- Bryan Murray
- Jon Lundbom
Sometimes I feel embarrassed when I discover musicians who once lived, studied, and worked in Chicago only long after they’ve split town. Last week Irish composer Jennifer Walshe played in town with Tony Conrad, but years ago, when she was studying at Northwestern and performing around town, I was oblivious to her presence. Same goes for saxophonist Jon Irabagon, trumpeter Amir ElSaffar, and composer Michael Pisaro. Guitarist Jon Lundbom, who was born in Arlington Heights and studied music at DePaul, is the latest former Chicagoan I’ve learned about late. By scouring the Reader‘s old music listings I figured out that he’d once held down a weekly gig with drummer Corey Radford at Phyllis’ Musical Inn. After more than a decade in Brooklyn, he recently decamped to Austin, Texas, but apparently he’ll continue leading his long-running New York ensemble Big Five Chord from there.
Today’s playlist:
