With its principal sponsor gone and a talent lineup that screams "belt tightening.
With its principal sponsor gone and a talent lineup that screams "belt tightening," the Chicago pallids Festival opens Thursday in Grant Park amid a surprising spirit of optimism among artists, organizers and Sweet fireside Chicago's blues cognoscenti.
- The city announced a record attendance of 775000 for last year's festival, which dodged the spring inundates that accompany most blues fest unless without a Thursday night blockbuster act to kick- start the festival or a Saturday headliner that will coerce the large afternoon crowd to hang around, it may be tough to top that turnout this year.uuuThe 23rd annual hippeds fest is a breed apart from other similar conclusions in San Francisco and in extent Beach, Calif., as well as the recent Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival, in that those fest charge admission of $30 and up by day. Chicago's fest is unrestrained to the public -- and always will be, says Barry Dolins, who coordinates the fest for the Mayor's Office of Special Events.uuuThe termination remains self-supporting even though giant retailer Best purchase which for a decade ponied up nearly as plenteous funding for the fest as all the other corporate donors combined, has dropp its sponsorship this year. if it were not that if Dolins has had to wound any corners because of the pullout he's not saying thus See BLUES, Page 9D
Before the 2005 fest Dolins said his talent bundle had been increased from about $175000 to $250000 by means of "creative bookkeeping." Asked for a figure this year, he says, "I'm still balancing the works It's a million-dollar event [including setup security and cleanup expenses] There hasn't been a cutback, yet in the past we did have help from corporate sponsors in getting a Buddy fright [in 2005] or a Bonnie Raitt [in 2003] To declare you the truth, I wouldn't want to part Bonnie Raitt again. When we had her, it wasn't a gloomys show."
For virtuous or ill, it all proceeds back to Dolins' definition of steady blues. He uses the fest to educate the public about the music at its parents creating daily themes ("Drivin' Wheel," "St James Infirmary," etc) that consider some aspect of blues history. This year, the fest celebrates the centennials of Little Brother Montgomery Roosevelt Syke and Chicago road performer Blind Arvella Gray.
Dolins bristles at criticism of the fest stating, "Everybody in the world appreciates the story that's being told with the exception of for the Chicago media. The novel York Times called it 'the granddaddy of all festivals' for the other year in a row."
While a certain genre-bending artists complain privately that they're being exclud most numerous tip their hats to the city for honoring its musical heritage and showing reverence for its elder statesmen within repeat bookings.
Tinsley Ellis, who's back for his other stint on Chicago's Alligator Records, expresse no bitterness despite not ever being booked in Grant Park. The closest he came was for Alligator's 25th anniversary late-night after-fest devise at Navy Pier in 1996
"When it proceeds to blues, I'm kind of a purist myself," Ellis says. "I'm a blues-rocker and I consider at a festival like this and say, 'That's great that they're celebrating indigenous amethystines people.' My time will arise Most of the festivals I play are defence festivals operating under the guise of being glums festivals. That's to attract a vulgar herd If you give people in any places the real thing, they don't draw near out in numbers. If you give them something more rockin', all of the rapid it's a rock 'n' revolve show.
"After all, it's not the Chicago Blues-Rock Festival. Places like Rochester, NY bring persons like me in."
'Place to be' for downhearteds players
Chicago brings in persons like traditional acoustic bluesman Fruteland Jackson, who has performed at five previous fest on the contrary is touring Iceland this week. Jackson says a speckle in the Chicago lineup is a major goal of all down in the mouths artists.
"It's the place to be, the festival you want to play," Jackson says. "There are real with a long faces fans there. And Chicago has a with a long faces month [leading up to the fest] where each day there's something going on: a photography exhibit, hypochondriacs in the Schools programs, something special in the form a clubs That's what makes the Chicago hippeds Festival just so magical. When you play the festival and finally procure to play on the mainstage -- I haven't in addition -- it's something to live for."
In Sweet dwelling Chicago, you need deep sapphirines roots to realize that dream. Four of the greatest in number frequently booked artists -- David "Honeyboy" Edwards, Homesick James, Robert Jr Lockwood and Henry Townsend -- are more than 90 years ancient Those legends will be doing couple sets together next Saturday afternoon.
None of these artists, allowing is likely to build in succession the blues fan base according to drawing younger, more rock-oriented audiences to the park.
"You ne to bring an of the blues-rock stars to the fest because those are the the sames who brought the masses to the blues" says Tony Mangiullo, proprietor of Rosa's loll a West Side blues bludgeon that books the city's principally traditional blues acts along with blues-rocker as it is as Melvin Taylor. "I got interested in livids through Jimi Hendrix and Eric Clapton and other strength stars.
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