Chris Cain’s jazz-tinged, blues soaked guitar and deep, warm vocals have the maturity and authenticity of bluesmen many years his senior. His expressive style is the result of a lifetime of study and the relentless pursuit of music mastery, while his passion and intensity are a blend of his mother’s Greek ancestry combined with his father’s soulful black heritage.

Hailed as one of the finest guitarists on the West Coast since his debut 1987 recording, Late Night City Blues, garnered four WC Handy Awards (now named Blues Music Awards) nominations, the self-taught Cain is innovative, creative, and one of the most imaginative guitarist playing today. Through his guitar mastery and remarkable songwriting ability, Chris Cain has established himself as a musical force to be reckoned with. And as San Jose Mercury News music reviewer John Orr argues, “more than anyone else, anywhere, Chris Cain represents the future of the blues.”

Chris Cain will be playing on Saturday, August 13 at the Bronze, Blues & Brews Festival in Joseph, Oregon. For those unable to make it to the eastern reaches of the state, he will be performing on Sunday, August 14 at The Birk, 11139 Hwy 202 in Birkenfeld, for a 3:00 pm show. Cain is a “not-to-be-missed” performer — his shows are never identical as he improvises guitar solos on the spot! Make a point to catch him whenever you can!

If you’re a guitar aficionado, there is simply one tour you do not want to miss this summer as two legends, Jeff Beck and Buddy Guy, team up for what is certainly to be an all-out powder keg full of guitar riffs and licks. Both are icons in the world of guitar — Rolling Stone included each in its list of the Top 100 Guitarists of all-time, and both are lifetime achievement inductees in the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. Their careers span more than fifty years each and the list of musicians they’ve influenced is endless.

Jeff Beck has been turning heads since he replaced Eric Clapton in The Yardbirds in 1965. Twice inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, first as a member of The Yardbirds and then as a solo artist, he is best-known for albums such as Truth, Beck-Ola, Blow By Blow, and Wired.

Buddy Guy has been the recipient of thirty-four Blues Music Awards and has been inducted into the Blues Hall of Fame along with his membership in the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. He has a lengthy career that saw him play alongside Muddy Waters and Junior Wells before taking on his own highly successful solo path and is one of the living patriarchs of the blues today.

This is a rare opportunity to catch two of the greatest on one stage in the same night as they’ll be performing at the Maryhill Winery Amphitheater, 9774 Hwy 14, in Goldendale, Washington on Saturday, August 20 at 7:00 pm. This is an all ages event. Tickets can be purchased at Ticketfly.com with prices ranging from $55.00 to $250.00.

Riding a train and playing or listening to music conjures up romantic images of Woody Guthrie and his guitar witnessing the country by boxcar during the Great Depression. The music-train connection runs deep — Boxcar Willie made a career of hobo songs, Steve Goodman had a hit with “City of New Orleans,” and in 1970, the Festival Express rolled across Canada with Buddy Guy, Janis Joplin, The Band, the Grateful Dead, and others on board.

In 2001, music manager Charlie Hunter organized a trans-Canadian train trip to a folk music conference in Vancouver, British Columbia that led to the creation of Roots on the Rails, with the first trip from Toronto to Vancouver in 2003. Hunter now offers four trips each year and has run thirty-five music-themed train excursions since its inception.

The railroad fits quite comfortably into the world of roots music. Folk, blues, western, jazz, and American music will be the order of the day when the Roots on the Rails Revue hits Portland on Thursday, August 25 with a show at The Old Church. The line-up for this event is spectacular, featuring Blues Music Award nominees Dave Alvin & Phil Alvin, Grammy nominee Eliza Gilkyson, and singer-songwriter Butch Hancock.

Dave Alvin and his brother Phil formed the roots rock band the Blasters in 1979 and soon developed a strong fan base throughout the United States and Europe. The brothers separated in 1986 with Dave going on to work with the bands X, The Knitters, The Flesh Eaters, and then eventually to a successful solo career. Phil continued to work with The Blasters and after some serious health issues, the brothers reunited in 2013 with a pair of highly acclaimed recordings and tours.

Eliza Gilkyson is a 2-time Grammy-nominated singer, songwriter and activist who has become one of the most respected musicians in Folk, Roots, and Americana circles. Her songs have been covered by musicians as diverse as Joan Baez, Bob Geldof, Tom Rush, and Roseanne Cash.

Butch Hancock is a world traveling troubadour with a long string of recorded songs and albums. Peers and critics alike acknowledge Hancock as “one of the finest songwriters of our time” and as one of the premiere singer-songwriters Texas has ever produced.

Tickets for Roots on the Rails are available through BrownPaperBagTickets.com or at The Old Church office, for $30.00 advance, $35.00 day of show. Show time is 7:30 pm and all ages are welcome. The Old Church is located at 1422 SW 11^th Avenue.

Hailing from Austin, Black Joe Lewis & The Honeybears’ music has been described as  the collision between Southern soul, Midwestern blues, and vagabond punk.  Compared to “The Godfather of Soul” James Brown and inspired by Howlin’ Wolf, Black Joe Lewis let his punk-flag fly on the group’s third studio album, Electric Slave, where he has honed their signature sound and perfected his gritty, shouting, and raw guitar riffs. Lewis refuses to confine himself to genre-defining boundaries and cater to only one of his many musical influences. Having plenty of women chasing, hard-knocks, and all-around good time tales to tell, he also always finds a way to make his tracks full of horns and blues riffs that rival the likes of rocker Iggy Pop.

Black Joe Lewis & The Honeybears will be returning to one of their favorite venues in the Portland area as they perform at the Doug Fir Lounge on Friday, September 2 at 9:00 pm. Tickets for this 21 & over show can be purchased in advance through Ticketfly.com ranging from $15.00 – $17.00. The Doug Fir Lounge is located at 830 E. Burnside St.