This article first appeared in the St. Louis Beacon, May 23, 2012 - The third annual Bluesweek Festival is on the move - in both its location and time frame, as well as the sheer amount of area and national talent packed into the Fest schedule.
In 2010, the Bluesweek Fest took place in front of Peabody Opera House on a single stage over the course of a Friday and Saturday in late August. Last year, the Festival kept that two-day late-August time frame, but the music stage moved to Washington Avenue near the future home of the national Blues Museum in the Merchant’s Exchange building.
This year, Bluesweek has moved to the more attractive Memorial Day weekend slot - and to the easily accessible Soldiers Memorial location that spans a four-block area across from City Hall and the Opera House.
In addition, the event has expanded to three days from two – Friday May 25 through Sunday, May 27. And music now takes place on three stages throughout the grounds rather than being limited to a single stage. (A complete Bluesweek music schedule and other festival info can be found at the end of the article.)
BBQ and retro–rock music fans have become accustomed to the Rib America Festival occupying the Soldiers Memorial grounds for the past several Memorial Days. But Rib America is skipping St. Louis this year, which opened up that holiday weekend for something else.
Mike Kociela of Entertainment St. Louis, one of the driving forces behind the creation of Bluesweek, consulted with others and found immediate agreement that moving Bluesweek to Memorial Day made sense in many ways.
“When we started Bluesweek in the spring of 2010,” Kociela said during a music break at last Sunday’s Bluesweek All-Star Blues Brunch at the Grizzly Bear in Soulard, “we didn’t have a lot of choices in terms of picking a time for the event. But we knew we had to move quickly. So it worked out that we could do it the last weekend in August – and tie it in with sponsorship from the Peabody Opera House, which was being refurbished at the time.”
The first Bluesweek event in 2010, as well as the 2011 Fest, ended up being successful in terms of attendance. But the hot, humid dog days of August event – which was also a week before the Big Muddy Blues Fest on Laclede’s Landing – had already prompted talk of a shift to the spring. So the move in time and place was.
“Entertainment St. Louis also produces Taste of St. Louis every fall at Soldiers Memorial, as well as Live at the Levee concerts there,” Kociela said. “So we were already very familiar with the site. And having Memorial Day open up was a bonus in terms of timing, and in terms of moving away from the time the Big Muddy Fest runs.”
The expanded, four-block space at Soldiers Memorial also enabled the Bluesweek staff to book music at multiple stages instead of just a single main stage. And according to Kociela, increasing the number of stages also laid the foundation for building awareness for Bluesweek among St. Louis audiences as well as throughout the Midwest and other areas of the country.
“When we first started Bluesweek, we really wanted the musical focus to be on St. Louis-based musicians,” he said. “The point was to make people aware of the depth of talent here in our city. And we also wanted to remind them of all the great musicians who have built the St. Louis blues tradition and heritage. But when the National Blues Museum concept took on new life here with the first Bluesweek Fest, we knew that eventually we wanted to include national acts. And we were able to make that happen this time.”
In addition to featuring more than two dozen area bands (some of which are special all-star groups put together just for Bluesweek), the event will host nationally known artists such as Shemekia Copeland, Bobby Rush, Kelley Hunt, the Cedric Burnside Project and Super Chikan on the schedule.
Unfortunately, blues guitarist Michael Burks, another nationally known musician who was booked for Bluesweek, passed away unexpectedly several weeks ago. Young St. Louis blues musician Marquise Knox, who was mentored by Burks, will perform at 7:30 p.m. this Friday at the 14th and Chestnut Stage as a tribute to Burks.
Of course, bringing in national acts to headline a free event such as Bluesweek also requires major sponsorship or funding dollars. According to Kociela, the change in place and time helped make sponsorship dollars more readily available. And big sponsors led to extras such as the Kids Blues Shack.
Bluesweek doesn’t just build awareness for the importance of the tradition and contributions of St. Louis to the blues tradition and the talent on the contemporary blues scene in the area. It is building support for the National Blues Museum effort as well. Information about the Blues museum effort will be available at the festival; and Rob Endicott, chairman of the National Blues Museum, emphasized that despite the relative lack of news about the project, plans are on going to make the museum a reality.
“We’re in what I would call a semi-quiet phase of the project,” Endicott said during a recent phone call. “We’re finalizing efforts for our capital campaign, developing our major donor list and rolling out targeted educational efforts directed at both student education and outreach lectures for adults.”
Earlier this year, the National Blues Museum sponsored a trip by 10 St. Louis area junior and senior high school students to the White House for a meeting with Michele Obama and musicians such as Shemekia Copeland and Trombone Shorty. Endicott and the National Blues Museum are working to build on the positive media coverage for that vent – and he sees Bluesweek as an essential component in that effort.
“What Bluesweek has done this year by bringing in national artists is a real positive for both St. Louis music and music fans as well as the Blues museum effort,” he explains. “The blues scene here in St. Louis is a hidden treasure that needs to be unearthed. And it also helps to build momentum for St. Louis as the logical home for the National Blues Museum.”
There’s more to Bluesweek than just the three-day music fest this Friday through Sunday. A “Blues Cruise” last Saturday featured admission to music at clubs in Soulard and downtown St. Louis. An All Star Brunch and jam Session took place on Sunday, and a Blues Harp Workshop was scheduled for Wednesday evening at Blues City Deli from 6:30-8:30 p.m.
In addition, the third annual St. Louis Blues Awards on Thursday, May 25 at BB’s Jazz, Blues & Soups will honor two area music legends – Roosevelt Sykes and Billy Gayles – with Lifetime Achievement awards. (Full disclosure: I’ve been asked to host the awards, which means I get to stand up and welcome everyone at the beginning.) And for the first time, Bluesweek awards will be given to contemporary blues musicians in three categories: Blues Artist of the Year, Rising Star and Recording of the Year.
“We want to honor the blues heritage of St. Louis,” said John May, president of the St. Louis Blues Society and manager at BB’s. “And we’ve done that over the past couple of years by giving 14 Lifetime Achievement Awards. But now it’s time to start honoring the blues talent that’s here right now.”
Emcee for the Awards is media personality Bernie Hayes, the 2011 recipient of the Blues Advocate Award.
In addition to Lifetime Achievement Awards for Roosevelt Sykes and Billy Gayles, and the winner of the 2012 Blues Advocate Award, nominees for other awards include:
RISING STAR: Jeremiah Johnson, Marquise Knox, Vince Martin
BLUES ARTIST OF THE YEAR: Boo Boo Davis, Kim Massie, Rich McDonough
RECORDING OF THE YEAR: Matt Hill – “On The Floor”; Eugene Johnson – “Live At BB’s Jazz, Blues & Soups”; Marquis Knox – “Here I Am”; Rum Drum Ramblers – “Mean Scene.”
What - When
The three stages are located throughout the area bounded by Tucker on the east, 14th street on the west, Market on the south and Pine on the north. Chestnut and 13th street will only be open to pedestrian traffic during the Festival.
Here is the complete music lineup:
FRIDAY, MAY 25 – 4:30 p.m. to 11 p.m.
14TH & CHESTNUT STAGE
5:30-7 p.m. The St. Louis Guitar Slingers: Steve Pecaro, Jimmy Lee Kennett & Tony Campanella
7:30-9 p.m. Marquise Knox
9:30-11 p.m. Shemekia Copeland
CLEAR SHOWCASE STAGE
5:30-7 p.m. Tom Hall
7:30-9 p.m. Boss Hall
SATURDAY MAY 26 – 11 a.m. to 11 p.m.
14TH & CHESTNUT STAGE
noon-1 p.m. Nick Moss
1:30-2:45 p.m. Jim Stevens Group
3:15-4:45 p.m. Roland Johnson and the Voodoo Blues Band
5:15-6:45 p.m. St. Louis Social Club
7:30-9 p.m. Marsha Evans and the Coalition
9:30-11 p.m. Bobby Rush
13TH & PINE STAGE
11:30-1 p.m. Matt Hill & Deep Fried Blues featuring Miss Jubilee, Nikki Hill and Honey Lee Brown
1:30-3 p.m. Rum Drum Ramblers
3:30-5 p.m. Renee Smith Band
5:30-7 p.m. Jeremiah Johnson Band with The Sliders
7:30-9 p.m. Cedric Burnside Project
CLEAR SHOWCASE STAGE
noon-1 p.m. Brian Curran
1:15-2:15 p.m. Dave Black Group
2:30-3:30 p.m. Leroy Pierson
3:45-4:15 p.m. The Evenin' Suns (Blues Dancers)
4:30-5:15 p.m. Curt Landes Trio
5:30-6:45 p.m. Jimmy 'Duck' Holmes
7-7:25 p.m. The Evenin' Suns (Blues Dancers)
7:45-9 p.m. Sugar Prophets
SUNDAY MAY 27 – 11 am to 11 pm
14TH & CHESTNUT STAGE
11:30-1 p.m. Bottoms Up Blues Gang
1:30-3 p.m. Rough Grooves
3:30-5 p.m. Bel Airs w/Tad Robinson
5:30-7 p.m. Kelley Hunt
7:30-9 p.m. Super Chikan
9:30-11 p.m. Boo Boo Davis, Chainsaw DuPont & Arthur Williams
13TH & PINE STAGE
noon-1:30 p.m. Ground Floor Band
2-3:15 p.m. Skeet Rodgers
3:45-5 p.m. Billy Peek
5:30-7 p.m. Soulard Blues Band
7:30-9 p.m. Big George Brock
CLEAR SHOWCASE STAGE
noon-1 p.m. James Matthews
1:30-2:30 p.m. The Fabulous Foehners
3-4 p.m. Joe Pastor Group
4:30-5:30 p.m. R. Scott Bryan
6-7 p.m. Silvercloud & Ron Edwards
7:30-9 p.m. Sandy Weltman & Hot Club Caravan
Food vendors at the Festival will include: Rib City, Super Smokers, Vito’s, Shrimp Shack Grill and Ben & Jerry’s.
Saturday and Sunday, there will be a children’s area – the U.S. Cellular Kids Blues Shack – featuring interactive experiences such as building musical instruments from recycled materials and food classes by the nonprofit STL Food Factory.
DOS & DON’TS
Chairs and blankets are OK, but don’t bring:
Cans, coolers, bottles, glass containers, tents, large umbrellas, backpacks, outside food or beverages, video equipment or audio recording equipment.
For complete information about all other Bluesweek events, go to www.stlbluesweek.com