Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
night, the Green Mill hosts the
Uptown Poetry Slam,
when poets vie for the
open mic to roast and ridicule each other's work. Most nights, however, jazz is on
the menu, beginning around 9pm and winding down just before closing at 4am
(5am Sat). Regular performers include vocalist Kurt Elling, who performs stan-
dards and some of his own songs with a quartet, and chanteuse Patricia Barber
(they're both worth seeing if they're playing while you're in town). The Green Mill
is a Chicago treasure and not to be missed. Get there early to claim one of the
plush velvet booths.
4802 N. Broadway (at Lawrence Ave.).
&
773/878-5552.
Cover $6-$15.
Subway/El: Red Line to Lawrence.
Jazz Showcase
Spanning more than 50 years and several locations,
founder Joe Segal has become synonymous with jazz in Chicago. His son,
Wayne, recently took over the business, but this latest venue in the River North
restaurant and entertainment district is the spiffiest yet, a spacious and hand-
some room with sharp black-and-white photographs of jazz greats, many of
whom have passed through Segal's clubs. There are two shows a night, and reser-
vations are recommended for big-name headliners. Such well-regarded musi-
cians as McCoy Tyner, Clark Terry, Maynard Ferguson, and Ahmad Jamal have
made appearances in recent years. The Segals make an effort to cultivate new
generations of jazz lovers, too: The club admits all ages (free for children under
12), has a nonsmoking policy, and offers a Sunday 4pm matinee show. The
Segals's latest outpost is the new
Joe's Be-bop Cafe and Jazz Emporium
at
Navy Pier, 600 E. Grand Ave. (
&
312/595-5299
), a Southern-style barbecue
restaurant with live music nightly.
59 W. Grand St. (at Clark St.).
&
312/670-2473.
www.jazzshowcase.com. Tickets $20-$25. Subway/El: Red Line to Grand.
Pops for Champagne
A very civilized, elegant way to enjoy jazz, the
Pops champagne bar is one of the prettiest rooms in the city, with fine murals,
a vaulted ceiling, and a stage rising above the sunken bar. Live jazz—mostly
small-combo piano jazz—is presented 7 nights a week, beginning at 8:30pm
Sunday through Thursday, and 9pm on Friday and Saturday. Sundays and Mon-
days are free. While you're there, it's pretty much required that you sample one
of the club's 100 varieties of bubbly.
2934 N. Sheffield Ave. (at Oakdale Ave.).
&
773/
472-1000.
Cover $5-$10. Subway/El: Brown Line to Diversey.
Velvet Lounge
For more than 20 years, Fred Anderson has been run-
ning the Velvet Lounge, playing a mean tenor sax, and acting as a guiding force
for Chicago's young improvisational musicians. His small, unpretentious haunt
looks like it hasn't been updated—with the exception of the mics and recording
equipment—in years, but the attraction here is the music, and its pull is strong
5 nights a week. The long-running jam each Sunday night attracts many of the
city's best talents, and each Friday and Saturday night the place is packed until
its 2am closing with old-school jazz lovers as well as North Side hipsters. Inter-
national talents such as Hamid Drake, Ken Vandermark, Tatsu Aoki, Kent
Kessler, and Jeff Parker perform frequently in different combinations. Fans pack
the house, so arrive by 9pm if you want to sit.
2128
1
⁄
2
S. Indiana Ave.
&
888/644-8007.
www.velvetlounge.net. Cover $5-$10. Subway/El: Red Line to Cermack/Chinatown.
BLUES
If Chicagoans were asked to pick one musical style to represent their city, most
of us would start singing the blues. Thanks in part to the presence of the influ-
ential Chess Records, Chicago became a hub of blues activity after World War
II, with musicians such as Muddy Waters, Howlin' Wolf, and Buddy Guy all
recording and performing here. Chicago helped usher in the era of “electric
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