January 2012

Sunday, January 1: New Year's Day EXTRAVAGANZA with Tributosaurus as PRINCE! 8 pm, $35 , $40 at the door, [Rock/Tribute]
What better way to kiss off 2011, and grind into 2012, than with Tributosaurus as Prince! Tributosaurus first tackled the Prince of Paisley Park last February, and almost all of that band returns, with a couple new guest vocalists to showcase as well. They somehow cull one show from his reportedly more than 1000 songs, representing as many eras of his genius as they can. The set list will range from the early falsetto sex freakouts to the huge pop hits with The Revolution, with a taste of the NPG thrown in too. It'll be a large band, with horns, strings, and a big backing vocal section to do it right. You may recognize some old friends from our Michael Jackson shows, aiming to deliver the goods once again. So come party like it’s Nineteen ninety…um…2012…uh…whatever!
www.tributosaurus.com

On New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day there will be food available from the Wagyu Wagon, featuring delicious Kobe beef burgers, gourmet tacos and more! Full menu available here: www.thewagyuwagon.com/index2.php#/home/

Monday, January 2: Club and SideBar Closed.

Tuesday, January 3: Oak Park Vintage Market's Live Auction! 8 pm (doors at 6:30), $5
One man's trash is another man's treasure! Come out for a night of perusing antiques and collectibles at our live auction! We will be auctioning collectibles, jewelry, furniture, accents, art & random cool stuff. The auction will start at 8pm and run until 10 or 11 depending on how many items we have. Previewing will begin at 6:30. We need sellers that have good stuff that they want to sell (in the categories mentioned) and bidders/buyer's to take home their treasures! If you are interested in selling: bring your items in to Fitzgerald's main stage area on Monday January 2nd between 3-6pm. You will be registered, given a seller number and your items will be id'd and tagged. Cover charge includes bidding paddle. For more information, email leah@oakparkvintagemarket.com This auction is for entertainment purposes. Proceeds will cover production costs and a portion of the fees will be donated to Hepzibah Children's Home in Oak Park.
www.hepzibahhome.org

Tuesday, January 3: Open Mic. in the SideBar, 8pm sign up, 9pm show, free [variety]
Currently hosted by Mark Bishop, our long-running open mic. is usually held in our SideBar, on the other side of the beer garden from the main club. On the second Tuesday of each month, it’s held in the main club and at a half hour earlier starting time. Acts mostly are within the acoustic singer/songwriter genres, with the sign-up sheet filling fast. Check it out!

Wednesday, January 4: Club and SideBar Closed.

Thursday, January 5: Club and SideBar Closed.

Friday, January 6: Miles Nielsen and The Rusted Hearts plus ThinGrin, 9 pm, $10 [Rock]
Miles Nielsen is the son of Rick Nielsen, guitarist and founding member of a band called Cheap Trick. Miles plays his own music, which is not really related to that of his famous father either lyrically or musically. The music he writes and performs as a solo artist comes off with a melodic roots-rock sound. Miles describes his music as “Beatlesque-Cosmic-Americana.”
www.milesnielsen.com

ThinGrin is a band comprised of former and current members of the legendary Chicago pop groups Slammin Watusis, Green, and Raving Mad. Bassist Clay Tomasek and drummer Mark Mosher, and the awesome guitar combination of Jason Mosher and Steve Zahradnik, have emerged on the scene with songs that blend great pop hooks with a little bit of alt-country soul mixed in. Drawing inspiration from bands like the Kinks, Cheap Trick, The Rolling Stones, and Gram Parsons, ThinGrin is looking to stake their claim in the tradition of other great midwestern bands, with songs that stick in the subconscious.
...on facebook

Friday, January 6: Studebaker John and the Maxwell Street Kings, 9 pm in the SideBar, Free [Blues]
Studebaker John Grimaldi was born in an Italian-American section of Chicago and started playing harmonica at age 7. Under the spell of music he heard on Maxwell Street, Chicago’s famed blues melting pot, Grimaldi began performing as Studebaker John and the Hawks in the ‘70s. The band name referenced the Studebaker Hawk, a car Grimaldi still owns today, and was also intended as a tribute to his friend, J.B. Hutto and the Hawks. John began playing guitar after a life-changing experience of seeing Hound Dog Taylor and the Houserockers perform. “…Hound Dog started playing, hitting notes that sent chills up and down my spine. He was versatile and powerful and would play rhythm as well as leads. I left there knowing what I wanted to do. I had to play slide guitar.”
www.studebakerjohn.com

Saturday, January 7: Ronnie Baker Brooks, 9 pm, $15 [Blues/Rock]
In the Olympic tradition, when the torch gets passed on, the flame transfers from one sure hand to the next -- keeping it burning, while at the same time moving forward. It's a fitting image for young Chicago guitar hero Ronnie Baker Brooks on his aptly titled third release, The Torch. Not only does he sing with soulful fire and play with a white-hot intensity; he's also carrying the torch from the previous generation of soul and blues greats and moving the music into the future.
"I grew up among the best of the best," Brooks says. "Every time I play, I feel like I've got to do it with the authenticity and passion that I saw in guys like Buddy Guy, Muddy Waters, B.B. King and my father. But I also have to put my twist on it. None of those guys repeated what came before them."
ronniebakerbrooks.com

Saturday, January 7: Ralph Covert's Acoustic Army, 9 pm in the SideBar Music Room, $10 [Rock]
Bad Examples front man Ralph Covert is building an army! Come out and enjoy a solo acoustic set of old hits, new tunes and bar band classics. Then, Ralph will invite you to get out your acoustic guitar and play along - lyric and chord sheets provided!
www.ralphcovert.com

Sunday, January 8: Bill O’Connell’s Chicago Skyliners, 6 pm (doors at 5), $10 adults; $5 for ages 17 and under with student ID. [Jazz]
The Bill O’Connell Big Band was formed in 1988 for the sole purpose of prolonging the musical memory of the Big Band Era. A house band at FitzGerald’s since 1991, The Chicago Skyliners Big Band following has grown to become one of the top Big Bands in Chicagoland. Blue Birdland Jazz recording artists, besides original material, the Band features the music of Count Basie, Buddy Rich, Sammy Nestico, Stan Kenton, Artie Shaw, Glen Miller and Duke Ellington. The band also showcases the music of contemporary artists such as James Engram, Al Jarreau, Maynard Ferguson, Doc Severenson, Blood Sweat & Tears, The Ides of March and The Brian Setzer Orchestra.
chicagoskylinersbigband.com

Jazz programming at FitzGerald's is generously sponsored by public radio 90.9 FM WDCB, Glen Ellyn, Illinois.

Monday, January 9: Club and SideBar Closed.

Tuesday, January 10: Open Mic. in the Club! 7pm sign up, 8:30 pm show, free. [variety]
Currently hosted by Mark Bishop, our long-running open mic. is usually held in our SideBar, on the other side of the beer garden from the main club. On the second Tuesday of each month, it’s held in the main club and at a half hour earlier starting time. Acts mostly are within the acoustic singer/songwriter genres, with the sign-up sheet filling fast. Check it out!

Wednesday, January 11: Chicago Singer Spotlight, 8pm, $8 [Variety]
Chicago Singer Spotlight is a showcase open to anyone: male or female, from the seasoned professional to the aspiring beginner. And the diversity doesn’t end there. A typical show encompasses music genres of all types including: jazz, rock, country, musical theater and original material. Each show consists of four vocalists performing a four-song set with a professional house band. To find out how to perform at the Singer Spotlight and get a professionally-mixed CD of your performance, check the website:
about Chicago Singer Spotlight

Thursday, January 12: Red Rose Ragtime Band, 7:30 pm, $10 [Trad Jazz]
The Red Rose Ragtime Band was formed in the early 1980s in the Chicago, Illinois area with the express purpose of playing a musical repertoire reflecting almost every aspect of early jazz music, including ragtime. Today, the Red Rose has perhaps the widest variety of traditional jazz sound of any band in America. Represented on the "menu" are compositions by Jelly Roll Morton, Tiny Parham, Benny Moten, and King Oliver to mention a few of the classic jazz composers.
redrosejazz.com

Thursday, January 12: Every Thursday: Euchre, at 7:30pm in the SideBar, free. [CARD GAMES]
Grab a partner or just show up and we will attach one to you. Not sure how to play? We can teach you! Euchre is a four-player card game. The object is to score as many tricks as you can. When you reach the set point amount, your team will win the game!

Friday, January 13: Funkadesi, 9:30 pm, $15 [World]
Funkadesi's 15th Anniversary at FitzGerald's!
Funkadesi proudly hails from Chicago, representing the diverse multi-ethnic communities within the city. What distinguishes Funkadesi as a group is each band member’s unique and uncompromised cultural/musical contribution merging to create one unifying sound and vision. With their not-to-be-missed live shows and visible racial and musical diversity, the band is ideally suited for festivals, nightclubs, world music concerts, weddings and commitment ceremonies, corporate events, as well children’s programs. Funkadesi’s one-world sound, roots-watering vision, and positive vibe make the band a unique and compelling musical force.
www.funkadesi.com

Saturday, January 14: Nick Moss & the Flip Tops with special guest Jimmy Johnson, + The Chicago Blues Angels, 9pm, $10 [Blues]
Nick Moss has followed his most critically and commercially successful album to date with the release of Here I Am, a record already drawing raves from peers and mentors, like renowned bluesman Jimmy Thackery, who has praised this new set for “pushing the evolution of his music” with tunes that are “genuine and intense.” Here I Am is bursting with personal growth and the kind of honesty fans have come to expect from Moss, whose unique approach to traditional Chicago blues on five studio records and two live albums resulted in multiple Blues Music Award nominations from the Blues Foundation. Here I Am is the confident statement from Moss the new path he forged on Privileged (also nominated for a BMA, but in the Blues-Rock category) was just the beginning. These 10 new originals combine to create the most diverse album of his career as he pushes his sound, songwriting, and lead guitar work further than ever before.
www.nickmoss.com

Jimmy Johnson is one of Chicago's most passionate blues singers and original guitarists, rated up there with acclaimed Chicago bluesmen Buddy Guy, Otis Rush, Lonnie Brooks and Son Seals. Johnson's debut as a blues recording artist was explosive. In 1978, his name first garnered national attention as well as a Grammy® nomination when Alligator Records included four previously unreleased Johnson tracks on Living Chicago Blues, Vol. 1 . These cuts, and two soon-to-follow records on the Delmark label (Johnson's Whacks in 1979 and North/South in 1982), established Johnson as a witty and prolific songwriter who combined challenging arrangements and elements of jazz, rock, gospel and country into a blues style all his own.
www.alligator.com/artists/Jimmy-Johnson/

Chicago Blues Angels perform American roots music, rock n roll, blues and rockabilly with a whole lotta soul! Armando Cortez, founded the band in 1999. Having shared the stage with such performers as Kid Ramos, Kim Wilson, Lynwood Slim, Nick Moss, Rockin' Johnny, Nick Curran, and Willie Smith, he sights influences such as Johnny Guitar Watson, Muddy Waters, Albert Collins, Freddie King, Earl Hooker, Robert Lockwood and more!
www.chicagobluesangels.com

Saturday, January 14: Nine Miles West, 9 pm in the SideBar, Free [Rock]
Nine Miles West was originally formed by Jean Iversen and Gino Sigismondi in 2006 as a full-band project specializing in blues-based rock and R&B. After a few years away, they have reactivated Nine Miles West as an acoustic duo, covering a broader range of influences, from the classic music of The Beatles and Led Zeppelin, to the 90's grunge of Soundgarden and Stone Temple Pilots, and up to current artists like Adele and KT Tunstall. They cover a lot of ground, infusing everything they do with a unique and energetic spirit that highlights their love for the music they play.
www.myspace.com/ninemileswest

Sunday, January 15: Jazz Consortium Big Band, 6 pm (doors at 5), $10 adults, $5 for ages 17 and under with student ID [Jazz]
The 17-piece Jazz Consortium Big Band features swing and jazz-rock favorites from such iconic big bands as Glenn Miller, Benny Goodman and Count Basie, contemporary big bands like Buddy Rich, Maynard Ferguson, and Thad Jones-Mel Lewis, plus original compositions by band members.
Led by saxophonist Roy Vombrack, the Chicago-area big band plays a variety of Jazz, Swing, and Jazz-Rock music that appeals to all ages. From the classic “In the Mood” to their Jazz-Rock interpretation of “Fanfare for the Common Man,” the Jazz Consortium Big Band is a real crowd-pleaser!
www.jcbigband.com | https://www.facebook.com/jcbigband

Jazz programming at FitzGerald's is generously sponsored by public radio 90.9 FM WDCB, Glen Ellyn, Illinois.

Monday, January 16: Club and SideBar Closed.

Tuesday, January 17: Open Mic. in the SideBar, 8pm sign up, 9pm show, free [variety]

Wednesday, January 18: Billy Joe Shaver plus Whitey Morgan and the 78s, 8:30 pm, $15 , $20 day of show [Country]
Billy Joe Shaver is a Texas country music singer and songwriter. Shaver's 1973 album Old Five and Dimers Like Me is a classic in the outlaw country genre. Almost every song on the album has become a classic (particularly the title track, as well as "I Been to Georgia On a Fast Train" and "Willy The Wandering Gypsy and Me"). Shaver is also known for his hit "Live Forever", co-written by his son Eddy, which was also performed by The Highwaymen. Shaver also wrote numerous songs for artists such as Patty Loveless and Willie Nelson. Shaver continued to release records throughout the 1980s and 1990s; the most notable was the critically acclaimed Tramp On Your Street, released in 1993, which prominently featured the guitar playing of Eddy Shaver. Billy Joe Shaver's most recent album, 2007's country gospel style Everybody's Brother was Grammy®-nominated. Many of the songs are duets with artists such as Johnny Cash, Kris Kristofferson and Tanya Tucker. Musicians playing on the album included Randy Scruggs, Laura Cash and Marty Stuart.
www.billyjoeshaver.com

Whitey Morgan and the 78’s are a Honky Tonk band from Flint, Michigan. They haven’t re-invented the wheel. They just picked it up and started it rolling all over again. In Flint, most of the factories are closed, jobs are scarce and the people are bitter. Whitey sings songs these people can relate to. In much the same way his grandfather and mentor did over 3 decades ago, to a whole generation of southern transplants who came up US-23 to Flint looking for the good life. Whitey sings it straight, with a "gawd, I wanna keep this guy on my side in a bar fight" urgency that'll help people forget their problems for a few hours and serve as the guideline for drinking the sorrows away. The 78’s halftime groove brings out everyone’s dancing shoes and while Whitey and the 78’s play, the world is a better place.
www.whiteymorgan.com

Thursday, January 19: Exposure, hosted by John Fancher, 8 pm, $5 [Rock]
Featuring Kristin Cotts & What About Rosiland, Sara Holtschlag and the Crosscuts, Benton Harbor Lunchbox and Bunkertown.

Thursday, January 19: Expo '76 Dance Party Residency Debut! 9 pm in the SideBar, Free [Rock]
Join us this month and every 3rd Thursday of the month for our exciting new dance party residency! January's show will be in the SideBar and starting in February, they'll move the dance party into the club! Expo‘76 is made up of four lifers who don’t need to be in another band, but still can’t quite help themselves. Their weakness is your gain, and on any given night you’ll hear them gleefully playing ‘70s AM radio ear candy to walloping road house beer guzzling dance tunes. They’ll chime their way through a New Wave nugget with the same exuberance that they slap around a swinging, jazzy blues number or a folk revival sing-along. Irrepressible, unstoppable, 100% unironic, and actually quite unbelievable at times, Expo’76 won’t take your requests, because they’re already playing them. But you can still shout them out.
www.expo76.com

Friday, January 20: Ana Egge Band, plus The Black Labs and the Black Willoughbys, 9 pm, $10 [Roots/Rock]
Saskatchewan-born, Brooklyn-based folk troubadour Ana Egge isn’t your run-of-the-mill alternative-country singer. Using unique production and rock-based chord progressions, Egge has made a name for herself as a “Gillian Welch” figure with a rocker attitude. Ana’s newest album, Bad Blood was released August 23, 2011 via Ammal records. The 12-song set was produced by Steve Earle and recorded at Levon Helm Studios in Woodstock, NY, and mixed and mastered by Ray Kennedy (Earle and Kennedy’s production partnership includes the Grammy® winning Lucinda Williams album Car Wheels On A Gravel Road). Steve Earle stated, “Ana Egge’s songs are low and lonesome, big square-stare noir ballads which she plays on a guitar she built with her own two hands and sings like she’s telling us her deepest, darkest secrets.”
www.anaegge.com

When hearing the name Black Labs, the imagination might immediately jump to a dark, sinister world in which invisiblehelicopters and hired guns operate with impunity. It could not be further from the truth. The men of Black Labs are veterans of the Chicago music scene, between the four of them, indie rock, alt-country, and honky tonk bands were seeded into the local landscape. Black Labs rule!
blacklabs.bandcamp.com/track/lonely-road

Sprouted from a few ostensibly ‘old time’ jam sessions and general music-nerding in early 2010, the Black Willoughbys quickly took shape as a four-piece band: Rick Arrow (guitar, vocals), Tim McNulty (vocals, guitar) Bob Kessler (harmonica, clarinet) and Tommy Lowery (percussion). Early gigs found the boys opening for local bluegrass stalwarts Sexfist (Henhouse Prowlers) and country legend Crystal Gayle. After locking down regular gigs at posh local establishments, the Willoughbys figured they needed a “bigger” sound. Enter Jesse Woelfel, on the biggest instrument he could find: the upright bass. His Rockabilly rhythms and slick hairdo propelled the band to greater artistic (and stylistic) heights. With a fifth Willoughby on the roster, the band was then poised to do things that are done when bands are poised.
blackwilloughbys.net

Saturday, January 21: Webb Wilder and the Nash Vegans, +The Hoyle Brothers open, 9 pm $15 , $20 at the door [Rock]
Webb Wilder is an evangelist for real Rock 'n' Roll. As a singer, guitarist, bandleader, film actor, songwriter and humorist, he may be roots-rock's only true Renaissance man. More Like Me will no doubt find favor with Webb’s devoted legion of fans, but with its affecting songs and masterful performances, it’s sure to bring many newcomers into the fold.
www.webbwilder.com

The Hoyle Brothers approach their music the way a preacher might prepare for a sermon: Reference the good Book, find a theme that resonates and deliver it with fire and passion. That’s what makes The Hoyle Brothers so special. Their brand of genuine country music draws from the genre’s deepest traditions–lyrics that speak universal truths, melody lines that melt your heart and two-step rhythms that make your boots scoot.
www.hoylebrothers.com

Saturday, January 21: The Chandelier Swingers, 9 pm in the SideBar, FREE [Western Swing]
Jon Williams and the Chandelier Swingers are a five-piece Western Swing combo from Chicago.
www.chandelierswingers.com

Sunday, January 22: John Burnett Orchestra, with vocalist Frieda Lee, 6 pm (doors at 5), $10 adults, $5 for 17 and under with student ID [Jazz]
The John Burnett Orchestra specializes in '40s-style big band swing - keeping alive the sounds of Glenn Miller, Tommy Dorsey, Benny Goodman, Count Basie and others. Each musician is highly professional and most have played with many of the top American big bands such as the Miller, Herman and Buddy Rich Bands. In addition to swing music the orchestra performs current big band jazz charts and many vocal ballads such as those of Frank Sinatra, Joe Williams, Ella Fitzgerald and Sarah Vaughn.
johnburnettorchestra.com

Jazz programming at FitzGerald's is generously sponsored by public radio 90.9 FM WDCB, Glen Ellyn, Illinois.

Monday, January 23: Club and SideBar Closed.

Tuesday, January 24: Open Mic. in the SideBar, 8pm sign up, 9pm show, free [variety]
Currently hosted by Mark Bishop, our long-running open mic. is usually held in our SideBar, on the other side of the beer garden from the main club. On the second Tuesday of each month, it’s held in the main club and at a half hour earlier starting time. Acts mostly are within the acoustic singer/songwriter genres, with the sign-up sheet filling fast. Check it out!

Wednesday, January 25: The Gina Knight Orchestra, 7:30pm, $10 [Jazz/Swing]
The Gina Knight Orchestra is fun, sexy and puts an energetic twist on the old classics... It also delivers an amalgam of styles including: Swing, Neo Swing, Blues, Boogie Woogie, and Mambo Swing! The GKO is led by drummer/vocalist, Gina Knight, who really drives the music, and is co-led by one of Chicago's leading frontmen, Mr. Vince Clark. Their solid rhythm section, combined with some of the finest horn players in the Midwest, is what makes the GKO a must see!
www.facebook...

Wednesday, January 25: Quiz Night in the Sidebar, 7pm signup, 7:30 start, $20 per team
Calling all Know-It-Alls! – Consider yourself a trivia buff? Come join us the last Wednesday of each month for our quiz night competition. Prizes awarded! The cost is $20.00 per team, with a 4(four)-person-team limit. Not sure you can get a team together? Come join us and we’ll do our best to match you with a team. Don’t miss this opportunity for good fun and great drinks! Team registration starts at 7pm – and the competition starts promptly at 7:30pm.

Thursday, January 26: Country Night in Berwyn with Decoy, Prayer Meeting, Jason & The Haymakers and Moonshine Honeysuckle, 8 pm, $5 [Country]

Friday, January 27: Birthday Party Bash with Rico, 9 pm, $10 [Rock]
Rico is defined as a band with a rich sound of diversified musical cultures. A mixture of sophisticated melodic genres and ethnicity coming together is the essence of Rico! This sound can be heard on their CDs entitled Make Music (2010) and Casa De Tambores (2004). Influenced tremendously by the sound and spirit of Santana, you can say Rico is the modern day Santana. These musicians also do a three hour tribute show paying homage to their main influence Santana. The band is comfortable in any genre and is right at home putting their spin on covers from Bob Marley, Stevie Wonder, Marvin Gaye, James Brown, Kanye West, Hendrix, Santana, etc.
ricojams.com

Friday, January 27: Cannonball, 9 pm in the SideBar, $10 [Rock]
Cannonball is a group of musicians based in Chicago who connect with the same rock sensibilities and merriment to create an explosive sound rooted in the American folk tradition of blues, country, rock ‘n’ roll and all their offspring: hillbilly, rock-a-billy, folk rock, psychedelic, and punk. They play a mixture of original songs and interpretations of personal favorites that veer from swinging rock ‘n’ roll to swaying country blues with detours down musical guitar exchanges between the dual lead guitarists that ride on a freight train rhythm bed. The lineup: Paul Bivans: drums, vocals; Andon Davis: guitar, vocals; Tom Kneesel: pedal steel, guitar, vocals; Mike Krayniak: bass, vocals; and Terry White: guitar, harmonica, vocals.
www.terrywhitemusic.com/node/30

Saturday, January 28: Otis Clay, 9 pm $15 [Blues/Soul]
Otis Clay is one of the premier deep soul and gospel singers working today. His raw, fiery vocals are an energetic and danceable blend of soul, r&b and blues in the tradition of such deep soul singers as Otis Redding, Wilson Pickett and Solomon Burke. Clay launched and established his career as a soul singer with his first recordings made in the mid-60s for George Leaner's One-derful label in Chicago. A series of hit singles, including "Trying To Live My Life Without You" produced by Willie Mitchell in Memphis for Hi Records, followed in the '70's. He has also recorded for the Cotillion, Kayvette, Elka and Rounder labels as well as his own Echo Records. The intensity and passion of his live shows are captured on Soul Man: Live in Japan (Rounder) and Respect Yourself (Blind Pig) recorded live at The Lucerne Blues Festival in Switzerland.
www.otisclay.net

Sunday, January 29: Prohibition Jazz Orchestra of Chicago, 6 pm (doors at 5), $10 adults, $5 for 17 and under with student ID [Jazz]
If you can't go back in time, one of the best ways to hear the same songs today, played note-for-note precisely the way audiences heard them in 1924, is to check out Gus Friedlander's Prohibition Orchestra. “We are a 10-piece band dedicated to playing the music of the early big band era. All of our arrangements were published from 1923 to 1934. It's the real authentic sound, and we're the only Chicago-area band currently playing in this style.”
prohibitionorchestra.com

Jazz programming at FitzGerald's is generously sponsored by public radio 90.9 FM WDCB, Glen Ellyn, Illinois.

Monday, January 30: Club and SideBar Closed.

Tuesday, January 31: Open Mic. in the SideBar, 8pm sign up, 9pm show, free [variety]
Currently hosted by Mark Bishop, our long-running open mic. is usually held in our SideBar, on the other side of the beer garden from the main club. On the second Tuesday of each month, it’s held in the main club and at a half hour earlier starting time. Acts mostly are within the acoustic singer/songwriter genres, with the sign-up sheet filling fast. Check it out!