As I pack my bag for the annual pilgrimage to New Orleans for the Jazz and Heritage Festival, a familiar shiver runs down my spine, it's the onset of Blues festival season. Fresh air, fun crowds, great food, and of course Blues, Blues, and more Blues.
Summer is cookin' with Blues parties around the world. Here are ten guaranteed Blues bashes for your summer mojo.
The "mother" of all Blues festivals, and it's free! This Thursday-Sunday party features the windy city's celebrated artists of yesterday and today. Held in massive Grant Park, this multi-stage event will attract Blues music fans from around the world salivating to hear real Chicago Blues in Chicago. The shows end in early evening, giving fans a chance to discover the great clubs that keep the Blues alive year-round.
If Chicago is the "mother", then Helena, Arkansas' King Biscuit Blues Festival is the "daddy". Also free, the four day festival takes it's moniker from the famed
King Biscuit Time radio show that was broadcast from KFFA in Helena beginning in 1941. The party features several stages in the downtown area with the "emerging artist" stage fast becoming the aspiration of new Blues talent around the world.
The San Francisco Blues Festival is the longest continuously running blues festival in the United States. Featuring the smoother, swingin' "West Coast" sound, this two-day event requires but one stage to service this party. As with Newport, and Monterey, historic Blues moments pepper the festival's history and continue to this day.
The largest festival West of the Mississippi and the second largest festival in the nation, Portland, Oregon's Waterfront Blues Festival is a four day party. Featuring six stages, one being on a cruise boat, and a huge lineup of over 100 artists. This party also inclues films, workshops, and of course, jam sessions.
The Ottawa
Cisco Systems Bluesfest is a relative new-comer to the festival scene, but it hasn't taken long to become one of the biggest Blues festivals on the planet. Ten days of Blues on four stages, plus a few pop heavyweights to pull new fans into the Blues world. An award-winning
Blues in the Schools program is sponsored by the festival and it's participants get to perform. Try the beaver tails.
Simply known as Jazzfest, it is probably the greatest American music festival today. With seven days of shows over a two week period, the Blues is just one pillar of this party. There is a dedicated Blues tent, but artists also appear on the myriad of stages that fill the infield of a horse racing track. The food is as spectacular as the music.
Duluth, Minnesota is not exactly a place that reeks of Blues history, but every summer thousands of fans jam the place for the Bayfront Blues Festival. The four day event can attract 50,000 plus with the whole town being inundated with Blues fans up to their necks in Blues.
The Mississippi Delta Blues and Heritage Festival is the second oldest continuously operating blues festival in the country and the oldest to celebrate the blues in the land of its birth. Held just south of Greenville, this one-day event is a muddy, down-home celebration in the heart of the Delta.
Davenport, Iowa hosts this party featuring Blues artists from the upper Mississippi river regions along with national acts. The three-day party by the river features special kids activities and free workshops.
Wheeling, West Virginia is the host to this three-day lineup of Blues gold and it is becoming a bright star on the festival scene. Boasting a hard-core Blues lineup, the party is staged at an amphitheater on the Ohio river. Late night jam sessions, workshops to keep fans immersed in the groove all weekend.
