by Sharon Gissy

Grammy winner Jon Cleary, who has kept alive the tradition of New Orleans-style piano and voice, will release his new album Live At Chickie Wah Wah this month and tour June and July in support of it. Known as a member of the Absolute Monster Gentlemen, this is Cleary's first solo outing and demonstrates the skill of the rhythm and blues piano player and the essence of his regular audience favorite Tuesday night shows at Chickie Wah Wah.

Jon Cleary has been influenced by the classic Crescent City keyboard canon, from Jelly Roll Morton to Fats Domino, although his own style is completely unique. His soulful vocals, piano skills, and knack for self-composed songs with strong melodies and incisive lyrics has earned him recording credits with Bonnie Raitt and Ryan Adams among others, while his respected Crescent City contemporaries include New Orleans R&B legends such as Dr. John and Allen Touissant. 

Offbeat Magazine says "His knowledge of R&B, funk, gospel, reggae, Cuban music—no one connects New Orleans to Cuba more suavely—and boogie-woogie is profound, leading to a splendid rhythmic freedom. And his fantastic voice, a more conventionally beautiful one than his idols’, is full of melismatic invention and fervor."

A full list of Jon Cleary tour dates is available below:

JUN 6 TUE Chickie Wah Wah New Orleans, LA 
JUN 8 THU d.b.a. New Orleans, LA 
JUN 13 TUE Chickie Wah Wah New Orleans, LA 
JUN 15 THU d.b.a. New Orleans, LA 
JUN 17 SAT Chickie Wah Wah New Orleans, LA 
JUN 21 WED Bar Lunatico Brooklyn, NY 
JUN 22 THU Infinity Music Hall Norfolk, CT 
JUN 23 FRI The Ardmore Music Hall Ardmore, PA 
JUN 24 SAT Bayou Boogaloo Norfolk, VA 
JUN 26 MON City Winery Nashville, TN 
JUN 27 TUE City Winery Atlanta, GA 
JUL 1 SAT JazzAscona Ascona, Switzerland 
JUL 2 SUN Montreux Jazz Festival Montreux, Switzerland 
JUL 4 TUE Villa in Blues Festival Brugnera, Italy 
JUL 6 THU Spotorno Town Square Spotorno, Italy 
JUL 8 SAT North Sea Jazz Fest Rotterdam, Netherlands 
JUL 9 SUN Copenhagen Jazz Festival Copenhagen, Denmark 
JUL 11 TUE Band on the Wall Manchester, United Kingdom 
JUL 12 WED Liverpool Music Club Liverpool, United Kingdom 
JUL 13 THU Kensington, UK Nells Jazz & Blues 
JUL 14 FRI Colston Hall Bristol, United Kingdom 
JUL 15 SAT Peer Blues Festival Peer, Belgium 
JUL 16 SUN Big River Festival Dordrecht, Netherlands 
JUL 19 WED Castle Courtyard Koniz, Switzerland 
JUL 20 THU Jazztage Lenk Lenk in Simmental, Switzerland 
JUL 21 FRI Scala Ludwigsburg Ludwigsburg, Germany 
JUL 29 SAT Cambridge Folk Festival Cambridge, UK 
JUL 30 SUN Cambridge Folk Festival Cambridge, UK 
AUG 3 THU The Livingston Hoot Livingston, MT 
AUG 6 SUN Blues on the Chippewa Maiden Rock, WI 
AUG 18 FRI SPACE Evanston, IL 
SEP 20 WED Bull Run Shirley, MA 
SEP 21 THU Ridgefield Playhouse Ridgefield, CT 
SEP 23 SAT Levon Helm Studios Woodstock, NY

by Sharon Gissy

The second wave of artists slated to play Chicago Riot Fest 2017, which takes place from September 15-17 in Douglas Park, has just been announced. The lineup includes At the Drive-In, Cap’n Jazz, Best Coast, Black Pistol Fire, The Casualties, Mad Caddies, Cockney Rejects, Radar State, RVIVR, Versus, Seaway, Like Pacific, Grayscale, Warm Brew, Culture Abuse, Potty Mouth, Skating Polly, Upset, Gin Rummy, The Voluptuous Horror of Karen Black, and Kembra Pfahler.

These artists will join an all-star lineup that includes Nine Inch Nails, Queens of the Stone Age, and the reunion of punk rock band Jawbreaker. Once again the festival will offer a full carnival with rides, games, and the Hellzapoppin' Sideshow Revue freak show, as well as 40 unique food vendors to satisfy appetites. Tickets for the festival are available here.