Just This One: Muddy Winners to Shine at Paul deLay Tribute

It’s been ten years since the great Paul deLay passed away, but a room full of Cascade Blues Association Muddy Award winners will bring his songs and spirit back to the stage on Saturday evening, January 21, at the Alberta Rose Theatre.

Just This One is a concert performance of a new musical based on the music and life of Portland’s favorite blues monster. Multiple CBA honorees will perform “Beautiful Bones,” “Silly Smile,” and “Maybe Our Luck Will Change,” plus dozens of other deLay’s tunes.

Sugaray Rayford takes the lead. A six-time Blues Music Award nominee, his Waterfront Blues Festival main stage set was the 2014 Muddy Performance of the Year.  He’ll be joined by CBA Hall of Famer and two-time Blues Music Award winner Lisa Mann, whose mantle overflows with Muddy hardware for Singer, Bassist, and Recording of the Year. LaRhonda Steele, the 2016 “Duffy Bishop” Female Vocalist of the Year, also joins, along with rising local star Saeeda Wright. Best Regional Act and International Blues Challenge participant Hank Shreve will honor Paul’s unforgettable harp work. Northwest Event of the Year Muddy winners United By Music will present a feature set of deLay’s tunes. They’ll all groove under the direction of Dave Fleschner, keyboardist on multiple Muddy moments with Curtis Salgado, Karen Lovely, United By Music, and more.

The concert is produced by CBA member Wayne Harrel, who wrote the book for Just This One. “Our goal is to tell just enough of his story so that when you hear ‘I’m gonna miss talkin’ to you,’ you truly feel what he was trying to say.”

Duffy Bishop knows the feeling. “I loved his intelligence,” she says, “his wit and energy. When somebody like Paul can say what’s on his heart, put it out there, that’s very sexy.”

A very sexy – and award-winning – cast of performers will take the Alberta Rose stage January 21 to celebrate the wonder of Paul deLay once more. Tickets for Just This One are $20.00 advance or $24.00 at the door, with special preferred seating in the first few rows center for $35.00 and are available at albertarosetheatre.com. This is a Cascade Blues Association co-sponsored event so CBA members can use the code word “CBA” for a $2.00 discount when ordering online. The Alberta Rose Theatre is located at 3000 NE Alberta Street. Show time is 7:30 pm and this is an all ages show, with minors allowed when accompanied by a parent or guardian.