John Mellencamp, Mavis Staples, Syl Johnson

John Mellencamp: The singer-songwriter is coming off an intriguing series of albums emphasizing his songwriting and his debt to roots blues, country and folk, a direction that may shake up his shows from greatest-hits routine, 6:30 p.m. Friday-Saturday at Chicago Theatre, 175 N. State St., $53.58, $84.37; $104.84, $138.18;

Mavis Staples: The soul matriarch is enjoying one heck of a renaissance in the last decade, most recently recording an album with Wilco’s Jeff Tweedy, “You’re Not Alone,” that is among the best of her career, 8 p.m. Saturday at Park West, 322 W. Armitage, $30;
Syl Johnson: The Chicago singer-songwriter-guitarist-producer is one of the unsung heroes of blues, soul and R&B of the last few decades, but a new box set by the Chicago-based Numero Group label gives him his due. For this appearance, he'll be performing some of his classics with a 27-piece band, 8 p.m. Saturday at the Old Town School of Folk Music