Souvenirs: 80 Years of John Prine, a Chicago concert celebrating the late singer-songwriter, has been lined up for October 8, two days before his 80th birthday. Musicians including Ratboys and Steve Earle will pay tribute at the Chicago Theatre show, playing alongside Prine’s longtime live band. The actor John C. Reilly will host and perform.
Organized by the Prine Family and their Hello in There Foundation, the concert is the latest in a series of tributes to Prine, who was born in Maywood, Illinois, before moving to Chicago to get a foothold in music. Other performers in the announcement include Joy Oladokun, Hurray for the Riff Raff’s Alynda Segarra, and a raft of Americana stars such as Margo Price, Kathleen Edwards, Josh Ritter, and Amos Lee. Fiona Prine, John’s widow, told Chicago Sun-Times, “Birthdays were huge for John, his own and everybody else’s. He celebrated everyone with abundance. It was just a part of his wonderful attitude towards life.”
Prine died in early 2020 with COVID-19. Later that year, he was named Illinois’ first honorary poet laureate. The Souveniers organizers will announce more events around his 80th birthday—including a premiere of the concert film You Got Gold: A Celebration of John Prine—in the coming months.
