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50 years and still going strong! Chris Farrell has been a pillar of Chicago's famed singer-songwriter scene since 1975. Learning his craft while sharing the stage with the legendary acts of the '70s and '80s, he emerged with his own brand of songwriting and showmanship to carry on this proud tradition. His work is the genuine item from those days and has grown with the times to hit a bull's eye with relevance for today.
Chris easily flows from ballads to satire, from comic songs to social
commentary while always finding room for the sweet tunes you'll
hum on the way home. Presenting his finely crafted songs with solid clear finger picking, beautiful melodies and rich vocals, he adds stories and humor to offer a well-paced show and first-rate command of the stage that only decades of experience can produce.
Upon arriving in Chicago, Chris saw how well his blue collar roots in the coal mining towns of Pennsylvania fit right in with the city's heritage of folk songs and straight talk writers and journalists. He quickly found a home at The Old Town School of Folk Music and continued for forty-two years as one of the most respected faculty members in the school's nearly seventy year history.
Chris has toured all over the USA and abroad with memorable shows at Nashville's Blue Bird Cafe,
New York's Folk City, and even Rick's Cafe in Casablanca, Morocco.
The Blue Bird Cafe, Nashville, TN
The Earl of Old Town, Chicago, IL
Godfrey Daniels, Bethlehem, PA
Somebody Else's Troubles, Chicago, IL
The Old Time Cafe, San Diego, CA
Folk City, New York, NY
The Speakeasy, New York, NY
The Idler, Cambridge, MA
The Trapp Family Lodge, Stowe, VT
The Quiet Knight, Chicago, IL
Douglas Corner Cafe, Nashville, TN
The Birchmere, Alexandria, VA
The Bothy Club, Philadelpia, PA
The Folkway, Peterborough, NH
Charlotte's Web, Rockford, IL
National Clubs
Schubas
The Hideout
The Uncommon Ground
The Barbarossa
Cafe Carpe
Martyrs'
Two Way Street
Holsteins
The Bulls
Sylvester's
Fitzgerald's
The Kingston Mines
The Charleston
Tut's
Earl's Pub
The Beat Kitchen
The No Exit Cafe
The Heartland Cafe
Durty Nellie's
Orphan's
Wise Fools Pub
Madame ZuZu's
Stages Music Hall
The Roxy
Wild Hog In The Woods
Chicago Area Clubs
Chicago Folk and Roots Festival
WFMT Folk Festival
Old Town Art Fair
Pennsylvania Folk Festival
Fox Valley Folk Festival
Warrenville Folk Festival
Chicagofest
First Chicago Center
Lisle, IL Depot Days
Chicago Tribune - Pioneer Court
McCormick Freedom Museum
Museum of Lake County, NC
Eckley Miner's Museum, PA
Schuylkill County Arts Council, PA
DePaul University
Northwestern University
University of Chicago
Loyola University
University of Illinois
University of Wisconsin
University of Illinois Chicago
Northern Illinois University
Columbia College
Penn State University
Scranton University
Wilkes University
King's College
Misericordia University
Concerts
Taste of Chicago
The Old Town School of Folk Music
Chicago Public Library Cultural Center
The Art Institute of Chicago
Chicago Lakeview Festival of The Arts
Harold Washington Library
Newberry Library
The Skokie Theatre
Illinois State Fair
The Field Museum of Natural History
Shedd Aquarium
Morton Arboretum
City of Chicago Venetian Night
Chicago Botanic Garden
Here are a few of his favorites
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