4Hey! Hey! Hope everybody's well. So...what can I tell ya? As expected, the performances at BluesFest yesterday were excellent. A few photos from my wanderings below...


CISCO SYSTEMS BLUESFEST - July 15, 2006





Wilco was scheduled to appear on the Main Stage at 9pm, so I decided to check out the acts on some of the smaller stages during the day (I'm glad I did!). I got inside the gate around 2pm and wandered by the Blacksheep Stage, where Kay Morris & The Jewels were kicking it up.

On this particular afternoon, the Blacksheep was featuring a selection of gospel/religious revival-type performers. I soon decided to migrate away from that area, for obvious reasons... :)

...to the Blues 'Til Dusk stage, where the Electro-Fi Records Hoodoo Revue was already underway (Curley Bridges was rolling with his funky barrelhouse piano).

Next to appear were Toronto musicians Julian Fauth and David Rotundo, with Chris Whiteley on guitar.

Soon followed by Mel Brown with The Texas Horns...

...and then joined by Finis Tasby to make up the entire Electro-Fi Hoodoo Revue. By this time the crowd was really starting to loosen up and have some fun. (See a video clip here.)

Here's a photo from the BluesFest website photo gallery. Hey, look! There's me in the distance (circled). 6

After their set, Julian (below left) and Dave mingled with the crowd and were nice enough to pose for some pictures.

http://www.julianfauth.com/

http://www.davidrotundo.com/

And I had to get a picture of this guy. A true blues fan if there ever was one...

With a little time before the next act, I grabbed a fresh beer and took a stroll around the grounds. Thunderclouds threatened to put a damper on the afternoon, but fortunately the rain held off and the sun was shining again in no time.

Just in time for Junior Brown! The gods were smiling!

Junior hails from Austin, TX. The instrument shown above is one of his own invention; it combines the standard six-string guitar with the steel guitar. He calls it the "guit-steel."

Junior says...

"I was playing both the steel and guitar, switching back and forth a lot while I sang, and it was kind of awkward. But then I had this dream where they just kind of melted together. When I woke up, I thought 'You know, that thing would work!' They made double-neck guitars and double-neck steels, so why not one of each?"

The guy is an absolute genius on this thing. He has to be seen to be believed. Simply amazing.

Brown finished his set at around 7:30pm; I decided to head to the hotel to get fresh for the rest of the night (it was super-humid this past weekend). Makes you wonder how these musicians in three-piece suits perform for hours in the heat and not pass out. Trained professionals! Anyway, I got all showered up and returned to the 'Fest about an hour later.

A nice shot of the inside of city hall; the doors below lead directly to the festival grounds and Main Stage...

...where I was able to catch the last part of a great performance by Rosanne Cash.

Testing the lights...

Wilco took the stage at 9pm (click here for a video clip). I'd only heard a couple of their tunes before, but I enjoyed the show a lot. I'll probably pick up their latest album, A Ghost Is Born, the next time I'm out CD shoppin.'

By the way, my apologies for the out-of-focusness of the photos below (still kinda cool though, aren't they?).

http://www.wilcoworld.net

And there you have it. My take on BluesFest '06! Stay tuned for wacky pics of "el Grande Fiesta" this weekend at Bud & Laurie's. ¡Cuidados, mi amigos!

Later,

Brian

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