Long Grove Arts & Music Council Announces 2014 Summer Concert Series Sundays, June 29 through August 24

The Long Grove Arts & Music Council (LGAMC) is proud to announce the 2014 summer concert series beginning Sunday, June 29 and returning Sundays through August 24 in Fountain Square in Historic Downtown Long Grove (Old McHenry & Robert Parker Coffin Road).

The LGAMC "Concerts in the Park" begin at 4 p.m. and last until about 6 p.m. and are free of charge. Concertgoers are encouraged to bring chairs and blankets and sit back and enjoy the air of a summer Sunday afternoon listening to wonderful music. Guests may bring their own food and beverage, or have the option to purchase food from local Long Grove merchants.

The summer concert series schedule is as follows:

June 29 - Corky Siegel & Howard Levy

Two Chicago Greats! One Phenomenal Concert. An amazing kick-off to the best season yet. Corky Siegel has earned an international reputation as one of the world's great blues harmonica masters. He is a composer, blues pianist, singer / songwriter, and recent winner of the Lila Wallace/Reader's Digest/Meet the Composer's national award for chamber music composition and the Illinois Arts Council Fellowship Award for Music Composition, Chicago Lifetime Achievement Award, and Chicago Blues Hall of Fame.

Howard Levy is a musician without limits. Composer, Grammy Award winner, multi-instrumentalist, he is best known for his astonishing harmonica playing, which has earned him the admiration of audiences worldwide. It is only natural then that Corky Siegel and Howard Levy, two of Chicago's most revered and celebrated music treasures, would come together to make people laugh while knocking them flat with jaw dropping virtuosity.

July 6 - No concert this Sunday. Happy Fourth of July!

July 13 - Small Potatoes

Nineteen years ago, Jacquie Manning and Rich Prezioso, the Chicago-area duo known as Small Potatoes, decided to hit the road. They might not have had the best plan, but what they did have were great songs and musicianship, and the ability to put on a show. From the start, they've called themselves eclecto-maniacs and described their music as "Celtic to Cowboy". They say it has taken them "years of careful indecision" to come up with a mix of music that ranges from country, blues, and swing to Irish, with songwriting that touches on all of those styles and more. They both sing, they both play guitars and an array of other instruments. They even yodel!

July 20 - Creole Stomp

Creole Stomp travels the country carrying the long tradition of Mississippi River valley Creole music to audiences of thousands. Creole Stomp shows have become legendary and those who have seen them know the emotion and passion that literally jumps from the band. In fact, over the years the band has become informally known as "The Grateful Dead of Creole Music." A favorite on the Cajun-Zydeco dance circuit, the band has also become a celebrated fixture at venues around the United States ranging from park concerts and theaters to folk and blues festivals. "Arguably the best band from outside of Louisiana 
to ever play its music " -Taste LA Festival

July 27 - Harpeth Rising

They were so good last year, Long Grove had to have them back again. Harpeth Rising chose to name themselves after a river because water is both dynamic and powerful. These words also describe the music created by the three women - Jordana Greenberg (violin, vocals), Rebecca Reed-Lunn (banjo, vocals) and Maria Di Meglio (cello, vocals). Unapologetic genre-benders, they fuse Folk, Newgrass, Rock and Classical into a sound that is organically unique. Absolutely not to be missed.

August 3 - Sons of the Never Wrong

SONS are as good as it gets when it comes to 3-part harmony within original, whimsical songs that spring from a great folk tradition. A trio made up of Sue Demel, Deborah Lader and Bruce Roper. For 20 years, Sons has been wowing fans with their music, humor, and outrageously fun live shows.

August 10 - Carrie Newcomer

Returning for her fourth time to the Summer Series. Carrie Newcomer has been described as "a soaring songstress" by Billboard, a "prairie mystic by the Boston Globe and Rolling Stone wrote that she "asks all the right questions." One of the definitive voices of the heartland and progressive spirituality, Newcomer has the ability for sharp observation of the world. Newcomer has attracted a devoted following with her warm voice, exquisite melodies, and an irreverent yet spiritual view of the world. As in the work of poets Mary Oliver and Wendell Berry, Newcomer's songs are based in the ordinary, and infused with images from the natural world.

August 17 - Alfonso Ponticelli & Swing Gitan

Alfonso Ponticelli and Swing Gitan is Chicago's premier gypsy-jazz band. The group plays the 1930s-style music of guitarist Django Reinhardt -- foot-tappin' swing played on acoustic instruments. It's a blend of the jubilant swing of early jazz with the feisty passion of gypsy music, plus a strong dose of guitar pyrotechnics and virtuosic improvisation.

August 24 - Maia Sharp & Friends

Maia Sharp wears many hats. She has had her songs recorded by The Dixie Chicks, Bonnie Raitt, Trisha Yearwood, Keb' Mo', Cher, Edwin McCain, David Wilcox, Art Garfunkel, Paul Carrack, Lisa Loeb and many more. She produced Edwin McCain's last album Mercy Bound (429 Records) and most recently two songs for Art Garfunkel's retrospective double album The Singer (Sony). And through it all, Maia has continued to record her own albums. She has five solo releases and one collaborative project with Art Garfunkel and Buddy Mondlock that have all been critically acclaimed and enthusiastically embraced by press and radio. Maia Sharp will be joined by Miami-native pianist and guitarist, AG, who has recorded nine albums and licensed music to television shows such as Grey's Anatomy, One Tree Hill, and Gossip Girl., and Garrison Starr, a recording artist with two EPs, one live album and fifteen years in the business under her belt. Amazingly talented musicians and songwriters on their own, bringing these three together makes for an extraordinary day of music.

This event is rain or shine! For more information on the summer concert series visit www.lgamc.org. If you have any questions about the LGAMC or if you would like to contribute, please contact: Tobin Fraley at info@lgamc.org or call 847-722-8989 .