Memphis Bound

Omaha’s own Jeff Davis, the founder of the Playing With Fire concert series, is among the international blues industry professionals who are being honored by The Blues Foundation’s 2026 Keeping the Blues Alive Awards. The Award recipients were announced in the fall of 2025 and the honorees will be recognized with a brunch in Memphis on Friday, Jan. 16, as part of The Blues Foundation’s week of events that coincide with the International Blues Challenge. The press release for the awards noted Davis’ many years of presenting the free concerts in Omaha adding that Davis is known as “a man who keeps his promises, works with purpose, and brings the gift of live music to his community with sincerity and joy.” The Playing With Fire series just celebrated its 20th Anniversary and I’ve witnessed first hand the love and dedication Davis has for the music, the artists and the community. He’s always been the first to roll up his sleeves and do whatever needed to be done on site, and then you’ll find him down front and center on the dance floor too, grooving to the music and finding joy in it all.

The Pocket Architects and Brady Wells hit the road to Memphis to represent the Blues Society of Omaha (BSO) in the International Blues Challenge (IBC) Jan. 13-17. During the annual IBC, hundreds of bands and solo or duo artists take the stages in about 20 clubs on Beale Street for an event that whittles down the entrants to eight solo/duo acts and 8 bands who perform in the finals for the chance to take home the winner’s trophies in each category.

2025’s IBC band winner was Lincoln’s Josh Hoyer & Soul Colossal who performed as representatives of the BSO. The 2020 IBC solo/duo winner was Omaha’s Héctor Anchondo.

Also going to Memphis is The Memphis Project, the band representing the BSO’s BluesEd Youth Development Program in the annual Youth Showcase, which allows young artists from various blues societies to perform for the audiences assembled for the IBC.

A special IBC Sendoff Party happens at The B. Bar Sunday, Jan. 11, beginning at 4 p.m., admission is $10. It’s your chance to show your support and you can also throw some money in the tip jars towards the acts’ travel to Memphis.

To find out more about the Keeping the Blues Alive Award honorees, the International Blues Challenge and to keep track of this year’s competition, watch facebook.com/thebluesfoundation and visit The Blues Foundation’s site at blues.org.

Other Notable Shows
The B. Bar hosts Kevin Lloyd with the Baddest Band in the Land Thursday, Jan. 8, 8 p.m. Blue House with the Rent to Own Horns takes The B. Bar stage Friday, Jan. 9, 5:30 p.m. Sailing in Soup performs Friday Jan. 16, 6:30 p.m., the band Blue Venue is scheduled Friday, Jan. 23, 5:30 p.m. followed by the soul, blues and funk sounds of Parfait at 9 p.m. Friday, Jan. 20, blues and R&B band OLUS plays at 5:30 p.m. with the smooth and soulful Terry Parker Band up at 9 p.m. 

Dom Flemons Multi-Media Performance
Well-known for his time working with The Carolina Chocolate Drops before embarking on a solo career, Dom Flemons plays a show in Omaha Saturday, Jan. 31, 1 p.m. in Joslyn Art Museum’s Abbott Hall. Flemons will present music from his 2019 Grammy-nominated album “Black Cowboys” paired with clips from the 1939 black Western film “The Bronze Buckaroo.” Then Flemons will offer storytelling and songs from country, folk and blues traditions, offering a mix of “music, entertainment, history and film” according to show organizer Rick Galusha. An NPR interview noted that Flemons found out while doing research and creating the album that “one in four cowboys who helped settle the West were African-American cowboys,” a fact that resonated with him as someone who “is an African-American person that’s half-African-American, half-Mexican-American from the Southwest.”
The presentation is a collaboration between Galusha’s Pacific Street Blues radio show (on 89.7, The River), the BSO and other local sponsors. The show is free and open to the public, but seating is limited to 100 people. Register for your free admission here.

Zoo Bar Blues
Lincoln’s Zoo Bar has some great shows coming in January including two nights with Chicago bluesmasters Lil’ Ed & The Blues Imperials. The band has their tenth release on Alligator Records, “Slideways,” coming out Feb. 27. Ed and the boys are scheduled to play Friday, Jan. 9, and Saturday, Jan. 10, both shows at 5 p.m., there are no advance tickets available. Admission is old-school, $15 at the door. This is a band that’s been together almost 40 years, so their sound is tight and their approach is as fierce and fiery as ever. Ed is the nephew of Chicago bluesman J.B. Hutto, who taught him how to play and who he also bears a strong resemblance to. Blues Revue says, “Lil’ Ed & The Blues Imperials don’t just rock the house, they threaten to blow the whole thing down. Muscular, scalding, explosive guitar…incendiary soul played with fiery intensity…a raw-boned tour-de-force, raucously felt and blisteringly articulated.”

The Zoo also hosts an IBC sendoff party for The Pocket Architects Friday, Jan. 9, 9 p.m. A super-group of Lincoln blues players, Church of Blues, hits the stage Friday, Jan. 16, 5 p.m. Church of Blues is Josh Hoyer, Levi William, Dave Boye and Joe Gourlay and they do, indeed, take the crowd to blues church with their revved up, fresh takes on classic blues tunes.

Josh Hoyer’s reorganized band is now stripped down to a four-piece group and playing as Josh Hoyer’s Colossal 4. They gig at The Zoo Bar Thursday, Jan. 22, 6 p.m. Popular Omaha band Sailing in Soup returns for the 5 p.m. show on Friday, Jan. 30.

There are regular shows at The Zoo throughout the week from the free piano bar happy hour with Emily Bass and friends Mondays about 5 p.m. to The Jazzocracy shows and jam sessions Tuesdays, 7-9 p.m., plus the extremely popular Vibe Check on rotating Wednesdays at 9 p.m. and Sh*thook‘s live band karaoke most Thursdays at 9 p.m. You can even catch Zootenanny comedy shows with touring comics on selected Sunday evenings. Find all the shows coming up at The Zoo Bar at zoobar.com or get the latest news and last-minute booking announcements at facebook.com/zoobarblues.

All That Jazz
Remember there are a variety of jazz, blues and roots music shows on tap at the Jewell on Capitol, 1030 Capitol Ave., inside the Marriott. Find the schedule and details on individual performances at jewellomaha.com.

The live jazz scene is also heating up at the Red Lion Lounge, 3802 Farnam in the Blackstone district. The club presents live jazz in a cozy atmosphere Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Fridays and Saturdays with no cover charge. The Red Lion name celebrates a heritage of Omaha jazz that goes back to when the space was a jazz club in the late 1950s. For the schedule and details see redlionlounge.com and check out their Facebook and Instagram updates.

You’ll also find jazz at NOMA (North Omaha Music & Arts) at 2510 N. 24th St. featuring sax man Chad Stoner in a Wednesday night residency, playing music 7-10 p.m.  – check the schedule at northomahamusic.org/events.

Twang City
Don’t forget Buck’s Bar & Grill in Venice, that’s straight-out W. Center Road til you hit 27849 W. Center Rd., has got live country music going on regularly. Plus a heavy-hitting menu of food plates bigger than your head. Think fried chicken and weekly specials like hot roast beef sandwiches and prime rib nights. Buck Bennett has great taste in real old-school country music and keeps at the music booking because he loves it, the proof being in his Facebook posts. At 8 p.m. on a recent Friday night, along with a photo of musicians setting up in front of many empty tables, Bennett wrote “Here’s what tonight at 8 for live music looks like. Tomorrow is already sold out. And so it goes. Nobody wants to come until everybody wants to come.”

Bennett continues to do a fine job of luring in excellent artists before they become big names as well as pulling back some big names who know a good ol’ country music bar when they see it (including two March Paul Cauthen solo shows that sold out fast even at $ 90 a ticket). Most shows are not that high-priced and this venue could use your support.
Wayne Hancock is featured on Thursday, Feb. 5, 8 p.m. for a mere $15 ticket. Also notable is the classic country of honky-tonk veteran Dallas Moore with a show Sunday, Jan. 11, 2 p.m. Early warning that another friend of Buck’s, Ward Davis, returns for two higher-priced shows at the end of February (Feb. 26 -27). The shows are priced at $50 advance, but that’s a bargain for real music lovers who want their music up-close-and-personal rather than in a generic arena. There’s also live music every Sunday afternoon 2-4 p.m. If you haven’t been, note this is a small honky-tonk style joint with no stage and limited seating, but it is dedicated venues like this that are keeping the music alive and giving the artists gigs to be able to be out on the road. Check out the music schedule and the menu at bucksbarandgrill.com.

Hot Notes
Kris Lager continues to do special shows with his larger Assembly of Assassins band. Lager and friends hit the stage at Waiting Room Saturday, Jan. 24, 8 p.m. for a night of music that promises tributes to two musical influences who recently passed away, Todd Snider and The Mavericks’ Raul Malo.

Music fans in-the-know are talking about the Friday, Jan. 23, 8 p.m. show at Reverb Lounge with Dean Johnson and Lily Seabird. You might have seen folk-country singer-songwriter Johnson opening for Rilo Kiley last year. In 2023 he released his national debut record at age 50. He just dropped his second release on Saddle Creek Records. Vermont’s Lily Seabird is an indie-folk artist whose distinctive vocals remind me of a young Lucinda Williams (minus Lucinda’s pronounced drawl).

Celebrated ska band The Toasters plays Reverb Lounge Saturday, Jan. 24, 7:30 p.m., with The Bishops and The Wingtips opening.

The electric-guitar-driven roots-fusion music of Daniel Donato’s Cosmic Country is featured at Lincoln’s Bourbon Theatre Saturday, Jan. 31, 8 p.m.

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Music makes magic, and we can all use more of both.