KLON Blues Festival
By Michelle Devera
Daily Forty-Niner
With headlining acts such as John Lee Hooker
and Buddy Guy, the Long Beach Blues Festival is sure to be a blues fanís
dream.
"It's the best line-up weíve ever
had," said Gary "The Wagman" Wagner, KLON disc jockey and event host.
"The people who are scheduled are basically
the cream of the crop," Wagner said. "For the past three to four years,
weíve lost a lot of the greats so itís important people come
and see them."
The festival, which will be held Labor
Day weekend on the athletic field, is a fund raiser for KLON 88.1 FM, a
public jazz radio station located on Upper Campus. More than 30,000 people
attended last yearís event, raising more than $200,000 for the station,
said Gary Chiachi, KLON events coordinator and festival producer.
Unlike years past, there will not be a
common theme defining the the musical celebration, Chiachi said. There
is, however, a common origin for all of the artists.
"It's more what the music is known as and
the guys who created it," Chiachi said. "Representative of the form as
it was created."
The three-day bash will showcase 24 legendary
blues artists. Guitar Shorty and Sonny Rhodes will kick off Saturdayís
musical line-up with Guy capping the dayís performances.
On Sunday, Al Green, Clarence Carter and
Bobby ìBlueî Bland will dominate the stage, treating audiences
to the soul-filled
guitar and vocal sounds unique to the
genre.
Hooker, Joe Louis Walker and Snooky Pryor
will close out the festival on Labor Day.
With VIP packages offering preferred seating,
early entry and parking sold out about four months ago, Chiachi said. Record
crowds of 15,000 people a day are expected to attend this year.
A three-day pass is $70 in advance. Day
tickets are $27 in advance or $30 at the gate. For more information, call
(562) 985-5566. |
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