On the northeast edge of the Driftless, in west central Wisconsin, is the Chippewa Valley. Of the Chippewa Valley’s many claims to fame, one of the lesser known is that it is home to many great music festivals. The area has a robust history of music festivals going back to the ’80s. From the initial success of Shake, Rattle, and Roll in (1987) Eau Claire, WI and Country Fest in Cadott, WI other festivals sprang up. Country Jam (1990) and Rock Fest (1993) are some huge examples that are still going strong. These have spawned even more festivals. Many of the biggest bands have played in the Chippewa Valley. If you can think of a classic rock or popular country musician or band they have probably performed at one of the Chippewa Valley festivals.
In an area awash with music festivals you may think; “Is there room for another music festival?” When you set yourself apart from others, the answer is a resounding YES! Let it be known there is a new kid in town.
This new festival is appropriately named Summer Jam. The 2 day music festival’s debut was June 20th and 21st of 2025. Considering it fell on the summer solstice you can’t get a better name than that! I was fortunate enough to be able to attend as a V.I.P. Guest, courtesy of Benny!
As a person that has attended many outdoor music festivals there are certain characteristics that you just accept; like the rows of unclean port-a-potties, or the stench of beer that gets poured out at the gate. None of this was noticeable at Summer Jam. The place was very clean, neat, and well organized.
I arrived there early to check things out. Right away I noticed how much preparation they put into this event. They have one gate to enter the grounds through, and it was heavily staffed, so getting into the concert grounds was quick. As you walk through the gently sloped grounds, you can immediately see the stage and the large video monitors on the side. There was a nice sized crowd there early on the first day. It definitely had a party atmosphere.
With a quick survey of the area I saw two buildings; one to the right of the stage and one up on the hill to the left. The one near the stage is the Crescent. It’s where all the V.I.P. activities took place. It was here that I ran into a local social media celebrity, Jared. He has a popular channel on Instagram Wisco Dive Bars where he has a quest to show everyone all the best dive bars in Wisconsin. You just never know who will show up at Summer Jam.
Now for the music. They had music from the 70’s through today. A nice balance with something for everyone.
The lineup on Friday was MKTO, Everclear, Gavin DeGraw, Live, and Lynyrd Skynyrd.
Saturday gave us Wang Chung, The Marshall Tucker Band, Rick Springfield, Collective Soul, and The Black Crowes.
Each band brought a different energy to the stage that culminated with an incredible headliner each night. There was so much high-grade music there for the sake of brevity I will only write about the last few acts each day.
Friday afternoon, Gavin DeGraw took the stage. I was really looking forward to seeing him perform and he didn’t disappoint. He got up there and tickled the ivory’s. He has some real chops on the piano. He played a few songs and said “I’m Gavin DeGraw and most of you are wondering who I am”. He played an upbeat set with much audience interaction. He told the back story on the song about a break up. Then he laughed and said “this song paid off my mothers house”. His energy got everyone going.
The next performance was from the band, “Live”, and they sound great live…no, really. They played a killer set. Jamming hit songs from their biggest album, Throwing Copper,got a rousing reaction from the fans. When they played Lightning Crashes, I got the chills! Talk about bringing back some great memories!
What a perfect pick for the headliner, Lynyrd Skynyrd! …or as long time fans will say, “Skynyrd.” Their discography is second to none. Every song is a rocker and a classic! They brought it!
Saturday was another great day to be at Summer Jam. Rock and Roll knows no age limit. That couldn’t be more evident than when legendary rocker Rick Springfield hit the stage. He brought high energy from the start, which is amazing, considering he’s well into his 70’s! A few songs in, he spoke to the crowd about his personal challenges with anxiety and depression. In true rock and roll fashion he got off the stage and worked his way through fans, high- fiving and making a personal connection with each and every person present. He culminated the show with a rocking rendition of “Jessie’s Girl”.
Then, Collective Soul unleashed their unmistakable sound on us. With massive hits like “Where The River Flows”, “December”, and “Shine”, and more-you know the crowd was jamming!
Rocking Blues closed out Summer Jam, and no one does it better than The Black Crowes. From the hard hitting snare drum of “Hard to Handle”, to the acoustic strings of “Talks to Angels”, the audience responded enthusiastically. If you came to hear their hits you were in the right place!
If all these rockin bands didn’t quench your musical thirst then the High Country building was where you needed to be. This is where the local bands were keeping the party going, playing between the national acts.
Another place they set themselves apart from other music venues is their ties to the local community. They chose a few different ways to give back. One of which is by inviting water color artists to paint during the festival. One artist in particular caught my eye; Dena Young- Dena June Creations. She was there working on a beautiful painting of monarch butterflies on prairie flowers, one of twenty artists that were hired by Color Block through a partnership with visiteauclaire.com. It’s a website dedicated to all the events in Eau Claire. She took inspiration from the Eau Claire area. Here she explained her thought process: ”My piece was designed to celebrate Eau Claire as a whole. I used the city’s iconic blue tones as the backdrop, and incorporated a subtle map showing where the Chippewa River meets the Eau Claire River. In the foreground, I painted a variety of native flowers paired with monarch butterflies.” As a former resident I would say this is a perfect representation.
Another stand out thing Summer Jam did was auction off guitars that were signed by all the performers. They generously donated the money to local charities. Can you imagine being the lucky bidder to take that home!
If you are somehow still on the fence about attending Summer Jam, my description of V.I.P. Should clear up all doubts. The folks at Summer Jam have taken V.I.P. to another level. Think 5 star treatment. Wanna know how rock stars are treated? It would be like this! The following words are things only V.I.P. attendees will know about. Terms like chef made meals, hand carved smoked ham, or decadent deserts. I can attest that the food was outstanding. The next few sentences will have words that rarely go together, especially at a music festival. Things like outdoor music festival and fine dining, extra clean restrooms, V.I.P. parking close to the gate, and no lines for anything. Air conditioned dining area, air conditioned bathrooms, and seating just feet from the stage.
Here are actual things that I experienced at Summer Jam: Can you ever think of a time you went to a music festival and had food options like Butternut Squash Ravioli or chef carved smoked ham? As someone who has attended many, many music festivals they all have the same food trucks serving the same greasy meals. Here I ate like a king. While consuming my wonderful culinary delight it dawned on me that prior to this I have never muttered the words hand carved or chef made anything at another music festival! Now before you paint too rosy of a picture in your head, know that V.I.P. may not be for everyone, especially if you have a hard time making decisions. It sometimes created an agonizing dilemma between my brain and stomach. I had to suffer through brutal choices, like do I want more of that succulent, chef-carved smoked ham or an extra Parmesan Encrusted Chicken breast for dinner? Tough decisions for sure. Luckily for me I’m a trooper, and was able to persevere. Don’t even get me started on the beverage list! Oh, and yes, the endless array of food choices and unlimited drinks were all free with the V.I.P. status wristband!
In addition to all of this it’s an event space that can be rented. I can only imagine how great your event would be, knowing the amount of work they put into this place. They hold about 100 events a year there, weddings and corporate events being the most popular.
If you are a fan of live music, warm weather, and great times, I can tell you Summer Jam should be your JAM! Why not pamper yourself and go V.I.P.? If you don’t pamper yourself, who will? Who knows what rock star you may get to high five? Let the good times roll!
Writing and Feature Image By Vince A.
