The Journey To Memphis is the Cascade Blues Association’s regional competition to select the acts that will represent our organization and region in 2020’s International Blues Challenge in Memphis, Tennessee. Up to 250 acts from around the world converge on Beale Street to perform before the music industry searching for new talent, with the chance […]
Dave Keller Every Soul’s A Star Catfood Records For several years now, I have been singing the praises of New England bluesman Dave Keller. An amazing guitarist and songwriter with a voice that drips pure soulful honey, every album Keller puts out convinces me more and more of his immense talent — and I […]
Boz Scaggs Out Of The Blues Concord Records This is the third album in Boz Scaggs’ triology of recordings that showcase the songs and styles of the music that first influenced him. Following in the successful footsteps of Memphis (2013) and A Fool To Care (2015) Scaggs ventures into the sounds of Americana, R&B, soul […]
On Monday, January 28, Curtis Salgado and Alan Hager will preform at the Lake Theater. With Salgado’s inspired singing and world-class harmonica playing and Hager’s spellbinding guitar, the award-winning Rough Cut is the album the pair have always wanted to make together — soulful, sparse, haunting — a blues lover’s dream come true. The music […]
On Monday, January 21, Lisa Mann, Bre Gregg, and Mary Kadderly — collectively known as The Trifecta — will join forces to bring you a show complete with soulful performances, three-part harmony, and powerful interpretation. All from different musical backgrounds, this show covers the blues, soul, jazz, and pop, and is packed with original music…some […]
On January 20, help the CBA’s Journey To Memphis winner Ben Rice make his way to the International Blues Challenge at the end of the month by attending an all-star extravaganza of some of Portland’s most amazing talent. This all day event will feature local luminaries such as Karen Lovely, Kivett Bednar, Doug Rowell, Marty […]
The Fenix Project will represent The Cascade Blues Association at the International Blues Challenge in Memphis this month. A dynamic, soulful rhythm and blues band led by saxophonist/vocalist Fenix Sanders, the band has held court in Portland’s most venerable juke joint, the Blue Diamond, weekly for nearly twenty years. Fenix, with his gravelly vocals and […]
Boise-based bluesman Johnny Boy Kunk was influenced by the blues at an early age. Listening to the music of traditional artists like Charley Patton and Lightnin’ Hopkins struck home for him and he has sought to learn as much of the styles of the Delta and Hill Country as possible, making pilgrimages to Mississippi to […]
During a time when the idea of a guitar-playing woman was nonexistent, not only did guitarist and vocalist Rosetta Tharpe erase this line by mastering the symbol of musical masculinity, but her blend of gospel and secular music was seen as earth-shattering. Her willingness to play “God’s music” in the devil’s den of nightclubs and […]
Saturday, January 12, Portland musician Robert Richter mark the official release of his long awaited CD “Thick and Thin” with a special solo acoustic performance. Known for his versatility as a singer, songwriter, guitarist, record producer, concert promoter and booker, he’s also the founder of Local Roots Music NW supporting and promoting local artists with […]