tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-336186652009-03-07T18:13:20.158-06:00THE NEWS BLOGanything about anythingJimnoreply@blogger.comBlogger29125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33618665.post-21139715759072332952009-03-06T13:36:00.002-06:002009-03-06T13:49:04.877-06:00Summer Looking Good.Our Summer seems to be shaping up. With our first public performance coming in May and every 3rd Friday from May until August we will be at the Des Plaines "Cheeseburger in Paradise". It's our first time performing there and it sounds like fun. We will also be returning to Delavan, WI. Lake Lawn Resort. Please see our schedule page for more information.The K. Michaels Band has also secured Jimnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33618665.post-48594314387348865262009-02-10T17:11:00.004-06:002009-02-10T17:29:02.437-06:00Lake Lawn ResortWe hope everyone has survived the winter months so far. Well we are starting to line up a few summer shows and hopefully more will follow. We will be returning to Morris, IL this coming Saturday for a Valentine's Night show at Clayton's Tap, and this time we trying to bring our wives with so they won't feel left out of this special day. We have also secured 2 dates with Lake Lawn Resort in Jimnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33618665.post-55964428022473614972009-01-01T20:20:00.003-06:002009-01-01T20:29:24.786-06:00Happy 2009We hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas and we wish everyone a happy new year. Thank you to the ThedaCare group for having us back again for their annual holiday party. We had a great time and it was wonderful seeing all our friends. We hope the new year brings us closer to new and past friends. In the meantime I just want to share with you all the newest member to our family, Rigby. Take Jimnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33618665.post-29083738166296984222008-11-29T18:38:00.004-06:002008-11-30T12:25:25.618-06:00Thanksgiving 2008First of all it's been sometime since I last updated this blog. I guess I have just been pretty busy with other things in my life. Let me start off by saying I hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving. This year our family feast was held at my home. Three of my four brothers and their families were able to make it. It's always great getting together with family. There was plenty of food to go Jimnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33618665.post-68063806502971018362008-08-25T19:46:00.007-05:002008-08-25T22:59:25.136-05:0020th AnniversaryThe annual event that's a must attend for all Beatles fans has come and gone. The Fest For Beatles fans is a 3 day event held at the Hyatt Regency O'Hare. Lisa and I attend the fest every year just to meet and hear stories of the fab four as told by people who were close and within their circle. This year we had the pleasure of meeting Patty Boyd, former wife of George Harrison and Eric Clapton.Jimnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33618665.post-21647640628241108342008-07-29T22:33:00.007-05:002008-07-29T23:10:29.940-05:00August PerformancesAnother busy month has gone by and I'd like to thank everyone who has come out to support us. Special thanks to family, friends and fans that came out to support The K. Michaels Band in our first appearance at the Beacon Tap in Des Plaines. We had great time and we were thrilled to have such a great turn out. Thank You All!The K. Michaels Band will be performing in Chicago on Tuesday, August 5 Jimnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33618665.post-74738338802722059522008-07-01T22:06:00.003-05:002008-07-01T22:29:11.748-05:00July PerformancesLet me start out by wishing you all a safe and happy Independence Day. I hope you are enjoying the summer so far, as much as we are. We've been busy with family and summer parties that seem to never end......what a dilemma. We will be playing for the first time at this years BenFest July 11th at St. Benedict Parish in Chicago. It should be a good time as it is one of many well known festivals Jimnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33618665.post-39220224973336445812008-06-15T17:40:00.013-05:002008-06-15T18:19:26.609-05:00June Performances and Avon Walk Thank YouMessage from Lisa, Well...We did it! The walk was amazing and one of the most inspirational moments of my life. My team was the best. We laughed, cried, coached each other and at the end walked in as one..chanting for our friend Jayne. She was at the finish line with all of our families and friends and I can't say there was a dry eye to be found. Thank you Dee, our captain, for Everything...not Jimnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33618665.post-29565028600470684422008-04-06T14:42:00.010-05:002008-04-06T15:11:57.538-05:00Update Billy Grant TributeIf you missed the Billy Grant Tribute at Bourbon Street you missed a great event! With several bands performing throughout the day and the enormous amounts of food, it was a wonderful time. The K. Michaels Band hit the stage at 4:00pm and was greeted by the crowd with much appreciation. The incredible amount of people who supported this event was mind blowing! A reported 6,000 people attended Jimnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33618665.post-88021037060994075662008-03-14T17:44:00.011-05:002008-03-14T21:16:35.721-05:00March & April PerformancesSunday, March 30th The K. Michaels Band (Jim's Band) will be sharing the bill with several other well know bands to honor Chicago Firefighter Billy Grant. On March 23, 2007 Billy Grant a decorated, second-generation Chicago Firefighter lost his life in the line of duty. Billy left behind his young wife, Sharon (nee Nair) and their children ages 3, 5, and 7. His death was a tremendous loss to allJimnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33618665.post-37429447993943357822008-03-01T20:32:00.011-06:002008-03-01T21:12:47.699-06:00Cirque Du SoleilAs we all wait for Spring to arrive here is a little something about what we've been up to. My wife Lisa and I have finally got around to taking a little vacation time. We decided to visit Vegas for a long weekend. Although it was not our kind of thing because we don't gamble, we still had one big reason why we wanted to go. This reason was to catch the The Beatles Cirque Du Soleil show at the Jimnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33618665.post-28639244574662346252008-01-03T11:04:00.002-06:002008-04-17T19:49:15.261-05:00Happy New YearHappy New Year!I just want to give you all a run down of the past month.December 7th we made our trek to Neenah, WI to perform for the Theda Care Holiday Party, and although I was feeling pretty bad with a cold we still had a great time seeing many of our friends. Upon returning from Wisconsin that weekend my cold went from bad to worst. I was laid up for the next couple of weeks. Luckily I was Jimnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33618665.post-33058931097053736912007-10-29T11:11:00.000-05:002007-10-29T11:46:08.088-05:00Illinois Entertainer Reviews Mother's SunshineA few months ago we submitted our 2nd release "Mother's Sunshine" to the Illinois Entertainer for review. The review is in and here is what they had to say......"Breakin’ Strings are a sweet and melodic acoustic duo who specialize in vocal harmony. Their sound recalls Lowen & Navarro with the Jimnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33618665.post-69703135345761334462007-07-11T20:04:00.000-05:002007-07-12T13:23:25.082-05:00Online CD Ordering/ Speak Easy BarWe now have our new release "Mother's Sunshine" available online through CD Baby.com. CD Baby is a online record store that sells CD's by independent musicians. We hope by offering our CD via online we can reach a broader audience. You can also browse CD Baby's online store for other independent artist. Look for the CD Baby link in the sidebar to order "Mother's Sunshine". There is also a Jimnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33618665.post-27841605853035130992007-05-08T12:29:00.000-05:002007-05-08T12:46:47.384-05:00RETURNING TO WISCONSINIt's been a few years since our last public appearance in the Fox Valley area, although we have been there on a few private occasions we are looking forward to seeing all of our friends who have been patiently waiting for our return. We will be coming to Appleton's The Speakeasy Bar on Tuesday, July 3rd. This will be a great opportunity for many of you have requested to purchase our new CD to Jimnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33618665.post-11170321525265839742007-02-01T16:14:00.000-06:002007-02-01T16:42:04.352-06:00Song Files Added!Well it took me awhile, but I finally uploaded the 30 second song clips from our latest release Mother's Sunshine. Visit our CD/MP3 page and click on the song titles to start the stream. If you would like to purchase a CD please send us an email requesting purchasing info by clicking the "contact us" link at the bottom of the CD/MP3 page. Jimnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33618665.post-77281419308471285422007-01-23T10:29:00.000-06:002007-01-23T11:22:00.788-06:00Thank You Party & Go Bears!The first of two party's.This past weekend on Saturday, January 20th we had a chance to really say thank you to our musician friends who had given their time and talent to our newly released album by inviting them to a special thank you dinner. The dinner was hosted at Jim's house and the delicious meal was catered by Maria, Jose's wife.Following dinner everyone finally received their copies of Jimnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33618665.post-38161025077524178642007-01-04T12:59:00.000-06:002007-01-04T13:22:08.102-06:00New Years at Chapin'sHappy New Year!We hope you all had a fun and safe new year. We would like to thank Scott and Diane Breslar of Chapin's Restaurant in Morris, IL for having us return to help ring in the new year. We had a great time and hope to return in 2007. On another note we also discovered hidden talent at Chapin's with a wonderful vocalist who wowed the crowd with a couple of songs. Thanks Kim for sharing Jimnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33618665.post-1165805071289667812006-12-10T20:20:00.000-06:002006-12-10T20:53:37.810-06:00Visiting Friends While gigging in Wisconsin this past weekend we stopped in and visited with fellow musician and friend Greg Kautz who we suprised with the presentation of our finished CD. Greg an accomplished dobro and banjo player lent his dobro talents on "Where My Heart Lies". It was Greg's dobro that really brought this song to life. Thank you Greg for the wonderful contribution to our album. We had a Jimnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33618665.post-1165339697228186682006-12-05T11:21:00.000-06:002006-12-05T11:30:20.730-06:00NEW YEARS EVEWe've just confirmed a new show added for New Year's Eve.We will once again be at Chapin's Restaurant in Morris IL. Please come out and join us in ringing in the new year. We will have plenty of CD's available at this show. We will post more details as they become available please visit our schedule page for more info. Thank you Scott and Dianne Breslar for having us back, we are looking forward Jimnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33618665.post-1165289718945897162006-12-04T21:20:00.000-06:002006-12-04T21:36:37.993-06:00Here At Last!The long awaited 2nd release titled "Mother's Sunshine " is finally here!The new CD will be available at all upcoming shows.Ordering information will be forthcoming.We want to say thanks to the ThedaCare Hospital in Neenah, Wisconsin for having us once again perform at their annual holiday party. We had such a wonderful time we even forgot about the Illinois blizzard and the 12 inches of snow we Jimnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33618665.post-1163353072150037562006-11-12T11:23:00.000-06:002006-11-12T11:42:34.496-06:00Not Again! CD UpdateThings are moving again quite slowly concerning our manufacturing company handling our CD. We have approved the final proof of our artwork and since have received our Reference CD which is a proof of how the exact CD will sound. After listening to the first reference CD we made a couple of changes concerning spacing between songs and adding a fade out to one of the tracks.Upon receiving the Jimnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33618665.post-1162524259816568732006-11-02T21:15:00.000-06:002006-11-02T21:24:19.833-06:00CD Final StagesOur upcoming CD is now in the final stages. We have handed it off to Disc Makers the manufacturing company that will be doing the final printing proofs, mastering and replication of the CD's. We are hoping to have the finished product by the end of the month. Keep your fingers crossed! We will keep you posted on it's progress.Jimnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33618665.post-1160494952580569402006-10-10T10:11:00.000-05:002006-10-10T10:48:43.653-05:00Jammin with The Sylvie'sSaturday, October 7th we had the pleasure of being the opening band at this years North Riverside's Block Party with headlining band The Sylvie's. We got a chance to finally debut a few new songs from our upcoming CD. Which is still with our graphic designer who will be working on the overall theme of the cover design. Sorry we couldn't get the word out about this gig, it was very last minute.Jimnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33618665.post-1159285949732474432006-09-26T10:36:00.000-05:002006-10-06T10:28:27.016-05:00Nature in the BurbsWell we knew moving out to the burbs we would see a little bit of nature, rabbits, chipmunks, hawks and deer. But my kids and I were blown away at what we saw and captured on camera.This 5 inch long praying mantis that had leaped on a grasshopper, tore it's hind leg off and held it in a death grip while it began to devour it.I hope your not having lunch.Jimnoreply@blogger.com