Chicago live music

Folk Shows in Chicago

Live folk events across Chicago-area venues on RUE. Listings come from venue calendars — open a show for tickets and details.

Upcoming events

Garcia's Chicago·West Loop

Donna the Buffalo

Event features a General Admission Dance Pit in front of the stage! All sales are final, no refunds/exchanges permitted, but tickets may be transferred through your TM Account. Garcia's is fully ADA compliant featuring wheelchair lifts and ramps between the various levels of the venue, assisted listening devices upon request, and allows official service animals. Premium Table seating is located closest to the stage offering the most intimate music experience for guests and includes table service. Reserved Table seating is located on our main floor, behind the Premium section, and also includes table service. Both Premium and Reserved table seating is cabaret style which means you may be sitting with other fans. Private Booths are available and depending on the booth seats 1 to 4, 5, or 6 guests. General Admission/Standing Room is located around the sides of the room on an elevated level for quality viewing and easy bar access.

Folk / RootsRockPop
Nov 11
8:00 PM
Price TBADetails →
FitzGerald's·Berwyn

YARN w/ special guest Terry White & The Loaded Dice at FITZGERALDS Nightclub

FITZGERALDS NIGHTCLUB PRESENTS:YARN w/ special guest Terry White & The Loaded Dice$25 General Admission // $30/seat Reserved Tables Available You might expect a band that calls itself Yarn to, naturally, tend to spin a yarn or two. Thats what we do, we tell stories, live and in the studio, truth and fiction,singer/songwriter Blake Christiana insists. We dont always opt for consistency. Theres a different vibe onstage from what comes through in our recordings. Theres a difference in every show as well, you never know what youre going to get.Yarns ability to persevere ought to come as no great surprise, especially for a band that spent two years honing their chops during a Monday night residency at the famed Kennys Castaway in New Yorks Greenwich Village. In effect, it allowed them to rehearse onstage, mostly in front of audiences that often ranged in size from five to a hundred people on any given night. 10 studio albums followed -- Yarn (2007), Empty Pockets (2008), Leftovers Part One (2009), Come On In (2010), Leftovers Part 2 (2011), Almost Home (2012), Shine the Light On (2013), This Is The Year (2016), and Lucky 13 parts 1 ve driven nonstop, made countless radio station appearances, driven broken-down RVs and watched as their van caught fire. Theyve paid their dues and then some, looking forward even as they were forced to glance behind.Indeed, the accolades piled up quickly along the way. They have landed on the Grammy ballot 4 times, garnered nods from the Americana Music Association, placed top five on both Radio and Records and the AMA album charts, garnered airplay on Sirius XM, iTunes, Pandora, CNN, and CMT, been streamed millions of times on Spotify, Apple Music, and Amazon, and also accorded the Download of the Day from Rolling Stone. Shine the Light On found shared songwriting credits with John Oates (the Oates of Hall the Yarmy.Grab dinner before the show at BABYGOLD BARBECUE (link to restaurant website)Or enjoy full service dining inside the club when doors open. ***PARKING***There is rather limited street parking in the area, we recommend arriving by rideshare, bicycle, or rickshaw. ***AGE RESTRICTIONS***21+, minors admitted with guardian

Folk / RootsElectronic
Nov 12
8:30 PM
SPACE·Evanston

Tyrone Wells w. Tony Lucca

First things first. Let's get this out-of-the-way. Tyrone Wells (I) wrote this bio. I figured, , "rdquo" -> who better to talk about myself than myself?". I'm a lot of things in no particular order... a preacher's son, a brother, a husband, a dad, a real estate lover, a major-label artist, an independent artist, an opener, a headliner, a very self-conscious dancer (think , "rdquo" -> Footloose", only without the cathartic cutting loose), a gardener, a wanna be surfer, a person who has needed therapy, a pickleball player, a barstool theologian, and this next one kind of goes without saying because you're here reading my bio.. I'm a singer-songwriter. I've written a lot of songs. Probably approaching around 1,000 songs now... to me, when I wrote them, they were all good songs. The luxury of time has informed me, some of the songs were maybe just good to me. And some of the songs, inexplicably, have millions upon millions of listeners. Meanwhile, others have tens upon tens. I don't know why, I just write them and set them free. Ultimately, I'm trying my best to be honest, and write a song that I, and you can both love. I'm gonna keep trying. I'm so grateful that you have listened. Be it once, or be it a hundred times. I've got big love for you. I'll be over here chopping away and reminding myself to be vulnerable. Peace and Love, XOXO Tyrone

Folk / RootsRockPop
Nov 13
8:00 PM
Garcia's Chicago·West Loop

Sam Grisman Project

Event features a General Admission Dance Pit in front of the stage! All sales are final, no refunds/exchanges permitted, but tickets may be transferred through your TM Account. Garcia's is fully ADA compliant featuring wheelchair lifts and ramps between the various levels of the venue, assisted listening devices upon request, and allows official service animals. Premium Table seating is located closest to the stage offering the most intimate music experience for guests and includes table service. Reserved Table seating is located on our main floor, behind the Premium section, and also includes table service. Both Premium and Reserved table seating is cabaret style which means you may be sitting with other fans. Private Booths are available and depending on the booth seats 1 to 4, 5, or 6 guests. General Admission/Standing Room is located around the sides of the room on an elevated level for quality viewing and easy bar access.

Folk / RootsRockPop
Nov 13
8:00 PM
Price TBADetails →
FitzGerald's·Berwyn

THEM COULEE BOYS FINAL TOUR @ FITZGERALDS NIGHTCLUB

FITZGERALDS NIGHTCLUB PRESENTS:THEM COULEE BOYS seen HERE $30 General Admission // $40/seat reserved tablesSoren Staff and Beau Janke - co-founders of folk/rock/Americana outfit Them Coulee Boys - met as camp counselors in northern Wisconsin in 2011. Their weekend workshopping of Avett Brothers and classic country tunes led to original songs and adding Sorens brother Jens on mandolin. As the years grew, the band turned into a more rollicking outfit, adding Neil Krause on electric bass and Stas Hable on drums. The bands name is a nod to the glacial melt-carved river valleys they call home, known by early French fur trappers as coulees. Known for wild swings of emotion during sets, it is not unusual to see fans in tears and minutes later dancing with abandon. The honesty and ability to talk and sing about the feelings and emotions that shape them has endeared them to a growing group of fans and friends.With four full-length albums and an EP behind them, including 2019s Die Happy (produced byTrampled By Turtles Dave Simonett on Lo-Hi Records) and 2021s Namesake (produced by Grammy winner Brian Joseph), the band has garnered international attention and earned press in American Songwriter, Ditty TV, Folk Alley, and The Bluegrass Situation, as well as tours with Trampled By Turtles, Los Lobos, Old Crow Medicine Show and a spot on the songwriters Cayamo Cruise.2021s Namesake found the band following a new trajectory, combining their signature take on folk-grass and Americana with comfort on electric instruments and playing rock and roll. The record lives and breathes. Its both intimate and bombastic. Its the sweet aunt who makes delicious pies and the wiley uncle whos not afraid to hit a bit of the bottle. At the bottom is the acceptance that comes with family and old friends; none of us are perfect, but theres enough love out there to make up for it.In 2020, they were named Milwaukee Journal Sentinels Band to Watch. In 2021, they won Bluegrass/Americana Band of the Year by the Wisconsin Area Music Industry. For all things Them Coulee Boys, please visit themcouleeboys.com. Grab dinner before the show at BABYGOLD BARBECUEOr enjoy full service dining inside the club when doors open. ***PARKING***There is rather limited street parking in the area, we recommend arriving by rideshare, bicycle, or rickshaw. ***AGE RESTRICTIONS***21+, minors admitted with guardian

Folk / Roots
Nov 13
8:30 PM
Garcia's Chicago·West Loop

Sam Grisman Project

Event features a General Admission Dance Pit in front of the stage! All sales are final, no refunds/exchanges permitted, but tickets may be transferred through your TM Account. Garcia's is fully ADA compliant featuring wheelchair lifts and ramps between the various levels of the venue, assisted listening devices upon request, and allows official service animals. Premium Table seating is located closest to the stage offering the most intimate music experience for guests and includes table service. Reserved Table seating is located on our main floor, behind the Premium section, and also includes table service. Both Premium and Reserved table seating is cabaret style which means you may be sitting with other fans. Private Booths are available and depending on the booth seats 1 to 4, 5, or 6 guests. General Admission/Standing Room is located around the sides of the room on an elevated level for quality viewing and easy bar access.

Folk / RootsRockPop
Nov 14
8:00 PM
Price TBADetails →
Garcia's Chicago·West Loop

Mountain Grass Unit

Event features a General Admission Dance Pit in front of the stage! All sales are final, no refunds/exchanges permitted, but tickets may be transferred through your TM Account. Garcia's is fully ADA compliant featuring wheelchair lifts and ramps between the various levels of the venue, assisted listening devices upon request, and allows official service animals. Premium Table seating is located closest to the stage offering the most intimate music experience for guests and includes table service. Reserved Table seating is located on our main floor, behind the Premium section, and also includes table service. Both Premium and Reserved table seating is cabaret style which means you may be sitting with other fans. Private Booths are available and depending on the booth seats 1 to 4, 5, or 6 guests. General Admission/Standing Room is located around the sides of the room on an elevated level for quality viewing and easy bar access.

Folk / RootsRock
Nov 20
8:00 PM
Price TBADetails →
Martyrs'·North Center

The Reverend Peyton's Big Damn Band

Chicago! The Rev. Peyton's Big Damn Band returns to Martyrs' Friday, November 20th! Grab your tickets!! Three time BMA nominee's The Reverend Peyton's Big Damn Band are "the greatest front-porch blues band in the world". They are led by Reverend Peyton, who most consider to be the premier finger picker playing today. He has earned a reputation as both a singularly compelling performer and a persuasive evangelist for the rootsy, country blues styles that captured his imagination early in life and inspired him and his band to make pilgrimages to Clarksdale, Mississippi to study under such blues masters as T-Model Ford, Robert Belfour and David "Honeyboy" Edwards.Their latest record, Honeysuckle was produced and recorded by Reverend Peyton and mixed by eight-time Grammy winner Vance Powell (Chris Stapleton, Jack White). The record features many special guests, including gospel music group The McCrary Sisters on the song "Manger," Blues Music Hall of Famer and Grammy-nominated harmonica player Billy Branch who plays on the Blind Lemon Jefferson song "Nell (Prison Cell Blues)," Grammy award-winning and IBMA's 10-time Fiddle Player of the Year Michael Cleveland plays on "Freeborn Man" and Colton Crawford from The Dead South plays banjo on "The Good Die Young." Adrian and Meredith Band is a Nashville-based Bohemian swing-folk act built around rhythm, movement, and the shared experience of live music. Led by married troubadour duo Adrian and Meredith Krygowski, the band draws from Americana, swing, soul, polka, and global folk traditions.

Folk / RootsRockJazz / Blues
Nov 20
8:00 PM
Garcia's Chicago·West Loop

Mountain Grass Unit

Event features a General Admission Dance Pit in front of the stage! All sales are final, no refunds/exchanges permitted, but tickets may be transferred through your TM Account. Garcia's is fully ADA compliant featuring wheelchair lifts and ramps between the various levels of the venue, assisted listening devices upon request, and allows official service animals. Premium Table seating is located closest to the stage offering the most intimate music experience for guests and includes table service. Reserved Table seating is located on our main floor, behind the Premium section, and also includes table service. Both Premium and Reserved table seating is cabaret style which means you may be sitting with other fans. Private Booths are available and depending on the booth seats 1 to 4, 5, or 6 guests. General Admission/Standing Room is located around the sides of the room on an elevated level for quality viewing and easy bar access.

Folk / RootsRock
Nov 21
8:00 PM
Price TBADetails →
SPACE·Evanston

Jon McLaughlin: Home For The Holidays

Ring in the season with Jon McLaughlins Home for the Holidays, an evening of music, stories, and holiday cheer. Jon returns to the stage with his signature blend of heartfelt songwriting, masterful piano playing, and soaring vocals.McLaughlin will perform a mix of original holiday songs, classic Christmas favorites, and fan-favorite hits from his celebrated career, which began with his 2007 major-label debut Indiana and has since included chart-topping releases, national tours, and film and television appearances.Gather your family and friends for an evening thats sure to become a new holiday tradition!

FreeRockPop
Dec 10
7:30 PM
Garcia's Chicago·West Loop

Relix Presents: An Intimate Evening with Moe. - 3-DAY GEN ADM PASS

The 3-DAY PASS is good for all 3 shows of moe at Garcia's Chicago, Friday through Sunday, December 18 through 20, all shows are at 7:00pm, doors open at 5:30pm Event features a General Admission Dance Pit in front of the stage open to all! All sales are final, no refunds/exchanges permitted, but tickets may be transferred through your TM Account. Garcia's is fully ADA compliant featuring wheelchair lifts and ramps between the various levels of the venue, assisted listening devices upon request, and allows official service animals.

RockPopFolk / Roots
Dec 17
6:00 PM
Price TBADetails →

Into It. Over It.

Doors open at 530PM. Performance begins at 630PM. This show is for ALL AGES. House of Blues Chicago is a standing room only venue, all tickets are General Admission unless otherwise stated. *All support acts are subject to change without notice.* Upgrade Your Experience: https://www.sevenrooms.com/events/hobchicago/hobwebsite

RockMetalPop
Dec 18
5:30 PM
Price TBADetails →
Garcia's Chicago·West Loop

Relix Presents: An Intimate Evening with Moe.

Event features a General Admission Dance Pit in front of the stage open to all! All sales are final, no refunds/exchanges permitted, but tickets may be transferred through your TM Account. Garcia's is fully ADA compliant featuring wheelchair lifts and ramps between the various levels of the venue, assisted listening devices upon request, and allows official service animals.

RockPopFolk / Roots
Dec 18
7:00 PM
Price TBADetails →
Garcia's Chicago·West Loop

Relix Presents: An Intimate Evening with Moe.

Event features a General Admission Dance Pit in front of the stage open to all! All sales are final, no refunds/exchanges permitted, but tickets may be transferred through your TM Account. Garcia's is fully ADA compliant featuring wheelchair lifts and ramps between the various levels of the venue, assisted listening devices upon request, and allows official service animals.

RockPopFolk / Roots
Dec 19
7:00 PM
Price TBADetails →
Garcia's Chicago·West Loop

Relix Presents: An Intimate Evening with Moe.

Event features a General Admission Dance Pit in front of the stage open to all! All sales are final, no refunds/exchanges permitted, but tickets may be transferred through your TM Account. Garcia's is fully ADA compliant featuring wheelchair lifts and ramps between the various levels of the venue, assisted listening devices upon request, and allows official service animals.

RockPopFolk / Roots
Dec 20
7:00 PM
Price TBADetails →
Salt Shed·Bucktown

Greensky Bluegrass 2 Day GA Pass (Valid 12/30 - 12/31)

A string band with a big, expansive sound, Michigan's Greensky Bluegrass rode their regional D.I.Y. roots to national success in the late 2000s after years of hard touring and a succession of finely crafted independent releases. Approaching classic Americana styles with an exploratory, progressive spirit, the group's members claim to have come to bluegrass through the back door, citing rock influences as their gateway into more traditional acoustic styles. Through releases like 2014's bluegrass chart-topping breakout If Sorrows Swim and 2016's Shouted, Written Down & Quoted, Greensky Bluegrass have continued to fuse the energy of rock with the earthy spirit of string music. Following an outpouring of archival live releases, the group returned in early 2022 with the eclectic Stress Dreams.

Folk / RootsRock
Dec 30
8:30 PM
Price TBADetails →
Salt Shed·Bucktown

Greensky Bluegrass

A string band with a big, expansive sound, Michigan's Greensky Bluegrass rode their regional D.I.Y. roots to national success in the late 2000s after years of hard touring and a succession of finely crafted independent releases. Approaching classic Americana styles with an exploratory, progressive spirit, the group's members claim to have come to bluegrass through the back door, citing rock influences as their gateway into more traditional acoustic styles. Through releases like 2014's bluegrass chart-topping breakout If Sorrows Swim and 2016's Shouted, Written Down & Quoted, Greensky Bluegrass have continued to fuse the energy of rock with the earthy spirit of string music. Following an outpouring of archival live releases, the group returned in early 2022 with the eclectic Stress Dreams.

Folk / RootsRock
Dec 30
8:30 PM
Price TBADetails →
Salt Shed·Bucktown

Greensky Bluegrass

A string band with a big, expansive sound, Michigan's Greensky Bluegrass rode their regional D.I.Y. roots to national success in the late 2000s after years of hard touring and a succession of finely crafted independent releases. Approaching classic Americana styles with an exploratory, progressive spirit, the group's members claim to have come to bluegrass through the back door, citing rock influences as their gateway into more traditional acoustic styles. Through releases like 2014's bluegrass chart-topping breakout If Sorrows Swim and 2016's Shouted, Written Down & Quoted, Greensky Bluegrass have continued to fuse the energy of rock with the earthy spirit of string music. Following an outpouring of archival live releases, the group returned in early 2022 with the eclectic Stress Dreams.

Folk / RootsRock
Dec 31
9:30 PM
Price TBADetails →