KICKIN IT AT THE BARN!

       BARN DANCE







On our return trip from Kendo's 90th Birthday bash in Milwaukee, Susie and I made a cross country run to North Western Illinois driftless region.  Stopping only to pick up cheese in SW Wisconsin.

We hooked up with my old buddy Ron and his daughter Liv at Council Hill, a "Must Stop" list for any trip to Galena.   The folks that run the station are friendly & welcoming with their own quirks.  It used to be a rail road depot/station, & every time the train goes by the guy runs for the piano, straps a harmonica on, & starts playing this 'train is coming through' song.  He really sounds pretty good & can't be interrupted until the train's gone through.  The wood burning stove is original from the 1850s, & the wide plank floor seems solid & looks authentic.   The fridge is about 8' wide & stocked full of craft, & recognizable import beer w/ a few domestics.They have music every weekend,last weekends line up included  The Fever River String Band, The Matriarchs, and the Blackberry Bushes

Lilly keeps the beat with a couple of foot peddles and a base suitcase drum.

The Blackberry  Bushes are back in the mid west for Jakob and Jessica's wedding this Saturday.  It should be a blast!  Uniting these two great kids and a gathering of some of the best people around.  Plus, there's going to be square dance lessons to boot.

 Last night Susie and I went just 20 miles down the road to the Codfish Hollow Barn Stormer.  They built the round barn in 1954. They celebrated the completion of the barn with a barn dance. The round barn hosted live music again, 55 years later in 2009 with the first Daytrotter Barnstormer.  They host live local and national indie bands in their barn. We  took a hayrack ride down to the barn with Marvin for the show.


  Bring your coolers. (BYOB)

  The house is used for an art gallery during the summer time shows but when the girls and I hiked over to check it out last night it was more like a haunted house.  The girls really brightened it up!


















  4 On the Floor is "a rock 'n' roll kind of stomp band. Really fun,  we've caught them a few times this past year.

Dustin Smith and the Sunday Silos are a great band out of the Des Moines area that has a funky lead singer , horns and 







back up singers that
kick out  some falsetto harmony.







Hugh Bob and the Hustle

is a Milwaukee based band with a confident lead singer that has a mumford and sons sound.

 Willy Mason a blues singer song writer from Minnesota closed out the show for us.





He reminded me of a younger version of alot of the old blues guys that we checked out back in the day.