Jun 23, 2017
Words: Robin Zimmerman | Photos: Michael LepekOn a beautiful, breezy June evening, a pair of powerhouse performers kicked off Auroras 21st Annual Blues on the Fox festival in fine fashion.Rising star Shemekia Copeland, along with the iconic Mavis Staples, treated the crowd to a satisfying mlange of music, which ran the gamut from blues and...
May 3, 2017
Throughout his presidency, Obama was known for assembling playlists that showed a keen taste of music, both old and new.The Obama Foundation has continued this tradition by posting a new playlist to Spotify featuring songs inspired by his hometown of Chicago.Guest-curated by Chance, Mavis Staples, Jennifer Hudson, Nick Offerman, Dan Ackroyd and more,...
Apr 7, 2017
On TV features a quick recap of some of the music we're playing at Tomorrow's Verse Headquarters.Who: An all-star band honoring (and including) Mavis Staples. Greg Allman, Grace Potter, Jeff Tweedy, Bonnie Raitt, Michael McDonald and many more take a turn on the mic for the encore at Chicago's Auditorium Theater....
Mar 21, 2016
By: Philamonjaro StudioMagic!Attending the first of two Mavis Staples concerts at Thalia Hall seemed to have that special something -- the sold-outroom was electric. These werefirst Chicago performances since the release ofthe HBO documentary Mavis! and new album Livin' On A High Note, and like most, theyfelt like a homecoming and a triumphantreturn.How...
Mar 1, 2016
By: Alex WoodDr. Dog- ThePsychedelic Swamp [2/5]For their newest full-length, indie-rock staple Dr. Dog have reworked and rerecorded their unreleased debut album, initially written 15 years ago. As one may expect, the resulting album doesnt sound like the Dr. Dog fans have come to expect, which is unfortunate, given that the band seemed to be hitting...
Nov 21, 2015
Acoustic sets are a familiar thing to fans of Wilco and Jeff Tweedy. Theyre a long-standing tradition for the Wilco frontman and have recently been closing out Wilcos shows.Despite the familiarity, a Jeff Tweedy set always contains surprises.Tweedy played an intimate show at Park West on Friday night with ticket sales benefitting the...
Sep 30, 2015
Words: Carmel O' Farrell | Photos: Kristine Condon Photography & Paul NatkinAfter 30 years, Farm Aid is one of longest running benefit concerts.Rockers Willie Nelson, Neil Young, and John Mellencamp have been returning to this yearly event since its inception. Not only do they serve as this iconic festival's headliners, theyve also made it their...
Nov 20, 2014
A parade of stars, including many Barn favorites, took the stage with Mavis Staples last night in Chicago in tribute to the living legend for her 75th birthday. The trusty Wyatt Brake was on hand with his camera and grabbed a handful of shots.Video of Widespread Panic's two song slot courtesy of YouTuber Adam...
Jan 10, 2014
Here's a follow up to our Best Of The First Half of 2013 post. Thanks again to @WeirScrewed for contributing the first part of this list (the six albums with the more detailed write-ups).I (Steve - @thebarnpresents) have added some additional selections, and some one-liners of my own, at the end of the post. You...
Nov 15, 2012
Every summer, interesting festivals overtake the music landscape in and around Chicago. While the festival calendar dries up after Labor Day, leave it to the area's best venues to make our holidays seem like mini-festivals of their own. And with Thanksgiving more of a homecoming style occasion, the program leans delightfully local.We've...