12PM // FREE // 21+
Chicago HonkyTonk Presents: A Sunday Matinee
Featuring JP Cyr & The Midnightmen and Dan Whitaker & The Shinebenders
Plus a Dance Lesson by Caitlin Rafferty & J.B. Duckett
Doors open at noon – Dance lessons at 1:30pm – Bands start at 2pm
JP Cyr & the Midnightmen hail from Milwaukee, Wisconsin and play get-up-and-dance Honky Tonk music. JP and the boys are heavily influenced by, and blend, classic Country, Western Swing, Rockabilly, Outlaw, and other Americana Country sounds. JP Cyr and the Midnightmen provide excellent musicianship that will keep your feet movin’ all night long. Their music is informed by a deep love and respect for those who came before them and with it, integrity, and a quality craft. Catch them in Milwaukee/Chicago area Honky Tonks and roots festivals throughout the Midwest.
Fronted by J.P. Cyr on vocals and upright bass, the Midnightmen are: Bobby Rivera on take off guitar, Jon Ziegler on vocals and rhythm guitar, Mike Budde on vocals and drums, and Tom Kneesel on pedal steel guitar.
Dan Whitaker & The Shinebenders do honky tonk their way, inviting you into a world where hard hitting country western meets hillbilly jazz. Singer and guitarist Dan Whitaker is a prolific songwriter who loves to dig deep into the unexpected to create his original sound. He’s equally comfortable crafting intricate bluesy instrumentals along with his character-driven stories set on the road and in honky tonks.“My music comes from an appreciation of the small wins and losses of life. Everyone wants to be the hero of their own story. But no story runs completely smooth.”“Far, Far Away,” DWSB’s recently released fourth album, is their most ambitious to date. “Far, Far Away” was recorded at Kingsize studios in Chicago with Mike Hagler, the engineer who also recorded 2017’s “Anything You Wanted To.” Hagler has worked with artists like Wilco, Neko Case, Billy Bragg, and Jon Langford, among others. The album’s 12 original songs range from honky tonk shuffles, rockers, Western numbers, and hillbilly jazz instrumentals — a unique mix of roots music that DWSB has come to be known for.“I like variety,” says Whitaker. “I consider all the different genres of country when writing my songs, because country music has never been about just one thing.”Along with Dan, The Shinebenders include fellow Chicago music veterans Tommy “Two Smokes” Mioducki, acoustic guitar and vocals, Earl “T-Bone” Powers, upright bass, and Eric “Chase” Niffenegger, drums. They tour the Midwestern and Texas circuits, and beyond, playing over 70 shows a year. In 2019 they were nominated for an Ameripolitan Award as Best Honky Tonk band, and have shared the stage with Shooter Jennings, James Hand, and Corb Lund. They’ve also played many of the finest honky tonks around, like The White Horse, American Legion Post 82, Skinny Dennis, The Lonesome Rose, and more.Together since 2004, the band is a tight knit group who thrives on dueling solos and a good slug of whiskey. At any DWSB gig, no two shows are alike. What’s guaranteed is that you’ll have a darn good time.Dan Whitaker has been creating independent original music since the mid 1980s in such bands as June Bug Massacre, Great Plains Gypsies, Athletic, The Gyps and Western Grand.