CHICAGO (WBBM NEWSRADIO) -- When I was a student at Columbia College in the early 80’s, I had a class called Talent Booking. It was taught by a fella named Tom Cassidy, who ran the Chicago office for The Willard Alexander Agency, an old school outfit with roots that went back to The Glenn Miller and Duke Ellington Big Bands.
One day I stopped up at the office and instantly was given a desk, a phone, the routing schedules for their clients, and told to fill in the dates with bookings. One of the older agents then leaned down to see what I was doing and whispered this bit of sage advice, “Kid, just make sure all your acts are working on New Year’s Eve. If they’re not, either you or they should get out of the business.”
I’m reminded of that story as we approach the first real New Year’s Eve in a couple of years with three bands who have no intention of getting out of the business.
First off, Poi Dog Pondering, one Chicago’s most diverse and eclectic bands for the past 30 years is doing a week of hometown shows at Evanston Space. Since arriving in Chicago from Austin in 1992, Poi Dog has been a constantly evolving band with a string of notable albums and a line-up that is sometimes over 10 people. Their shows are the stuff of legend. Poi Dog’s Holiday residency at Space starts Monday, Dec. 27 and runs through New Year’s Eve. It will be a weeklong party.
GRAB YOUR TICKETS TO POI DOG PONDERING AT EVANSTON SPACE HERE.
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Los Lobos playing XRT Shows around the holidays is a long-time tradition at City Winery. This year the “Little Band From East L.A.” comes to town for a “New Year’s Eve Run.” Expect a rocking good time and a celebration of American roots, traditional Mexican and good old fashioned rock n roll. This great Mexican-American band creates a vibe that makes every show a backyard family party. They’ll be at City Winery for two nights starting Thursday, Dec. 30 and continuing New Year’s Eve with an 11 p.m. show.
GRAB YOUR TICKETS TO LOS LABOS AT CITY WINERY HERE.
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Finally, The Auditorium Theatre will be the site of three nights of shows with Colorado-based jam band stalwarts, The String Cheese Incident. SCI’s New Year’s Eve “Incidents” started in 1996 and have become an annual event. This year marks the first time they’ll ring in the New Year in Chicago in 18 years! Expect plenty of well-jammed originals, a collection of mind boggling covers, and fans from all across the country arriving to make Chicago a jam-tastic way to ring in 2022! The run starts Thursday, Dec. 30 and continues New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day at The Auditorium Theatre.
GRAB YOUR TICKETS TO THE STRING CHEESE INCIDENT AT THE AUDITORIUM THEATRE HERE.
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Get ready for all these shows and more by listening to Audacy's exclusive Jam Band radio station here. It includes the best improvisational Rock where you won't know what comes next, with favorites by Dave Matthews Band, Phish, moe., The String Cheese Incident, The Disco Biscuits, and more!
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