Bluesmania – Best of the Benefit Concert for “Uncle” Steve Pringle
Review by Greg Johnson
On November 24th, the Portland blues community came together to celebrate the life of beloved DJ Steve Pringle. The show, titled Bluesmania, was a benefit to help Steve and his family defray the cost of the cancer treatment he had been receiving. The line-up of a virtual who’s who of the region’s best blues musicians was selected by Steve himself; his own “Dream Team.” Sadly, Steve passed before the event took place and the sold out concert became a celebration of life.
The event was caught on camera and has now been released as a DVD capturing the magical, emotional day. The performances were heartfelt and included sets from the Rose City Kings, Norman Sylvester Band, Lloyd Jones Struggle, Karen Lovely, Ben Rice, Kevin Selfe’s Big Band, and Curtis Salgado & Alan Hager. An all-star guitar extravanganza was held with even more Northwest icons including Ty Curtis, Robbie Laws, Peter Dammann, Terry Robb, Doug Rowell and Tim “Too Slim” Langford. The night culminated with LaRhonda Steele taking the lead alongside Lauren Steele and Arietta Ward on the Leonard Cohen classic “Hallelujah.”
The love was felt throughout the room. Relive that feeling with this limited edition DVD that includes three-hours worth of memories. Only 300 copies were made, so get them while you can at Music Millennium, or while supplies last at the Cascade Blues Association General Membership Meeting.
