark Band

Lest we make this next event all about the honoree, we wanted to add a few words about our featured performers: The Ark Band.In a career that has spanned decades (the band formed in 1987), these guys have seriously been everywhere, from their homeland on the Caribbean island of St. Lucia, to their adopted home...

Bob Marley: Live In Chicago

I wanted to write a little something for the blog that explored the connection between Bob Marley and the great city of Chicago. A man of the world, Bob did some seriously globe trotting in his years and spent time living in Europe and touring the world over. I was curious if there was any...