They're hot, they're new (their first show was in 2004), and they've already been nominated for Best Band by the prestigious Washington Blues Society's Best of the Blues Awards. They are the Red Hot Blues Sisters, the headline act at this year's Pender Harbour Blues Festival. The professional musicians from Seattle have never performed in Canada before, but just two years ago they sat in at the Yale Hotel in Vancouver with the Cal Batchelor band (see below) a connection that now leads them back to B.C. to perform on May 12 and 13. Guitarist Teri Anne Wilson and vocalist Suze Sims front the group and are the songwriters for the work of Chris Leighton on drums, Lissa Romaglia and Scotty Harris.
Fans love them.
"Our recent success and recognition is a blessing that we are very grateful for," says lead singer Sims.
Find the Red Hot Blues Sisters at the Madeira Park Legion on Friday and Saturday nights with tickets for $20 or $25 at the door. Tickets are available at the Paper Mill or the Legion in Madeira Park, Talewind Books and Coast Books.
But that's not all. There's lots of music during the three-day festival running from May 12 to 14. The Garden Bay Pub will feature Billy Dixon's Soul Train Express on Friday and Saturday nights. This R&B band is back for their third year in a no cover charge event.
Dixon was born in Vancouver, and at the age of four his family moved to St. Louis, Missouri, where he sang in a gospel group. When he returned to Vancouver, his first group was called the Vancouver Shades, earning praise from nostalgia DJ Red Robinson. In the 1960s, Dixon performed with the Night Train Revue, and he is still a member of that group. For the Festival, he'll perform with his current band, the Soul Train Express.
The Garden Bay Pub will also host an all-star jam on Sunday afternoon with local musician Larrie Cook and festival guests Doc Fingers and Lindsay Mitchell. You never know who else might show up.The Pender Harbour Resort (formerly Duncan Cove Resort) will feature the Cal Batchelor Band on Saturday night in a non-ticketed event. The band will also do a free show at Madeira Park Mall on Saturday afternoon. Batchelor has an amazing history in the world of rock and blues. After arriving in England in the 1960s, he became a founding member and main songwriter with Quiver. This band gigged almost every square inch of Britain, recorded two albums and toured with such bands as The Who and Pink Floyd. He has teamed up with Long John Baldry and has toured Britain with Rod Stewart and The Small Faces. Now based in Vancouver, Batchelor is a regular at the Yale Hotel and many other venues. He plays with key--boardist Robbie King, bassist Trevor Newman, drummer Jimmy Fergusson and saxophonist Gene Hardie, a regular player with Bourbon Tabernacle Choir who has also worked with Downchild and Bare Naked Ladies. This is a high-energy, rock-solid belt of blues; fans say electric blues doesn't get much better.
Also, check out perennial festival favourite Wes Mackey. Originally from South Carolina, Mackey plays blues guitar, pedal bass and sings. He will return to the Coast to play free shows at the Madeira Park Mall as well as at John Henry's Store in Garden Bay on Saturday afternoon.
More about the Blues Festival can be found at www.phblues.com or by calling 604-883-2642.
