| July 6, 2007 |
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Vol 2 Issue 24
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HUNDREDS OF BLUES FESTIVALS
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LIMITED NUMBER OF MAGAZINES STILL AVAILABLE
If you haven't been able to find a free copy of the 2007 Blues Festival Guide magazine There are a limited number still available by mail-order  Ssend $7 with a written request to:
RBA/Blues Festival Guide
P.O. Box 50635
Reno, NV 89513
It will be shipped straight to your mailbox!
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MEM SHANNON : : "LIVE" (a night at Tipitina's)
LIVE (A NIGHT AT TIPITINA'S) is Mem Shannon's sixth album. If most live albums are snapshots of the artist, a momnt in time frozen for eternity, this album is that and much more. It is an inspired artist's self-portrait by a musician who has secured the New Orleans musical tradition for the 21st century. Clean, simple by transcending genres, he channels the spirts taht inspired Fats Domino, Prof. Longhair, the Funky Meters and The Neville Brothers.
Recorded in one night with no overdubs, LIVE (A NIGHT AT TIPITINA'S), goes way beyond playing out familiar songs to an adoring hometown crowd. His improvisations bristle like jumping beans in a hot fire. And there's always been a kind of grace to both Mem's guitar playing and his vocals.
LISTEN to track #7 "No Such Thing"
To LISTEN it may be necessary to allow pop-ups. Just hold down the CTRL button on your keyboard while pressing the following LISTEN button; please allow a few
seconds for juke-box player to open.
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SHAWN KELLERMAN : : Land of 1000 Dreams
With this, his second CD, Shawn Kellerman is ready to take his career to the next level. Featuring all original material, Shawn's new compositions are based in the blues and draw from elements of rock, soul, jazz and even hip hop to create a crossover sound that has resounding appeal across many traditional boundaries. LAND OF A 1000 DREAMS, co-written with Mark Whittington in Mississippi, reflects a distinctive influence of the deep south, while the hip hop inspired "Bug'N Shawn" shows the expanse of Shawn's creative range.
LISTEN to track # 3 "Do My Thing"
To LISTEN it may be necessary to allow pop-ups. Just hold down the CTRL button on your keyboard while pressing the following LISTEN button; please allow a few
seconds for juke-box player to open.
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MISSISSIPPI MUDSHARKS : : TRAIN ROLLS ON
The Mississippi Mudsharks can be described as 'Screamin' Jay Hawkins meet the Cramps, and draw a much from Lightnin' Hopkins and John Lee hooker as from the Clash and Social Distortion. All Music Guide describes the sound as "non-nonsense punk blues with pedigree and attitude, but filled too with subtle variety and flash of humor."
The new and aptly title TRAIN ROLLS ON is the best of the old and a whole 'lotta new. It's a reunion of sorts, a re-emergence combining total sum experience with the energy and originality that unleashed them in the early 1990s. The band remains the agressive power trio specializing in punk-blues, attitude, gruff vocals and blistering slide guitar.
LISTEN to track # 1 "Train Rolls On"
To LISTEN it may be necessary to allow pop-ups. Just hold down the CTRL button on your keyboard while pressing the following LISTEN button; please allow a few
seconds for juke-box player to open.
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Enter this contest and win!
 Yes it's back! The 3rd annual "Win a Festival Cruise" SweepstakesGRAND PRIZE
 8-Day 7-Night Luxury Mexican Riviera Cruise for two, with 5-star accommodations on Sandy Beaches Cruise #14 with 3-time blues Grammy Winner, Delbert McClinton on-board Holland America's MS Oosterdam. Sailing from San Diego in January 2008. 1 winner - $4,990 value.
SECOND PLACE PRIZE
 Reverend Manta Ray Guitar In a beautiful tobacco sunburst with a flamed maple top (case included) 1 winner - $949 value. THIRD PLACE PRIZES (2 WINNERS) Shopping spree for 5 CDs of your choice From bandVillage.com "Your Source for Independent Music". FOURTH PLACE PRIZES (30 WINNERS) The break-through Blues CD from Roxanne Potvin "The Way it Feels" TO ENTER VISIT www.BluesFestivalGuide.com1 entry person No purchase necessary contest ends September 5, 2007 you will be asked to complete a short confidential survey must be 21 years of age Good Luck! |
STILL TIME TO CATCH THE SAFEWAY PORTLAND BLUES FESTIVAL
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Saturday, July 7: Gulf Coast Celebration
Celebrate Gulf Coast blues and R&B with Marcia Ball,The Dirty Dozen Brass Band, Mavis Staples, Charmaine Neville with Reggie Houston’s Crescent City Connection, aRhonda Steele,Teresa James & the Rhythm Tramps. Plus an all-day Zydeco Swamp Romp with Keith Frank & Soileau Zydeco, Cedryl Ballou & the Zydeco Trendsetters; Donna Angelle & Zydeco Posse; Dexter Ardoin & the Zydeco Allstars, Jeffrey Broussard & the Creole Cowboys, Too Loose Cajun Band, and Zydeco dance classes with Roland and Janine Jemerson.
Delta Music Experience (DME) Crescent City Celebration Afternoon Blues Cruise with The Dirty Dozen Brass Band, Charmaine Neville with Reggie Houston, Donna Angelle, and the Rick Holmstrom Trio.
DME Midnight Mambo Evening Blues Cruise with Marcia Ball, Buddy Flett and the Bluebirds, and Nathan James & Ben Hernandez.
Sunday, July 8: Gulf Coast Celebration:
The Gulf Coast tribute continues Sunday with Tab Benoit heading up the Voice of the Wetlands Allstars, featuring Cyril Neville, Anders Osborne, Jumpin’ Johnny Sansone, Big Chief Monk Boudreaux and Waylon Thibodeaux. Also The Neville Brothers, Paul deLay Memorial Allstars, Curtis Salgado, Linda Hornbuckle & Janice Scroggins Old Time Gospel Hour, Steve Lucky and the Rhumba Bums, featuring Carmen Getit, Hawkeye Herman, Lily Wilde Orchestra, and MarchFourth Marching Band.
DME Blue Bayou Afternoon Blues Cruise features the Tab Benoit Band, Teresa James and the Rhythm Tramps; Mary Flowers and Reggie Houston.
For more information visit www.waterfrontbluesfest.com
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B.B. KING DISAPPOINTED BY CO-PILOT RULE
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Musician B.B. King was devastated when his manager banned him from flying a plane alone - as it "took the fun out of it". The Blues legend, 81, is a qualified pilot and used to travel to performances in his own private plane, but was told by his insurance company and manager he would have to take on a co-pilot to supervise his actions for any future journeys.
King now abstains from flying to all of his gigs, instead traveling primarily in a mobile home. He says, "(Flying with someone else) took all the fun out of it. That's like having a chaperon when you've got a pretty girl."
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MONTEREY BAY BLUES FESTIVAL MAY BE RELOCATING
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A recently-completed market study of Fort Ord land in Seaside has given the Monterey Bay Blues Festival a second option for a site to build a performing arts center and museum.
The Seaside City Council is expected to approve an exclusive negotiating agreement with the blues festival on relocating to a location within the city's portion of Fort Ord land during its July 19 meeting.
If the festival board chooses the Swap site, the blues center would be incorporated into the city's development plans, said Councilman Don Jordan.
'We, as part of the city, will work with the blues board and the developer to make sure that the needs of the blues board are met,' said Jordan.
Billy DeBerry, president of the blues festival board of directors, said the nonprofit wants to build a 25,000-square-foot facility to house a blues museum, a performing arts center of up to 1,000 seats, a state-of-the-art recording studio and a blues education center.
The upgrades would help jump-start a Monterey Bay Blues Festival summer camp for children and teenagers similar to popular Monterey Jazz Festival camp, DeBerry said.
'It's been a dream of ours to build the center,' DeBerry said. 'This will be an outstanding opportunity for both the city and the blues festival, working in partnership to provide additional opportunities for a number of young people in this community and surrounding communities.'
The move would also make Seaside the home of the first museum in California dedicated to the blues, DeBerry said.
'If you know the history of the blues, then you know there are not many places on the West Coast to honor its history,' he said.
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FESTIVALS GOING GREEN
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The Safeway Waterfront Blues Festival (Portland, Oregon) and The Escarpment Blues Festival (Milton, Ontario, Canada) have each gained the status of "Friend of Live Earth."
Live Earth recognized their carbon-neutral approachs and environmental education components thus designating the events as an official "Friend of Live Earth."
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MUSIC MAKER RELEIF FOUNDATION HAS JOB OPENING
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SEEKING: Development Director
This position is responsible for providing leadership and expertise in the development and implementation of Music Maker's fundraising program through annual giving, grant writing, earned income corporate sponsorship, and special events.
Job Summary:
Annual Giving and Major Gifts - Develop and implement short and long-term strategic fundraising plans, as well as individual plans for top donors and prospects
- Develop and supervise implementation of direct mail and e-mail contact campaigns and phonathons
- Follow up, cultivate and solicit gifts from individuals, foundations, and corporations by regular correspondence, phone calls, and face-to-face visits.
- Supervise database maintenance and gift acknowledgement.
- Develop donor acquisition program to grow Annual Fund
Grantwriting
- Identify new corporate, government and foundation grantmakers and submit new grant applications on a constant basis.
- Work with Executive Director and Administrative Director to identify and isolate program functions suitable for grant funding.
- Maintain grants schedule and provide regular updates and renewal requests to grantmakers.
Special Events
- Develop corporate sponsorships for Congressional Blues Festival and Fishin' Blues Tournament
- Work with Administrative Director to increase attendance and revenue at Annual Fishin' Blues Tournament.
- Develop smaller fundraising/donor cultivation events throughout the year.
Earned Income
- Work with staff team to develop sales for Music Maker Recordings
- Work with staff and Board to create more public, ticketed events
Public Relations
- Work closely with Executive Director and contracted Publicists to enhance and broaden MMRF's public image by developing marketing, communication and fundraising tools.
- Work with Programs Coordinator to produce newsletter; handle the fundraising aspects of the MMRF website.
Minimum Qualifications:
Seeking a highly motivated individual with exemplary communication skills (written and oral) and organizational skills. Demonstrated creativity and persistence in cultivating current and potential donors. Candidate must possess a minimum of four years experience in stewarding and cultivating donors and in generating gifts, corporate sponsorship and/or grantwriting.
Preferred Qualifications:
Interest in and knowledge of southern music.
Music Maker Relief Foundation, Inc. located in Durham, NC helps the true pioneers and forgotten heroes of Southern music gain recognition and meet their day to day needs. They present these musical traditions to the world so American culture will flourish and be preserved for future generations.
For more information, or to apply contact them at info@musicmaker.org or Phone: (919) 643-2456
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WILMER'S PARK MAY RISE UP AGAIN
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(BRANDYWINE, MD) Residents of a town in southern Prince George’s County in Maryland have started fighting a planned redevelopment at Wilmer’s Park, a once popular venue for the nation’s biggest black entertainers.
The 80-acre site, complete with wooden bleachers along the hillside and a dancehall and amphitheater, used to draw as many as 20,000 to see stars like James Brown and Stevie Wonder as one of the major stops along the east coast “Chitlin’ Circuit” of concert venues in the 1950s and ‘60s. Black musicians and audiences found refuge from Jim Crow discrimination at the outdoor facility, making it a cultural landmark.
“When they had major stars, there would be so many people that everyone couldn’t get inside the hall,” Herman Windsor, a local farmer, told the Washington Post. “You’d have people flowing out of the building.”
A developer has a proposal to revive the musical tradition of Wilmer’s Park that includes a 5,000- to 6,000-seat theater, a restaurant a cultural center. But residents are concerned with the plans for a 500-unit condominium elderly community, a church, a shopping center, a nightclub, a hotel and recreational facilities, that many Brandywine residents contend are out of character with the area’s rural surroundings and history.
“I realize so much has been lost,” Bruce Chatman, a former IBM exec who developed the plans for the site after he purchased it in 2003, told the paper. “I have a strong affinity for trying to save that part of our cultural heritage.”
The property is currently zoned for open space, which permits only one house per five acres and virtually no commercial development, but has applied for a special exemption for what he calls a “rural entertainment park” that promotes “an important cultural or historical theme.”
A bill has already passed through city council, but is expected to come up for a final vote in the next few weeks.
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NEW STUDY REVEALS STRONG RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN QUALITY MUSIC EDUCATION PROGRAMS AND HIGHER STANDARDIZED TEST SCORES
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Students in high-quality school music education programs score higher on standardized tests compared to students in schools with deficient music education programs, according to a study published in last week's issue of the Journal for Research in Music Education. This is the first study ever to examine the quality of school music programs as a factor affecting test scores, independent of the socioeconomic level of the school or school district.
The study comprised 4,739 elementary and middle school students in four U.S. regions and revealed a strong relationship between elementary (third- or fourth-grade) and middle school (eighth- or ninth-grade) students' academic achievement and their participation in school music programs that differed based on quality.
"It is crucial to note that this project has revealed a relationship between quality music instruction and heightened academic performance," stated Dr. Christopher Johnson, professor of music education and music therapy and associate dean of the school of fine arts at the University of Kansas, and lead investigator for the study. "Clearly, music supports academic performance, and quality music programs are related to higher test scores."
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Aykroyd says he rides his bike -- a 2003 Harley-Davidson FLHP -- every day of his summer vacation
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In his case, though, it makes sense because his primary family vehicle is a monstrous SUV, a V-10 Ford Excursion, which he calls "the best car built anywhere on the planet."
"As far as pollution goes, I ride a Harley-Davidson and it's a two-cylinder, not a 10-cylinder," Dan Aykroyd said. "And I do try to ride it in the summer. I really use the thing to go grab ice cream or the newspapers or coffee or to take the kids into the dentist in town here when I'm in Kingston."
The Ottawa-born funnyman, who's famous for creating big-screen comedies such as Ghostbusters, Coneheads and The Blues Brothers, is spending a few weeks relaxing at the Aykroyd family estate in the Thousand Islands region. He says he rides his bike -- a 2003 Harley-Davidson FLHP -- every day of his summer vacation.
Aykroyd, who celebrated his 55th birthday on July 1, has a long history with Harley-Davidson. His first one was a 1971 police edition, one of several cast off from a dismantled Golden Helmets drill team. He says he learned to drive it in winter, in the alley behind his place in Toronto.
The electrical system was always a source of frustration -- when Aykroyd moved to New York City for Saturday Night Live, the electrics cut out while crossing the George Washington Bridge. "I used to have to take the cowl off and rewire it all the time," he recalls.
The bike still runs, and will find a new home in the Niagara Region, in a museum of Aykroyd memorabilia that will be built in Beamsville, Ont. It will be part of the winery Akyroyd plans to open next year.
His current steed is an anniversary-edition police bike, built in 2003, the year that Harley-Davidson celebrated its 100th anniversary. Aykroyd says he bought five of them off the factory floor. One went to his old Kingston friend, Wally High, a musician and songwriter. Aykroyd isn't one to ride in a pack, but he likes riding with High on their twin bikes.
"If I ride with anybody, it's him. It's safer with two. You watch out for each other," he says.
Helping each other out is second nature for most members of the biker community. We acknowledge each other on the road, and quickly learn that you never pass by another rider stranded at the side of the road, no matter what kind of motorcycle they ride. Aykroyd is well aware of the kinship.
"In 99 per cent of the motorcycle community, you have a tremendous camaraderie and it extends to all motorcycles," he says. "I remember when people used to ride Harleys and say, 'I'm not going to wave at that Honda.' I don't feel that way. They're risking their lives like I am and I want to be acknowledged, so I always wave. If you zip by me on that Ducati at 100 miles an hour, I'll give you my index finger."
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AMERICAN BANDSTAND HEADS TO TENNESSEE
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PIGEON FORGE, TN -- A massive retail store that once housed thousands of stuffed teddy bears has been purchased by a Florida company that is planning to transform it into an American Bandstand-themed theater and museum to honor Dick Clark.
Riptide Entertainment of Miami paid $12.9 million for slightly more than 38 acres of property and a 130,000-square-foot store in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee. The property formerly housed Boyds Bear Country, a five-story, barn-shaped retail property owned by a Pennsylvania-based teddy bear company. It was closed last year when the company decided to focus on retail sales through independent vendors.
Riptide has previously developed and operated several “Ripley’s Believe It or Not” museums throughout the world. In 2006, Riptide purchased a license to use the trade name “Dick Clark’s American Bandstand” in the development and production of live musical tribute shows, according to the Knoxville News.
The property will be called the Dick Clark’s American Bandstand Complex. Plans for the site include an outdoor concert series this summer, and the future construction of a new theater or two. The existing building with host a restaurant and museum, with a gift shop. Future Dick Clark-themed hotel and condominiums are also in the works.
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B.B. KING WORKING ON NEW ALBUM
Between performances, B.B. King will begin recording a new Geffen studio album in July with T-Bone Burnett producing. It's slated for release in early 2008.
"People keep asking when I'm going to do something else with Eric Clapton or U2," King said. "But I can still do things by myself. This time, I've decided I don't want to do anything with partners for a while."
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NEWS FROM CHICAGO, CANADA, AND OREGON
Eric Clapton's second Crossroads Guitar Festival is just weeks away, taking place on Saturday 28 July at Toyota Park in Bridgeville, Illinois, southwest of Downtown Chicago. The day-long event will feature Eric Clapton, Steve Winwood, BB King, Willie Nelson, Jeff Beck, Vince Gill, Sheryl Crow, Buddy Guy, John Mayer and more. Recently added to the list are Robbie Robertson, Johnny Winter and U.S. comedian / actor, Bill Murray. The event sold out in record time.
The Railway and Forestry Museum and the Blues Underground Network are partnering to bring a blues festival to Prince George, British Columbia, Canada this summer.
The first Railway Blues Festival on Aug. 25 at the museum on River Road will bring a lineup of performers from as far away as Toronto to do an open air concert.
"Our plan also includes opportunities for younger Prince George musicians to showcase their talent. The railway turntable will make an incredible dance floor right in front of the entertainers," said Sivell. "Railway Blues have been sung for many a year and what better setting than an old railway turntable, framed by box cars in the open air."
The non-alcoholic event will offer food concessions, rides on the Cottonwood miniature railway and guests can explore the collection of railway and forestry artifacts.
The future of the Corvallis, Oregan annual Fourth of July blues jam is in doubt after a dispute over ticket sales pushed the event’s sponsor to make admission free this year.
The Downtown Corvallis Association, which has put on the Red White & Blues Riverfront Festival annually since 1994, decided to ditch the $5 admission fee under pressure from the Riverfront Commission after citizens and downtown merchants objected to the fence around the event.
DCA Executive Director Joan Wessell said the organization will ask attendees to make a $5 donation and, for the first time, will get a percentage of sales from its vendors.
But there’s no guarantee those funds will cover the costs of the two-day festival, which took place Tuesday and Wednesday in Riverfront Commemorative Park — and if not, the annual Independence Day blues bash could be a thing of the past.
“If we don’t get enough donations to cover the cost of the festival this year, there won’t be a festival next year,” Wessell said.
“We just don’t have money in our budget to put on the festival (without selling tickets).”
Objections to the festival had centered on the temporary fence erected each year to keep music fans who didn’t want to pay the price of admission from crashing the gate. The 6-foot-high chain-link barrier was covered with opaque sheeting to foil fence-hangers and encourage more paid admissions.
Weiler said local merchants would be willing to sponsor the event in the future if it didn’t involve a fence and out-of-town food and beverage vendors.
“It doesn’t have to be a high-cost, high-maintenance thing — it can be pretty simple,” Weiler said. “And free to the public — because after all, they paid for it. It’s their park. They should be free to use it on the Fourth of July.”
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THE JOE SHOW:Canada's biggest motorcycle event
 
Wally High and the Non-Prophets are one of Canada's Premier Blues-Rock bands. On Friday, July 13, they will be in Port Dover, Ontario for THE JOE SHOW for P.D. 13, Canada's biggest motorcycle event. Also on the bill are Jeff Healey, The Imperial Crowns and, in their final Canadian performance, Steppenwolf. Join Elwood Blues and his pal Wally High for a preview of this exciting musicial event, this week on your House of Blues Radio Hour.
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For years, the Blues Festival Guide Magazine received numerous requests for updates on festivals via email, and on January 10, 2006, the Marketing Director of the Blues Festival Guide magazine, Nancy Edwards partnered with the magazine (RBA Publishing) and published the first emailed issue of the E-Guide E-Newsletter.
The E-Guide is a wonderful resource for everyone interested in Blues! You can expect to see the E-Guide in your inbox weekly. Please email the editor with any questions at
nancy@bluesfestivalEguide.com
To reach thousands of blues enthusiasts, click here to learn how to advertise in this Blues Festival E-Guide E-Newsletter.
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