If you're crying the blues next week for any reason, join other music fans in Pender Harbour for the eighth annual Blues Festival taking place June 3 to 5 at various venues.
The festival gets underway next Friday with Johnny Ferreira and his rock 'n' roll saxophone along with guest vocalist Nadine States at the Garden Bay Pub at 9 p.m. The festival has always enjoyed a special relationship with the pub because manager Ron Johnston was a force behind the first ever festival. As the festival grew, more venues were added and a stalwart group of volunteers joined Johnston, who is still a director on the festival's board.
Tickets for all pub events are $20 (indoor seating) and $15 (deck seating). If the weather's bad, Johnston will be putting up a tent on the deck.
Alsoon Friday evening is a dinner show with vocalist Diane Lines at the restaurant of the Painted Boat Resort in Madeira Park. (Reservations are required, so call 604-883-3000. Her second show at the Painted Boat on Saturday offers two seatings: 6:30 and 8:30 p.m.)
Lines, who is based in Vancouver, is associated with many accomplished artists including working as pianist for Michael Bublé for two years. She has also recorded and toured with Juno Award-winning singer/songwriter Gary Fjellgaard, and she appears on two of Fjellgaard's CDs.Her work earned her consecutive nominations for keyboardist of the year from a music association.Probably her most interesting claim to fame is keyboards and vocals with Canada's "King of Swing" Dal Richards and his Orchestra for the last eight years.
An accomplished theatre performer, she is also resident accompanist/arranger for the Universal Gospel Choir. On Sunday, June 5, she leads a show, Gospel Experience, at the Pender Harbour School of Music in Madeira Park. It starts at noon and tickets are $15.
The Grasshopper Pub on High-way 101 near Madeira Park also hosts a dinner show on Friday and Saturday evening at 6 p.m. with Willie McCalder, long-time member of the Powder Blues Band.
"He's a sweet guy," said festival organizer Marilyn MacLeod. "He can really sing and play piano."
On Saturday, June 4, you can start your day at the Lions pancake breakfast at 8:30 a.m. at Pender Harbour Community Hall. On Saturday evening, the hall becomes the scene for one of Vancouver's busiest six-member ensembles, Brickhouse. The dance starts at 9 p.m. with tickets on sale for $25. For 16 years, this danceable group has been a big hit. With a list of original material that rivals keys on a piano, Brickhouse attracts the young and the young at heart.
Free stuff: On Saturday, free concerts run from noon to 4 p.m. at Madeira Park (see Dr. Fun and the Painkillers, among others) and at John Henry's, Garden Bay (Joe Stanton and Willie McCalder). Also free is a Saturday blues jam at Garden Bay Pub from 2 to 6 p.m. There will also be free shuttles on the mighty Slo-Cat to and from venues and free moorage at Garden Bay.
CD release: Local talent Mark Crissinger will be releasing his new blues rock CD, Raw Umber, at one of the free concerts on Saturday. The West Coast version of his band, the Bluebudzz, will be performing on the outdoor stage in Madeira Park. The CD will be available along with all other performers' music at any blues festival event.
Gary Comeau and his Voodoo All-Stars come direct from a gig at the Powell River Blues Fest to give a concert at the Garden Bay Pub at 9 p.m. Comeau is a brilliantly diverse singer-songwriter who plays a range of instruments including guitar, mandolin, fiddle and piano. Although his roots are French-Acadian (he was raised in Nova Scotia), his music vibe detours through Louisiana and the Mississippi delta.
This year's All-Star Blues Jam features favourite Tim Hearsey and Russian sensation Arsen Shomakhov at the Garden Bay Pub on Sunday from 2 to 6 p.m. Keyboardist Lines closes the festival at the Pub at 8 p.m.
Many events at last year's festival were sold out, so buy tickets early on-line at: www.penderharbourbluesfestival.com.
