Join us for an evening of food, music, and fun!

6pm potluck/social hour

7pm show

$20-30 suggested donation

All ages, family-friendly

https://chicagofarmer.com/

The son of a small-town farming community, Cody Diekhoff logged plenty of highway and stage time under the name Chicago Farmer before settling in the city in 2003. Profoundly inspired by fellow Midwesterner John Prine, he’s a working-class folk musician to his core. His small-town roots, tilled with city streets mentality, are turning heads North and South of I-80.

“I love the energy, music, and creativity of Chicago, but at the same time, the roots and hard work of my small town,” he shares. Growing up in Delavan, Illinois, with a population less than 2,000, Diekhoff’s grandparents were farmers, and their values have always provided the baseline of his songs. 

He writes music for “the kind of people that come to my shows. Whether in Chicago or Delavan, everyone has a story, and everyone puts in a long day and works hard the same way,” he says. “My

generation may have been labeled as slackers, but I don’t know anyone who doesn’t work hard - many people I know put in 50-60 hours a week and 12-hour days. That’s what keeps me playing. I don’t like anyone to be left out; my music is for everyone in big and very small towns.”

He listened to punk rock and grunge as a kid before discovering a friend’s dad playing Hank Williams, and it was a revelation. Prine and Guthrie quickly followed. The name Chicago Farmer was originally for a band, but the utilitarian life of driving alone from bar to bar, city to city - to make a direct connection to his audience and listener, took a deeper hold.

“You can smell the dirt in the fields, hear the wind as it blows across the plains, and see the people that Chicago Farmer sings about. Each track captures a moment in time, whether for a person or a particular place. Imagine if a John Steinbeck short story had been written as a song, and this will give you a fairly

good idea as to what Chicago Farmer accomplishes on his albums.”

— HONEST TUNE

https://heatherhortonmusic.com/

At The Helm Recording artist, Heather Lynne Horton is the fiddle player, background vocalist and wife of critically acclaimed singer-songwriter, Michael McDermott. After the birth of their child, Horton put her solo career on hold while continuing to tour with McDermott and also with their also highly acclaimed side project, The Westies. All the while, the urgency for Horton to get back to her own roots, remained impending. Horton came out of virtual nowhere last September with, Don’t Mess With Mrs. Murphy - unapologetically, swinging for the fences with every word, every nuance, every secret…opening the eyes, ears and hearts of every critic that chose to press ‘play’. The comeback record received among several accolades, a rare 10 out of 10 from Americana UK, as well as year end Critic’s Choice Album of the Year.

“Heather Lynne Horton is the architect of an album that raises the standard of this year’s releases.” - Three Chords & The Truth

“Heather’s high notes are thrilling, the song’s lyrics are intense…her unorthodox…no, that’s not the right word. Her creative and diversified l ook at real life. Having the courage to paint pictures with words that are not easy to look away from. …This is what sets Heather’s songs apart from the crowd….Heather’s vocal inflection and phrasing are impeccable…She should be commended.” - No Depression

“From the first note invites the listener to the realities of her life while posing questions of their own existence.” - PASTE Magazine

“Probably the most honest and relatable body of music I’ve reviewed in a long time…what is most compelling about (Horton’s) song writing - she is completely honest and exposed, and from this vulnerability she pulls forth an awesome power that engages and inspires the listener.” - FolkNRoots