The Chicago Pop Festival

November 6, 5:21 PMNashville Music ExaminerKen Utterback

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      Image courtesy of Dean Milano

It was just about a year ago today that I received the first of many emails from Dean Milano, an old musical acquaintance of mine from the late 1960's. After a quick introduction and reminder of our affiliations, he told me about a book that he was in the process of writing, about the vibrant Chicago music scene of the 1960's and 1970's. He went on to ask me if I had anything to submit, since I was very involved in that very scene so many years ago.

Naturally, I was honored to be asked to contribute to such a project. and began putting some ideas in an email, along with photos of groups I had worked with during those years.

In the following months, as more stories and photos started coming in from all over Chicagoland, the book, titled The Chicago Music Scene: 1960's and 1970's, became the seed of something a whole lot bigger. Not long ago, an all-star jam was suggested and eventually scheduled for this month. A wildfire of interest and support soon began to flourish and what had been born as a book project quickly started to grow by leaps and bounds.

As of now, the book signings are happening this month at a variety of Chicago locations and the November show has become so popular, that a full-blown pop festival is scheduled for this Spring. The November 22nd event will now only be the first part of the whole shebang. The book release party will be a huge 'meet and greet' with food and drinks and a show which includes plenty of performers whose names and stories are in the book. The much larger event, The Chicago Pop Festival, looks like it will become a very significant part of Chicago's music history.

There is still time to get discounted tickets for the first half of this immense production, but I suggest you hurry it up, if you wish to be present for the first part of this historical musical event. Did I hear somebody say, "Road trip!"? Heck, it's only eight hours from Nashville; I do it all the time.

---Ken Utterback is a long time musician who writes a blog on MySpace and also submits stories for the Pacific Gas & Electric fan website. You can email Ken at: klutterback@gmail.com---