Illinois Entertainer July 2020 | Page 4

July 2020 • Volume 46, Number 08 • www.illinoisentertainer.com Photo: Steve Gullick 6 COVER STORY: JEHNNY BETH There are Renaissance women, dream-driven ladies who tirelessly here are Renaissance women, dream-driven ladies who tirelessly toil their way to coveted career kudos like gaining elite EGOT status by winning Emmy, Grammy, Oscar, and Tony Awards. This Jill of all trades — born Camille Berthomier in France to theater-director parents — Jehnny Beth was something of a child prodigy, studying piano and voice with jazz instructors at age eight and appearing in her first Ibsen play by ten. In London, she rose to prominence as feral fontwoman for the all-girl juggernaut Savages alongside guitarist/keyboardist Gemma Thompson. Acting soon fell by the wayside. “But I’ve always been seriously interested in doing a multiplicity of things,” she says. “And my hero for that is Henry Rollins, because I always felt that he was so good at being a writer, a radio host, a comedian, a great punk singer, and a solo artist. Now Beth's new solo album, To Love is to Live is available and arresting in almost every respect, starting with its cover shot and her release of a new book. Tom Lanham found out how she managed all her projects together. HELLO MY NAME IS JAMES House of Lords anchor James Christian admits that he’s learned some hard lessons the past three months while sequestered in his West Palm Beach retreat. He’s been in life-saving lockdown with his rock star wife, Robin Beck, and their Broadway-based daughter, Olivia Dei Cicchi (who uses her dad’s real surname) whom the couple hasn’t seen for the past two years due to her bustling touring schedule playing the innkeeper’s wife (and Cosette understudy) in the hit musical Les Miserables. So while it’s great to be reunited as a family, says the singer, 66, who just issued a great, eerily-prescient HOL barnstormer New World, New Eyes, mainly co-written with acclaimed producer/songwriter Mark Spiro there have been some heavy, often heated intergenerational discussions with 23-year-old Olivia. Tom Lanham spoke to Christian about life in quarantine and the new album. Jehnny Beth File Live music survives this summer at The Drive-In. Cinemascopes COVID Delay Theater. Media John Williams is the voice of Chicago. Spins Bob Dylan, Michael McDermott, Marvin Gaye and more. 6 16 18 24 8 MIKE PETERS OF THE ALARM You can hand Mike Peters the sourest, acrid batch of lemons ever harvested and the scrappy Alarm bandleader will make a refreshing, icecold pitcher of tasty lemonade with it every single time. This Welshman has often endured more hardships in a single month than most so-called rock survivors endure in a lifetime, so many that even he was moved to comment — upon viewing Russ Kendall’s recent biopic Man in the Camo Jacket, covering his three successful battles with cancer and resulting Love Hope Strength Foundation cancer charity — “It feels like I’ve literally come back from the dead quite a few times to be here, I’m lucky to be alive!” Tom Lanham talked to Peters about his incredible legacy and new double album Hurricane of Change. Mike Peters of The Alarm 4 illinoisentertainer.com july 2020 Publisher John Vernon Contributing Editors Lori Vernon Tom Lanham Curt Baran Design Team Notion Pool Dragon Design Vision Design Teknigram Graphics Classified Advertising David Gedge Founder Kenneth L. Voss Publisher Emeritis David Roberts Advertising Sales Scott Assmann Mike Engel Advertising Director John Vernon Website Direction Notion Pool Senior Columnists Rosalind Cummings-Yeates - Sweet Home Rick Kaempfer - Media Kelley Simms - Caught In A Mosh David C. Eldredge - East Coast Contributors: Andy Argyrakis, Guy Arnston, Penelope Biver, Patrick Conlan, Deena Dasein, Jaime de'Medici, Andy Derer, Jeff Elbel Terrence Flamm, Steve Forstneger Michael Gallucci, Michael C. Harris, Max Herman, Tom Lanham, Carter Moss, Michael Obrecki, Greg Olma Arsenio Orteza, Rodney Pawlak, Bruce Pilato, Matthew Pollock, Jason Scales, Kelley Simms, Ed Spinelli, James Turano, Aubrey Vernon SUBSCRIPTIONS: $35 per year (first class). Material for insertion must reach our office by the First Of The Month preceding publication. We cannot assume responsibility for unsolicited manuscripts or photographs. Follow us online at: facebook.com/ieentertainer instagram: illinoisentertainermagazine twitter.com/ie_entertainer Address All Correspondence to: Illinois Entertainer 4223 W. Lake St., Suite 201 Chicago, IL 60624 [phone] - Chicago/North Sub [phone] - West/South Suburbs [phone] - Fax email us at: Editorial: [email protected] Advertising: [email protected] The ILLINOIS ENTERTAINER is published monthly by Roberts Publishing, Inc, All materials copyright 2020 by Roberts Publishing, Inc. All rights reserved. No portion of this publication may be reproduced without written permission from Roberts Publishing, Inc. Current and back issues of the IE are $10.00 postpaid.