Boston’s on the Beach 2011 Red, White, & Blues Festival

For the second time we scheduled a trip to South Florida to coincide with Boston’s on the Beach Red, White, & Blues Festival held over the July 4th weekend in Delray Beach. For those not familiar with the venue, Boston's is located just across A1A from the ocean and hosts the famed Blue Tuesday blues show with Frank Ward and the Nucklebusters Blues Band and a special guest. In the past we have seen Nicole Hart, The Skyla Burrell Blues Band, and Albert Castiglia during these shows.

Last year Bostons hosted the inaugural Red, White, & Blues Festival and we were able to attend everyday. See coverage here.  But this year were only able to make Sunday which included several regional and national blues acts: IKO-IKO, Ben Prestage, Bobby Lee Rodgers, Bill Wharton, Damon Fowler, and Ana Popovic - among many others. The day started with a tall boy of PBR and Lowdown 13 at the Tiki Bar stage. This is our regular hangout and the band did not disappoint with their hard rockn' blues.Check out their finale at MyJoogTV. Like most festivals, we now had a conflict. Our friends, IKO-IKO were scheduled inside on the Blue Tuesday stage and the Bobby Lee Rodgers Trio were scheduled on the Main stage. Rodgers has been on our watch list for quite some time, thus we shuttled back and forth to see each band. We are definitely biased regarding IKO-IKO and love each set we hear from the band - this was no exception. See a video here at MyJoogTV.  Now, for Bobby Lee Rodgers - we were completely overwhelmed. The guy can play the guitar; sat there mesmerized in the front row.  A video of "Lighthouse" will be posted here later next week - but check this guy out.

I had scheduled the day and lunch around seeing our good friend and one man bluesman Ben Prestage, who we "discovered" first at Merlefest and then at last year's festival. While singing or playing the harp, Presage pounds away on a kick drum and symbols; and plays the electric guitar or a cigar box that includes a separate bass amp. Electric and bass on the same guitar. He had quite an impressive following as well. The Tiki Bar stage was packed - making it difficult to even see the stage. Fortunately there were two sets so between these two, we saw quite a bit of this entertaining musician. Here's a very short video.

After Prestage and a few songs from the Jeff Prine Group, we had to excuse ourselves to shuttle the family home. Too much sun at the beach. It was disappointing to miss Damon Fowler and
Bill Wharton but I made it back for the main event: Ana Popovic. And she was awesome. Wow. A particular band mate may be a little over the top; but she can play. Yes, Ronnie Earl is a good comparison.  Thanks Bostons.

Red, White & Blues Festival - Day 1

The first day of the Red, White & Blues Festival at Boston’s on the Beach in Delray Beach started out hot and sunny and ended soaked. IKO-IKO started the three day festival off on the main stage and played an hour plus of their finest blues, finishing with their hit Crossroads and covered the famous New Orleans tune IKO IKO. I could listen to these guys all night - from Graham Wood Drout's singing to 'Good Rockin' Johnny Wenzel's lead guitar to Ron Taylor on keyboard to the rhythm section - Mitch Mestel and Daniel East. But that was not to be and while the main stage was dark between acts, one man band Ben Prestage became a crowd favorite at the Tiki Bar. This was the first time I got a chance to hear Prestage since Merlefest, and since he planned to play three sets that night - the first was all acoustic. The guy can play and with surprisingly deep, raspy vocals - he is a legitimate blues man. Nicole Hart followed on the main stage and was able to get an entire set in before the ominous rain clouds enveloped Delray Beach. She entertained the crowd with her sultry, soulful vocals while performing a few songs from her latest CD, Treasure - which was one of my favorite Blues CDs of 2009. This evening we heard the title track and "Heart Trouble" - great tunes. As her set ended we drifted back to the Tiki Bar anticipating another set by Ben Prestage when the skies opened and the downpour commenced and wouldn't stop - at least for the next hour. That's the chances you take holding a festival during Florida's raining season. Boston's then made an excellent decision to clear tables in the restaurant and move Tinsley Ellis indoors. Yes, it was crowded - but who cares, its Tinsley Ellis - right in front of you. The guy still has it and his supporting duo rocked; his drummer was awesome. And they played longer than expected - this allowed us to sneak out to hear Prestage's last set which I knew would include his trademark one-man band introduction playing his cigar box electric guitar. Throw in a little gospel and old school country blues - and I decided I couldn't miss his show later in the week at the Norton Museum of Art. We finished the evening listening to more of Tinsley Ellis and thinking that Boston's did a great job compensating for the weather and provided us with some amazing music. Can't wait to see what Day 2 will bring. And more photos are available at the MyJoog Gallery.

IKO-IKO @ Schnebly Redland's Winery

South Florida has a rather dynamic blues scene with several artists and bands playing nightly from Jupiter to the Keys. One of these is IKO-IKO, a band that has built a stellar reputation and fan base for the past 27 years by playing a distinctive brand of swamp blues-americana. Their sound incorporates a little of everything; from the Louisiana gumbo through the Delta, and back down to the Gulf Coast rock n' roll. The Louisiana influence is a bit obvious considering their namesake, the song Iko Iko made famous by the The Dixie Cups. We have enjoyed this sound for several years by downloading their music from their internet presence. But it wasn't until Friday June 18th that we finally had a chance to witness a live show during a performance at Schnebly Redland's Winery. To learn more about the winery take a look at the review on the WineCompass Blog; this is an impressive facility.

IKO-IKO is fronted by Graham Wood Drout, who provides whatever the song entails: vocals, guitar, bass, percussion. Plus he is a respected songwriter whose material have been covered by Albert Castiglia and IBC Blues winner Joey Gilmore. "Good Rockin' Johnny Wenzel has been playing lead guitar with Drout for thirty years starting with their days with The Fat Chance Blues Band. Mitch Mestel (bass), Daniel East (drums and percussion) and Ron Taylor (keyboards) round out the band; and all have impressive personal resumes. Although this evening, Taylor was sidelined due to medical reasons and Jack Bluni joined in on harp. We wish Taylor well.

They started playing to a sparse audience and even without feedback, the band was immediately rockn'. They have the full package with each member contributing their part. But I particularly liked Wenzel's lead - he can play. And the addition of the harp really gave the band a more Chicago feel. I also enjoyed their takes on Johnny Cash and Jimi Hendrix, but this isn't a cover band. They have plenty of original material that showcase their unique style of music. As the set progressed more people filtered in and by the end of the first set, their was a line to enter. Seeing late arrivals was not unexpected, since the venue is out there, I mean, pack you lunch before you drive out their. But people do - coming from as far as Ft. Lauderdale and even West Palm Beach.

We had to leave after this initial set in order to embark to the Keys, but not to worry. We will see plenty more of IKO-IKO at Boston’s Red, White & Blues Festival July 2nd in Delray Beach.