The Miles of Possibility organization will kick off their eighth annual Route 66 Conference scheduled for Bloomington-Normal October 19-22 with a concert on Wednesday evening, October 18, at Jazz UpFront, a popular music venue at 107 W. Front Street in Bloomington.
The “Get Your Kicks '23” tour band has been organized by Hammond organ virtuoso Robby Robinson, 45-year veteran of the Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons band as keyboardist and music director, who will play keyboards as part of this tour. On lead guitar will be Vinny Martell, original member of the legendary rock group Vanilla Fudge. Vocals will be handled by two young but seasoned entertainers: Sara Niemietz, of Postmodern Jukebox and Ozone Squeeze fame, and Travis Cloer, Broadway star who performed 2,200 shows as Frankie Valli in “Jersey Boys.”
With these musicians' unique backgrounds, the audience can expect to hear a mix of songs from the Frankie Valli and Vanilla Fudge bands plus plenty of Route 66-appropriate tunes including Robby and Sara's cool-and-campy arrangement of the ever-popular “(Get Your Kicks on) Route 66,” which they recorded last year.
The Bloomington show on October 18 is one of four stops on the “Get Your Kicks '23” tour, also including St. Charles, Litchfield, and Edwardsville. The tour was inspired by the “(Get Your Kicks on) Route 66” recording and the opportunity to perform on Illinois Route 66 in conjunction with the Miles of Possibility Route 66 Conference dates. Robinson is a native of Litchfield, Illinois.
Tickets are available for the October 18 show on the Jazz Upfront website https://www.jazzupfront.com. Tickets for Miles of Possibility attendees will be $20 each with VIP perks; registered attendees will be given a code to access the special ticket. The general public can also reserve tickets for $25 each.
Jazz UpFront is dedicated to providing Bloomington-Normal & Central Illinois with a mature upscale venue for top-level live music in the historic downtown Route 66 Bloomington area. The popular club was established in 2015 and is operated by James Gaston, longtime locally-known musician and businessman.
More information on the “Get Your Kicks '23” tour can be found at https://www.robbyrobinsonmusic.com/get-your-kicks-tour-23.html
Complete information and registration link for the Miles of Possibility Route 66 Conference is at https://route66milesofpossibility.com
OUR COMPLETE 2023 CONFERENCE SCHEDULE !!
MOP Schedule - October 18-22, 2023 - The Great American Road Trip
Venues:
McLEAN COUNTY MUSEUM OF HISTORY, 200 N. Main St., Bloomington
UPTOWN STATION, 11 Uptown Circle, Normal
WEDNESDAY EVENING OCT. 18 IN BLOOMINGTON -- JAZZ UPFRONT, 107 W. FRONT ST., BLOOMINGTON
SPECIAL TOURING MUSICAL SHOW YOU WON'T WANT TO MISS -
THE "GET YOUR KICKS '23" TOUR ON ILLINOIS ROUTE 66 WITH SPECIAL MUSICAL GUESTS!
THURSDAY, OCT. 19
McLEAN COUNTY MUSEUM OF HISTORY, BLOOMINGTON
9:00am-10:00am - REGISTRATION, CHECK IN,
Photo op with Lincoln on bench
10:00am-11:30am - WALKING TOUR DT Bloomington w/Greg Koos “Downtown Bloomington: A Business 66 survivor” - Please meet at the Lincoln Bench.
11:30am-1:00pm- LUNCH ON OWN, OR
11:45am-12:45pm - TOURISM LUNCH AND LEARN (sack lunch included)
Cory Jobe "The Last Hundred Miles of Route 66 in Illinois"
(Registration required - cost is $60 for all three L&L sessions)
1:00pm-2:00pm - Greg Koos - "Out of the Mud and onto the Hard Roads"
2:00pm-3:00pm - Mike Matejka - "Route 66 Pathfinder: Following the Railroad"
3:00pm-3:15pm - BREAK
3:15pm-4:15pm- Joe Culpepper - "Bicyclng Route 66 at 66 years old"
4:15pm-6:30pm - FREE TIME
6:30pm-8:00pm - Registration, check in, hot dog roast, 305 Pine Street, Normal
8:00pm - whenever - Gathering - Place TBA
FRIDAY, OCT. 20 (UPTOWN STATION, NORMAL)
8:00am-9:00am - Registration and networking, coffee/tea, donuts
9:00am-12:00 noon - Registration continues.
9:00am-9:15am - WELCOME
9:15am-10:15am - KEYNOTE SPEAKER: Evan Stern -
"Beyond Nostalgia and Neon: The Voices of Route 66”
10:15am-11:15am - Bill Kemp -
“The Henney Kilowatt: Bloomington's Battery-powered ‘Car of Tomorrow’”
11:15am-11:30am - BREAK
11:30am-12:30pm - Ron Romero & Debyjo Ericksen - "Illinois Rock & Roll Museum on Route 66"
12:30pm-1:45pm - LUNCH ON OWN, OR
12:45pm-1:45pm - TOURISM LUNCH AND LEARN (sack lunch included) Scott Dahl "Route 66: The Road to 2026"
(Registration required - cost is $60 for all three L&L sessions)
1:45pm-2:45pm - KEYNOTE SPEAKER: Jim Hinckley -
“In the Beginning: Dawn of the Great American Road Trip”
2:45pm-3:45pm - Spencer Johansen - "From Memory Lane to 2026 and Beyond"
3:45pm-4:00pm - BREAK
4:00pm-5:00pm - Cheryl Eichar Jett, Angie Fickert Paterek, Brenda St. Clair - Roadie Panel: "Solo Women Travelers"
5:00pm-5:15pm - ANNOUNCEMENTS
5:15pm-7:00pm - FREE TIME/DINNER ON OWN
7:00pm-9:00PM - Music by Tim Dial - Eagles Club, 313 S. Main St., Bloomington
SATURDAY, OCT. 21 (UPTOWN STATION, NORMAL)
8:00am-9:00am - Registration and networking, coffee/tea, donuts
9:00am-10:00am - Registration continues.
9:00am-10:00am - KEYNOTE SPEAKER: T. Lindsay Baker -
"Roadside Food and Mother Road Travelers"
10:00am-11:00am - Jeff Woodard and Rochelle Gridley - "Bloomington-Normal Breweries: Then and Now"
11:00am-11:15am - BREAK
11:15am-12:15pm - Terri Ryburn - "Saving Two Route 66 Icons"
12:15pm-2:00pm - LUNCH ON OWN, OR
12:30pm-1:30pm - TOURISM LUNCH AND LEARN (includes sack lunch)
Bob Navarro "What's New Along the First Hundred Miles of ol' Route 66"
(Registration required - cost is $60 for all three L&L sessions)
2:00pm-3:00pm - KEYNOTE SPEAKER: Marian Pavel - "Post-Pandemic Route 66"
3:00pm-4:00pm - Cheryl Eichar Jett - “Dreams, Dares, and Driving: Early Women Cross-Country Motorists”
4:00pm-4:30pm - Closing - Drawing for prIzes!
4:30pm-? - FREE TIME/DINNER ON OWN
CHOICE OF SATURDAY EVENING ACTIVITY:
WE RECOMMEND:
Spooktacular at the Zoo!
Miller Park Zoo, 1020 S. Morris Ave., Bloomington
5:00pm-8:00pm, $8
What better way to get into the fun spirit of Halloween than Miller Park Zoo’s annual Halloween party! It will be a little bit scary but a lot of fun for all ages. There will be local vendors, crafts, games, glitter tattoos! You may purchase Hayride tickets at the admissions window for $3.00 each (weather permitting).
Live Music Chucho Valdes
Jazz UpFront, 107 W. Front St., Bloomington
Doors open at 7:00, show at 8:00pm
Tickets at jazzupfront.com—$20 in advance; $25 at door
Cuban pianist, composer, and arranger Chucho Valdés is the most influential figure in modern Afro-Cuban jazz. In a career spanning more than 60 years, both as a solo artist and bandleader, Mr. Valdés has distilled elements of the Afro-Cuban music tradition, jazz, classical music, rock, and more, into a deeply personal style. Winner of seven GRAMMY® and five Latin GRAMMY® Awards, Mr. Valdés, received a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Latin Academy of Recording Arts & Science last year and was also inducted into the Latin Songwriters Hall of Fame.
“Talk to Me”
Historic Normal Theater, 209 North Street, Normal
7:00pm - $7
"Talk to Me (2003)" is an ethnographic horror film with an original supernatural plot and compelling performances. Synopsis: When a group of friends discover how to conjure spirits with an embalmed hand, they become hooked on the new thrill and high-stakes party game—until one of them goes too far and unleashes terrifying supernatural forces. Rotten Tomatoes—Critics: 95%. Audience: 82%.
SUNDAY, OCT. 22
9:00am-10:45am - Pay-your-own breakfast - Shannon's Five Star, 1305 S. Mercer Avenue, Bloomington.
11:00am-2:00pm - TOUR OF ISSCS - Ruth Cobb (Charge $20/pp)
“The Road to Home: Stories from a Shared Past on Route 66”