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| Baystock Music Festival Portland, Maine is set to rock to the tunes of some of America's legendary artists at the Baystock Music Festival, August 12 -13. In response to growing popularity, this year's festival has been expanded to a two-day event and includes Dr. John, The Fabulous Thunderbirds, deSol, Cindy Bullens and Merville Searles as Saturday's line-up; with Blues Traveler, The Saw Doctors, Rory Block and The Straitway Ministries Gospel Choir of Utica, Mississippi, Cindy Bullens and Pete Kilpatrick playing on Sunday. Saturday, August 12, 2006 will perform: Dr. John, or Mac Rebennack as known to friends and family, is universally celebrated as the living embodiment of the rich musical heritage exclusive to New Orleans. His very colorful musical career began in the 1950s when he wrote and played guitar on some of the greatest records to come out of the Crescent City, including recordings by Professor Longhair, Art Neville, Joe Tex and Frankie Ford. A notorious gun incident forced the artist to give up the guitar and concentrate on organ and piano. Further trouble at home sent Dr. John west in the 1960s, where he continued to be in demand as a session musician, playing on records by Sonny and Cher, Van Morrison and Aretha Franklin to name a few. He also launched his solo career, developing the charismatic persona of Dr. John The Night Tripper. Adorned with voodoo charms and regalia, a legend was born with his breakthrough 1968 album Gris-gris, which established his unique blend of voodoo mysticism, funk, rhythm & blues, psychedelic rock and Creole roots. For the past 30 years, The Fabulous Thunderbirds have been the quintessential American band. The group's distinctive and powerful sound, influenced by a diversity of musical styles, manifested itself into a unique musical hybrid via such barnburners as "Tuff Enuff" and "Wrap It Up". Co-founder Kim Wilson, the sole original member, still spearheads the group as it evolves into its newest incarnation. deSoL describe themselves as "Rock & Roll with a Latin soul". Based in Asbury Park, NJ, this seamless band of seven inspired musicians is a brotherhood whose heady, polyrhythmic mix of chanted melodies and mystical atmosphere embraces the contemporary edge of modern rock hooks with flourishes of hip-hop and traditional Latin music. The band was formed in 2001, when lead singer Albie Monterrosa had the dream of blending the music of his Latin American heritage with the Rock & Roll he grew up with and loves. He set out to build a group of like-minded musicians with diverse backgrounds in order to create a sound that was both familiar and fresh. Over the last few years, Cindy Bullens has toured in Europe and Australia. In the summer of 2004, she gathered with an all-star band at Ray Kennedy's Room & Board Studio in Hermitage, Tennessee, to record her sixth solo album, Dream #29. The album features Sir Elton John playing rollicking piano on the title track, a duet with roadhouse bluesman Delbert McClinton and a guest vocal by the World Champion Red Sox knuckleballer, Tim Wakefield. Dream #29 is an absorbing collection of rock & roll, balancing poignant and introspective songs with a down-and-dirty rock & roll attitude. Baystock proceeds support the Jessie Fund, a charity set up in memory of her daughter Jessie. Merville Searles was formed by Reid Bullens-Crewe and Justin Maxwell as an excuse to play songs by their favorite songwriters and musicians. Merville Searles is a belt-buckle, ripped jeans and sunglasses rock band with a Ph.D and a "badass with class" attitude. Reid and Justin are do-it-yourself rock stars in the making and Merville Searles is a band that tells the rock to roll and the roll to ROCK! Sunday, August 13, 2006 will perform: Blues Traveler – John Popper, Chan Kinchla, Brendan Hill, Tad Kinchla and Ben Wilson - was formed in Princeton, New Jersey, in 1983. The band quickly became a mainstay on the club circuit, helping ignite a new generation of jam music fans. With renowned musicianship and songcraft that blended blues-rock grooves with pop hooks, the band amassed a passionate following with its explosive live performances. In 1990, the band released their self-titled first album on A&M Records, followed by Travelers & Thieves (1991). Save His Soul (1993) broke into Billboard's Top 100, and the release of Four (1994) spawned one of the biggest hits of 1995 - the Grammy-winning "Run-Around" – and sold 4 million copies. Subsequent releases include Live From the Fall (1996), Straight On Till Morning (1997), Bridge (2001) and Truth Be Told (2003). They will release their eighth studio album and Vanguard Records debut, ¡Bastardos!, on September 13. The Saw Doctors self-penned rootsy-rock tunes and the special relationship the band themselves have established with their audience, irrespective of who dictates the "fashion", has resulted in their massive success and sell out gigs time after time. They represent the rare phenomenon of being "the people's band." The Saw Doctors' new album CD, The Cure, was released across the USA on March 14 and is the Saw Doctors' sixth studio album. The Saw Doctors recorded the twelve new songs on the CD. Over the last few years, Cindy Bullens has toured in Europe and Australia. In the summer of 2004, she gathered with an all-star band at Ray Kennedy's Room & Board Studio in Hermitage, Tennessee, to record her sixth solo album, Dream #29. The album features Sir Elton John playing rollicking piano on the title track, a duet with roadhouse bluesman Delbert McClinton and a guest vocal by the World Champion Red Sox knuckleballer, Tim Wakefield. Dream #29 is an absorbing collection of rock & roll, balancing poignant and introspective songs with a down-and-dirty rock & roll attitude. Baystock proceeds support the Jessie Fund, a charity set up in memory of her daughter Jessie. Heralded as "a living landmark" (Berkeley Express), "a national treasure" (Guitar Extra), and "one of the greatest living acoustic blues artists" (Blues Revue), Rory Block has committed her life and her career to preserving the Delta blues tradition and bringing it to life for 21st century audiences around the world. A traditionalist and an innovator at the same time, she wields a fiery and haunting guitar and vocal style that redefines the boundaries of acoustic blues and folk. The New York Times declared: "Her playing is perfect, her singing otherworldly as she wrestles with ghosts, shadows and legends." Rory will be playing with the Straitway Ministries Choir. Pete Kilpatrick's latest album, Yesterday Love, demonstrates how far this single-minded artist has come at this still-early stage of his career. Kilpatrick seems wise beyond his years and The Portland Phoenix says, "His songwriting is consistently interesting, and Kilpatrick and company aren't afraid to take chances." write your comments about the article :: © 2006 Jazz News :: home page |