Two granite blocks mark the former spot of the Illinois Central Depot, or the Black Ellis Island, where 1000s of southern African Americans arrived to start new lives in Chicago - the Promised Land. Read more.
Maxwell Street was once home to a bustling street market, and a place to hear many of the first great blues musicians, new arrivals from the South who would set up at a street corner and jam. Read more.
Situated on this stretch of the former ‘record row,’ Vee-Jay Records was the largest, most successful R&B label of its time, and recorded blues greats like Jimmy Reed, John Lee Hooker and others. Read more.
One of the most important sites in blues history, nearly every blues great passed through here when it was home to Chess Records. The building now houses the Blues Heaven Foundation. Read more.
In the 1920’s, this is where you’d come strut your stuff as music poured from nightclubs. The Meyers Ace Hardware store used to be the Sunset Café, a legendary jazz club where Louis Armstrong played. Read more.
This used to be the landmark 708 Club, one of the birthplaces of the Chicago blues. It was here that the instruments and style that defined the highly-charged electrified blues really came together. Read more.
You might recognize this mural created for the filming of the original Blue Brothers movie, where Ray’s Music Exchange stood. It remains today as a testament to the blues’ Chicago roots. Read more.
Demo tapes were cleverly tested here at the original Chess Records offices by blaring music outdoors to folks waiting for the bus at the corner and seeing if they started grooving to the beat. Read more.
Blues legend Muddy Waters bought this place where Howlin’ Wolf and other musicians used to stay. When it got too hot to play indoors, neighbors were often treated to a jam session on the front porch. Read more.
Mark Blue Chicago on your map; comprising 2 clubs 2 blocks away from one another, Blue Chicago offers plenty of live music at a convenient downtown location.
Local and international legends play here, and Buddy Guy himself graces the stage of his authentic blues club, where memorabilia like B.B. King and John Lee Hooker’s guitars complete the atmosphere. Read more.
No blues tour would be complete without a trip to the Checkerboard--at least according to Prince and the Rolling Stones’ Keith Richards, who were known to pop in for late-night jam sessions. Read more.
Its late hours, regular acoustic blues sets, all-night kitchen, and vibrant neighborhood full of shops, restaurants, and other entertainment recommend this club as a top blues destination. Read more.
Travel through an old railroad crossing to Lee's Unleaded Blues, where local blues musicians give visitors a taste of the real deal. Read more.
This welcoming neighborhood hangout in Logan Square presents renowned local and national bands 5 nights a week. Read more.
