They turned a motel into a songwriter’s paradise.
Happy Tuesday, Seekers!
Hope you had a great weekend – and maybe you got to celebrate Juneteenth with some stellar live music. There were great options from coast to coast: Chance the Rapper returned to the Hollywood Bowl; Maze had half of Houston dancing to “Before I Let Go;” and LL Cool J hosted gospel greats at a cathedral in Queens.
Seems like every day we’re hearing about a new concert or fest worth making a pilgrimage for – and the Rolling Stones might have some additions to our list very soon.
“I don’t know if tours are possible,” Keith Richards says in a new interview with Uncut.
“It’s the travelling that takes it out of you. But I do see the possibility of us doing (a) residency somewhere. Wherever it is, London, New York, Paris, anywhere. I’ll play Rome!”
We’re there, Keith. Wherever “there” is. For now, we’re throwing the doors open to one of the Midwest’s great summertime escapes – where even a roadside motel is tailored to music-makers. BUT FIRST…
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Give it a spin — we bet you’ll discover a killer spot near you worth seeking out.
Door County, Wisconsin
They call Door County the “Cape Cod of the Midwest.”
They also call it “Wisconsin’s Thumb” – as it sits on a peninsula, with Lake Michigan on one side and Green Bay on the other. We’re talking 300 miles of shoreline in a single county, dotted with historic lighthouses, marinas and white-clapboard inns.
This county of 30,000 sees upwards of 3 million visitors each year. Along with the fish boils and cherry orchards, they’re seeking out live music, which thrives in the open air during the warmer months.
Let’s trace the shore and see what we catch on our line.
Holiday Music Motel
Stick with us: before we talk about this motel, we need to talk about an old bridge and Jackson Browne. In 2005, he joined his friend pat mAcdonald (capitalization intended) and other resident musicians to play the inaugural Steel Bridge Songfest, hoping to save the historic Sturgeon Bay Bridge from demolition.
(Spoiler alert: It took a few years, but the bridge was saved.)
When the fest returned the next year, mAcdonald invited 25 songwriters to The Holiday Motel to stay, write and record songs. Inspiration was flying – not just for melodies and lyrics, but for finding a way to keep a great thing going. A group of investors bought the place and renamed it the Holiday Music Motel in 2007.
Rather than boasting about its color TVs, this motel trumpets the 1500-plus songs that have been written here over the years – and they spin them day and night on their dedicated station, Steel Bridge Radio.
These days, most of the action happens next door at The Tambourine Collaboratory, with a stage and mocktail bar upstairs, and a studio/rehearsal space in the basement.
mAcdonald currently has a cool monthly gig called “Tambo Sideshow,” which seats just 21, and has each audience member draw cards to build the night’s setlist. Spend a night here, and you’ll understand why the folks who bought the motel never wanted to leave.
Peg Egan Performing Arts Center (Egg Harbor)
13 miles north of Sturgeon Bay, you’ll find Egg Harbor. Less than 3,000 people call this village home, and most of them are only here in the summer. That’s when the Peg Egan PAC’s stage becomes the peninsula’s destination for free outdoor concerts with marquee names.
Acappella stars After 7 kicked off the Sunset Concert Series last Sunday night, and free weekly shows continue through August 23 with headliners including Grammy-nominated bluegrass duo Dailey & Vincent, The Voice finalists DEC of Hearts and tributes to Chicago and Fleetwood Mac.
Peg Egan also hosts Rhythm & Roots, a Thursday night community market that that pairs local vendors with early-evening concerts.
Rusty Dusty Vintage & Records (Ephraim)
Like any good vinyl retailer, Adam Pokorski of Rusty Dusty Vintage & Records is something of a music concierge.
“You tell me four bands you like, and I’ll try to find a new band you’ve never heard,” he told the Door County Pulse.
Sounds like a plan — and maybe we’ll pick up a letterman sweater, a Bigfoot figurine, and a women’s suffrage poster on our way over to that copy of Remain in Light that caught our eye. Pokorski has said they’ve aimed for vibe not unlike “your uncle’s basement in the ‘70s,” and they’ve nailed it, especially with a few racks stuffed with flannel coats. No surprise this county is swimming in them: temps were got as low as -14°F this past January.
Lucky for you, Rusty Dusty is open year-round, and currently keeps hours from “10 to 4ish,” but that schedule is “subject to change based on whim or weather.” We like their style.
Husby’s
Husby’s has been wetting Sister Bay’s whistle since 1929 — well, almost. Prohibition was still in effect when Emma and Martin Husby turned an old general store into a restaurant, so food came first: wood-stove cooking, Sunday chicken dinners, ice cream cones and Black Cows.
Like many great bar matrons, Emma was known for a gruff exterior but a welcoming spirit, opening the door to farmers, families, and anyone else who needed somewhere to land.
That’s still Husby’s style today. In the summer, Husby’s throws open The Garage, with bands playing to a patio crowd over nachos, Door County cherry mules, and the house “Garage’arita.”
When you’re inside, look up and you’ll spot the ceiling-dollar tradition: customers fold a quarter into a bill, add a tack, toss it skyward and hope it sticks. At the end of the year, Husby’s takes the money down and puts it toward local causes. We bet Emma would approve.
Birch Creek Music Performance Center (Egg Harbor)
Exactly 50 years ago, James and Frances Dutton invited a dozen young musicians to their summer home in Egg Harbor for a percussion-and-guitar concert.
A year later, they bought a 40-acre farmstead across the road and started turning it into a full fledged music conservatory. They transformed the granary into a dorm, the farmhouse into a dining hall, and — most importantly for our purposes — built a stage in the barn. Every summer, that barn is where the next generation of music whizzes perform alongside faculty in world music, symphony, and big band jazz concerts.
And the music doesn’t entirely fade out with the tourist season: winterized spaces like Juniper Hall will host hard bop, dixieland and dueling piano shows through the end of the year.
More in Door County
Door County Auditorium
Fish Creek performing arts hub for touring concerts and events.
Peninsula State Park
Bluffs, trails, lighthouse and classic Door County shoreline views.
Door County Brewing
Baileys Harbor taproom with frequent live music and local beer.
White Gull Inn
Old-school Fish Creek fish boil.
Bay Vinyl
Sturgeon Bay shop for new, used records and turntables.
Woodwalk Gallery
Restored barn gallery hosting intimate concerts near Egg Harbor.
Steel Bridge Creative Foundation
Sturgeon Bay nonprofit powering the Steel Bridge music ecosystem.
Door County Cherry Hut
Cherry market, taproom and patio music stop in Fish Creek.
Studio 330
Sturgeon Bay recording studio run by producer Hans Christian.
Cana Island Lighthouse
Postcard-ready Baileys Harbor lighthouse reached by causeway.
Door County Maritime Museum
Sturgeon Bay museum tracing shipbuilding and Great Lakes history.
Destination Door County
Official trip-planning hub for lodging, events and local tips.
About Music Roadtrip
Music Roadtrip is a free, map-based travel app for music fans who want to find the real places behind local music scenes. It points you toward venues, record stores, landmarks, museums, and other music stops—helping you experience a city’s culture and history through the music that shaped it.
We’re adding new venues and hidden gems all the time, and refining the spots already in the app. If you’ve found somewhere we should include, or noticed something that needs an update, send us a note at editor@musicroadtrip.com.
Download Music Roadtrip now for iPhone and Android devices.
