The Bottom Line
In these uncertain times, the music festival is the time-tested way to get the most bang for your hard-earned buck. As a lot of blues festivals have begun adding soul, R&B, and roots-rock artists to their line-ups, fans can experience a wealth of musical styles and performances for the price of a single ticket.
For seven years, the annual Blues Festival Guide has provided a handy roadmap for blues fans looking to hit the road and experience a taste of live blues music in an open-air, outdoors setting. The 7th Annual Blues Festival Guide 2009 includes over 90 pages of ads, articles, interviews, and festival listings.
Pros
- Invaluable source of blues festival information
- Digital version available to read online for free!
Cons
- Newsprint format is inexpensive but cheap
- Smaller guide this year eliminates some valuable information
Description
- Invaluable annual guide to blues festivals
- 92-pages w/covers, 8.5"x11" standard magazine size
- Inexpensive newsprint format
- Price is right - free!
Guide Review - 7th Annual Blues Festival Guide 2009
The 7th Annual Blues Festival Guide 2009 is an invaluable directory to the world of blues festivals and live music. This year's 92-page issue is packed with half and full-page ads for blues festivals, arranged by date beginning with May 2009 and running through the summer to the end of the year.
If the Blues Festival Guide stopped here, that would be more than enough to ensure its place on the blues lover's desk or side table for easy, constant access. The magazine also includes many articles, including an informative overview of the new B.B. King Museum in Mississippi, an educational piece on drumming by notable beat-keeper Tony Braunagel, and a lengthy piece on the blues music scene in Canada.
Legendary blues pianist Joe Willie "Pinetop" Perkins is featured in this year's guide, along with a fine article on the growing movement of "blues art" by Kreg Yingst. The Bluzapalooza tour of Iraq is covered, and the guide includes lots of other blues-related content.
Even the magazine's advertising is illuminating beyond the simple festival listings of featured performers. Label ads, and those for independent blues musicians, feature new and upcoming CD releases, letting the reader know "what's going on" in the blues community.
Best of all, you can't beat the price of the 7th Annual Blues Festival Guide 2009 - free from your local blues society, blues clubs, and at festivals. If you can't find a copy in your area, the guide is also available for $7 postpaid from the Blues Festival Guide website, if you'd like a print copy.
The entire guide can also be read online as a free digital edition, with links to the guide's advertisers. While you're there, you can also sign up for a free weekly email newsletter. No matter how you slice it, the Blues Festival Guide is a bona fide winner!
