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These are great any time of the year really!
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 The holiday's are right around the corner folks!
Here's some gift ideas:
• Delta Blues Museum gift shop has exclusive, logo-branded items to Crossroads souvenirs. Or you can even buy a custom engraved "Blues Brick!"
• Passes to the 2023 IBC or help with travel and accommodations costs.
• Newly released The Birth of Rock 'n' Roll: The Illustrated Story of Sun Records And The 70 Recordings That Changed the World. Released on Nov 22, 2022, the book was written By: Peter Guralnick, Colin Escott, and Jerry Lee Lewis. Amazon has good price.
• Classic Vintage-style Radios. A retro look with Bluetooth and mp3 inputs, etc. (Search on Amazon for "vintage Radios with bluetooth")
• Noise Cancelling Music Ear Plugs (search on Amazon)
• Hey, gift someone a cabin or special package on a Blues cruise... Keeping The Blues Alive at Sea, Legendary Rhythm & Blues Cruise, Sandy Beaches Cruise, , The Big Easy Cruise (get great ideas in each e-Guide issue)!
• Gift someone Blues concert or Blues festival tickets and/or festival merch (like the Big Blues Bender)
• Donate to a charity in someone's name (Hart Fund...)
• Checkout the MusicMaker Foundation Gift shop or donate
• MojoHand's store includes Posters, fine art, clothing and much more!
• The final volume of the Classic 1920's Blues Artwork Calendar & 25-track CD (also find at the Delta Museum shop)
• Google "blues books" and you'll find hundreds of blues-related books (whether printed, digital or even some audio).
• Gift someone their favorite band's merch (CDs, Digital downloads, clothing, etc.) This in turn gifts the artist by purchasing their items!
• Give the gift of a Blues Society membership and/or their merch. Here's a list of Blues Foundation society affiliates FYI.
• Donate to your favorite Blues related organization in someone's name
• Checkout the Blues Foundation's store for cool merch, books, CDs and membership gifts, etc.
Alrighty then! What would a cool music gift you'd like to give or to receive?
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Photo Moments with the 20th Annual BFG Magazine!
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 It's hard to imagine what it would be like without the personable Brazilian native, percussionist, writer, teacher Chuk Barber's "Soul Lounge" onboard the LRBC! The Soul Lounge has become the integral, late-night haven for artists and fans alike to gather and get down with bluesy soul and funky jams until dawn! The Soul Lounge became "The Spot"! It even won the "Best House Party On The Seas" award on the #37 Oct 2022 LRBC!
We caught up with Chuk on the Oct 2022 Legendary Rhythm & Blues Cruise (LRBC).
Photo: Cari Navarro
ORDER your 2022 Magazine *SEND US A PIC WITH ANNUAL BFG MAG! BFG clients, contact your sales rep for one.
Anyone can Order here! Once you receive, have fun, get creative and SNAP A PHOTO of you, your friends, and/or artists, etc. with the BFG magazine and EMAIL photo, caption (120 words or less), URL if applicable, and photo credit to e-Guide editor!
The Blues Foundation is official sponsor of the 20th Anniversary Blues Festival Guide!
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Now Booking Sunny Bleau — Second album on the way
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 Sunny Bleau is now booking shows and festivals for 2023 to support her highly anticipated second album (debuting early 2023). Sunny Bleau and The Moon’s first album, Breakfast Served Cold (October 2021), continues to burn up international and national Blues-Rock charts (Roots Music Report). Sunny is also a proud member of The Blues Foundation, Keeping The Blues Alive and National Women in Blues.
Sunny’s vocals are an intersection of Etta James and Ann Wilson. This amazing Jazz, Roots and Blues-Rock powerhouse has brought Blues to legendary venues throughout the Midwest and rocked audiences throughout Michigan, Memphis, Ohio, Indiana and New York. Twice Sunny Bleau has opened for #1 Blues Billboard Artist, Anthony Gomes in addition to Jim McCarty and Detroit’s Queen of Blues, Thornetta Davis.
Book Sunny Bleau for your festival, venue or event today. Book the full band or Sunny Bleau and The Moons (In a Box). This configuration features Sunny Bleau, guitarist Nic Cocco and sax player Bruce Collins with mastered backing tracks (featuring the rest of the Moons musicians). This is Sunny Bleau’s approach to the Great American Songbook. This show is a combination of the band’s original Jazz-Blues inspired content and traditional Jazz and Blues Standards.
For Booking, contact Nic Cocco: 248- 842-9736 or via e-mail.
Visit the website Sunnybleau.com for more information. Also find her Media Kit and YouTube channel.
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Jimmie Vaughan names his 12 favorite Texas blues guitarists
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 “This is a serious list,” says Vaughan, and that is no word of a lie...
Jimmie Vaughan is the sound of Texas blues guitar. Long before he burst onto the national and international scene with the Fabulous Thunderbirds in the early ’80s, Jimmie was playing juke joints, bars and clubs all over Texas from the age of 15, sharing stages and playing with Muddy Waters, Freddie King, Jimi Hendrix and many others.
No guitarist is better equipped to lay down the law on the most essential Texas blues guitarists in history, and below, he picks out 12 of the greatest, most legendary players that originate from the Lone Star State.
In Jimmie’s words, “This is a serious list.”...
Here's the list but click the story link below to find details and video/audio samples: Oscar Moore - T-Bone Walker - Clarence "Gatemouth" Brown - Albert Collins - Pee Wee Crayton - Lightnin' Hopkins - Hop Wilson - Melvin "Lil' Son" Jackson - David Schwartz of The Nightcaps - Freddie King - Johnny "Guitar" Watson - Mance Lipscomb.
...full story at Guitar World by Andy Aledort
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Thunder Bay Blues to stay on hiatus for 4th year
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 (ONTARIO, CANADA) - Bad news for Thunder Bay music fans: the city's Blues Festival is taking another year off. Thunder Bay Blues Festival organizers said Thursday the 2023 edition of the event will not take place.
The festival is  organized by the Thunder Bay Community Auditorium (TBCA), which doesn't have the capacity for the event as it comes out of the COVID-19 pandemic, said general manager Trevor Hurtig.
"The auditorium is running at about 70 per cent of what they normally would do in terms of activity levels, and just overall operations," Hurtig said. "So, we want to make sure that we get the auditorium back closer to what we've historically seen in terms of activity, and then at that point we'll be in a better position to look at whether or not we do Blues Fest or not for 2024."
Hurtig said these days, about 80 TBCA employees are involved in organizing and working at the blues festival, which takes place at the city's waterfront. However, the TBCA lost some technical staff during the pandemic…
… There will be other options for Thunder Bay blues fans over the next year, however. Rob Croves, president of the Thunder Bay Blues Society, said that group is marking its 25th anniversary in 2023, and has a few special events planned.
…find more here
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Musical Vacation of a Lifetime
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 (LAS VEGAS, NV) - The Big Blues Bender returns to the Westgate Las Vegas Resort & Casino, September 7-10, 2023!
Get ready for a musical vacation of a lifetime! 40+ artists, 5 stages, 4 days and nights of 'round the clock world class blues music, all within a four-star Las Vegas resort! Gather your crew and join us for a Bender!
The Bender is a hit! Only Signature and Luxe rooms remain.
Our On Sale event saw record amounts of traffic and as a result:
• All suites are sold out
• 4-day "music only" wristbands are sold out
• Big Daddy Baller Upgrades are sold out
Our remaining packages are fantastic rooms, so make your choice and join us for the blues party of the year! September 7-10, 2023. Westgate Las Vegas Resort & Casino.
Check here for more info on Bender Packages and Add-Ons.
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San Diego Blues Festival founder/producer steps down
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 A Note from the Co-Founder/Producer
"Dear Friends,
This is wrenching to put into words, but I must report that the San Diego Blues Festival has died. For 12 years, we were able to put on remarkable and memorable shows featuring some great blues. We were also able to raise more than $1.5 million in profit and 22  tons of food to support the mission of the San Diego Food Bank.
Along the way, we featured heavy hitting performers like Billy F Gibbons of ZZ Top, Mavis Staples and Taj Mahal, as well as more than 120 other bands that you might not recognize by name but all of them were standouts, and in many cases surprised people by their sheer talent. We prided ourselves as being true to the blues, presenting its many shades, with both old-timers and newcomers.
The San Diego Food Bank deserves immense respect and credit for taking the risk and handling the financial end of the event, while AimLoan.com founder and CEO Vince Kasperick’s sponsorship generosity made the event possible. AimLoan.com has been the title sponsor every year. And, then we need to thank my friends who jumped in as unpaid workers because they saw value in the event and wanted to help, and hundreds of other volunteers as well as the people who bought tickets or made donations to the event. I can’t tell you how many times people I don’t know have walked up to me and thanked me for doing the festival.
Some sad realities have been building and reached a crescendo this year. The costs of producing the show went up 30 percent in 2022, and that included no increase in entertainment costs. Some costs were as high as 70 percent more than a year ago, and most were 30 percent or more. Artists deserve to make more, too, but that’s just not possible these days. It’s an inflationary reality that can’t be passed on to ticket buyers.
The festival was started out of passion and love for the music and I hope that in some small way it will be remembered for passing that on to its audience. It was, as they say, fun while it lasted."
Peace.
Michael Kinsman
Producer, San Diego Blues Festival
(Photo of the late Lucky Peterson by Marilyn Stringer)
Read further article in the San Diego Union Tribune
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Set Sail on the Biggest Blues Rock Party at Sea
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 Three-time GRAMMY® Award-nominated guitar superstar Joe Bonamassa and Sixthman, the leader in festivals and music cruises for more than a decade, present Keeping the Blues Alive At Sea Mediterranean III. This world-famous floating blues-rock party at sea sails August 17-22, 2023 from Athens, Greece to Dubrovnik, Croatia and Santorini, Greece aboard the luxurious Norwegian Jade. Guests should book their cabins now.
This 5-night music festival will feature sets from Bonamassa along with dozens of live performances and once-in-a-lifetime collaborations by a spectacular lineup of hand-picked special guests.
Between the non-stop music, unique acitvities and onboard events, the ship will dock at stunning ports of Dubrovnik, Croatia and Santorini, Greece. Shore excursions will be available to purchase until 4-6 weeks prior to sailing.
Keeping the Blues Alive At Sea Mediterranean III benefits the Keeping the Blues Alive Foundation (KTBA), dedicated to providing students and teachers the resources and tools needed to further music education.
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• PBPS “Road to Memphis IBC Fundraiser Concert” Dec 16
• Baton Rouge Blues Society’s 20th Blues Christmas Dec 18
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(GREENSBORO, NC) - This Piedmont Blues Preservation Society (PBPS) concert is free to attend and will serve as a fundraiser to help the winning music acts pay for their trip to Memphis, Tennessee to compete and represent PBPS in the International Blues Challenge. Donations are encouraged, The event is 7:30pm-11:30pm Friday Dec 16 at Joymongers Brewing Co. (576 N. Eugene) in Greensboro, North Carolina.
Artists representing are responsible for their own expenses and required to spend almost a week on the road! Please consider gifting the musicians’ funds and/or buying some merch to help offset their trip.
Performing is PBPS Youth Winner Tanner Lee and his band from Clemmons, NC; PBPS Solo-Duo Winner Blazing Blues Bob who plays Piedmont-style Blues and is bit of an amateur historian as well; and PBPS Band Winner Mama and The Ruckus featuring Melissa McKinney leading a 7-piece band full of energy and soul.
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 (BATON ROUGE, LA) - The Baton Rouge Blues Society’s annual Blues Christmas marks its 20th anniversary Sunday Dec 18th at Phil Brady’s Bar (4848 Government St.) in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. Doors open 2:30pm.
Performers include special guests Luther Kent and Stefanie Alexander. Also on the bill are the Gregg Wright Band, Chris LeBlanc Band, D.K. Harrell Blues Band, Frederick Neal, Russ Bryant, Chris Belleau, Miguel Hernandez, Joe Monk, Elvin Killerbee, Don Isbell, J.R. Daniel and more.
Admission and the blues buffet with red beans, jambalaya and fried chicken are free. Potluck desserts welcomed. Seating is first come first served. Bring a friend or family members. To check if any tables are left to reserve (at a cost), call Ken at 225-572-3081.
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Which Legendary Rhythm & Blues Cruise Hits Your Groove?
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- Join Waitlist for #38 Eastern Caribbean!
- #39 Mexican Riviera Sales Open
- Prebook #40 Western Carribbean
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 LRBC #38 Eastern Caribbean
Cabins SOLD OUT &
Wait List is HOT!
Jan. 28 ~ Feb. 4, 2023
Ft. Lauderdale, FL to St. John, St. Maarten & Half Moon Cay (Bahamas Private Island). Sailing on Holland America’s ms Nieuw Statendam.
Band Lineup, Cabin Pricing & More Here! Join the Waitlist by visiting here or call (816) 753-7979
~  LRBC #39 Mexican Riviera
Oct. 28 ~ Nov. 4, 2023
Sailing on Holland America's ms Koningsdam from San Diego, CA to Cabo San Lucas, Mazatlan & Puerto Vallarta. Book now! Lineup & Cabin Pricing Here!
~
Pre-Book Now!
#40 Western Caribbean
Jan 28 ~ Feb 4, 2024
Sailing on Holland America’s Pinnacle-class ms Nieuw Statendam from Ft. Lauderdale, FL to Grand Cayman, Roatán, Honduras & Costa Maya, Mexico. By placing a fully-refundable prebook deposit of $500 per cabin, you’ll reserve a space in line to book a cabin once the band announcement is made in early Spring.
(816) 753-7979 to place your deposit!
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LEGENDARY RHYTHM & BLUES CRUISE
More Than A Cruise… More Than A Festival…
More Than You Can Imagine!
The Best Blues Experience on the Planet!
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Malaya Blue :: BLUE CREDENTIALS
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 Blue Credentials by Malaya Blue is the follow up to the critically acclaimed Still, and as the title suggests, finds the outstanding UK vocalist delving ever deeper into her blues heart. It’s certainly her most guitar driven album to date.
The fruitful collaboration with legendary blues writer and producer Dennis Walker (R.I.P.) is again at its core but this time with a world class band in the studio and writing contributions from Joey Delgado, Hank Linderman and Brett Lucas. The long lost, and some said mythical, John Campbell track, “Howlin’ Mercy,” finally sees the light of day 30 plus years after Dennis wrote it and Elektra chickened out of releasing it. Malaya doesn’t shirk from the heavy dark content, showing her increasing maturity as an artist of the highest order.
Richard Cousins, Brett Lucas, John McCullough and Sam Kelly gathered from around the globe to lend their talents and experience and Malaya recorded every vocal live with the band, no overdubs or studio trickery. Sadly, Dennis passed to the great juke joint in the sky, but not before he had heard what would prove to be the last record he was involved with and gave it a big seal of approval. The bar has been well and truly raised.
Website
 "I'm Having Dreams Again"
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Keb' Mo' "Merry Merry Christmas"
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Just In Case... plus Holidays & Birthdays
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 • Dec = "Month of Giving"
• Dec 25 Christmas Day
Birthdays upcoming of note:
Dec 15 Andrew “Big Voice” Odom (1936), Mark Hummel (1955), Nick Moss (1969); Dec 16 Billy Gibbons (1949 pictured-Image credit: Roger Kisby); Dec 17 James Booker (1939-1983), Paul Butterfield (1942-1987); Dec 18 Pee Wee Crayton (1914-1985), Eddie "Cleanhead" Vinson (1917-1988), Lonnie Brooks (1933-2017), Arthur "Peg Leg Sam" Jackson (1911-1977), Rod Piazza (1947); Dec 19 Professor Longhair (aka Henry Roeland Byrd) (1918-1980); Dec 20 Walter "Wolfman" Washington (1943), Mitch Kashmar (1960), Tom Hambridge; Dec 21 Peetie Wheatstraw (1902-1941), Carla Thomas (1942); Dec 22 Lil Green (1919-1954), Liz Mandeville; Dec 23 Little Esther Phillips (1935-1984); Dec 24 Lee Dorsey (1924-1986); Dec 25 Joe Louis Walker (1949); Dec 27 Tracy Nelson (1944); Dec 28 Roebuck "Pops" Staples (1914-2000), Johnny Otis (1921-2012); Dec 29 Matt "Guitar" Murphy (1929-2018), Terry Hanck (1944); Dec 30 Bo Diddley (1928-2008); Dec 31 Odetta (1930-2008)
 Just in Case: December 20 is "Go Caroling Day." It is widely believed that caroling on Christmas started in 1223 at the church of St. Francis of Assisi. He thought that it was merrier to sing songs full of joy and fun during the holidays, instead of solemn hymns.
Of course we all are familiar with the traditional holiday carols, but how about those bluesy Christmas songs like "Merry Merry Christmas" (Koko Taylor), "Lonesome Christmas" (Lowell Fulson), "Boogie Woogie Santa" (Mabel Scott), "Santa Claus Wants Some Loving" (Albert Collins), "Please Come Home For Christmas" (Charles Brown), "Merry Christmas Baby" (Otis Redding), "Santa Claus Go Straight To The Ghetto" (James Brown), "Santa" Lightnin' Hopkins, and "Back Door Santa" (Clarence Carter) among others.
(Artists listed here are mostly a sample of those who recorded them).
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Missed your Weekly e-Guide?
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Billboard #1 Blues Albums
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Billboard & iTunes #1 Blues Album - as of Dec 15, 2022
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 #1 Billboard
KENNY WAYNE SHEPHARD
Trouble Is...25
#1 iTunes
BUDDY GUY
The Blues Don't Lie
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BFG Twitter-Instagram-Facebook
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Join Blues Freaks at our Tweeter feed & on Instagram
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Hey, come on over and Join 14.3k+ Blues Freaks at our TWITTER feed @BluesFestGuide
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Then please drop on by and "LIKE" us and get
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Over 183K blues fans can't be wrong!
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Radio Submit Roots Blues Chart
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20th Annual Blues Festival Guide
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20th Annual Blues Festival Guide Magazine
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 You can not only get a hard copy of the magazine via select festivals, blues societies or by ordering, but our 20th Anniversary digital edition of the Blues Festival Guide is available on our website! Click the image at left to read and enjoy all 84 pages. Turn on the speaker to hear Tulle Brae singing "Seven Bridges."
Blues legend Bobby Rush calls our magazine: "The roadmap to everything blues." Indeed, the articles offer something for everyone, all blues related, of course. This year’s engaging editorial from aficionados in the blues community includes articles from Victor Wainwright, Mitch Woods, Reverend Billy C. Wirtz and Roger Stolle among others.
Our cover by photographer Marilyn Stringer features the talented Tullie Brae and Calvin Johnson at the 2021 North Atlantic Blues Festival!
You can also order your own hard copy here!
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To view entire calendar of festivals & Live Streams, click here!
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ATTENTION:
FESTIVAL PROMOTERS
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LIST YOUR FESTIVAL ON OUR
WEBSITE FOR FREE HERE
To highlight your festival on our web and here in the e-Guide Festival Calendar please EMAIL for ad rates
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Due to space constraints
Not all upcoming Blues festivals/events are listed here
For a complete list & links see our comprehensive website.
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NOTE: Highlighted/Linked events
are paid "Featured" ads.
Checkout our website Festival page!
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MLK Blues Festival
Jan-12-2023 – Jan-15-2023
Chester, South Carolina, USA
Pigz in Z’Hills BBQ & Blues Fest
Jan-13-2023 – Jan-14-2023
Zephyrhills, Florida USA
Go Mexico Rock ‘n Blues
Explosion Festival
Jan-21-2023 – Jan-29-2023
Ixtapa-Zihuatanejo, Mexico
Clarksdale Film & Music Festival
Jan-27-2023 – Jan-29-2023
Clarksdale, Mississippi, USA
The February Blues XXIV
Feb-02-2023 – Feb-26-2023
Simcoe County, Ontario, Canada
Cincinnati Winter Blues
Experience IV
Feb-11-2023
Mason, Ohio, USA
Baton Rouge Mardi Gras Festival
Feb-18-2023
Baton Rouge, Louisiana USA
Vero Beach Blues Festival
Feb-25-2023 – Feb-26-2023
Vero Beach, Florida, USA
Saskatoon Blues Festival
Feb-27-2023 – Mar-05-2023
Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada
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| | For more festivals & events plus links
please go to our website
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Leeds Blues, Rhythm
& Rock Festival
Feb-26-2023
Leeds, United Kingdom
2023 Byron Bay Bluesfest
April-6-2023 - April-10-2023
Byron Bay, Australia
Juke Joint Festival
& Related Events
Apr-13-2023 – Apr-16-2023
Clarksdale, Mississippi, USA
Baton Rouge
Blues Festival
April-22-2023 – April-23-2023
Baton Rouge, Louisiana USA
Lincoln Blues, Rhythm
& Rock Festival
May-6-2023
Lincoln, United Kingdom
10th Annual Big Island
Jazz & Blues Festival
Jun-01-2023 – Jun-03-2023
Kailua Kona, Hawaii, USA
Billtown Blues Festival
Jun-09-2023 – Jun-10-2023
Hughesville, Pennsylvania, USA
Waterfront Blues Fest
July-1-2023 - July-4-2023
Portland, Oregon USA
Tampa Bay Blues Festival
July 14-16, 2023
St. Petersburg, Florida USA
North Atlantic Blues Festival
July 15-16, 2023
Rockland, Maine USA
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We continue to stay optimistic!
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We're thinking of you.. here's to good health & good music!
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 RBA Publishing/Blues Festival Guide
P.O. Box 920, Arcata, CA 95518
Call 707-630-3304
We welcome e-Guide suggestions and questions. You can reach our E-Guide editor, Michele Lundeen (pictured here) via EMAIL.
Michele is also a singer, songwriter, performer and bandleader based in the San Diego County, California area and nicknamed the "Queen of Steam" for her high energy and passionate style.
RBA Publishing, Inc. in business since 1993, is a boutique, blues-specific PR and marketing firm based on the West Coast. We help musicians, festivals, labels and music-related brands. Our digital campaigns target fans, industry and influencers. We are masterful at email marketing, social media, fan acquisition and long-term marketing plans. Our media services are supported by people who understand and love the blues genre. Publishers of the annual Blues Festival Guide magazine, our top-ranking website, and e-Guide newsletter with approx. 30,000 weekly subscribers, we have been blues industry leaders for 20 years. Please contact us at 707-630 3304 or EMAIL to find out how we can help you!
Information both editorial and advertising in the Blues Festival E-Guide is believed to be correct but not guaranteed. Double check info carefully before you attend any event or send money for anything. We do not do CD/DVD reviews nor write the news... we just share and report it.
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Fair Use Act statement and disclaimer
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Hey blues lovers! Got 
