News

For the past few years The Chicago Authority has been honored to perform in Dunkirk at the “Thursdays on the Pier” music series. This year was a bit different because (1) the pier is under construction, and (2) the Independence Day celebration fell on a Thursday. So they set up the stage a few hundred yards to the south in the Veterans Memorial Park and changed the day to Wednesday.

We had a BLAST! What a beautiful setting! Thanks to Hector and the rest of the staff, and to all of our friends and fans in Dunkirk who continue to support us!

A huge THANK YOU to Jimmy for allowing us to take over his incredible venue, the River Grill in Tonawanda, NY. The place was packed with fans, friends, and family to hear us run the tunes we’ll be performing this summer season.

The only bad thing anyone has ever said about this venue? It’s only open for a few months in the too-short summer.

Another SOLD OUT show at the legendary Sportsmens Tavern!

More important, though, is the fact that we were able to donate another $1,000 to the Sportsmens’ Americana Music Foundation. This caring organization’s mission is “getting music into the ears and instruments into the hands of kids in Western New York.”

We are now at about $3,000 in total donations since we started playing at the Tavern two years ago. Look for our next date coming this fall!

THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU!!!

What a way to welcome an old friend and a new friend to the band!

A full house enthusiastically welcomed back founding member Eladio Rodriguez on vocals and percussion, and new member Barry Arbogast on woodwinds!

Last night’s show ran nearly three hours and included several choice “deep cuts” like Introduction, In The Country, Poem For The People and Brand New Love Affair in addition to the catalog of fan-favorite hits. The band also performed the masterpiece Ballet for a Girl in Buchannon (which includes the hits, Make Me Smile and Colour My World) in its entirety.

The legendary Egyptian Theatre in DeKalb, Illinois is a 10-hour drive from our home base in western New York state. We were supposed to split the drive and perform in Detroit or Toledo the night before but we couldn’t make that work. So we rented a big ol’ SUV and a U-Haul, sucked it up, and drove non-stop. What a BLAST!

We arrived the night before and immediately found a sports bar that could accommodate all ten of us. We didn’t go there for the sports, however. (They also had really good food!) Fortunately it was 200 feet from our hotel.

The venue holds a legacy that dates back nearly 100 years. Performers on that stage include Journey, Heart, and (rumor has it) the band to which we pay tribute!

All in all, it was an amazing experience — one that we look forward to repeating in the future.

Well, we did it again! The return to Jim Thorpe, Pennsylvania was even better the second time around. There was a beer festival going on in town that day and both the music and the libations were a-flowing! (Unfortunately we couldn’t imbibe because we had to drive all night to make another engagement the next day.)

Great owner, great venue, great town, and a GREAT audience! Vincent, the owner, is already talking to us about another return date. We’ll be there!

We performed Friday to a SOLD OUT show at THE RIVIERA THEATRE in North Tonawanda! Nearly 1200 people cheered us on with several show-stopping standing ovations.

The “Friday Tribute Series” is becoming very popular at this theatre, and special thanks for major sponsorship of the event goes to the Catholic Health System and Kenmore Mercy Hospital. Our own keyboardist, Tom Scime, is a retired First Responder, and Kenmore Mercy Hospital honored him and all of the area’s First Responders by purchasing a huge block of tickets for them and their spouses.

Thanks to the amazing Tech Crew led by Chuck Antolina with Neil in Monitor World, and to Laura and David for their wonderful hospitality!

Our show in Dunkirk on the 16th got canceled, and our show in Lock Haven, PA last night got moved indoors because Mother Nature couldn’t seem to make up her mind whether to weather or not. As it turned out, it never rained in Dunkirk despite predictions of major storms. And in Lock Haven, the sun kept poking its way through thick, ominous clouds only to be beaten back time and again time by the next storm cell.

After a major rain delay and a complete sound system move, we performed for about 300 people in the Main Room of the Elks Lodge in Lock Haven. Thank you to everyone who made this event possible — especially to Shawn with GP Audio and to Christina for the incredible hospitality!

Kicking off a full week of shows, we hit The Bromeley Family Theater last night without knowing what to expect. Imagine our surprise and delight to see a full house for our first time in this beautiful venue!

Thanks to everyone who worked so hard to make this show a success — the venue staff, the guys from APG Productions, the staff at Beefeaters (for the OUTSTANDING food!), and especially our new friends and fans! We hope to see you again soon!

A benefit for the Sportsmens Americana Music Foundation resulted in a PACKED house yesterday, and it kicked off our summer season of appearances. We’re looking forward to making new friends as we expand our horizons this year, performing as far from our hometown as DeKalb, IL in November.

Please visit our Shows Page to see all of our upcoming shows.