by Eric Steiner
The Silver anniversary of the International Blues Challenge (IBC) will
be held February 4th through February 9th, and this year’s event
features a youth showcase on Friday afternoon sponsored by the
award-winning Smokin’ Bluz radio program from Charlotte, North
Carolina. The Blues Foundation expects that no member of a youth
band be over 21, and it is not a competition (although a youth band
might represent a society during the evening competitions along
Beale Street).
At the same time that Friday, the Yellow Dog Records Showcase will
feature Fiona Boyes, Eden Brent, and Mary Flower at King’s Palace
on Beale Street. 2009 Keeping the Blues Alive recipient Betsie
Brown will also showcase select Blind Raccoon acts upstairs at Rum
Boogie like Josh Garrett and the Bottom Line, Dave Fields, Tas Cru,
Ricky Gene Hall & the Goods,
The Delta Flyers, among others.
Too much to do? Competing
calendars? Yep.
This year’s event will be my
fourth, and I consider Blues
Foundation events family
reunions of sorts as I reconnect
with artists, mentors, and
fellow blues society volunteers
from across the globe. While
some Bluesletter writers have
recommended a blues cruise
as a “must do,” I strongly
recommend that all Washington
Blues Society members join the
Blues Foundation, and get to
either an IBC or a Blues Music
Awards event.
As I thought of this year’s
IBC – and our outstanding
representatives in the Red
Hot Blues Sisters in the band
category and Alice Stuart in the solo/duo category – I revisited the
90+ page souvenir program booklet from the past few IBC weekends.
This program booklet is a treasure trove of information that features
vignettes and photos of each performing act, profiles of each Keeping
the Blues Alive recipient, and a complete listing of the 2009 Blues
Music Award nominations. There is simply too much going on – with
showcases scheduled at the same time against workshops – to
participate in every activity.
One of the informal and entertaining activities on Friday at The Pig
on Beale Street is the annual ‘Buy Mookie Brill a Beer” day. Last
year’s gathering featured the staff of the Blues Foundation, plus
a jam featuring Rich Del Grosso, Fiona Boyes, Jimi Bott, Mookie
himself, and Bill Stuve. Mitch Woods was looking for a keyboard,
and while I missed Mitch’s set, I walked across the street to Betsie
Brown’s showcase. It was an incredible afternoon of music before the
scheduled second night of competition. I don’t remember if anyone
bought Mookie that pint, but everyone was all smiles.
Sure, there’s the music in the clubs, first and foremost. Thursday
and Friday offer 25-minute sets in 20 venues for competing bands,
and 12 venues for competing solo/duo acts. Simple math tells me
that there’s over 150 live performance slots over the two nights.
Competitions begin at 5:00 PM and end around midnight, and
afterwords, real blues jam magic happens. Last year, Steady Rollin’
Bob Margolin hosted a star-studded jam session at Rum Boogie at
Third and Beale, and many other venues featured great jam sessions.
As I headed toward the door near 1:30 am, I noticed Willie “Big
Eyes” Smith talking to Margolin and did an about-face and listened
to an incredible jam session featuring not only IBC competitors but
genuine blues legends like “Big Eyes” and “Steady Rollin’” – just one
example of spontaneous, unplanned blues magic that can happen
on Beale Street.
One night, I spotted IBC finalist Laurie Morvan conferring with her
bandmates on Beale Street. She played an exceptional set of electric
blues at Alfred’s that night, and I bought her a gift at Seattle Goodwill
just the week before. Laurie’s art on Cures What Ails Ya features a
photograph of one side of a remote farmhouse that advertises a cure
“for weak women.”
After introducing myself, and perhaps more importantly, assuring
Laurie that I was not a stalker, I asked if she’d accept a small framed
print as a gift. Her eyes beamed
wide as she saw the print that
showed both sides of this 19th
century farmhouse.
Beale Street is closed to foot traffic
for the duration of IBC weekend,
and many establishments offer
“Big Ass Beers” for $5 or less.
Last year, I told WBS member and
IBC attendee Dean Jacobsen that
this was an adult Disneyland for
blues fans who drink beer, and he
promptly bought me one of those
“Big Ass Beers.” I just hope Dean
will return to Beale Street as part
of the WBS contingent (for obvious
reasons).
Other nighttime activities include
a Beale Street meet-and-greet,
a hosted cocktail party for Total
Weekend Package (formerly Big
Blue) ticketholders, an NBA game
at the FedEx Forum between
the Houston Rockets and the Memphis Grizzlies, and live music
showcases at notable Beale Street Clubs. This year’s opening night
celebration features a post-Grizzlies’ special Kick-Off Concert at the
New Daisy Theater with past IBC participants and winners, including
Trampled Under Foot (2008 IBC 1st Place), Sean Carney Band
(2007 IBC 1st Place), Homemade Jamz Blues Band (2007 IBC 2nd
Place), Jonn Richardson (2005 IBC Winner and Best Guitarist), Zac
Harmon (2004 IBC 1st Place).
During the day, the IBC offers panel discussions and workshops, and
this year, attendees will learn about a new partnership with Mental
Health America called “Jamming Away the Blues.” Typical workshop
topics have included guidance on music publishing basics, blues
society roundtables, and orientations for competing acts. The Silent
Auction is held in the host hotel lobby at the Doubletree, and last
year, our own Dennis Hacker donated art to this annual fundraising
opportunity staffed by perennial IBC volunteer Greg Johnson,
president of the Cascade Blues Association in Portland, OR.
Two high points of IBC weekend include Friday’s blues keynote
luncheon and Saturday’s annual Keeping the Blues Alive (KBA)
ceremony and luncheon. This year’s keynote speaker for Friday’s
luncheon will be Craig Hopkins, this year’s KBA recipient for Literature.
I’m interested to learn more about his perspective as a writer and
about his work reviewing the legacy of Stevie Ray Vaughan. Last
year, former president Rhea Rolfe and I ducked in to a side door
as they were dismantling the complimentary Mimosa fountain, and
margene
February 2009 7
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Rhea never lets me forget it. This year, we’ll be early, with multiple
empty glasses to fill with that classic morning Champagne cocktail.
The results of the two-night competition are posted at the Handy Bar
on Beale Street on Friday night after midnight. While it may surprise
many of the 150 entrants not to get to the finals at The Orpheum,
I consistently remind myself that IBC weekend, the world’s largest
gathering of blues bands, offers
an unparalleled opportunity to
see the best in blues music. Just
to get to Beale Street to compete
is an achievement in itself, and
the sets from our representative
in 2008, the Hudson Blues Band,
were outstanding. Last year, Alice
Stuart represented the Cascade
Blues Association and the Red
Hot Blues Sisters played on
behalf of the South Sound Blues
Association.
Last year’s winners in the
band category were: 1st Place,
Trampled Under Foot from the
Kansas City Blues Society, 2nd
Place, Shakura S’Aida from the
Toronto Blues Society, and 3rd Place Lil’ Ray Neal Band from the
Baton Rouge Blues Society.
Lionel Young took home the IBC first place award on behalf of the
Colorado Blues Society, and the second place solo/duo act was Ben
Prestage of Florida’s Blues Alliance of the Treasure Coast.
Surfing the Internet late one night (or early one morning depending
on your perspective of time), I found some performance photography
featuring Teri Anne Wilson of the Red Hot Blues Sisters playing at
the New Daisy Theatre and Alice Stuart playing at The Tap Room
from last year’s IBC.
I used Google and then clicked on Modern Guitars Magazine’s web
archive online at www.modernguitars.com/archives/004180.html and
immediately flashed back on that great evening of blues music at two
notable blues venues in Memphis.
I looked at the fine print: these
expert performance photos
were taken by Dusty Scott. I
remembered that name from
either last year’s IBC or BMA, but
I clicked on the above link.
Well, when I read the press
release about the KBA Class of
2009 last November, I noticed
that Val and Dusty Scott are
honored with the 2009 KBA in the
art and photography category for
their joint effort, Dusty Blues. Go
to www.dustyblues.com for worldclass
slide shows from some of
the world’s most popular blues
festivals.
We’ll have coverage of the 2009 IBC in an upcoming Bluesletter.
Until then, please support your local blues band by buying CDs,
going to see live blues shows, and buy blues merchandise. If you are
interested in lodging recommendations or travel suggestions, please
e-mail me at president@wablues.org.
The International Blues Challenge is not only the world’s largest
gathering of blues bands; it’s an exceptional networking opportunity
and one of the blues’ best parties, thanks to 150+ nonprofit blues
societies, and the all-volunteer Board of the Blues Foundation.

Author: Eric Steiner

Repost Courtesy of: The Washington Blues Society

Be Sure to Check Out The Washington Blues Society at www.wablues.org

Tags: Beale Street, Eden Brent, Eric Steiner, Fiona Boyes, International Blues Challenge, Mary Flower, Memphis, Washington Blues Society, Yellow Dof Records