Jenn Danko

Fatten up on a heavy helping of house this weekend, when three of the city's most venerable venues cook up an extra serving of beats. Thanksgiving weekend brings its own house-heavy roster of talent to the local decks, simmered slowly with jackin, classic and old school Chicago bass. Bring extra napkins and fill up (the floor).

SuperJane at SmartBar: Chicago's first ladies of house know a few things about holiday parties. When this quad-fecta aligns for its annual Thanksgiving show, the gods bass, vocals and jack smile down and thank Colette, DJ Heather, Lady D and Dayhota for giving them something with bump. "The thing I love most playing together and reuniting is the fun," said D'lectable label honcho Darlene Jackson (Lady D). "We genuinely respect each others' abilities and talents but we get competitive like four brothers might over a tag football game when coming home for Thanksgiving dinner after being apart for a year."

The last ten years have seen the ladies of SuperJane bring their big-room sounds to all corners of the globe. Colette's classically trained vocals glide over gauzy layers of West Coast house; Toronto-based Dayhota fuses funk, tech and house with finesse; Lady D jacks the stakes for her homegrown, Chicago sound; and DJ Heather's technical mastery has earned her reputation as one of the sickest, bass-heavy DJs on the planet. This year the annual Thanksgiving show teases the start of the the ten-year anniversary SuperJane tour that starts in Las Vegas and ends in Miami at the Winter Music/M3 Summit in March 2007.

"We usually have all this inside stuff going on while we're playing--slapping each other's asses, doing shots, getting into the night and ending up with vicious hangovers the next day--sometimes," Lady D adds.

Farley "Jackmaster" Funk at The Note:Chicago's pedigree house night solidifies its standing with an appearance by a Hot Mix 5 original. While Keith Farley has been producing since the early eighties, it was his 1985 single "Jack the Bass," along with his catalogue of work on Trax Records, that defined the jackin swagger of Chicago house. Farley has since dabbled in hip-hop production but returned to house in the mid-nineties. On November 22 he brings back the classic Chicago vibe with a throwback show for house-music purists.

Michael Ezebukwu, with Ron Trent and others at Four: A deep-house legend in the day, Michael Ezebukwu has been in the business of breaking records since 1977. As a DJ for Chicago landmarks including Dingbats, Club Laiay and the Clubhouse, Ezebukwu was known for playing the you-heard-it-here-first tracks that made the dance floor take notice. Much of his work paved the way for other house DJs to break into the scene in the 1980s. Now it's Ezebukwu's turn to give back. "I've been on sabbatical for a while, and I thought that this was a great time in my life to get back into playing," says the artist, who left the music scene in 1999. Listen for Ezebukwu to stockpile his bag with classic house cuts and more than a few new deep gems.

SuperJane's Annual Night Before Thanksgiving Soiree at Smart Bar, 3730 North Clark, (773)549-0203. $10 before 11pm, $15 after. Farley Jackmaster Funk at The Note, 1565 North Milwaukee, (773)489-0011. Free before 11pm, $5 after. Michael Ezebukwu, with Ron Trent and others at Four, 1551 West Division (773)235-9100. All shows on November 22.

(2006-11-14)

Also by Jenn Danko

Tip of the Week
Ben Watt calls Jimpster (aka Jamie Odell) a "future soul kingpin and bittersweet house don." His hybrid blend of deep and tech house run the gamut of gauzy and murky--while evoking a soulful essence.
(2006-10-24)

Rebirth of the Underground
Forget bottle service--Chicago is digging deep into the underground music roots that gave it its famed swagger. The reopening of two of the city's most respected underground music clubs, Ohm and Lava, signifies much more than the second coming in chi-chi night clubbing
(2006-10-10)

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