Masters Of Blues Feature On Latest Bluesfest Announce
It's all about the blues in this latest announcement.
Worried Bluesfest isn't going to have enough blues for you next year? Ha! Get a load of this latest announcement and you'll change your tune very quickly. Some old Bluesfest favourites, some fresh faces and a couple of names we frankly didn't think we'd ever see out here.
Here's the latest announcement:
Buddy Guy, Jake Bugg, The James Cotton Blues Band, Booker T. Jones, Charlie Musselwhite, Eric Bibb, Beth Hart, North Mississippi Allstars, Devon Allman, Walter Trout, Candye Kane Feat. Laura Chavez, Saidah Baba Talibah
Here's what the line-up sounds like:
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Here's what we reckon:
BUDDY GUY
Recent years have seen Buddy Guy prove to Byron audiences that he could well be the greatest living blues performer, even at 78 years of age. The legend of Chicago blues has played many a Bluesfest over the past decade or so, but festival director Peter Noble – who tours Guy on every Australian visit – says that this might not be the case for much longer.
“I am advised that Buddy Guy is going to be pulling back on international touring and so, as much as I would hesitate to ever say this is his last tour of Australia, it really is going to become more difficult to get him back to our shores in future,” Noble said in a statement today.
You simply must not miss this incredible legend of electric blues music; his stage show is so much fun, his knowledge of the blues is better than anyone's and he can still play that guitar like nobody's business.
JAKE BUGG
Blues doesn't have to be just an old man's game and Jake Bugg is proof that the influence of the blues genre is still mighty strong in the younger set. Bugg's popularity has exploded over the past few months and he's been enjoying both critical and commercial success after the release of his self-titled LP late last year. His indie-leaning blues will have the younger Bluesfest fans very excited about Easter and, if things keep going the way they have been, he'll probably be even more popular by the time the festival rolls around. His new album is out today!
THE JAMES COTTON BLUES BAND
The superharp has never, ever been to Australia before, but he's making his first trip at the age of 78 to perform a special set as a part of the Bluesfest 25th anniversary celebrations. This is a big deal; James Cotton was the trusty harmonica player with the inimitable Howlin' Wolf back in the early 50s before becoming a sideman for the one and only Muddy Waters later on that decade. Over the past half a century or so he has released stacks of albums, including Cotton Mouth Man earlier on this year, and even throat cancer won't stop him blowing that harp. A true legend who you might not ever get the chance to see again.
BOOKER T. JONES
This is a man who has his fingerprints all over a heap of the greatest soul songs ever released, thanks to his part of the Stax Records story in the 1960s, and is responsible for an enormous number of classic songs from his own band Booker T & The M.G.s back in the 1960s. Recent years have seen Booker T. Jones slamming out more material than ever with Potato Hole with Drive-By Truckers and The Road From Memphis with all manner of guests all solid recordings. This year's Sound The Alarm however is a genius cut of modern R&B and, while it's slick, it might be his best work in decades.
CHARLIE MUSSELWHITE
One of the great harp players of all time, Charlie Musselwhite, was there when it all began 25 years ago. Yes, he headlined the first ever East Coast Blues Festival back in 1989 and he has been back countless times since, including a stint on the main stage with Ben Harper earlier this year. It's testament to the quality of his music and the beauty of blues music in general that he remains an exciting proposition on the bill a quarter of a century later.
ERIC BIBB
He sings, plays and tells stories with such proficiency and charm and Eric Bibb has given Byron audiences bucket loads of that charm over the years. While his brilliant guitar playing is completely striking, the richness of his voice and his interpretation of all manner of acoustic blues styles is utterly astounding as well – it's hard to pick what's most appealing about the artist. We're just glad he's back.
BETH HART
She can often be seen performing alongside fellow Bluesfest favourite Joe Bonamassa, but Beth Hart has been a favourite songwriter for many since the tail end of the 1990s. A huge voice and a really incredible way with words has helped her connect with mainstream audiences at times, but has also seen her appeal to a diverse range of music lovers including blues fans.
NORTH MISSISSIPPI ALLSTARS
They caused a stir in all the right ways with their devastating performances back at Red Devil Park in 2004 and people have been urging organisers to get them back ever since. With their new LP World Boogie Is Coming the band are playing dirtier and more shambolically than ever but, of course, with the utter proficiency that you'd come to expect from the Dickinson brothers and their buddy Chris Chew. The North Mississippi Allstars live and breathe southern rock and will set the stage alight a decade on from their last appearance.
DEVON ALLMAN
Seeing as his old man is one of the big drawcards for 2014, it seems only fair that Devon Allman – who was here this year with Royal Southern Brotherhood – gets a return invitation to play tracks from his debut solo LP Turquoise, which was released earlier this year. The guitarist only started playing blues and rock music a decade or so back, he'd wanted to try and separate himself from the scene of his family at first, but he's embraced it now and we're all the better for it.
WALTER TROUT
It will be precisely 20 years since Walter Trout last appeared on a Bluesfest stage when he makes his return to the event in 2014 and he's doing so against some pretty stiff odds. Trout has been a bit unwell of late, but he hasn't let that slow his touring down too much and the former member of John Mayall's Bluesbreakers and Canned Heat is making Australia a part of his plans for 2014. If you haven't heard him play guitar, then hold on to your hat because you're going to be hearing something that can only be described as blistering when Walter Trout comes to town in 2014.
CANDYE KANE FEAT. LAURA CHAVEZ
If you've ever seen Candye Kane perform live, you'll know that you can't really describe the magnitude of a show such as this. Kane's voice is huge and her stage presence is like very few other artists, if you're not entertained by the end of one of these shows then you need to have a think about your mental wellbeing. Speaking of wellbeing, Kane has battled cancer since the last time she was at Bluesfest over a decade ago and is now back with help from young guitar slinger Laura Chavez with a kickin' new rockabilly record and no doubt a great new show.
SAIDAH BABA TALIBAH
This Canadian singer was a real hit at the BIGSOUND showcase series in September and is coming back to hopefully give a larger audience a chance to see how much fun her and her band have on stage while pummelling out their brand of soul infused rock music. The booming voice and full on aural assault from the band make this the kind of act punters won't be able to ignore, even if they want to. Saidah Baba Talibah will no doubt be an exciting discovery for more than a few people next year.
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