06/28/2016
Warning... extremely long rant ahead...
I usually have a pretty thick skin and try to accept critricism, especially positive criticism, with an open mind and sincere thanks for ideas that help us improve our event.
But I'm pretty defensive when critics that haven't even attended our shows start insulting the fans or the bands.
I just read a comment from the local peanut gallery (a friend calls it the largest open-air asylum in the world...) that said our lineup read like they came from someone's garage.
The critic hadn't even attended our shows and had no clue how much incredible talent they had missed.
All I can say, we have a heck of a nice garage at Eureka Springs Blues Weekend.
Speaking of garages... the biggest complaint nine years in a row for Blues Weekend was lack of parking. Not the bands, not the production, not the venues. The lack of parking. Eureka Springs just didn't have enough parking for all the fans and bands and volunteers, and then refused to run the trolley late-night for us like they did for the city-run festival for years. And then they doubled our cost to rent a parking space...
This year we had Grammy Award winners, Blues Music Award winners and nominees, Albert King Award winners, the International Blues Challenge winner, and and winners of the Ozarks Blues Challenge, as well as local, regional and national touring acts that play one of the many hues of “the Blues”.
Granted, we don't have Eric Clapton or Buddy Guy on our lineups, and likely never will. We just don't have tons of taxpayer's money to blow like the Eureka Springs Blues Festival did, which was cancelled in 2007 after heavy losses.
Luckily, we learned from their mistakes, and instead of bringing back the same bands year after year, sometimes having the same guy play five times in one weekend, we mixed up the offering to showcase different "Blues of all Hues from the Who's Who of the Blues" every year.
All with no taxpayer support except to advertise the city-wide event, we turned their $40K -plus loss in 2007 into a fundraiser for a nationally recognized 501(c)3 wildlife refuge that gives lifetime homes to neglected, abused and abandoned exotic animals.
Over the past nine years, Blues Weekend has promoted 120 headliner and featured acts, plus another 204 acts who have performed at Basin Park and the many partner venues that join us in bringing thousands of visitors to Eureka Springs every year. Collectively, the bands have 510 Blues Music Award nominations and 144 Blues Music Award wins. Over a dozen Grammy nominations and 8 wins. Ten Blues Hall of Famers!
What a garage!
We also cut the prices drastically, from $190 for a "9 show pass" back in 2007 to this year's $80 Blues Weekend pass for 15 shows.
We turned a loss-leader into a fundraiser.
But most importantly, we have had countless magical moments, like when Earl Cate left a gig early in Fayetteville and drove as fast as he could to join Coco Montoya for a 60 minute encore!
Or when the "other" Koko, Koko Taylor started dancing backstage to Trampled Under Foot, asking to meet the "kids" after her set.
And don't forget rising star Marquise Knox joining Elvin Bishop for an impromptu jam after Elvin's "Singer/Songwriter" performance that allowed Elvin to tell his amazing stories of being the first Okie to be embraced by the south-side Chicago bluesmen to a live audience for the first time.
Or when Charlie Musselwhite arranged to have the TableRockers back his performance so they could all get together one last time before one of the Rockers passed on to join Luther's Jam in the Sky.
Sadly, another peanut gallery sniper criticized us for that one because we didn't have Charlie's band fly out with him instead of creating a magic moment the rest of the audience clearly "got" the reason behind it! Best friends for life getting together one last time... and the critic had not one clue what a magical moment he was witnessing!
The artists have entertained our audiences with Acoustic, African Drum, Cajun, Cigar Box, Chicago, Contemporary, Country, Delta, Detroit, Dirty, Diddly Bow, Electric, Gospel, Hill Country, Jump, Kansas City, Louisiana, Memphis, New Orleans, Ozark, Piano, Piedmont, R&B, Reggae, Soul, St. Louis, Swamp, Texas and Zydeco, all subsets of “The Blues”. We've had Blues Hall of Famers and Grammy Winners. We've had bands who have played their first major festival here, and then gone on to world tours. The full range from teenagers getting their first chance to true legends getting a chance to perform again.
Here are our "favorite garage bands" that have performed at Blues Weekend since 2008... Just like Blues Festival Guide wrote a few years back, our lineup reads like "The Who's Who of the Blues!"
But of course, our dear crtitic surely knows far more than the leading Blues Festival publication in the world... So, here are the garage bands who have played Blues Weekend over the years. If you don't recognize any of them, you need to get out of your hole, listen to Sirius Blues and attend some Blues clubs and festivals. The list is full of amazing acts...
Albert Castiglia
Alvin Youngblood Hart
Bel-Airs
Bob Margolin
Brandon Santini
Brick Fields
Buddy Shute
Candye Kane
Carolyn Wonderland
Cate Brothers
CeDell Davis & Brethern
Cedric Burnside Project
Charlie Musselwhite
Chicago Blues R***e featuring John Primer, Kenny “Beady Eyes” Smith, Barrelhouse Chuck, Bob Stoeger and Billy Flynn
Chris Duarte
Chris Thomas King
Chubby Carrier
Coco Montoya
Damon Fowler
Danny Cox
David "Honeyboy" Edwards
Deanna Bogart
Deborah Coleman
Delgado Brothers
Divas On Fire
Doghouse Daddies
Drumming with Angelo Yao
EG Kight
Elvin Bishop
Ethan K***z
Fast Johnny Ricker
George Hunt
Ghost Town Blues Band
Grady Champion
Guitar Shorty
Hadden Sayers
Haldor Bragason and David “Thor” Johansson
Hubert Sumlin & the Buddy Flett Band
Indigenous
Isayah’s All Stars
Jimmy D. Lane
Jimmy Wayne Garrett
Joe Louis Walker
John Calvin Brewer Band
John Hammond
John Nemeth
Jonn Del Toro Richardson
JP Soars & The Red Hots
Kelley Hunt
Kenny Neal
King Clarentz
Koko Taylor
Kory Montgomery & Isayah Warford
Larry Garner
Lazy Lester
Leah and the Mojo Doctors
Lee McBee & The Confessors
Lionel Young Band
Little Joe McLerran
Lucious Spiller
LZ Love
Magic Slim & The Teardrops
Marquise Knox
Mary Flower
Michael “Hawkeye” Herman
Michael Burks
Moreland & Arbuckle
Nace Brothers
Nathan A
Nick Schnebelen
Nighthawks
Noah Wotherspoon
Oreo Blue
Otis Taylor
Phil Berkowitz
RJ Mischo & His Red Hot Band
Rory Block
Rosie Ledet
Ruthie Foster Band
Sean Carney Band
Selwyn Birchwood Band
Shaun Murphy
Shawn "Lil' Slim" Holt
Stacy Mitchhart
Steve Jones
Super Chikan & The Fighting C***s
The Ariels
Tinsley Ellis
Tommy Castro Band
Trampled Under Foot
Trey Johnson & Jason Willmon
Victor Wainwright
Walter Wolfman Washington
And that doesn't count the acts at our partner venues all around Eureka Springs...
Ready for another long list?
Adam Posnak
Adventure Land Blues Band
Amanda Rey & West Street Blues
Anna Horton
Baby Jason & The Tramps
Barbwire
Bel-Airs
Blew Reed & The Flatheads
Blue Krewe
Bob Alder
Bourbon Highway
Bramhall Brothers
Brandon Santini
Brian Martin
Brick Fields Band
Brody Buster
Brother Bagman
Buddy Shute
Chad Emmert Band
Chris Lager Band
Cross Eyed Cat
Cutty Rye
Dasani
Dave Watson
David Castro Band
David Wiser
Dayton Waters
Delta Highway
Doghouse Daddies
Don’t Stop Please
Dorrian Cross
Earl & Them
Eddie's Blues Train
Eef & The Groovy Blues Express
Fat Elvis
Fatz 59
Full House
Full Moon Band
Furious George
G-Funk
Gary Hutchinson Duo
George Hunt
Geri 'Black and Blues’
Gone Was Here
Harry O
Hazard Pay
Honeyshine
Hosty Duo
Isayah's AllStars
Jason Freeman
Jason Ricci
JD & The MudHounds
Jeff Lee
Jessee Dean
Joe Giles and The Homewreckers
Joe Pitts Band
Jones Brothers
Jones Van Jones
Jonn Del Toro Richardson
Josh Hoyer & Soul Colossal
JP Soars & The Red Hots
Jug Band
Justin Cauble
Karina
Katy Guillen & The Girls
King Clarentz
Kirk Brown
Klear Ambition
Knock Kneed Sally
Korey Mattox
Kosmik Debris
Kris Lager Band
Laurie Morvan
Levee Town
Lightning Red
Lil' Dave Thompson
Lilʼ Slim & The Tablerockers
LZ Love
Mark Albertson
Mark Montgomery
Mary Bridget Davies Group
Nathan A
No Name Blues Band
Norman Jackson Band
Ocie Fisher
Opal Agafia & The Sweet Nothings
Opal Fly
Oreo Blue
Oysters Rockefeller
Patrick Sweany Band
Penelope & The Unusual Suspects
Pope County Bootleggers
Randy Beach
Red Ambition
Rich Berry
RJ Mischo
Rockin’ Jake
Rowdy Beaver Band
Sad Daddy
Scott Holt
Seth Freeman
Shawn “Lil’ Slim” Holt
Short Checkers
Smokin’ Joliet Dave and the Mighty Mudhounds
Smooth Down Under
Spent
Stella Blue & Maddox
Steve Jones
Sweet Stevie
Table Rockers with special guest Lil' Slim
Taken With Darrel Brooks
Tas Cru
Terry Evans
Terry Quiett Band
The Americans
The Ariels
The Eureka Street Buskers
The Jug Band
The Super Reverbs
The Tablerockers
Tom “Trashmouth” Baker & Friends
Tony Trahan
Trash Angels
Underground Blues Division
Underground Mafia
Vance Orange Project
Wattsit2ya
Whiskey Mendez
WSNB
Zack Bramhall
OK. I'm much better now.
I got a lot of smiles reading the list, as well as lots of tears for those who have left us to join Luther's Jam.... lots of good friends and Blues Family there!
To our attendees, post any constructive ideas for improvement. We do our best to improve the event every year.
OK... rant over.
Thanks to all the awesome bands for working their way out of the "garage" and to our little fundraiser, voted one of the Top 10 Most Beautiful Blues Festivals in the World!
www.EurekaSpringsBlues.com
Our lineups have been described by Blues Festival Guide as "The Who's Who of the Blues...". We have featured local, regional, national and Grammy®-award-winning Blues acts from all over America and around the world! We have featured Blues Music Award winners and nominees, and several Blues Hall of F...
