By Dan on May 18, 2008 in Blog
Regular readers of this blog might recall my touting the wonderfulness of the Ginn Sisters, a band from the Lone Star State who have been described, quite accurately I might add, as possessing the hottest harmonies in Texas. I had them booked here for a June 7 gig, and we were all going to be the better for it.
On Friday I talked to the manager of the former-theatre-turned-bar-and-grill, that shall remain nameless, where the show was to take place, and he told me that despite his repeated promises, he couldn’t get the local band originally booked for that night to switch to a different date. He gave me this news, accompanied by a dubious excuse, after weeks of not returning my calls.
I’ll tend to him later. For now, I need to find a place for the Ginn Sisters to play. It could be a bar, it could be a hall that we rent, it could be an old barn on the outskirts of town. We just need some place where thirty to fifty music lovers can gather and enjoy some great Americana music while drinking beer. I might add that a Ginns show is more than just music. They develop a strong rapport with their audience by cracking jokes and spinning yarns and being quite delightful, and it all makes for a highly entertaining evening.
They really want to play in Springfield and time is running out. If this were Mayberry, we’d all pitch in to repair the old bandstand in the park while Aunt Bea and Clara mended the old band uniforms. But we’re not living in a black-and-white, syndicated world. So then, if you know of any possible venues, please pipe up. No ideas are stupid and we have the opportunity to increase the cool quotient of Springfield exponentially by pulling this thing off.
Thank you,
Dan
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Dan
Just curious, are they tied to the June 7 date? You know I love a good cause…I’ll start thinking.
nancy | May 19, 2008 | Reply
Nancy,
Yes, they have other shows already booked and they really wanted to play Springfield on a weekend night. Had I known back in January they were going to be in Illinois in June, I would have tried to get them booked for Little Flower’s Heritage Days. Or I would have rented the beach house for a semi-private show. Now our options are limited.
Dan
Dan | May 19, 2008 | Reply
Dan-
You might call Hoogland. They have a variety of rooms. If you’re only looking to fill it up with 50 people or so, one of the smaller rooms might be good. They have a room there on the third floor called the Club Room, that has a pretty cozy atmosphere, and I think it will hold up to about 150 people. It costs, though. Just a thought.
What about Floyd’s? I know they get bands from time to time. Maybe not the ideal location, but a location nonetheless. Or Marly’s? They have bands quite a bit there, and they might be interested in showcasing some new musicians.
Outdoor venues? Any of the public parks have decent areas for bands? I know bands play at Douglas Park sometimes. They have a bandshell. Or Centennial Park.
Best of luck, Dan. Sorry to hear things didn’t work out at your first venue of choice. I think it’s pretty crappy the way that whole thing went down.
John | May 19, 2008 | Reply
Thanks John.
Tom Irwin has been giving me advice during my first foray into concert promoting and he told me that it’s unlikely that any of the downtown bars will have an opening at this late date.
Russ is inquiring into a venue for me, so hopefully that will bear fruit.
Dan
Dan | May 19, 2008 | Reply
Dan-
It may not be what you want, but have you checked with the winery in Oakford. They have a great venue for live music. We went to an NPR event there last year, and it was great. They have wine, beer, and the whole upstairs loft of the barn is a concert area. Ask Tom, he was there.
Unfortunately, the issue there is convincing people to drive 40 minutes to Oakford to see them.
John | May 20, 2008 | Reply
Oh, you can find them here:
http://hillprairiewinery.com/
John | May 20, 2008 | Reply
I agree with John re: Oakford. It’s a neat place and would seem to be a fitting ambiance for the way you describe the Ginn Sisters’ music.
nancy | May 20, 2008 | Reply
John,
Actually, Tom played in Oakford this past Sunday. It does sound like a cool place, but I agree it might be hard to get people to travel there, especially since there isn’t a lot of time left to promote the show.
Also, don’t they have problems in Oakford with kids bootlegging six-packs on their bikes. It sounds a bit lawless to me, might not be safe for us city slickers.
Thanks for commenting,
Dan
Dan | May 20, 2008 | Reply
Dan,
In the downtown area, I would also recommend the Club Room at the Hoogland. It’s very intimate and can seat around 150 depending on the set up. Theatre 3 might also work…many concerts have taken place in there and it can seat around 300. There are fees for these rooms and I believe the Hoogie has a rate sheet on their website. There’s also Stella Blue above Sebastian’s and a room off of Andiamo’s that they rent out for shows which is nothing spectacular. For work receptions, I’ve used the renovated INB conference space at the corner of 4th and Jackson (the former Ford Building) and the old sj-r press room (now owned by IHPA) just south of Cafe Brio. I have no idea if they could accommodate a concert but I mention them because they’re nice venues and not likely to be booked as they’re generally not open to the public. Who knows…they might be receptive to the idea of hosting a small concert…but I’m guessing you want a place with a bar. These places have bar set ups, but you’d have to hire a caterer. Maybe Pizza Machine? They just recently had a band in there. You’d have to make sure it wasn’t on the same night as some kids 7th b-day party.
Mary | May 21, 2008 | Reply