Tom Irwin

With summertime in full swing, the livin' is, as expressed in song, easy. So let's go have fun in the sun because we got it made in the shade with all the music being played in and around the area this upcoming week.

We're turning up the heat as we hit mid-July with the summer time going full on with fun-feeling, corn-tassling, music-making happenings everywhere you look, turn, walk, skip, hop and/or run. The decision is yours to participate, so make the right choice and get yourself out there to experience the live music and surrounding excitement.

Believe it or not (and I prefer to not) we've reached the last full weekend of July for 2026. August peeks in with the Illinois State Fair just ahead and the end of our summer season not far away. So, I say, get out there while you can and take part in it all, in every way possible. What say you?

Just as July flew by, August arrives in a hurry with a heap of heat on hand to make it all interesting, if not downright dangerous and definitely uncomfortable. Let's power on through, staying as cool as cool can be.

As we gear up for the first full weekend of August, the live music scene is in full throttle mode. With the pedal to the metal, the race is on to get to the Illinois State Fair, but first, let's take a pit stop for upcoming shows happening in the here and now.

Entering into the 2026 Illinois State Fair, we can safely say that music rules on the fairgrounds. Lest we get too taken by the plethora (I allow myself to use that word once a year) of performances inherent and even incumbent to the fair, remember we also have a whole bunch of shows happening all over town along with those at the ISF. Let's venture out to see what we find, fair enough?

Tom Irwin Conservation Law Foundation Aug. 15, 2026, 5:03 a.m. ET New Hampshire has been getting hotter and more humid each summer for the last two decades.

A mini-split, a kind of heat pump that is relatively easy to install, runs quiet, clean and at half the electricity cost of a window unit.

Here we go into the last weekend of the Illinois State Fair for 2026 with plenty left to experience, especially in our appointed subject of live music. There's so much being played on the grounds, no one can actually take it all in, which is a pretty darn good thing. Add in several in-town goings on, and as usual, there are choices to make as we embark on our weekly musical adventures.

As we roll on through the end of August, next weekend brings Labor Day and the unofficial finish to summer along for the ride. We will be falling into autumn soon enough, so let's take a gander at what's out there now as we wander through the aftermath of the State Fair looking for things to do.