Roots N Blues N BBQ Festival: NEWS

ANDERS OSBORNE CELEBRATES NEW RELEASE WITH A PERFORMANCE IN COLUMBIA!

Fri, 03 Sep 2010 15:30:00 +0100

ANDERS OSBORNE CELEBRATES NEW RELEASE WITH A PERFORMANCE IN COLUMBIA!

“Osborne has an impossibly great, soulful voice and the songs to match.” -Paste

New Orleans� Anders Osborne is among the most original and visionary roots rock guitarists, vocalists, and songwriters performing today. He will give a live performance at the Fourth Annual Roots n Blues n BBQ Festival in Columbia on Friday, October 1, 2010. His Alligator Records debut, American Patchwork, is a moving collection of soul-baring rock, blues and ballads. Often compared to Townes Van Zandt, Bruce Springsteen and Van Morrison, Osborne is an exceptional and singular talent. Live, Osborne is a force to behold. His ability to ignite an audience with his passionate, dynamic live show is legendary. Performance information is as follows:

Date: Friday, October 1
Venue: The Fourth Annual Roots n Blues n BBQ Festival
Address: MPIX Stage at 7th and Locust
City: Columbia, MO
Showtime: 7:00 p.m.
Ticket price: $13-$195
Website: www.rootsnbluesnbbq.com
*Appearing with the Stanton Moore Trio
**Please see website for complete line-up and detailed ticket information

Osborne and friend Stanton Moore (Galactic) produced American Patchwork, with co-production by Pepper Keenan (of Down and Corrosion Of Conformity). Osborne wrote all ten songs, each with serious lyrical depth, unforgettable melodies and performed with soul muscle. The guitar work is simply spectacular. His vocals soar with natural, emotional power.

Since his recording debut in 1989, Osborne has written virtually all of his own material and contributed memorable songs to a wide variety of other artists. Two tunes co-written by Osborne appear on blues great Keb Mo�s Grammy-winning 1999 release, Slow Down. Country superstar Tim McGraw scored a #1 hit with Anders� song Watch The Wind Blow By. He recently wrote and recorded (along with Ivan Neville) the title track for the 2010 Kate Hudson film Earthbound.

But it is not just his live performances and songwriting that make Osborne such a success. He is also revered for his jaw-dropping guitar playing. His piercing slide-work and fluid finger picking (oftentimes happening simultaneously) are simply unmatched. Always an in-demand guitarist, Osborne has appeared on a recordings by Keb Mo, Tab Benoit and others. Most recently, Anders lent his guitar talents to Dark Water, Galactic�s first single from their new Ya-Ka-May CD.

Osborne was born in Uddevalla, Sweden in 1966. His father was a professional touring jazz drummer who played all over Europe and often brought home reel-to-reel recordings of American jazz, R&B and early rock �n� roll from artists as diverse as Little Richard, Fats Domino, Art Pepper and Miles Davis. As a teen, Anders started playing guitar and listening to Bob Dylan, Neil Young and Jackson Browne records. Once he heard the blues of Robert Johnson and recordings of African drumming, and suddenly, everything clicked. . �Blues connected everything together for me,� Osborne recalls. �The early rock, the R&B, the jazz, the singer-songwriters. Blues was like a thread running through everything.�
With a serious case of wanderlust, Anders began traveling on his own at 16. For the next four years, he hitchhiked across Europe, North Africa, Southeast Asia and the Middle East, earning money by doing odd jobs and performing on the street or in bars at every opportunity. In 1985 he landed in New Orleans, a place his grandfather, a sailor, had often told him vivid stories about. When he arrived, he instantly felt right at home, effortlessly incorporating the sounds of the Crescent City into his own music, and the city quickly became a large part of his soul.

Anders spent his first few years in New Orleans writing and developing his sound and style. He cut two albums for the independent New Orleans-based Rabadash Records in 1989 and 1993. The excitement surrounding those releases led to a major label deal with Sony�s Okeh imprint in 1995. Since then, Osborne has released a series of successful albums for Shanachie and MC Records, all to wide critical and popular acclaim.

Now, with a new label and a new recording, Anders Osborne is ready to fulfill his huge potential. As a youth he traveled the globe before settling in New Orleans. Now, he�ll travel from New Orleans, bringing his powerful original songs and soulful, blues-inspired, rock-fueled music to destinations all over the world.

STATE FARM INSURANCE �KING OF THE ROOTS� BAND COMPETITION

Thu, 26 Aug 2010 15:30:00 +0100

by Kevin Walsh

Hey y�all. I�ve been cruising around the state emceeing the regional showcases for the State Farm Insurance �King of the Roots� band competition. These are being sponsored by Thumper Productions in connection with the Roots �n Blues �n BBQ Festival coming up.

There are four events altogether: Columbia, Kansas City, St. Louis and Springfield, with the winners convening at the Blue Note on August 27 to determine which band will take the main stage at October�s Boone County Bank Roots �n Blues �n BBQ Festival. It is a unique setup and so far all of the radio sponsors have been community stations with blues-heavy program schedules (KOPN in Columbia, KKFI in Kansas City and KDHX in St. Louis).

Here�s some video of the mid-Missouri winner, BJ Allen and Blue Voodoo from Kirksville, although I had these guys dead even with at least three other bands (Wild Cat Daddies, Fried Crawdaddies and Man in the Ring).

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qpg1C5fvOME&feature=player_embedded

It�s been a little intense so far (only one competition, the one in Springfield, remains before the finals in late August) as there has never been, at least in my memory (hah!), a statewide �battle of the bands,� and if there were, they would�ve been geared toward younger, less experienced, up and coming �hungry� bands, as opposed to the mature professionals who for the most part have made up the bands in each event so far.

We are talking six bands at each event , blistering 20 minute sets by players that, most of them, have been together for years. I don�t envy the jobs of the local judges who volunteered, and although there is no arguing that the winners so far deserved to win, there have been easily at least four bands who deserved to win at each event so far.

So, even though I�ve judged a lot of band contests before, I�m kind of blown away by the precise intensity of the tight, almost harrowing, 20 minutes of music these guys are puttin� out.

For details on the competitions so far, go to the King of the Roots page at http://www.rootsnbluesnbbq.com/king-of-the-roots/

KING OF THE HEAP

Thu, 26 Aug 2010 15:30:00 +0100

BJ Allen, Blue Voodoo will go guitar to guitar for Roots �N Blues �N BBQ Festival crown.

By AARIK DANIELSEN
Columbia Daily Tribune

Move over, Dan Tyminski. Watch your step, Derek Trucks. There can only be one king of the roots at this year�s Roots �N Blues �N BBQ Festival � to be held downtown Oct. 1 and 2 � and the king is about to be crowned. This summer, festival organizers staged Battle of the Bands-type contests in four major Missouri cities, and the winning quartet of artists will face off tomorrow night at The Blue Note for the right to play this year�s main stage. All four acts bring spice and soul to their sounds, but only one can prevail. Here�s the skinny on each band before you head out to the coronation:

Columbia winners BJ Allen and Blue Voodoo: The mood isn�t quite as indigo, and the blues don�t feel so blue when played by this Kirksville quartet. From sweetly swinging, jazz-inflected numbers to swampy slow burners, the band injects each song with upbeat vibes and good vibrations. Self-assured and spirited, Allen is a dynamo out front yet multi-instrumentalist Jerry Fuller might be the band�s most valuable player: his singing guitar licks and swirling, soulful gospel organs breathe life into the band�s sound. The band can bring it on original tunes and can boast, as their website does, a covers repertoire that takes them from �SRV� or Stevie Ray Vaughan, �to Etta James, ZZ Top to Janis Joplin, and all points in-between.�

Kansas City winners Kyle Elliott and Voodoo Soul: Electrifying might be the only fitting adjective for this Kansas City outfit. Scorching guitars, hyperactive bass lines, grimy grooves and a healthy dose of funk collide in the sound of singer/guitarist Elliott and his band. Citing influences as diverse as AC/DC, ZZ Top and B.B. King, the band takes a rock-steady, hard rocking approach. Although he lets his guitar do much of the talking, when Elliott sings, his vocals are versatile, evoking a smooth rockabilly crooner one moment and the gritty, bad-to-the-bone sounds of George Thorogood the next. Voodoo Soul is a hard-charging backing band led by seasoned veterans; though all have impressive chops and r�sum�s, keyboardist Ben Eisminger�s might be most notable: he�s played with members of Parliament Funkadelic, Primus and Blue Man Group and has opened for Merle Haggard, Dolly Parton and Foghat.

St. Louis winners The Jeremiah Johnson Band: Whether playing vibrant, acoustic blues, soulful and subdued arena rock or a chugging barroom blitz complete with scorching saxophone, Johnson and company never waste a single moment. Each note they play pops and rings out earnestly and with energy. The band evokes retro soul stylings with its killer horns, riffs and rhythms. Back in his native St. Louis after several years� time in Texas, Johnson�s profile is rising, and the band�s live show leaves no doubt they�re on their way up � they�re fresh off a triumphant hometown gig opening for Kenny Wayne Shepherd at the Celebrate St. Louis Concert Series.

Springfield winners The Terry Quiett Band: These Wichita natives are road warriors, averaging more than 100 shows annually for the past three years and sharing the stage with heavyweights such as Robert Cray, Jonny Lang, Doobie Brothers and Edgar Winter. A quintessential frontman, Quiett is anything but; his vocals are incredibly compelling and weathered, making him sound as if he�d be comfortable singing in a gospel choir with the saints and rocking a Southern roadhouse full of sinners. Quiett�s serpentine riffing borrows equally from hard rock heroes and Baja cantina blues bands, and the rest of the band � bassist Aaron Underwood and drummer Rod Baker � does more than just keep up; they play both reliably and fervently.

THOSE DARLINS ADD MAJOR APPEAL TO R 'N B 'N BBQ

Thu, 08 Jul 2010 15:30:00 +0100

by Pete Bland
Columbia Daily Tribune, June 17, 2010

The Roots �N Blues �N BBQ Festival, which we haven�t visited in this space in a while, just got a gigantic injection of youth, sass and sex appeal by adding Those Darlins to the docket.

The indie pop-rockabilly swing trio of Kelley, Jessi and Nikki Darlin hail from South Carolina, Kentucky and Virginia, respectively, but it�s the college town of Murfreesboro, Tenn. � home of The Features � where Those Darlins came together.

Although the attention didn�t start flooding in immediately after their breakthrough New York live premiere at Southpaw in the summer of 2008, the YouTube video of catchy �I�m a bit crazy� single �Wild One� from that performance became a slow-simmering success.

By the time a tour with The Black Keys� Dan Auerbach and South by Southwest wrapped up the next March, Those Darlins were on their way to becoming everybody�s darlings.

Their self-titled debut followed that summer, and another, bigger splash was made at SXSW this year.

This summer and fall � behind an endorsement from recently turned �True Blood� vampire Jessica Hamby (Deborah Ann Woll) on her vlog, babyvamp-jessica.com � Those Darlins and drummer Linwood Regensburg � aka �Sheriff Lin� � will hit the regional, club and festival circuits, eventually landing in downtown Columbia for R �N B �N BBQ, which is slated for Oct. 1 and 2.

Even among a lineup that features the likes of the Derek Trucks and Susan Tedeschi Band, the Del McCoury Band, Dan Tyminski, The Dynamites featuring Charles Walker, Rhonda Vincent, Shemekia Copeland and many more, Those Darlins and Brazilian garage/soul/funk-rockers Garotas Suecas stand out, bringing the festival a bit of an edge, a quality it definitely lacked in previous incarnations.

After two years of offering free admission, Roots �N Blues began charging in its third season, albeit at a more-than-reasonable rate that it will keep in effect in 2010. Day passes will still go for $10 in advance and $15 the day of the show, and weekend passes are $15/$25. VIP Whole Hog passes are $100 for Oct. 1, $150 for Oct. 2 or $195 for both.

Passes will go on sale July 1 at The Blue Note and online through etix.com.

THE HALFTIME REPORT

Thu, 22 Apr 2010 15:30:00 +0100

With Half A Year Past And Half A Year To Go To The Next Roots 'N Blues' 'N BBQ Festival, The Organizers Take Stock
By John Robinson
Inside Columbia, April 2010

She absolutely loved it,� Kevin Hopkins gushed. He remembers escorting guitar sensation Ana Popovic around downtown Columbia after her electrifying set onstage at last September�s Roots �N Blues �N BBQ Festival. �Here I was, walking around with Ana, people taking pictures and getting autographs. It was awesome.�

How did Hopkins get such a plum assignment?

He booked her into the festival.

Hopkins is a talent agent for Intrepid Artists, based in Charlotte, N.C. But he has roots here. �It�s a thrill for me to come back to Columbia to this great event, and I owe it all to Richard King. He took a crazy jam band kid and put me on the right path.�

�Kevin�s genuinely interested in music,� says King, longtime owner of a pair of successful Columbia music venues. �A few years back, we brought Kevin on staff because he was so enthusiastic. He fit right in, booking bands at Mojo�s. He�s the kind of agent you want when you�re working with bands from around the country.�

Roots.

Roots matter to Steve Sweitzer. He�s won awards for ads he created while working in Los Angeles and New York. But a few years ago, he returned to Columbia to start a music booking agency with King, called Thumper Productions.

He also co-founded Woodruff Sweitzer advertising agency, which found itself helping plan a birthday party.

�In 2007, Boone County National Bank had its 150th birthday,� Sweitzer recalls, �and we were looking for a way to share the moment with the people of Columbia. We brainstormed ideas, and one theme kept resonating: �Other banks have branches. We have roots.� � Brainstorming percolated, as brainstorming does. And the bank�s gift to the city became a two-day celebration called Roots �N Blues �N BBQ.

Mother Nature delivered two perfect late summer days and the 2007 event served up a feast for all five senses. The sweet smell of wood smoke wafted over crowds that pulsed, elbow to elbow, bathed in sights and sounds amplified by nearly two dozen Grammys standing onstage. Shouts of praise echoed for weeks after the throngs of people drained from downtown, and the tents and the stages folded and disappeared. Musicians raved and barbecue contestants approved. The festival was a hit. And during the post- concert depression, the only troubling pillow talk was of the �$64,000 Question� variety: �Will the bank throw the same party next year?�

According to Sweitzer, the actual price tag neared 10 times that much. To the rescue came a cadre of sponsors enjoined to bankroll the encore event and enjoy another chorus of bravos from crowds and concessionaires, contestants and musicians.

Most know only parts of the story, painting the big picture with a dangerously inadequate grasp of the details. So at the halfway point between last year�s festival and the next, Sweitzer spent an afternoon filling in the blanks, revealing the layers of ingredients that go into such a sumptuous stew, an event that�s so much fun, even the cops were smiling.

�We want to make this event sustainable,� Sweitzer says. Even with a great roster of sponsors, it became evident to planners last year that the festival would need to charge admission. �This event costs $750,000 per year,�
he says. �Even though we work very closely with the city of Columbia, we pay for everything: police, fencing, trash removal, even water.� And, of course, the musicians.

�Our goal, hopefully, is to break even,� he says. �So we charged admission to two stage venues. Ten bucks for a day pass, $15 for the whole event. It was important to us that the Flat Branch stage remain free.�

Do the math: With a minimum of movement between the two gated venues, ticketholders could get their cost-per-show down to 83 cents a band. When was the last time anyone paid 83 cents a pop to see a succession of 18 musical heavyweights?

That turns out to be easier than it sounds, as Sweitzer explains: �After each show in our first year, we asked the artists, �Is one hour onstage good for you?� The overwhelming response was, �One hour into the set, we�re just gettin� started. So now, artists play an hour and a half.� That makes it easier to get a quality look at three bands playing simultaneously.

Ticket prices produce another benefit: Less trash, more recycling. �It�s something we learned from planners who�ve been doing events for a long time,� Sweitzer says. �If people buy a ticket, they value the experience� and take better care of their surroundings.

Sweitzer says the festival team learns from each experience, �but not just our own experience. We formed a mentoring relationship with Memphis. They host some world -class events, like Memphis in May. If we see a bump in the road, we consult our Memphis mentors.�

One of those bumps was barbecue. �People wanted to taste the contestants� barbecue,� Sweitzer says. �And when they couldn�t, they blamed us. Truth is, beyond the issue of health codes, the contestants themselves are neither equipped nor inclined to feed people or sell a product. They come to compete, and that�s their entire focus. The good news is there are rows of vendors with great food, including barbecue.�

Oh, and the nitpick about booking bigger names for headliners? �If you want Clapton or BB King, your ticket price will be closer to $150 instead of $15,� Sweitzer says. �We want fans to come hear the best band they never heard of.�

Amen. A big part of this festival focuses on roots artists, like 95-year-old Pinetop Perkins, and Hubert Sumlin, a big influence on the styles of BB King and Clapton. Folks get a chance to see legends like Sugar Blue, who has played with Willie Dixon and Stan Getz, Frank Zappa and Bob Dylan.

�When we were putting together the lineup in year one,� Sweitzer recalls, �Music Maker Revue was on the top of my list. Since that first year, they�re on the top of everyone�s list here in the Midwest.� And that�s a good thing, because Music Maker Relief Foundation presents the �true pioneers and forgotten heroes of Southern music� onstage to do what they do best: play the blues. �They don�t want a handout … they want a gig,� Sweitzer says.

And the crowds love �em. So do the musicians. In fact, the event has become �a true artists� show� according to Dobro virtuoso Jerry Douglas. Taj Mahal agrees, �This show is among the best in the country … any country.�

Columbians have a right to be proud.

The festival manages to put an average of nearly 20 Grammy Award winners onstage each year. �But if you�re looking at Grammys,� Sweitzer suggests, �you should include all those artists nominated for a Grammy, too.� Look no further than the Grammy-nominated SteelDrivers, whose members admit that �Columbia feels like home to us.� It should. SteelDrivers Mike Fleming and Mike Henderson trace their roots to college days in Columbia, in seminal groups like the Hell Band and the Bel Airs.

Now looking forward to October�s festival, Kevin Hopkins pitches bands to Thumper Productions. The Preservation Hall echoes one of Kevin�s recommendations: the Honey Island Swamp Band, a dazzling collection
of seasoned musicians, all Katrina survivors. And rumors persist that Susan Tedeschi and Derek Trucks may make an appearance.

While the musical lineup takes shape, there�s good news. Ticket prices will remain the same. The half-marathon will be back. And there will be one more ticket entrance, at the corner of Eighth and Locust.

Personally, I can�t wait to park my bike with a hundred others in the PedNet parking lot and blend into the crowd. And while I�m listening to Dan Tyminski or Ralph Stanley, out of the corner of my eye I�ll be watching the cops enjoy themselves, too.

DEREK TRUCKS, SUSAN TEDESCHI, DAN TYMINSKI SET TO HEADLINE 4TH ANNUAL BOONE COUNTY NATIONAL ...

Wed, 24 Mar 2010 15:30:00 +0100

� Taking the stage October 1 and 2, Derek Trucks, Susan Tedeschi, and Dan Tyminski have confirmed their participation in the 4th annual Boone County National Bank, Roots N Blues N BBQ Festival in downtown Columbia.

Experience the powerful performance of Susan Tedeschi and Grammy Award-winning, Derek Trucks. Only performing for a handful of festivals together this year, Tedeschi and Trucks chose to make an appearance at the Roots N Blues N BBQ Festival. The unforgettable combination of Derek Trucks and Tedeschi will bring a fresh blend of emotional blues, R&B, and Southern rock. Richard King, partner of Thumper Entertainment states, �We are proud to bill the Tedeschi and Trucks act as the big feather in our cap for 2010�.

To build on the excitement of the festival, 13-time Grammy winner Dan Tyminski, also known as George Clooney�s singing voice in �O Brother, Where Art Thou?� is set to take the stage at the festival. After working alongside Alison Krauss for years, Tyminski has established himself as a strong bluegrass musician and performer. Bringing a pure bluegrass sound to downtown Columbia, Tyminski is the definition of a Roots N Blues artist. In regards to Tyminski, Tedeschi, and Trucks, �We have been in discussions with these specific artists since the festival was just an idea scrawled on a piece of paper�, says Steve Sweitzer, partner of Thumper Entertainment, �We�re so happy that it�s finally coming true�.

Other artists featured this year at the Roots N Blues Festival include Rhonda Vincent, the reigning �Queen of Bluegrass� , born in Missouri, and Joanne Shaw-Taylor, blues guitar prodigy from England. Many more acts are in the works and will be announced in the coming months.

�We are thrilled to have Boone County National Bank back this year as our naming rights sponsor,� says Betsy Farris, Director of the Sponsorship Division at Thumper Entertainment.

�This is a tremendous event for our community and our downtown,� says Mary Wilkerson, senior vice president of marketing at Boone County National Bank, �It has placed Columbia on the national, �must see� event page, we are proud to be a part of it again�.

�Gibson Guitar will be back with their interactive experience,� continues Farris. The interactive experience will enable fans to get more involved with the festival and gratify fans� desire to explore the art of music. MPIX, New Belgium Beer, and Break Time will be returning as sponsors of this year�s festival, as well.
The Whole Hog VIP Lounge at Forge and Vine, the Roots N Blues Half-Marathon, and BBQ competition and vendors will remain integrated with the festival. Ticket prices remain the same as last year. Tickets purchased in advance are $10 for the day or $15 for a weekend pass. To purchase tickets on the day of the event it will be $15 for the day and $25 for the weekend pass. For access to the Whole Hog VIP Lounge at Forge and Vine, day passes are $125 and weekend passes are $195. Tickets will go on sale mid-summer. For more information, go to www.rootsnbluesnbbq.com.

Contact:
Steve Sweitzer
Thumper Entertainment
910 East Broadway, Suite 10
Columbia, MO 65201
ssweitzer@thumperentertainment.com

GIBSON GUITAR ANNOUNCES PARTNERSHIP WITH THE 2009 ROOTS �N BLUES �N BBQ FESTIVAL, SEPTEMBER ...

Wed, 09 Sep 2009 15:30:00 +0100

Guitar Giveaways Celebrating Gibson�s September Month Long Tribute to Les Paul and Interactive Gibson Trailer to Highlight Festival
Columbia, Missouri � September 9, 2009� Gibson Guitar, the world�s premier musical instrument maker and leader in music technology, is pleased to announce its partnership with The Roots �N Blues �N BBQ Festival to be held September 25-26, 2009, in Columbia, Missouri. Festival goers will have a chance to celebrate the late, great Les Paul by entering to win one of two Gibson Les Paul guitars to be given away at the event. Fans will also have a chance to experience the Gibson Custom Shop Trailer, an interactive history of Gibson guitar models that will feature a wide variety Gibson Les Paul guitars.
The Roots �N Blues �N BBQ Festival is celebrating the life and legacy of the renowned musician and innovator Les Paul by giving away two Gibson Les Paul guitars at the Festival. A Gibson Les Paul Junior to be signed by artists performing at this year�s festival will make a tour of Columbia leading up to the event. People attending these events can register to win the guitar by making a $1 donation, proceeds of which will benefit the Missouri High Steppers who will be opening the Festival with a special parade through downtown Columbia on September 25. The Les Paul Junior�s appearances will also be tracked on www.rootsnbluesnbbq.com allowing an opportunity for fans to register to win by following the tour of the Les Paul Jr. guitar. The winner will be drawn on Wednesday, September 23, and will be presented with the guitar onstage on Saturday, September 26.
The top of the line Gibson Les Paul Standard guitar will be featured during the Festival at the interactive Gibson Custom Shop Trailer. Festival goers can register to win this amazing prize by entering at one of four locations during the Festival: the merchandise tent, the Gibson Trailer, the information booth and the VIP Whole Hog Lounge. The Gibson Les Paul Standard will be presented to the winner on the Mediacom Peace Park Stage directly prior to the headlining act, The Blind Boys of Alabama.
Prior to the festival, a Gibson Joan Jett Limited Edition Melody Maker will be given away in partnership with The Zimmer Radio Group. Festival attendees are encouraged to listen in to KCMQ The Rocker starting on September 1 for the chance to win. The winner will be announced live on the air on Wednesday September 23 and will be presented with the Joan Jett Limited Edition Melody Maker guitar on-stage on Friday September 25. Festival-goers can also enter by visiting www.rootsnbluesnbbq.com/festival-info/promotions/.
In its third year, The Roots �N Blues �N BBQ Festival is a two-day event celebrating Missouri�s richest traditions. Featuring three stages of internationally known blues, gospel, bluegrass, country and soul musicians and Missouri�s best BBQ. Among the artists confirmed for this year�s Festival are The Dan Tyminski Band, Booker T Jones, Black Joe Lewis & The Honeybears, Music Maker Revue, Carolina Chocolate Drops: African American String Band, SteelDrivers, and the Blind Boys of Alabama, along with many other acts.
Stationed on-site at the Festival, the Gibson Custom Shop Trailer is an interactive museum where fans of the brand and guitar enthusiasts alike will be able to admire guitars from Gibson�s illustrious history. Individuals can test out all time favorites like the ES-335 as well as new models like the Gibson USA Raw Power Series. A wide array of Gibson Les Paul guitars will be on hand in remembrance of the man behind the music. The Custom Shop Trailer will be present each day of the Festival and will be open to the public from show opening until dark.
Tickets for the Festival can be purchased at http://www.rootsnbluesnbbq.com/tickets/. One-day passes purchased in advance are $10; weekend passes purchased in advance are $15. Tickets are also available at The Blue Note box office, all Ticketmaster locations, MSA box office at Brady Commons, Break Time locations throughout Mid-Missouri and at Boone County National Bank Columbia locations. Children 12 and under will be admitted into the Festival free of charge. Tickets purchased at the Festival gates will be $15 for a one-day pass and $25 for a weekend pass.
For more information, please visit www.gibson.com or www.rootsnbluesnbbq.com

About Gibson Guitar

Gibson is known worldwide for producing classic models in every major style of fretted instrument, including acoustic and electric guitars, mandolins, and banjos. The Gibson Les Paul guitar is the best selling guitar of all time and bears the name of the late, great Les Paul. Gibson�s HD.6X-PRO Digital Guitar, the Gibson Robot Guitar and Gibson's Dark Fire represent the biggest advances in electric guitar design in over 70 years. Founded in 1894 in Kalamazoo , Michigan , and headquartered in Nashville since 1984, Gibson Guitar Corp.�s family of brands now includes Epiphone, Dobro, Kramer, Steinberger, Tobias, Echoplex, Electar, Flatiron, Slingerland, Valley Arts, Maestro, Oberheim, Baldwin, Sunshine Piano, Take Anywhere Technology, J&C Fischer, Chickering, Hamilton, and Wurlitzer. Visit Gibson�s website at www.gibson.com
About Thumper Entertainment

Thumper Entertainment was founded with the mission of creating live music events that connect artists with the audience in an unforgettable experience. Thumper believes shared music experiences create a positive connection among people of all cultures and backgrounds.
Contact:

Caroline Galloway, Gibson Guitar Corp., 615-423-4904, caroline.galloway@gibson.com
Tara Hart, Roots �N Blues �N BBQ Festival, 816-255-1960, press@rootsnbluesnbbq.com

Les Paul Honored At Roots N Blues N BBQ With Gibson Guitar Giveaway

Fri, 04 Sep 2009 15:30:00 +0100

At this year�s Roots �N Blues �N BBQ Festival on September 25-26 in Columbia, Missouri, three Gibson guitars will be given away to three lucky winners. A Joan Jett Limited Edition Melody Maker as well as a Les Paul Junior and a Les Paul Standard, all Gibson Guitars, will be given away in honor of Les Paul, the legendary musician and inventor of the electric guitar. Mr. Paul died from complications of pneumonia on Thursday August 12, 2009 in White Plains, N.Y. He was 94.
Mr. Paul, whose original name was Lester William Polsfuss, was born on June 9, 1915, in Waukesha, Wis. His childhood piano teacher wrote to his mother, �Your boy, Lester, will never learn music.� But he picked up harmonica, guitar and banjo by the time he was a teenager and started playing with country bands in the Midwest.
From country music Mr. Paul moved into jazz, influenced by players like Django Reinhardt and Eddie Lang, who were using amplified hollow-body guitars to play hornlike single-note solo lines. He formed the Les Paul Trio in 1936 and moved to New York, where he was heard regularly on Fred Waring�s radio show from 1938 to 1941.
In 1940 or 1941 � the exact date is unknown �, Mr. Paul made his guitar breakthrough. Seeking to create electronically sustained notes on the guitar, he attached strings and two pickups to a wooden board with a guitar neck. �The log,� as he called it, if not the first solid-body electric guitar, became the most influential one.
The Gibson company hired Mr. Paul to design a Les Paul model guitar in the early 1950s, and variations of the first 1952 model have sold steadily ever since, accounting at one point for half of the privately held company�s total sales. Built with Mr. Paul�s patented pickups, his design is prized for its clarity and sustained tone. It has been used by musicians like Led Zeppelin�s Jimmy Page and Slash of Guns N� Roses. The Les Paul Standard version is unchanged since 1958, the company says.
He recorded a final album, �American Made, World Played� (Capitol), to celebrate his 90th birthday in 2005. It featured guest appearances by Eric Clapton, Keith Richards, Jeff Beck, Sting, Joe Perry of Aerosmith and Billy Gibbons of ZZ Top. The album brought him two Grammy Awards: for best pop instrumental performance and best rock instrumental performance. He had already won recognition from the Grammy trustees for technical achievements and another performance Grammy in 1976, for the album �Chester and Lester,� made with Chet Atkins.
Mr. Paul�s style encompassed the twang of country music, the harmonic richness of jazz and, later, the bite of rock �n� roll. For all his technological impact, though, he remained a down-home performer whose main goal, he often said, was to make people happy.

�WE ALWAYS SWING� JAZZ SERIES PRESENTS A PRELUDE TO THE ROOTS �N BLUES �N BBQ FESTIVAL

Fri, 04 Sep 2009 15:30:00 +0100

COLUMBIA, Mo. (September 4, 2009) � Roots �N Blues �N BBQ Festival organizers today announced the �We Always Swing� Jazz Series Annual Downtown Columbia �Jazz, Wine & Beer� Pub Crawl, which takes place Thurs., Sept. 24, will serve as a �Prelude� to the Festival.

�We think of it as a �Festival Sampler,�� says Steve Sweitzer, co-founder of Thumper Entertainment. �We�re happy the Jazz Series is highlighting the Roots �N Blues �N BBQ Festival during their annual event.�

The Pub Crawl includes 16 venues in downtown Columbia featuring area jazz and blues artists and culminating at The Blue Note where L'il Ed & The Blues Imperials headlines as the �Prelude.�

�It�s great to be able to collaborate with the Festival and share a common musical experience,� says Jon Poses, �We Always Swing� Jazz Series executive director. �We hope the �Prelude� puts people in the right frame of mind to enjoy what promises to be an exciting weekend of music here in Columbia.�

Ticket and general information about the Annual Downtown Columbia �Jazz, Wine & Beer� Pub Crawl can be found at www.wealwaysswing.org.

Information about the Roots �N Blues �N BBQ Festival, including tickets and artist line-up can be found at www.rootsnbluesnbbq.com.

Bluesman inspires kids before festival

Wed, 01 Oct 2008 15:30:00 +0100

Grant Elementary School students are singing the blues this week, but don�t worry, they�re not a bit sad about it.

Instead of having to sit through a regular social studies class yesterday, Kristen Palmer�s fourth-graders got to drive pretend railroad stakes in the ground and sing an old black tune encoded with secret messages about freedom – not to mention they got to play backup kazoo for blues musician T.J. Wheeler.

Wheeler is spending the week at Grant in conjunction with this weekend�s Roots �N Blues �N BBQ Festival in downtown Columbia. He�s meeting with individual Grant classes to integrate music into core lessons. During Palmer�s social studies class, for instance, Wheeler showed students how blacks passed along otherwise forbidden messages through songs that eventually led to the blues. Blues music, he said, then influenced and paved the way for folk and rock performers, such as Bob Dylan and The Beatles.

“I hope no one walks away without realizing the roots of blues,” Wheeler said after the class. “So much of American music is African-American. The contributions of African-Americans just got co-opted and got whitewashed through history.”

Wheeler, who lives in New Hampshire, is an educator and activist who has taken his program, Hope, Heroes and the Blues, to roughly 350,000 students in five countries. He�s adamant about making sure today�s children understand that the rap, hip-hop and pop tunes they enjoy stem from the blues.

He also wants them to see firsthand the power music can have. “Music is a way that we cannot only have fun and is not only an art form, but music has healing abilities,” Wheeler said, adding that “you have to sing the blues to lose the blues.”

Having a professional musician in front of them also reinforces some of the lessons Grant music instructor Pam Sisson has taught them, such as hearing the difference between major and minor keys, recognizing the different parts of a song and finding the beat – easy to recognize with the slapping sounds of the taps on the soles of Wheeler�s shoes.

Wheeler�s visit will culminate with a schoolwide concert Friday afternoon. Then, he and a group of about 20 Grant fourth- and fifth-graders will perform an original ditty at 11 a.m. Saturday at the Flat Branch stage.

“They�re seeing what it means to be real musicians,” Sisson said, “and getting a real taste of performance.”

The young performers will be in good company. This year�s Roots �N Blues �N BBQ Festival includes Grammy Award winners Jerry Douglas, Buddy Guy and Del McCoury.

And they can expect a crowd, too. With anticipated sunny skies and increased publicity, more than 100,000 people are expected to attend the free festival, co-director Kyle Pusateri said. Last year, about 65,000 people attended the first Roots �N Blues �N BBQ, which was a celebration of the 150th anniversary of Boone County National Bank, Grant�s Partner in Education.

This also is Wheeler�s second year to visit Grant, and students welcomed him with posters and personalized letters telling him he “rocks” and instructing him to “stay cool.” In her letter, fifth-grader Mamie Davis touted Wheeler as the best part of the school year: “Having fun with you was my fondest memory of fourth grade.”

It's BBQ Heaven at this weekend's Mid-Missouri's Roots 'N Blues

Tue, 30 Sep 2008 15:30:00 +0100

The streets of Columbia, Mo., will be smokin' this weekend for the second annual Roots 'N Blues 'N BBQ Festival, which kicks off Friday night. The free event celebrates the region's roots with two days of nonstop music and meat.

I was in the college town of Columbia for last year's inaugural festival, which drew more than 65,000 visitors. Nothing could top chowing down on a sauce-smothered, pulled-pork sandwich while a member of the Blind Boys of Alabama weaved through the crowd at Peace Park during the encore. After that, Sierra Leone's Refugee All Stars got all of downtown dancing.

Chicago bluesman Buddy Guy headlines this year's lineup, which features 28 musical acts, including bluegrass rocker Jerry Douglas and local favorite The Henry Clay Band. Event planners anticipate a crowd of 100,000, so stake out a spot at one of the three stages early, and kill time by feasting on the festivals other offerings: More than 57 BBQ aficionados will be vying for accolades in the Kansas City Barbeque Society State Champion BBQ Contest.

The perfect place to celebrate BBQ and blues alike, Columbia is sandwiched between Kansas City and St. Louis, and it's an easy drive from either side of I-70. The festival kicks off Friday at 5 p.m., and continues through Saturday night. rootsnbluesnbbq.com

Roots �N Blues Music Shines Light on Women, Local Talent

Thu, 25 Sep 2008 15:30:00 +0100

As was expected, this year�s Roots �N Blues �N BBQ Festival features an extremely talented lineup. Kudos to the festival organizers for grabbing Buddy Guy, Del McCoury and Jerry Douglas, but perhaps the most laudable part of this year�s lineup is found not in its headliners but in its diversity.

In the second edition of the festival, women and local acts are given the spotlight.

For instance, on Oct. 3, singer-songwriter Ruthie Foster takes the headlining position on the Mediacom Stage. You might remember Foster from her early work, which earned her comparisons to Tracy Chapman and Melissa Etheridge. But, like many great artists, Foster has changed. With the release of her latest, the boldly titled “The Phenomenal Ruthie Foster,” replace those two comparisons with Aretha and Nina. Foster�s forthcoming release, which should come out early next year, finds her in the same mode – more soulful songstress than coffeehouse songwriter.

“I started out in the folk realm, and I still do a lot of shows by myself in that way,” Foster said. “But I wanted something different, to bring some more instrumentation to the music.” Foster now performs with an all-female backing band.

“Change is good,” she said. “It�s not easy. It�s like a chess game sometimes.”

Raised in Texas, Foster�s career started when she joined Pride, a Navy band that performed funk covers. After she left that group, she started performing her own music, eventually landing a deal with Atlantic Records.

Foster�s live show earned her many fans – at one performance alone, she sold 1,000 CDs.

“I grew up in a small town,” she said. “You tend to think you have limits, but I�ve always known. I took the steps I needed to take.”

At various festivals, Foster has had the chance to meet many legends, including Betty LaVette, who have taught her big lessons about “learning how to be in every show, to show up and be your best.”

“Let them know you�re sincere about what you do,” Foster said. “You give it to the people.”

LaVette, an R&B song interpreter, has always given it to the people; just ask her whether she�s ever received a bad review. Still, she�s not exactly a household name.

For about 50 years, LaVette, who plays Oct. 4, traveled a long and bumpy path lined with classic – but far from platinum – records. Five years ago, that road finally seemed to smooth out when she released “A Woman Like Me,” an album of covers that later earned her a W.C. Handy award. But still, that doesn�t mean she�s as famous as she should be.

The original and powerful singer plans to record a new album early next year; the concept is still in the air. She said she�s more interested in TV and classic film than she is in music. Her theater background, she said, makes her look different than other performers.

“Everything that happens to me is happening as you�re watching it,” she said, regarding her live concerts.

At Roots �N Blues, women aren�t the only performers receiving top billing – even local acts receive much-deserved prime-time positions.

Local singer-songwriter Noah Earle, for instance, helps close out the Verizon Wireless Stage on Saturday night. Rooted in a mix of gospel, R&B and country music, the guitarist/fiddler has played music much of his life.

“It�s something that I need to keep me sane,” he said. “I don�t have a real lofty or noble rationale for continuing to play music, though I hope that some people get some sort of emotional or psychological edification out of it.”

When he was younger, he and his brother moved to Los Angeles in hopes of becoming successful songwriters. They quickly realized, he said, that “a person has to sacrifice a lot of integrity to crank out songs … likely to reach the top of the Billboard charts.”

Earle came back and started researching roots more. He realized he identified culturally and geographically with the Midwest – this is his home. It�s only fitting that the roots musician plays Oct. 4 on his second home – the stage.

Roots 'N Blues 'N BBQ Your Guide To This Year's Festival

Tue, 09 Sep 2008 15:30:00 +0100

Music Maker Revue to Premiere Documentary Free to the Public

Tue, 09 Sep 2008 15:30:00 +0100

WHO: Thumper Entertainment, through the courtesy of the outstanding Missouri Theatre, would like to invite the public to join us in a free showing of the Music Maker Revue Documentary, �Toot Blues.�

WHAT: �Toot Blues� comes to us courtesy of the Music Maker Relief Foundation, Inc. This organization helps the true pioneers and forgotten heroes of Southern music gain recognition and meet their day-to-day needs. Music Maker Relief also supports the preservation and proliferation of American musical traditions. Music Maker Relief Foundation, Inc. is a tax exempt, public charity.

WHEN: Tuesday, September 16, 2008. Doors open at 5:30 p.m. The film begins at 6:15 p.m.

WHERE: Missouri Theatre Center for the Arts
203 S. Ninth St.
Columbia, MO 65201
Get Directions
(573) 875-0600

RSVP: Think you might be able to join us? Let us know and help us get a head count.

Additionally, the stars of the documentary will be performing at the Roots �N Blues �N BBQ Festival October 3 & 4. For those who enjoyed the artists and musicianship from the documentary, the Music Maker Revue experience can be prolonged with the purchase of the Whole Hog VIP package. Priced at $250, the Whole Hog experience begins with a private Whole Hog roast and concert on Thursday, October 2 featuring The Music Maker Revue and Ruthie Foster. After the private performance, Whole Hog guests will be able to meet and talk with the Music Maker Revue stars. To purchase your package, visit www.rootsnbluesnbbq.com.

Roots 'N Blues 'N BBQ Festival Featured in Home and Lifestyle Magazine

Mon, 11 Aug 2008 15:30:00 +0100

Roots 'N Blues 'N BBQ Festival

By Joanna Schneider � Photos by LG Patterson

When delicious, finger licking barbeque, soulful roots and blues music and gathering time for family and friends mix, the result is an all out extravaganza known to Columbians as the Roots �N Blues �N BBQ Festival.

Last year�s festivities drew over 65,000 people to Columbia and an even bigger turnout (over 100,000) is expected for this year�s festival. Locally based entertainment group, Thumper Entertainment, has gained ownership of the event and is expected to create a festival unlike anything Columbia has seen. Thumper is dedicated to bringing live music performers, who in the past have not been a possibility, says Tracy Lane, Executive Director of Thumper Entertainment.

��We have formed this company because we feel the social and cultural benefits of music are so important to our community,� she says. �We feel music does a great deal to promote unification and social progress and we want that for this town in which we are all raising our children.�

Once again, there will be a Kansas City Barbeque Society State Championship BBQ contest featuring the best barbeque cooks around and an ample sampling of delicious, authentic barbeque from various local vendors. Families and friends can gather on blankets and lawn chairs in Peace Park and Flat Branch Park where stages will feature internationally recognized blues, country, bluegrass, soul and gospel artists. The talent, music and energy of these artists is not to be missed and will be headlined by legendary bluesman, Buddy Guy.

New this year is the Verizon Wireless Flat Branch Park Family Fun Area, designed as a safe, fun area for families and their children. Columbia Home & Lifestyle will be the media sponsor of the new area. Thumper wanted to establish an area within the festival landscape to encourage parents with small children to be able to come and enjoy the event without having to navigate through the crowds and craziness with strollers and diaper bags in tow. Here, families can come and bring their kids and a picnic blanket and basket and spend the day in the park. All of the entertainment on stage in this area will be family friendly and features national and local acts including favorites such as the Juke Joint Duo�a group that includes one of the many grandchildren of R. L. Burnside.

In partnership with Thumper, the Missouri Blues Society and Boone County National Bank will, for the second year, be sponsoring a collaborative performance by Grant Elementary School students and T.J. Wheeler, a musician and instructor dedicated to traveling the country for the �Blues in Schools Program.� This joint performance is something Thumper and its partners anticipate continuing in the future.

�It�s very important to give kids this hands-on opportunity to feel the music and learn to appreciate the talent and the love involved in being a musician,� Tracy says. �Music has such a powerful social impact on individuals, especially children.�

Some Things to Know if You Go:

Date: Oct. 3, from 5 to 10 p.m.
Oct. 4, from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m.

Cost: Free

Where are the Stages? One stage will be at the Verizon Wireless Flat Branch Park Family Fun Area near the intersection of Fourth and Cherry Streets, and one will be in Peace Park near the intersection of Sixth and Elm Streets. A third additional stage will sit in the street at Eighth and Cherry Streets.

No pets or coolers allowed. Food, drinks and souvenirs will be available for purchase.

For more information, visit rootsnbluesnbbq.com

Roots �N Blues �N BBQ Festival Art Contest

As a sponsor of the Verizon Wireless Flat Brach Park Family Fun Area, Columbia Home & Lifestyle invites all school-age children to participate in our art contest. The winning school will be determined by the percentage of students participating in the contest for each school. The school with the highest percentage of participants will receive $500 from Verizon Wireless for its art and music departments.

There�s a small picture of Oinky the Pig above, please complete the big Oinky and decorate him however you want. Have fun! For further ideas and more information about Oinky, go to www.rootsnbluesnbbq.com/family-fun.

You may download a larger image of oinky here.

Turn this sheet into your art teacher or your parents and have them send it by Monday, September 8th to:
Columbia Home & Lifestyle
2001 Corporate Place
Columbia, Mo 65202

NAME:

AGE:

SCHOOL:

TEACHER:

Set Times Revealed!

Fri, 08 Aug 2008 15:30:00 +0100

Roots 'N Blues 'N BBQ - Webisode 3

Fri, 08 Aug 2008 15:30:00 +0100

Roots 'N Blues 'N BBQ - Webisode 2

Fri, 01 Aug 2008 15:30:00 +0100

Festivals Put Columbia On Culinary Map

Mon, 28 Jul 2008 15:30:00 +0100

By TRISH AND JIM KOETTING
Published Wednesday, July 9, 2008

Up until a couple of years ago, Columbia was a relatively typical Midwestern college town, known mostly � especially lately � for Tiger football games and tailgate parties. Games were attended by a high percentage of university-educated individuals.

There would be an art festival here and there, some balloon festivals occasionally, but nothing to really make anyone sit up and take notice.

That all changed a little over a year ago when Boone County National Bank came up with the outrageous idea to host a music and barbecue festival the likes of which no one in this town had ever seen. And, by the way, it would be free. (What were they smoking?) This was, to say the least, met with a generous portion of skepticism. I talked to a caterer who didn�t want to get involved as a vendor because he was worried about what he would do with all of his leftovers. Well, the thing was christened the Roots �N Blues �N BBQ Festival, and the rest is history. To say it exceeded expectations is an understatement, thanks to the dedicated work from a great number of individuals. Who�d a thunk we�d make the New York Times for our music festival, which, by the way, will be returning this fall � Oct. 3 and 4 � for an encore performance.

Celebration City

Mon, 28 Jul 2008 15:30:00 +0100

Festivals help shape Columbia�s personality as a growing destination for arts and culture.

By SARA AGNEW of the Tribune�s staff
Published Sunday, June 22, 2008

Richard King was downtown getting a haircut when he realized he might be involved with something bigger than he first imagined.

For months, King had been working with organizers on the Roots �N Blues �N BBQ celebration. The two-day fest was created last year by Boone County National Bank to mark its 150th anniversary. King has always loved the blues. But The Blue Note�s owner wasn�t sure how a festival celebrating the genre would go over in Columbia.

He found his answer while sitting in the barber�s chair.

�Everyone in the barbershop was talking about the upcoming festival,� he said. �For the first time, I felt like, �Wow, this could be big.� �

The blues festival attracted an estimated 70,000 people downtown � 50,000 more than organizers anticipated � and since then has taken its place among a variety of celebrations that call Columbia home. This spring, the Columbia City Council approved a one-time $100,000 donation for the Roots �N Blues �N BBQ festival from the Columbia Convention and Visitors Bureau�s unreserved fund.

Festivals � whether small, one-night affairs or weekend-long celebrations � are helping shape the personality of Columbia, which is fast becoming an arts and culture destination in Mid-Missouri. Festivals also generate invaluable publicity that no amount of advertising could replace.

Festivals �make a statement about what we value and what kind of experience people can expect if they were to move here,� said Lorah Steiner, executive director of the convention and visitors bureau. �That�s important in terms of how people decide where to accept a job, relocate a business, raise their family or attend school. When someone is just starting a career, they follow the money. When they have more experience, they are more likely to follow their hearts.�

�This is especially true in the much-sought-after, high-tech industries,� she continued. �People are more likely to accept a position in a city that speaks to their personal interest and lifestyle.�

Among the community�s oldest festivals are Art in the Park, a 50-year-old festival presented by the Columbia Art League; and the Columbia Festival of the Arts, which is sponsored by Columbia�s Office of Cultural Affairs as well as individual and corporate sponsors.

Another local staple is the Boone County Heritage Festival, a celebration that seeks to reflect the spirit of Mid-Missouri in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.

On a much smaller scale are the ever-popular Twilight Festivals, which occur each Thursday evening in June and September in downtown Columbia. The streets come alive with music, carriage rides and a variety of local artists exhibiting their wares and giving demonstrations.

A similar atmosphere exists the last Friday of each quarter during Artrageous Fridays, a gallery crawl that showcases the city�s arts community.

One unique celebration that has put Columbia on the map is the True/False Film Festival, which started five years ago during the month of February. The four-day documentary film festival has drawn attendance from across the United States and from Europe, exposing the community to folks who might not otherwise come to Mid-Missouri.

�The True/False Film Festival is an example of an event that has really raised the profile of Columbia and the artistic community,� Steiner said. �People from New York and L.A. who attended the festival consistently comment how cool Columbia is and how much the atmosphere and offerings differed from what they had envisioned.�

Marie Nau Hunter, manager of Columbia�s Office of Cultural Affairs, said festivals are an effective way to expose new people to the arts.

�They are a great way to ease people into the idea of getting involved in the arts because at a festival, it is more likely people will experience an art form that they would not purchase a ticket to attend on their own,� Hunter said. �The arts as a destination is a good thing. Certainly festivals can go a long way in terms of increasing cultural tourism that is based in the arts.�

Hunter added that it is important for a community to have venues conducive to holding festivals, such as the Boone County Courthouse Square. Public art also can set the mood and create an atmosphere of creativity.

�It�s not just about having an event,� Hunter said. �It�s about having an event in an environment conducive to whatever that event is.�

King, who worked on the music committee for the first Roots �N Blues �N BBQ festival, said cooperation from the city � including the city�s office of cultural affairs and the police, fire and public works departments � was key to the success of the blues festival.

�Some of the cooperation was unprecedented, such as shutting down Broadway� to make room for more stages, King said. �I think the Roots �N Blues festival was a gigantic step in the direction of making Columbia a festival town. We were able to show that we can do this. We can behave and make the city shine.�

Carrie Gartner, executive director of the Special Business District, believes the city�s hotel tax has gone a long way toward helping to kick-start many of the local festivals.

The convention and visitors bureau, a city government department, is financed by a 4 percent occupancy tax on motel- and hotel-room fees. The CVB puts some of the money into the Tourism Development Fund, which works as a piggy bank for local festivals and events.

Still, funding can be challenging as the public grows to expect more and more from such events.

Diana Moxon, executive director of the Columbia Art League, said people want more than just a visual art fair when they attend Art in the Park: They want food, music and entertainment, which raises the bar for the art league and sometimes creates competition for a limited amount of available arts funding.

�Then, not only are we competing for limited arts fund locally, but more and more other communities are having festivals, and we begin competing with them for entertainment and vendors,� Moxon said.

Iowa City, Iowa, is similar to Columbia in size and demographics.

The home of the University of Iowa addressed its funding issues by creating Summer of the Arts as an umbrella organization for five local festivals and events.

�We were formed three years ago to help support our local festivals, which were struggling in managing volunteers, raising money and managing growth,� said Mary Frieden, executive director of Summer of the Arts. �By combining resources and doing one huge fundraising campaign, we have garnered very strong support from the city of Iowa City.�

Summer of the Arts also has the support of the local convention and visitors bureau as well as local businesses.

�They like being able to give to one organization knowing it is supporting five separate events,� Frieden said. �We have seen sponsors increase their donations over this past year.�

Steiner said every local festival generates some local economic impact, whether it is money spent in restaurants, retail stores or on entertainment. But that�s just the tip of the iceberg.

�I believe the real value of Columbia�s festivals is the positive image they create for our city,� she said.

Roots 'N Blues 'N BBQ Channel - Webisode 1

Tue, 22 Jul 2008 15:30:00 +0100

Jerry Douglas to liven Ford Theater as Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum�s 2008 ...

Fri, 20 Jun 2008 15:30:00 +0100

NASHVILLE, Tenn., June 19, 2008 – His incomparable resume includes 12 Grammy Awards, appearances on more than 2000 albums and a decade as the featured soloist with Alison Krauss & Union Station. Later this summer, three-time (and reigning) CMA Musician of the Year Jerry Douglas will add a new accolade to the list: The Country Music Hall of Fame� and Museum�s 2008 artist-in-residence.

Dobro in hand, Douglas will host four memorable evenings in August and September, each carefully curated by the artist to illustrate different facets of his glittering career. He will hold court in the Museum�s Ford Theater on August 19 and 27, and September 16 and 30; each show begins at 7 p.m.

Hailed as �Dobro�s matchless contemporary master� by The New York Times and lauded as �my favorite musician� by John Fogerty, Jerry Douglas has taken a once obscure and relatively unexplored instrument and harnessed it, through the power of his immense skill and creativity, to create some of the most distinctive sounds in American popular music. Guests attending Douglas�s residency shows should expect four unique evenings, with set lists and special guests drawn from across the wide swath he has cut into contemporary acoustic music.

Douglas, whose latest solo album, Glide, will be released by Koch Records on August 19, follows Cowboy Jack Clement, Earl Scruggs, Tom T. Hall, Guy Clark and Kris Kristofferson as the Museum�s sixth artist-in-residence.

The tapestry of modern American acoustic music is woven with Jerry Douglas�s rich musical embroidery,� said Museum Director Kyle Young. �He has embellished recordings by Eric Clapton and Ray Charles, Earl Scruggs and Garth Brooks, James Taylor and Paul Simon, Pat Metheny and Phish, and a couple thousand more. He is a composer, producer, band member, recording artist and session player extraordinaire. But his talents are perhaps best enjoyed live, where he coaxes his Dobro through surprising and satisfying twists and turns and demonstrates its versatility across many genres of music.

Whether he is fronting his own band, performing with Alison Krauss & Union Station or working on one of his many side projects, Jerry continues to explore and expand the Dobro�s vocabulary. He possesses a restless and majestic creative spirit that is constantly seeking new forms of expression, and in our residency tradition, we are excited to give him our stage for four one-of-a-kind performances.�

The son of an Ohio steelworker who played bluegrass on the side, Gerald Calvin Douglas was eight years old when he first heard both Bashful Brother Oswald and Josh Graves at a Flatt & Scruggs concert. Young Jerry originally wanted to play the banjo but became smitten by the Dobro�s sound: �The Dobro really caught my ear, the way Josh Graves played it�it was like a voice.� Douglas�s father altered a guitar so that the strings were high, allowing the youngster to play it like a Dobro. When Douglas was 12, his father bought him a real Dobro, and he began playing with his father�s band, the West Virginia Travelers.

In 1973, 17-year-old Jerry joined innovative bluegrass band the Country Gentlemen who, while respectful of tradition and steadfast in their use of acoustic instruments, were known for taking the genre into new arenas of repertoire and stylistic performance. He toured with them between his junior and senior years of high school, and again after his graduation.

Douglas next served a brief stint as a member of J.D. Crowe�s New South; he and bandmate Ricky Skaggs left in 1976 to form their own group, Boone Creek. The group�s tenure was brief, and ended when Skaggs was asked to join Emmylou Harris�s Hot Band. As the decade�s end drew near, Douglas rejoined the Gentlemen and began work on his first solo record, Fluxology. The album, which was released by Rounder Records in 1979, drew its title from Douglas�s nickname, �Flux.� This was the first of many solo projects recorded by Douglas when he was not recording or touring with others.

Also in 1979, Douglas again left the Gentlemen and this time joined Buck White & the Down Home Folks, who were touring as the opening act for Emmylou Harris. Douglas played on Harris�s seminal acoustic album, Roses in the Snow, and quickly became a sought-after session man in country�s emerging traditionalist vanguard. His work could be heard on some of the most highly regarded albums in the acoustic music field, including Tony Rice�s classic 1979 album Manzanita. In 1983, Douglas won a Grammy Award for Best Country Instrumental for his work on J.D. Crowe & the New South�s instrumental track �Fireball.� It was the first of dozens of music industry honors for him.

Douglas retired from the Whites� road band in 1985 to concentrate on session work, appearing on recordings by Johnny Cash, Ray Charles, Gail Davies, Skaggs and dozens of others. Simultaneously, he fronted two of MCA�s Master Series albums, Under the Wire (1986) and Plant Early (1989), which explored �newgrass� and Nashville New Age. In 1989, Douglas joined Strength in Numbers, an irregular ensemble whose members included Sam Bush, Bela Fleck, Edgar Meyer and Mark O�Connor. He also continued his session work.

By the late 1990s, Jerry not only continued to be in constant demand for recording sessions but had begun producing a growing number of albums, for himself as well as artists such as the Del McCoury Band, the Nashville Bluegrass Band and Jesse Winchester.

As the millennium neared, Douglas was invited to join Alison Krauss & Union Station, with whom he is about to celebrate his 10-year anniversary. Now known as Alison Krauss & Union Station featuring Jerry Douglas, the band has allowed Douglas the best of both worlds: the opportunity for adventurous sonic collaboration with one of American music�s most respected artists, as well as ample free time to continue pursuing his own projects. On one such break, Douglas worked with producer T Bone Burnett on the soundtrack for the film O Brother, Where Art Thou? The smash CD, which has sold nearly 10 million copies, has been credited with reviving and broadening interest in acoustic roots music.

Douglas also formed the Jerry Douglas Band, where he has continued to break stylistic barriers. The group has headlined such diverse and prestigious festivals as Bonnaroo, the Telluride Bluegrass Festival and the Edmonton Folk Music Festival, and toured as the opening act for Paul Simon in 2006.

In June of 2004, the National Endowment for the Arts honored Douglas with a National Heritage Fellowship award (the country's highest honor in the folk and traditional arts) for his contributions to the excellence of Dobro guitar music. In addition to his Grammy and CMA Award accolades, he has also been honored by the Academy of Country Music, the International Bluegrass Music Association and the Americana Music Association. While he may be the most lauded Dobro player in music history, Douglas finds his greatest reward in pushing musical boundaries and expanding the vocabulary of his beloved instrument. �Being a musician�keeps me happy. It�s my job but it�s also my quest.�

Jerry Douglas residency event tickets ($30) will be on sale exclusively to Museum members July 14-20 (a one-year Museum membership is $25 for adults, $10 for youths). Tickets will go on sale to the public at 9:00 a.m. on Monday, July 21 and should be purchased online at www.countrymusichalloffame.com. For more information, call (615) 416-2001. Museum doors open at 6:00 p.m. for the 7:00 p.m. shows.

These programs are made possible, in part, by grants from the Metropolitan Nashville Arts Commission and by an agreement between the Tennessee Arts Commission and National Endowment for the Arts.

Festival signs blues icon

Thu, 27 Mar 2008 15:30:00 +0100

They have their money, and now Roots �N Blues �N BBQ organizers have added the big-name headliner they hope will make the second edition of the free music festival a success.

Blues icon Buddy Guy will wrap up this year�s blues festival, set for Oct. 3 and 4 in downtown Columbia.

The fest debuted last year as a gift to the city from Boone County National Bank as part of its sesquicentennial celebration. It was taken over by ad agency Woodruff Sweitzer and The Blue Note�s Richard King, who were key in helping the bank pull off an event that drew an average attendance of 35,000 each day on Sept. 7 and 8. The new ownership group – working as Thumper Entertainment, with former Tribune ad rep Tracy Lane as executive director – received a boon last week when the Columbia City Council approved a one-time $100,000 donation for the festival from the Columbia Convention and Visitors Bureau�s unreserved fund balance.

“We were � eager to get to work on confirming artists we�d been holding in the hopes our funding would” come through, Lane said. “Buddy Guy is legendary. To know that we�ll be delivering such an incredible performer to our city this fall – I�m thrilled.”

Guy co-headlined the inaugural Amphitheater at Mizzou concert with B.B. King in August 2001. Joining him on the bill this time are longtime bluegrass standout the Del McCoury Band and Dale Watson, the Austin, Texas-based purveyor of all things “Ameripolitan.”

Three more acts are on the verge of being confirmed, said King, the fest�s talent buyer. He expects them to come into the fold in the coming days and weeks. Their names and others will be revealed after they sign on as the fest approaches. Information is online at rootsnbluesnbbq.com.

King also said earlier this week that he�ll be bringing back his Ninth Street Summerfest, the concert series he�s held outside his club the past three years between Broadway and Walnut streets. Confirmed already for June 25 is the blues-tinged troika of Tab Benoit, Mike Zito and the Bel Airs. The first Summerfest concert is scheduled May 31, and other locked-in dates are July 30, Aug. 27 and Sept. 17.

And Thumper is planning a mini-Independence Day music festival, with the Carolina Chocolate Drops – a hit at last year�s festival – as the showcase act.

“We wanted to hold something” on July 4 “and are in the process of finding a home” for the concert, King said. “We have The Blue Note as a fallback, but we�re hoping we can do something outdoors.”

Weekend festival boosts downtown businesses

Mon, 10 Sep 2007 15:30:00 +0100

COLUMBIA � The Roots �N� Blues �N� BBQ festival brought the scent of barbecue smoke to downtown Columbia this weekend, and, according to several downtown businesses, it also brought the smell of greenbacks.

Mike Ebert, owner of the Regency Hotel Downtown, compared the business at his hotel over the weekend to business during a home Big 12 football game.
�It couldn�t have been better,� he said, noting that the 100-room hotel was sold out Friday and Saturday nights. About 85 percent of the guests were either musicians or festival attendees.

An informal survey conducted through e-mail by the Columbia Convention and Visitors Bureau of eight hotels revealed that business was brisk overall. Most hotels were almost full and some were sold out, said Megan McConachie of the bureau.

However, the bureau�s survey found most of the guests at hotels outside the district were in town for the Express Scripts Multiple Sclerosis Bike Ride, which also took place over the weekend.

Many downtown restaurant owners also saw a spike in business. Sanford Speake, an owner and manager at Sycamore on East Broadway, said the restaurant was �incredibly busy.�
�It was almost all new faces,� he said, describing the crowd.
Leigh Lockhart, owner of Main Squeeze Natural Foods Cafe on Ninth Street, said sales on Saturday were the highest in 10 years. One of her top sellers was a BBQ seitan sandwich made with wheat gluten. Main Squeeze also offered special �Roots �N� Blues� muffins, made with strawberries, cornmeal, blueberries and lavender. Lockhart said she met a woman from Oprah�s production company who read about the festival in the New York Times.
�She came down and said it was the best lineup she�d ever seen,� Lockhart said.
Lockhart gave her a coconut haystack � a Main Squeeze treat � and told her to tell Oprah it was Lockhart�s favorite thing.

Carrie Gartner, director of the Columbia Special Business District, said that besides boosting local business over the weekend, the festival could help the local economy by luring any tourists back to Columbia.
�It�s important to bring people in for one or two days, but it�s also important to impress people enough that you have customers every day of the year,� she said.

Gartner added that she had �no doubt� that this was the case with the Roots �N� Blues �N� BBQ festival. Although the festival was a boom for many restaurants and bars, the event appeared to have a modest impact on other businesses.
Jessica LaHue, owner of My Secret Garden on Ninth Street, said increased traffic and road closures caused some delays with her shop�s flower deliveries.
Brandon Perry, owner of Something New Hair Clinic on East Broadway, said he got a few more walk-ins than he would see on a typical weekend. The salon stayed open a few hours later on Friday and Saturday to accommodate customers.

At Tiger Taxi, drivers were �a little busier� over the past few days, dispatcher Terry Hancox said. Most customers were going downtown to the festival, and road closures meant it took slightly longer for drivers to reach their destinations.
�It�s hard to try to explain to intoxicated people that we can�t get to the bar immediately,� Hancox said. �They don�t want to hear that.�

Missourian reporter Katie Krasczak contributed to this report.

Festival topped 60,000 - Bank pleased with estimated turnout

Mon, 10 Sep 2007 15:30:00 +0100

The Roots �N Blues �N BBQ Festival is in the books. Whether it will return for another year is an open question.

Organizers were pleased with the first iteration of the fest specializing in saucy food and bluesy music. Organizers are still mulling attendance estimates, but Mary Wilkerson, vice president of marketing for Boone County National Bank, said the total went well beyond hopes of 30,000 festival-goers.

“It�s hard to say, but we�re thinking we at least got 60,000 here, but it was probably more than that,” she said.

Wilkerson said the event was meant to commemorate the bank�s 150th anniversary, adding that the institution “only turns 150 years old one time.” But, she said, a second annual Blues Festival is a possibility.

“Our intention was never to do this forever and ever and ever. Our intention was to throw one great party,” Wilkerson said. “There are lots of people who would like it to continue. We�re more than happy to turn it over to other people to do. We will probably continue to be involved in some way, but it will not be our party.”

Another unanswered question is whether the event made a profit. Wilkerson said that won�t be known for “weeks and weeks and weeks.”

“We�re not hoping for profitable,” Wilkerson said. “We would be so thrilled if we broke even that we would probably throw a party. But my guess is that�s not going to happen.”

Wilkerson expressed happiness about the how the event transpired. She did note on Friday that there were several glitches, such as flat tires on some festival vehicles, quickly dwindling supplies for food vendors and slower-than-expected trash pickup.

But many of the problems were resolved, she said. “We had things that just didn�t go the way we wanted them to, but I will tell you that Friday night well until the early hours of Saturday morning we were fixing problems,” she said. “And Saturday was a breeze. I mean, all the things we saw as problems on Friday night, we fixed by Saturday.”

At least one competitor in the festival�s barbecue contest expressed regret that his team wasn�t able to offer his goods to the public.

“Everything here has been absolutely phenomenal. � It�s the first annual, you never know what you�re going to get,” said Brad Watson, a member of the Springfield-based Pig Pimp�in barbecue team. “There�s a lot of public coming out to have barbecue and not getting a chance to eat it.”

Watson suggested organizing an event – with the proceeds going to charity – where the public could purchase a wrist band that would allow them to sample some of the contest�s food offerings. Wilkerson said vending regulations were similar to any festival; potential vendors had to apply and pay a booth fee to be placed in the festival footprint.

“Health department prohibits you from giving away food. Unless they were an official vendor, they could not do that,” Wilkerson said. “And we actually explained that to them. If they wanted to do that, they would have to apply, get a health license, be inspected, follow the health department rules. So they knew they could do that, but a lot of them chose not to do that. And I don�t really blame them because it�s a little bit of a hassle.”

Wilkerson said the bank is “so happy with everything and the way it turned out.”

“At this point, it�s far too early to be second-guessing everything that we did,” Wilkerson said. “Honestly, sitting here today, I thought everything went really, really well.”

Columbians chow on BBQ and listen to blues

Sun, 09 Sep 2007 15:30:00 +0100

COLUMBIA � Music from the Roots �n Blues �n BBQ Festival is shaking buildings in downtown Columbia, and the air is heady with pungent barbecue. Our reporters are kicking around the city�s biggest party, talking with visitors, vendors and musicians. Here are their dispatches:

5:15 p.m. FRIDAY
BROADWAY � Jessica Cobb is sitting in a lawn chair on the street outside Sycamore and Cool Stuff. A a tent filled with her ceramic pots is on her right.
She started setting up at 2:30 p.m. and is now relaxing in the muggy weather. Cobb has been making her own pots on and off for 15 years, but this is her first festival experience.

�I thought it�d be a good one because it�d be a festival I�d go to if I weren�t vending,� Cobb says. Cobb is looking forward to hearing Tab Benoit, who is scheduled to take the Boone County National Bank stage at 6:30 p.m. Friday on Broadway. This is a lucky break for Cobb, who will be responsible for tending her booth for the duration of the festival but can hear bands on the stage from her lawn chair.
�It�s going to be a long couple of days,� Cobb says.
� KATIE KRAWCZAK

5:50 p.m. FRIDAY
EIGHTH STREET AND BROADWAY � Brianna Lewis, 3, is dancing with herself in a planter to the sounds of Kent Burnside, who just took the stage. Lewis is intrigued by her reflection in the windows of the building, alternately jumping in time to the music and clapping her hands together. Ursuline Lewis watches as Brianna, clad in a Missouri cheerleader outfit, makes handprints on the windows. Ursuline is looking forward to seeing the Blind Boys of Alabama at 8 p.m.
�I�m real excited to hear them,� Ursuline says as she keeps an eye on Brianna. �I�ve heard them perform before.�
Ursuline says the festival is a lot of fun.
�It�s pretty good music,� she says. ?� KATIE KRAWCZAK

6:25 p.m. FRIDAY
EIGHTH AND ELM STREETS � �That�ll be one dollar,� Ashley Harmon tells a customer, who has picked up a slice of watermelon from the Wilson�s Garden Center & Gift Shop stand. The stand offers watermelon, cantaloupe and peaches to hungry passersby. Harmon says the melons were grown locally by the Amish, but the peaches are from Colorado because a frost took its toll on the local peach crop. Business started picking up at 4 p.m., though the festival didn�t officially start until 5 p.m.. The stand has been preparing since Monday for the event, and they came today at noon to start setting up. �I�ve been working since we got here,� Harmon says. �I�m looking forward to my break so I can have some Smokin� Walzs barbecue � and a sample of everything.�
� KATIE KRAWCZAK

7:40 p.m. FRIDAY
PEACE PARK � Under the darkening sky, throngs of festival-goers pass the beer tent, holding dripping barbecue sandwiches as they negotiate the dense crowd. A woman yelps as a thick teardrop of brown sauce splashes onto her blouse. The spicy scent of slow-cooking meat hangs heavy in the air.
This is no place for an herbivore.
All the same, vegetarian Chris Bahn is looking forward to a late dinner. What�s on the menu? �Beans and slaw,� he says, tugging at a colorful bandana tied around his head. �Just the fixins.�
Pointedly ignoring the first fat drops of rain, Bahn and his friend Nick Newlin, both 23, sip at Goose Island beers and watch the festivities. The prospect of getting a little wet doesn�t worry either of them. Newlin is hoping the threat of a downpour will thin the crowds before Sierra Leone�s Refugee All Stars hit the stage.
�I�m happy for the rain,� he says.?� ERIN J. BERNARD

8:05 p.m. FRIDAY
EIGHTH STREET � The lasso glides through the air before encircling an overflowing trash can. Chris Theerman, of Warrenton, flicks his wrist and the rope tightens with a whack.
His intention is to draw attention, and he does. Bystanders watch Theerman, who is in a cowboy hat and boots, ensnare the trash can and some linger with questions. After telling them he learned to rope from his bull-riding mother as a child, Theerman directs them to a nearby tent blasting country music and filled with the business he has run for the past five years � Cowboy Chris� Barbeque Sauce.
Meghaan Lieber, Theerman�s employee and an MU student, is under the tent giving away samples of the sauce and selling it, dry rubs and cowboy gear.
�I sell a lot of barbecue stuff and a little cowboy stuff,� Theerman said.
� TORI MOSS

8:30 p.m. FRIDAY
EIGHTH AND LOCUST STREETS � It�s well after dusk, but the snaking lines at food stands on Eighth Streets are long and they�re only getting longer. �This is crazy,� someone mutters. It�s way past dinner time, and the crowd is growing restless.
Amid the grumbling, hungry-bellied crush of people jostling for a taste of barbecue, Rick Ackerman waits without complaint, exuding calmness. �I�ve been in line since I got here,� Ackerman says. But he�s smiling. The lure of a pulled BBQ pork sandwich have kept him from giving up on the line. Ackerman and his wife, Juanita, drove 6 hours from Oklahoma to visit their daughter and newborn grandchild in Columbia.
It�s getting late, and he has yet to enjoy a single live performance, but Ackerman plans on visiting the festival again tomorrow. The musical stylings of Big Smith is on his agenda.
�We�ll eat before we come tomorrow,� Ackerman says with a laugh, eyeing the still-distant food stand.
The line still hasn�t moved.
� ERIN J. BERNARD

8:30 p.m. FRIDAY
EIGHTH STREET � Scott Loethen�s tent at the Roots �n Blues �n BBQ Festival offers passersby a glimpse into other worlds.
Loethen, a graphic designer and artist from Jefferson City, created several drawings and photographs depicting mid-Missouri life and is using the Roots �n Blues �n BBQ Festival to showcase his work.
�The original pen and ink takes me about 52 hours,� Loethen says. �Photos and digital art, depending on the subject, take me between four and five hours.�
This is the second time Loethen has displayed his wares at the festival.
He and his wife, Beth, lean back in their folding chairs as the crowd passes by on both sides of their tent. A sign with the words �pen and ink, photography and fine art� hangs on the flaps of the canvas tent. The artist looks like he is having fun, but there is one drawback to his tent�s location.
�It�s kind of hard to hear the music from here,� he says as the last notes of Carmina Burana�s final song fade into the night.
� GRETCHEN PRESSLEY

8:55 p.m. FRIDAY
PEACE PARK � Olin Register swings his �green stick� in a circle in front of his body, then behind it, creating a neon glow that shimmers around him for a half second before fading into the night. Then Olin accidentally hits himself in the head.
�I hit myself again,� the four-year-old shouts with a laugh. �I hit myself right here a little while ago, too.� Olin and his father, Rick Register, of Columbia, just got back from visiting the Socket tent, where Olin got his new toy, the glow stick. Olin came to the festival with both his parents and his �sister,� Maggie.
�Show them your sister, Olin,� his father suggests. Olin points to Maggie, who has with curly, snow-white hair, big puppy-dog eyes and a collar.
Maggie is a 42-pound �golden doodle,� Rick Register says, which is a mix between a golden retriever and a poodle.
�We�re really just out here to show off our dog,� Rick Register says with a chuckle. ?� GRETCHEN PRESSLEY

9:15 p.m. FRIDAY
PEACE PARK � Cheryl Howard, of Columbia, leans on a baby stroller, looking toward the stage. Her 10-month-old granddaughter, Keyanna, is asleep despite the blaring music of the Blind Boys of Alabama.
Howard came to the festival with her husband, daughter and grandchildren in part to see the Blind Boys. She says the festival is the largest she�s attended in Columbia and thinks it�s very family oriented.
The rest of her family, including grandson Javieon, are in one of the food lines that snake their way through the streets and parking lots of the festival.
Howard says she is enjoying herself and she and her family will probably be back tomorrow.
� TORI MOSS

Refugee All Stars bring African beat - Group traces its origin to Sierra Leone conflict.

Sun, 09 Sep 2007 15:30:00 +0100

After waiting through an hourlong delay because of electrical glitches, a Peace Park crowd of more than 300 burst into dance as the African rhythms erupted from Sierra Leone�s Refugee All Stars on Friday night.

Reuben Koroma, left, and Efuah Grace perform with Sierra Leone�s Refugee All Stars during the Roots �N Blues �N BBQ Festival on Friday at Peace Park. The band was formed in refugee camps in West Africa.
“We have a gift for you,” band founder Reuben Koroma shouted. “African music!”

Audience members danced and clapped throughout the All Stars� high-energy show, blending traditional West African music, reggae and hip-hop in their performance for the Roots �N Blues �N BBQ Festival.

Koroma said the group�s songs were a celebration, making it hard to believe the band was formed in refugee camps in West Africa�s Guinea by people forced from their Freetown homes after rebels took over the Sierra Leone city. A documentary about the group was featured at this year�s True/False Film Festival. The band had been invited to attend but was unable to travel to the United States at that time.

The lively beats of bongos, bass and maracas kept the crowd dancing even as the group sang of hardships in refugee camps. One tune featured an appearance by Mariatu Kargbo, a young woman whose hands were severed by a rebel group.

Koroma, 43, took time to talk to the Tribune before the show about his group.

Q: Could you talk a little bit about how the band formed?

Koroma: That was way back when I was forced to quit my country. That was, well, in 1997. I just thought that it�s very important for a musical group in the camp because I think musical entertainment will help the people, you know?

Q: What did you think it would do for people?

Koroma: During that time in the refugee camps, people had psychologically affected because of what has happened to them. Most of them (lost) their family members. They miss their county, separated from beloved ones and all those things. It was like a psychological problem, everyone�s mind was worried, that was not addressed. Music helped them relax their minds. Instead of thinking of what has happened to them, if they listened to our music, it relaxed their mind. It reduced their trouble.

Q: How did being in the band help the members?

Koroma: I can say, you know, making music was treatment for me. At first when I came to the camp, I was like a crazy person. I was not normal, you know, because of what has happened to me. When I decided to start playing music, you know, it�s like my life was reformed. When I play music, I seem to forget most of the things that have happened. It�s like it helped me. And then I was doing it to help myself. But all the people found pleasure. They came around us to relax their minds. That�s how we saw music would be a treatment.

Q: What do you hope to bring to this audience?

Koroma: Everywhere we go, it�s the same objective: to bring joy.

Blues zone - Music fans find home downtown

Sun, 09 Sep 2007 15:30:00 +0100

Kristy Trevathan travels the country seeking out the best blues music she can, and this weekend the first Roots �N Blues �N BBQ Festival brought this blues follower to Columbia.

“It�s down-home music that has a place in my heart,” Trevathan said yesterday as she sat in a lawn chair at the Peace Park stage listening to Toni Price. “It�s a music that gives a summation of life.”

Trevathan, 54, of Hannibal, has been a blues fan for about 15 years and regularly travels to blues festivals in Quincy, Ill., and Memphis, Tenn. A real estate agent who graduated from the University of Missouri-Columbia, Trevathan said she heard about this festival by word-of-mouth and came to town yesterday to take in her favorite musical genre.

“It�s important to keep this alive,” she said. “It�s truly American music.”

Though clouds threatened rain all day, precipitation held off and a light breeze took the edge off the late-summer heat and humidity. Thousands of people arranged collapsible chairs in venues at Peace Park, Flat Branch Park and the intersection of Eighth Street and Broadway, and some spectators seated themselves on curbs to sample popcorn, barbecue and corn bread as jazz, blues and bluegrass music filled the streets.

Gene Stephenson of Columbia said he and his wife made a point of attending both days of the festival, giving up a weekend at their summer home on the Current River. The variety of music styles, Stephenson said, helped make the festival a success.

“It�s like what I do at home for a party: string up some lights and have a stack of CDs with blues, bluegrass, rock �n� roll,” he said. “The variety is the best thing, without a doubt. If you don�t like what you�re hearing, it�s not far to the next stage.”

The logistics of the event, including food vending and the flow of people and musical acts, also impressed Stephenson, who works as a contractor. But he said the garbage pickup could have been better. He echoed several festival goers� complaints that people couldn�t take beer to their chairs near the stages. But he said he was willing to compromise on that.

“I�d give it a �really good� rating,” said Stephenson of the festival�s beer tents. “It would earn an �excellent� if they�d bring the beer out to me.”

Overall, Stephenson praised the festival and the people who attended. “It�s a great crowd,” he said.

Both Trevathan and Stephenson were looking forward to a concert by Grammy award-winning Taj Mahal, who was set to play last night on the Broadway stage. Before the show, Henry Saint Clair Fredericks, who uses the stage name Taj Mahal, said he liked the “down-home feel” of the festival.

“It�s about the music. It�s about the barbecue,” said Fredericks, who described his sound as eclectic, with influences from African music and Celtic poetry, morphing into jazz. “It�s wonderful that a city gets together, folks come out and families get together.”

Fredericks said the music industry had changed greatly since he released his first solo album in 1968, with tighter corporate controls.

He said the Internet and festivals such as the Columbia festival are a way to combat that.

“This is very good,” he said. “It�s something that we as Americans can share with each other, and this is the way we share.”

Soulful sounds - �Moving, grooving� more than 60 years.

Sat, 08 Sep 2007 15:30:00 +0100

Musical acts sometimes explode onto the scene like fireworks and fizzle just as quickly. But the Blind Boys of Alabama take longevity to another level.

Above, Ellen Herndon, left, cheers a song by Kent Burnside at the Roots �N Blues �N BBQ Festival yesterday on Broadway at Eighth Street. The festival continues today in downtown Columbia. Below, Jimmy Carter, right, performs with the Blind Boys of Alabama last night on the Peace Park stage.

Though the group has changed names and members since it formed in 1939, the band has held onto audiences with a soulful gospel sound that�s taken the act all over the world.

The group performed last night at Columbia�s Roots �N Blues �N BBQ Festival. Founding member Jimmy Carter, drummer Ricky McKinnie and singer Joey Williams spoke with the Tribune about the group�s continuing popularity and impact.

Q: What keeps this act together?

Carter: I think it is because we love what we do. Any time you love your job, that keeps you motivated. We love what we do, so we�ve been doing it for a long time, and we love it. So that�s what keeps us going.

McKinnie: It�s all about God. God has allowed us to continue what we do throughout faith and just being able to do the work.

Williams: The originality of it. There�s nothing like the Blind Boys of Alabama. You can go a lot of places, see a lot of different acts. But you won�t see another Blind Boys of Alabama anywhere you go. I think that�s what keeps the people coming. Because they know when they come to a Blind Boys show, they�re going to see something they haven�t seen before.

Q: What is it about gospel music that makes people feel good?

Carter: In my opinion, there�s a little part of God in all of us. So if you�ve got a little God in you, you got to feel what we do.

McKinnie: Music is universal. And what�s from the heart reaches the heart. And the Blind Boys sing straight from the soul.

Williams: When you come to a Blind Boys of Alabama concert, you always see something you haven�t seen before. And for a younger audience, they haven�t experienced anything like the Blind Boys before. It�s exciting to see these guys still doing it after 60 years – moving, grooving, humping, shouting, singing at this age.

Q: Several members of the group are blind but still manage to excel. How did they overcome their disability?

McKinnie: I lost my sight in 1975. I was 23 years old, but I was on the road then. I�ve been traveling for about 33 years, so I�ve never had the time to think about the fact that I can�t see. My thing is, I�m not blind. I just can�t see.

Williams: Not being able to see never hindered them. They�ve been through a lot when they were young, as far as segregation and things like that. So not having sight seems small to some of the things they�ve been through.

Q: What is it like playing in a smaller Midwestern city such as Columbia compared to other venues you�ve been to throughout the years?

McKinnie: All venues are pretty much the same. People are different anywhere we go. But what we try and do is get out there and sing the types of songs that people like. People like to feel good and have a good time. So we try to have it when you come to a Blind Boys concert – if you come sad, you�re going to leave feeling glad.

A smoking good time

Sat, 08 Sep 2007 15:30:00 +0100

COLUMBIA � Hickory smoke filled the air as barbecue cooks sprawled on folding chairs Friday around midnight. They were resting before the long morning ahead.

After all, barbecuing is a marathon, not a sprint.

More than 50 barbecue teams assembled near Fifth and Locust streets in downtown Columbia for the Roots �n Blues �n BBQ Festival�s barbecue competition, which offered $15,000 in prize money.

But if you ask some of the competitors why they participate in barbecue competitions, it�s not the prospect of money that they bring up first.
Many of the teams know each other from previous competitions, which creates a sense of camaraderie that keeps them entering more competitions.

�It�s like one big family,� said Gary Griffin, a seasoned veteran of the barbecue competition ring. �If something burned up, any one of these guys would hand you what you needed.�

Sam Bennett, of Columbia, learned that first-hand when his grill wouldn�t light and his neighbor let him borrow one of his.
�I�ve never even met him before and 10 minutes later, he offers me a piece of equipment,� Bennett said.

The cooking grounds featured a variety of cooking devices, including monstrous-sized grills attached to trailers, converted metal trash cans and Weber grills.

�There is no wrong way to cook it,� Bennett said, �It�s just however you decide.�
Not all the teams competing had previous barbecue experience. The Sterling team enjoyed their first barbecue competition to the fullest, some of them even pulled all-nighters.

�It�s been a blast,� said Phillip Dercher, of the Sterling team. They decided to join the competition after seeing it announced in the newspaper. The Sterling team is made up of cooks who serve fraternities and sororities at MU, so they are used to a tighter schedule. Team members said they enjoyed the different cooking experience this competition offered. �We have a little more time to focus on specifics of barbecue,� Joe Sandone said.

Gary Griffin, meanwhile, sipped on his soda and took a breath.
�This is the quiet before the storm,� he said. At 10 a.m. Saturday, Griffin would ask the questions that could decide how well his team will place.
�You start to ask yourself, does this look alright? Will this taste good�? Griffin said Friday night.

Six of the competition�s many judgestasted each team�s product and then convened privately to decide the winners. But win or lose, competitive barbecuing has attracted some fans.

�Now that we�ve done one, we definitely plan on doing it again,� Dercher said.