Liri Blues Festival
Encyclopedia
The Liri Blues Festival, founded in 1988, is one of the main blues
festivals in Italy. It takes place every year in July near Rome in Isola del Liri
, a small town twinned with the city of New Orleans since 1997.
, a small Italian town famous for its waterfall, which is 28 metres high and situated in the centre.
The festival is a free, annual event and usually occurs during the month of July. Concerts are held in the main square (Piazza Boncompagni), in the streets and jam session
s happen late at night.
Following its initial success in the first few years, the Liri Blues Festival was shared with neighbouring towns in Ciociaria
. However, since the early years of the 21st century, Isola del Liri is once again the central location for the festival. Boncompagni Square plays host to the main events just as it did for the very first gig in 1988.
A winter session of the festival was briefly introduced in the early part of the century (“Liri Blues Winter”) and saw famous Italian bluesmen like Roberto Ciotti, Fabio Treves
and Paolo Bonfanti perform.
The festival, organised by Duke & Bird, has always counted on the very important help of volunteers and blues connoisseurs like Mario Insenga (Blue Stuff), who has been a supporter of Liri Blues ever since its initial formation.
The festival was created thanks to Luciano Duro, who managed to bring big international bluesmen to a small town in central Italy.
In the first years, organized by the jazz club Big Mama, important bluesmen like Albert King
, Pinetop Perkins
and Buddy Guy
performed at Liri Blues.
In the 1990s the festival gradually opened to different genres and influences. Musicians such as Jorma Kaukonen
of Jefferson Airplane
, Canned Heat
, Art Ensemble of Chicago
, Pentangle
, Fairport Convention
, Elliott Murphy
, and The Fleshtones
played in Isola del Liri. The latter, after the concert had finished, gave another encore from their hotel room just behind the stage!
Liri Blues, however, remained distinctly a blues festival, with artists like Luther Allison
, Son Seals
and Jimmy Rogers
. Blue Stuff played neapolitan blues in dialect together with James Cotton
and Rockin' Dopsie
.
The festival was organized by Jazz'n'Arts until its tenth year; management then changed over to Duke & Bird. The festival grew, and more dates in neighbouring towns were added, such as Ferentino
for jazz concerts (Mike Stern
, Yellowjackets
) and Veroli
for gospel
and soul (Shemekia Copeland
, The Soul Stirrers
). Isola del Liri, however, remained the heart of Liri Blues, with artists the likes of Bo Diddley
, R. L. Burnside
and Honeyboy Edwards performing in the main square.
By the end of the century the festival covered a period of eleven days throughout the province.
The celebrations of the twinning continued in Isola del Liri, where the clarinettist Alvin Batiste
, who once taught Branford Marsalis
, gave a concert involving musicians from Isola and New Orleans.
Batiste performed, among others, a jazz song called Isola del Liri, conceived for the occasion, he later included it in the album Songs, Words and Messages, Connections.
As a token of their strong relationship over the years, Liri Blues was instrumental in helping the musicians of New Orleans following the devastation caused by hurricane Katrina
in August 2005. On November 9 a charity concert (the "New Orleans Day") was organized. Corey Harris
(protagonist of Scorsese
's Feel Like Going Home) and a few other groups performed.
, Isola del Liri went back to being the central location for the festival. In the following three years the location changed to SS. Triade Square and then came back to the original Boncompagni Square.
In 2002 Rai
Radio 1, the main Italian public radio station, started to follow the whole festival. They transmitted live recordings (such as the concert of Robben Ford
) and interviews with Roy Rogers
and others, through their programme Radioscrigno. The collaboration with RAI has continued ever since.
In 2007 the festival celebrated 20 years of concerts and 10 years of twinning with New Orleans. In a courageous project, Piccola Orchestra La Viola and Dr. Sunflower, an orchestra of squeeze boxes
and a jug band
, played traditional blues from Louisiana. The CD Tribute to New Orleans, recorded live at Liri Blues 2006, was presented. Willy DeVille
and Charlie Musselwhite
performed.
Dr. John
, the legendary musician from New Orleans, closed the 2010 festival, cementing the permanent link between the small Italian town and the capital of Louisiana.
and in particular to the twin city New Orleans. Various artists who have performed at the festival, like Dr. John, Alvin Batiste, Rockin' Dopsie, C. J. Chenier
and Zachary Richard
with his typical zydeco
style, have been and still are ambassadors of the music of Louisiana throughout the world.
As a rule, however, the bluesmen from the U.S. have been the main protagonists, with leading figures like Dr. John, Jimmy Smith
, Charlie Musselwhite and more modern artists like Scott Henderson
, Robben Ford and Eric Bibb
.
European musicians have also been prominent, especially English performers like Paul Lamb
, John Martyn
and Robin Trower
. British Blues
in general has been represented by the likes of John Mayall & the Bluesbreakers
, Mick Taylor
and Eric Burdon and The Animals
.
Among Italians, apart from those already mentioned, noteworthy artists have been Rudy Rotta
, Alex Britti
, Tolo Marton, Robi Zonca, Guido Toffoletti.
In the more recent years there have been traditional bluesmen like Al Kooper
and Taj Mahal
, original characters like Otis Taylor
, Maceo Parker
, Colosseum
and skillful guitarists like Sonny Landreth
, Derek Trucks
and Albert Lee
.
Blues
Blues is the name given to both a musical form and a music genre that originated in African-American communities of primarily the "Deep South" of the United States at the end of the 19th century from spirituals, work songs, field hollers, shouts and chants, and rhymed simple narrative ballads...
festivals in Italy. It takes place every year in July near Rome in Isola del Liri
Isola del Liri
Isola del Liri is an Italian town in Lazio, Frosinone. As its name implies, Isola is situated between two arms of the Liri. The many waterfalls of this river and of the Fibreno are used by factories.-History:...
, a small town twinned with the city of New Orleans since 1997.
The Festival
The Liri Blues Festival, known as "Liri Blues", has been taking place since 1988 in Isola del LiriIsola del Liri
Isola del Liri is an Italian town in Lazio, Frosinone. As its name implies, Isola is situated between two arms of the Liri. The many waterfalls of this river and of the Fibreno are used by factories.-History:...
, a small Italian town famous for its waterfall, which is 28 metres high and situated in the centre.
The festival is a free, annual event and usually occurs during the month of July. Concerts are held in the main square (Piazza Boncompagni), in the streets and jam session
Jam session
Jam sessions are often used by musicians to develop new material, find suitable arrangements, or simply as a social gathering and communal practice session. Jam sessions may be based upon existing songs or forms, may be loosely based on an agreed chord progression or chart suggested by one...
s happen late at night.
Following its initial success in the first few years, the Liri Blues Festival was shared with neighbouring towns in Ciociaria
Ciociaria
Ciociaria is the name of a traditional region of Central Italy without a defined border nor historical identity. The name was adopted by a fascist movement of Frosinone as an ethnical denomination for the province of Frosinone, when it was created in 1927....
. However, since the early years of the 21st century, Isola del Liri is once again the central location for the festival. Boncompagni Square plays host to the main events just as it did for the very first gig in 1988.
A winter session of the festival was briefly introduced in the early part of the century (“Liri Blues Winter”) and saw famous Italian bluesmen like Roberto Ciotti, Fabio Treves
Fabio Treves
Fabio Treves is an Italian blues musician. Treves's nickname is "il Puma di Lambrate" , mimicking the British bluesman John Mayall, known as the "Manchester's Lion"...
and Paolo Bonfanti perform.
The festival, organised by Duke & Bird, has always counted on the very important help of volunteers and blues connoisseurs like Mario Insenga (Blue Stuff), who has been a supporter of Liri Blues ever since its initial formation.
Early years
When the first annual festival took place in 1988, Isola del Liri had been seeing its paper mills close one after the other. For more than 100 years these factiories had provided work for the local population. The first three evenings of this festival symbolised an attempt to overcome years of deep industrial crisis.The festival was created thanks to Luciano Duro, who managed to bring big international bluesmen to a small town in central Italy.
In the first years, organized by the jazz club Big Mama, important bluesmen like Albert King
Albert King
Albert King was an American blues guitarist and singer, and a major influence in the world of blues guitar playing.-Career:...
, Pinetop Perkins
Pinetop Perkins
Joseph William Perkins , known by the stage name Pinetop Perkins, was an American blues musician, specializing in piano music...
and Buddy Guy
Buddy Guy
George "Buddy" Guy is an American blues and jazz guitarist and singer. He is a critically acclaimed artist who has established himself as a pioneer of the Chicago blues sound, and has served as an influence to some of the most notable musicians of his generation...
performed at Liri Blues.
In the 1990s the festival gradually opened to different genres and influences. Musicians such as Jorma Kaukonen
Jorma Kaukonen
Jorma Ludwik Kaukonen Jr. is an American blues, folk, and rock guitarist, best known for his work with Jefferson Airplane and Hot Tuna.-Biography:...
of Jefferson Airplane
Jefferson Airplane
Jefferson Airplane was an American rock band formed in San Francisco in 1965. A pioneer of the psychedelic rock movement, Jefferson Airplane was the first band from the San Francisco scene to achieve mainstream commercial and critical success....
, Canned Heat
Canned Heat
Canned Heat is a blues-rock/boogie rock band that formed in Los Angeles, California in 1965. The group has been noted for its own interpretations of blues material as well as for efforts to promote the interest in this type of music and its original artists...
, Art Ensemble of Chicago
Art Ensemble of Chicago
The Art Ensemble of Chicago is an avant-garde jazz ensemble that grew out of Chicago's AACM in the late 1960s. The group continues to tour and record through 2006, despite the deaths of two of the founding members....
, Pentangle
Pentangle
Pentangle may refer to:*another word for a pentagram, a five-pointed star drawn with five straight strokes*Pentangle , a British folk-rock band*The Pentangle, the 1968 album by the band Pentangle...
, Fairport Convention
Fairport Convention
Fairport Convention are an English folk rock and later electric folk band, formed in 1967 who are still recording and touring today. They are widely regarded as the most important single group in the English folk rock movement...
, Elliott Murphy
Elliott Murphy
Elliott James Murphy is an American rock singer-songwriter, novelist, producer and journalist living in Paris.-Biography:Elliott James Murphy, Jr. was born in Rockville Centre, New York to a show business family...
, and The Fleshtones
The Fleshtones
The Fleshtones are an American garage rock band from Queens, New York formed in 1976.- 1976-1979 :The Fleshtones were formed in 1976 in Whitestone, New York by Keith Streng and Marek Pakulski The Fleshtones are an American garage rock band from Queens, New York formed in 1976.- 1976-1979 :The...
played in Isola del Liri. The latter, after the concert had finished, gave another encore from their hotel room just behind the stage!
Liri Blues, however, remained distinctly a blues festival, with artists like Luther Allison
Luther Allison
Luther Allison was an American blues guitarist. He was born in Widener, Arkansas and moved with his family, at age twelve, to Chicago in 1951. He taught himself guitar and began listening to blues extensively. Three years later he began hanging outside blues nightclubs with the hopes of being...
, Son Seals
Son Seals
Frank "Son" Seals was an American electric blues guitarist and singer.-Career:He was born in Osceola, Arkansas where his father, Jim "Son" Seals, owned a small juke joint. He began performing professionally by the age of 13, first as a drummer with Robert Nighthawk, and later as a guitarist...
and Jimmy Rogers
Jimmy Rogers
Jimmy Rogers was an American Chicago blues singer, guitarist and harmonica player, best known for his work as a member of Muddy Waters' band of the 1950s.-Career:...
. Blue Stuff played neapolitan blues in dialect together with James Cotton
James Cotton
James Cotton is an American blues harmonica player, singer and songwriter, who has performed and recorded with many of the great blues artists of his time as well as with his own band.-Career:...
and Rockin' Dopsie
Rockin' Dopsie
Rockin' Dopsie was born Alton Rubin in Carencro, Louisiana. He was a leading Zydeco musician and button accordion player who enjoyed popular success first in Europe and later in the United States...
.
The festival was organized by Jazz'n'Arts until its tenth year; management then changed over to Duke & Bird. The festival grew, and more dates in neighbouring towns were added, such as Ferentino
Ferentino
Ferentino is a town and comune in Italy, in the province of Frosinone, Lazio, 65 km southeast of Rome.It is situated on a hill 400 m above sea-level, in the Monti Ernici area.-History:...
for jazz concerts (Mike Stern
Mike Stern
Mike Stern is an American jazz guitarist. After playing for a few years with Blood, Sweat & Tears, he landed a gig with Billy Cobham and then broke through with Miles Davis' comeback band from 1981 to 1983, and again in 1985. Since then, he launched a solo career, releasing more than a dozen albums...
, Yellowjackets
Yellowjackets
Yellowjackets is an American jazz fusion/smooth jazz quartet.-History:The original group, called The Robben Ford Group, was formed in 1977, and consisted of Robben Ford, Russell Ferrante, Jimmy Haslip and Ricky Lawson, all top-notch L.A. session musicians...
) and Veroli
Veroli
-History:Veroli became a Roman municipium in 90 BCE. It became the seat of a bishopric in 743 CE, and was occupied by Spanish milices, allied to the Colonna family, in the 16th troops.-Main sights:...
for gospel
Gospel
A gospel is an account, often written, that describes the life of Jesus of Nazareth. In a more general sense the term "gospel" may refer to the good news message of the New Testament. It is primarily used in reference to the four canonical gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John...
and soul (Shemekia Copeland
Shemekia Copeland
Shemekia Copeland is an American electric blues vocalist.-Career:Copeland was born in Harlem, New York City, United States. She is the daughter of Texas blues guitarist and singer Johnny Copeland...
, The Soul Stirrers
The Soul Stirrers
One of the most popular and influential gospel groups of the 20th century, the Soul Stirrers were pioneers in the development of the quartet style of gospel and, without intending it, in the creation of soul music, doo wop, and motown sound, some of the secular music that owed much to gospel.The...
). Isola del Liri, however, remained the heart of Liri Blues, with artists the likes of Bo Diddley
Bo Diddley
Ellas Otha Bates , known by his stage name Bo Diddley, was an American rhythm and blues vocalist, guitarist, songwriter , and inventor...
, R. L. Burnside
R. L. Burnside
Not to be confused with R. H. Burnside, stage director.R. L. Burnside , born Robert Lee Burnside, was an American blues singer, songwriter, and guitarist who lived much of his life in and around Holly Springs, Mississippi. He played music for much of his life, but did not receive much attention...
and Honeyboy Edwards performing in the main square.
By the end of the century the festival covered a period of eleven days throughout the province.
Tenth year and twinning with New Orleans
On January 7, 1997, for the tenth annual Liri Blues, the then mayor of Isola del Liri and the initiator of the festival went to Louisiana to sign the twinning between the two towns and to receive the freedom of the city of New Orleans.The celebrations of the twinning continued in Isola del Liri, where the clarinettist Alvin Batiste
Alvin Batiste
Alvin Batiste was an avant garde jazz clarinetist born in New Orleans, Louisiana. He taught at his own jazz institute at Southern University in Baton Rouge...
, who once taught Branford Marsalis
Branford Marsalis
Branford Marsalis is an American saxophonist, composer and bandleader. While primarily known for his work in jazz as the leader of the Branford Marsalis Quartet, he also performs frequently as a soloist with classical ensembles and has led the group Buckshot LeFonque.-Biography:Marsalis was born...
, gave a concert involving musicians from Isola and New Orleans.
Batiste performed, among others, a jazz song called Isola del Liri, conceived for the occasion, he later included it in the album Songs, Words and Messages, Connections.
As a token of their strong relationship over the years, Liri Blues was instrumental in helping the musicians of New Orleans following the devastation caused by hurricane Katrina
Hurricane Katrina
Hurricane Katrina of the 2005 Atlantic hurricane season was a powerful Atlantic hurricane. It is the costliest natural disaster, as well as one of the five deadliest hurricanes, in the history of the United States. Among recorded Atlantic hurricanes, it was the sixth strongest overall...
in August 2005. On November 9 a charity concert (the "New Orleans Day") was organized. Corey Harris
Corey Harris
Corey Harris is an American blues and reggae musician, currently residing in Virginia. Along with Keb' Mo' and Alvin Youngblood Hart, he raised the flag of acoustic guitar blues in the mid 1990s...
(protagonist of Scorsese
Martin Scorsese
Martin Charles Scorsese is an American film director, screenwriter, producer, actor, and film historian. In 1990 he founded The Film Foundation, a nonprofit organization dedicated to film preservation, and in 2007 he founded the World Cinema Foundation...
's Feel Like Going Home) and a few other groups performed.
Return to Isola del Liri
In 2001 there was a memorable performance by John MayallJohn Mayall
John Mayall, OBE is an English blues singer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist, whose musical career spans over fifty years...
, Isola del Liri went back to being the central location for the festival. In the following three years the location changed to SS. Triade Square and then came back to the original Boncompagni Square.
In 2002 Rai
Rai
Rai may refer to:Acronyms*RAI, radioactive iodine, in the medical context of the treatment of thyroid problems*RAI, Radiotelevisione Italiana, Italian public broadcasting*Praia International Airport in Cape Verde, IATA airport code...
Radio 1, the main Italian public radio station, started to follow the whole festival. They transmitted live recordings (such as the concert of Robben Ford
Robben Ford
Robben Ford is an American blues, jazz and rock guitarist.-Biography:Ford was born in Woodlake, California, United States, but raised in Ukiah, California, and began playing the saxophone at age 10, picking up the guitar at age 13...
) and interviews with Roy Rogers
Roy Rogers (guitarist)
Roy Rogers is an American blues rock slide guitarist and record producer. He was named after the singing cowboy, Roy Rogers...
and others, through their programme Radioscrigno. The collaboration with RAI has continued ever since.
In 2007 the festival celebrated 20 years of concerts and 10 years of twinning with New Orleans. In a courageous project, Piccola Orchestra La Viola and Dr. Sunflower, an orchestra of squeeze boxes
Squeezebox
The term Squeezebox is a colloquial expression referring to any musical instrument of the general class of hand-held bellows-driven free reed aerophones such as the accordion and the concertina...
and a jug band
Jug band
A Jug band is a band employing a jug player and a mix of traditional and home-made instruments. These home-made instruments are ordinary objects adapted to or modified for making of sound, like the washtub bass, washboard, spoons, stovepipe and comb & tissue paper...
, played traditional blues from Louisiana. The CD Tribute to New Orleans, recorded live at Liri Blues 2006, was presented. Willy DeVille
Willy DeVille
Willy DeVille was an American singer and songwriter. During his thirty-five year career, first with his band Mink DeVille and later on his own, Deville created original songs rooted in traditional American musical styles. He worked with collaborators from across the spectrum of contemporary...
and Charlie Musselwhite
Charlie Musselwhite
Charlie Musselwhite is an American electric blues harmonica player and bandleader, one of the non-black bluesmen who came to prominence in the early 1960s, along with Mike Bloomfield and Paul Butterfield. Though he has often been identified as a "white bluesman", he claims Native American heritage...
performed.
Dr. John
Dr. John
Malcolm John "Mac" Rebennack, Jr. , better known by the stage name Dr. John , is an American singer-songwriter, pianist and guitarist, whose music combines blues, pop, jazz as well as Zydeco, boogie woogie and rock and roll.Active as a session musician since the late 1950s, he came to wider...
, the legendary musician from New Orleans, closed the 2010 festival, cementing the permanent link between the small Italian town and the capital of Louisiana.
Music
Liri Blues and Isola del Liri have become very attached to LouisianaLouisiana
Louisiana is a state located in the southern region of the United States of America. Its capital is Baton Rouge and largest city is New Orleans. Louisiana is the only state in the U.S. with political subdivisions termed parishes, which are local governments equivalent to counties...
and in particular to the twin city New Orleans. Various artists who have performed at the festival, like Dr. John, Alvin Batiste, Rockin' Dopsie, C. J. Chenier
C. J. Chenier
C. J. Chenier C. J. Chenier C. J. Chenier (born Clayton Joseph Thompson, September 28, 1957, Port Arthur, Texas, is the Creole son of the Grammy Award winning "King of Zydeco", Louisiana musician, Clifton Chenier. In 1987, Chenier followed in his father's footsteps, and led his father's band as an...
and Zachary Richard
Zachary Richard
Zachary Richard is a Cajun singer/songwriter and poet. His music is an innovative combination of Cajun and Zydeco musical styles.-Biography:...
with his typical zydeco
Zydeco
Zydeco is a form of uniquely American roots or folk music. It evolved in southwest Louisiana in the early 19th century from forms of "la la" Creole music...
style, have been and still are ambassadors of the music of Louisiana throughout the world.
As a rule, however, the bluesmen from the U.S. have been the main protagonists, with leading figures like Dr. John, Jimmy Smith
Jimmy Smith (musician)
Jimmy Smith was a jazz musician whose performances on the Hammond B-3 electric organ helped to popularize this instrument...
, Charlie Musselwhite and more modern artists like Scott Henderson
Scott Henderson
Scott Henderson is a fusion and blues guitarist best known for his work with the band Tribal Tech.-Early days:Born in West Palm Beach, Florida, Henderson began playing guitar at an early age...
, Robben Ford and Eric Bibb
Eric Bibb
Eric Bibb is an American acoustic blues singer-songwriter. He is based in London and launched his career in Europe. Today he lives in Finland.-Biography:...
.
European musicians have also been prominent, especially English performers like Paul Lamb
Paul Lamb
Paul Lamb is an English footballer. He currently plays in midfield for Daventry Town, who he agreed to become player/coach of in the 2009 offseason....
, John Martyn
John Martyn
John Martyn, OBE , born Iain David McGeachy, was a British singer-songwriter and guitarist. Over a forty-year career he released twenty studio albums, working with artists such as Eric Clapton and David Gilmour...
and Robin Trower
Robin Trower
Robin Leonard Trower , known professionally as Robin Trower, is an English rock guitarist who achieved success with Procol Harum during the 1960s, and then again as the bandleader of his own power trio.-Biography:...
. British Blues
British blues
British blues is a form of music derived from American blues that originated in the late 1950s and which reached its height of mainstream popularity in the 1960s, when it developed a distinctive and influential style dominated by electric guitar and made international stars of several proponents of...
in general has been represented by the likes of John Mayall & the Bluesbreakers
John Mayall & the Bluesbreakers
John Mayall & the Bluesbreakers are a pioneering English blues band, led by singer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist John Mayall, OBE. Mayall used the band name between 1963 and 1967, but then dropped it for some fifteen years. However, in 1982 a 'Return of the Bluesbreakers' was announced and...
, Mick Taylor
Mick Taylor
Michael Kevin "Mick" Taylor is an English musician, best known as a former member of John Mayall's Bluesbreakers and The Rolling Stones...
and Eric Burdon and The Animals
The Animals
The Animals were an English music group of the 1960s formed in Newcastle upon Tyne during the early part of the decade, and later relocated to London...
.
Among Italians, apart from those already mentioned, noteworthy artists have been Rudy Rotta
Rudy Rotta
Rudy Rotta is an Italian blues guitarist who lives near Verona.Rotta achieved success in Italy before touring in other European countries. His reputation spread to the United States where he gained great popularity. His music combines a modern style with blues roots and a rocky funk soul...
, Alex Britti
Alex Britti
Alessandro "Alex" Britti is an Italian singer-songwriter and guitarist.-Biography:At the age of 17 he started his first band playing blues at various clubs in Rome, eventually he moved to Milan at the center of the Italian pop scene...
, Tolo Marton, Robi Zonca, Guido Toffoletti.
In the more recent years there have been traditional bluesmen like Al Kooper
Al Kooper
Al Kooper is an American songwriter, record producer and musician, known for organizing Blood, Sweat & Tears , providing studio support for Bob Dylan when he went electric in 1965, and also bringing together guitarists Mike Bloomfield and Stephen Stills to...
and Taj Mahal
Taj Mahal (musician)
Henry Saint Clair Fredericks , who uses the stage name Taj Mahal, is an American Grammy Award winning blues musician. He incorporates elements of world music into his music...
, original characters like Otis Taylor
Otis Taylor
Otis Taylor may refer to:*Otis Taylor , American football player*Otis Taylor , blues musician...
, Maceo Parker
Maceo Parker
Maceo Parker is an American funk and soul jazz saxophonist, best known for his work with James Brown in the 1960s, as well as Parliament-Funkadelic in the 1970s. Parker was a prominent soloist on many of Brown's hit recordings, and a key part of his band, playing alto, tenor and baritone saxophones...
, Colosseum
Colosseum (band)
Colosseum is a pioneering British progressive jazz-rock band, mixing progressive rock and jazz-based improvisation.-History 1968 - 1971:The band was formed in September 1968 by drummer Jon Hiseman, tenor sax player Dick Heckstall-Smith and bass player Tony Reeves, who had previously worked together...
and skillful guitarists like Sonny Landreth
Sonny Landreth
Sonny Landreth is an American blues musician from southwest Louisiana who is especially known as a slide guitar player. He was born in Canton, Mississippi, but soon after, his family moved to Jackson, Mississippi, before settling in Lafayette, Louisiana...
, Derek Trucks
Derek Trucks
Derek Trucks is a Grammy Award-winning, American guitarist, songwriter, and record producer. He founded The Derek Trucks Band and worked as a session musician when he was still in his early teens. Throughout those teenage years, he toured with The Allman Brothers Band primarily as a slide...
and Albert Lee
Albert Lee
Albert William Lee, born 21 December 1943 in Leominster, Herefordshire, England, is an English guitarist known for his fingerstyle and hybrid picking technique. Lee has worked both in the studio and on tour with some of the most famous musicians which stretch through a very wide of genres...
.
Performers
Some of the artists who have performed at Liri Blues since 1988 include:- Johnny AdamsJohnny AdamsLaten John Adams , known as Johnny Adams, was an American blues, jazz and gospel singer, known as "The Tan Canary" for the multi-octave range of his singing voice, his swooping vocal mannerisms and falsetto...
- Albert KingAlbert KingAlbert King was an American blues guitarist and singer, and a major influence in the world of blues guitar playing.-Career:...
(1989) - Luther AllisonLuther AllisonLuther Allison was an American blues guitarist. He was born in Widener, Arkansas and moved with his family, at age twelve, to Chicago in 1951. He taught himself guitar and began listening to blues extensively. Three years later he began hanging outside blues nightclubs with the hopes of being...
(1996) - Art Ensemble of ChicagoArt Ensemble of ChicagoThe Art Ensemble of Chicago is an avant-garde jazz ensemble that grew out of Chicago's AACM in the late 1960s. The group continues to tour and record through 2006, despite the deaths of two of the founding members....
- Alvin BatisteAlvin BatisteAlvin Batiste was an avant garde jazz clarinetist born in New Orleans, Louisiana. He taught at his own jazz institute at Southern University in Baton Rouge...
(1997) - Carey BellCarey BellCarey Bell was an American blues musician, who played the harmonica in the Chicago blues style. Bell played harmonica and bass for other blues musicians during the late 1950s, 1960s and early 1970s before embarking on a solo career...
(1999, 2005) - Edoardo BennatoEdoardo BennatoEdoardo Bennato is an Italian singer-songwriter. He is the brother of the singer-songwriter Eugenio Bennato.-Biography:...
(alias Joe Sarnataro) (1993) - Eric BibbEric BibbEric Bibb is an American acoustic blues singer-songwriter. He is based in London and launched his career in Europe. Today he lives in Finland.-Biography:...
(2000, 2003, 2011) - R. L. BurnsideR. L. BurnsideNot to be confused with R. H. Burnside, stage director.R. L. Burnside , born Robert Lee Burnside, was an American blues singer, songwriter, and guitarist who lived much of his life in and around Holly Springs, Mississippi. He played music for much of his life, but did not receive much attention...
(1992) - Blue Stuff (1991, 2004)
- Billy BranchBilly BranchBilly Branch is an American blues harmonica player and singer of Chicago blues and harmonica blues.-Career:...
(1995, 1999) - Alex BrittiAlex BrittiAlessandro "Alex" Britti is an Italian singer-songwriter and guitarist.-Biography:At the age of 17 he started his first band playing blues at various clubs in Rome, eventually he moved to Milan at the center of the Italian pop scene...
(1991) - The Campbell BrothersThe Campbell BrothersThe Campbell Brothers are an American Sacred Steel gospel group from Rush, New York composed of three brothers and one son.The ensemble features prominent pedal steel guitar and began as the house band for a House of God Keith Dominion congregation. The pedal steel player, Chuck, uses his own...
(2008) - Buddy GuyBuddy GuyGeorge "Buddy" Guy is an American blues and jazz guitarist and singer. He is a critically acclaimed artist who has established himself as a pioneer of the Chicago blues sound, and has served as an influence to some of the most notable musicians of his generation...
(1989) - Hiram BullockHiram BullockHiram Law Bullock was an American jazz funk and jazz fusion guitarist.He was born in Osaka, Japan to African American parents serving in the U.S. Military. At the age of two he returned to Baltimore, Maryland with his parents, and quickly showed a prodigious musical talent...
(1998) - Eric BurdonEric BurdonEric Victor Burdon is an English singer-songwriter best known as a founding member and vocalist of rock band The Animals, and the funk rock band War and for his aggressive stage performance...
& The AnimalsThe AnimalsThe Animals were an English music group of the 1960s formed in Newcastle upon Tyne during the early part of the decade, and later relocated to London...
(2005) - Canned HeatCanned HeatCanned Heat is a blues-rock/boogie rock band that formed in Los Angeles, California in 1965. The group has been noted for its own interpretations of blues material as well as for efforts to promote the interest in this type of music and its original artists...
(2000) - C. J. ChenierC. J. ChenierC. J. Chenier C. J. Chenier C. J. Chenier (born Clayton Joseph Thompson, September 28, 1957, Port Arthur, Texas, is the Creole son of the Grammy Award winning "King of Zydeco", Louisiana musician, Clifton Chenier. In 1987, Chenier followed in his father's footsteps, and led his father's band as an...
(1998) - Roberto Ciotti (1990, 2004)
- Jon ClearyJon Cleary (musician)Jon Cleary is a funk and R&B musician based in New Orleans, Louisiana. He is from Cranbrook in Kent, England, and has studied for the past 20 years the "musical culture and life of New Orleans," according to his website...
(2008) - Michael Coleman (1992, 1995)
- James CottonJames CottonJames Cotton is an American blues harmonica player, singer and songwriter, who has performed and recorded with many of the great blues artists of his time as well as with his own band.-Career:...
(1993) - Popa ChubbyPopa ChubbyTed Horowitz , who plays under the stage name of Popa Chubby , is an American electric blues singer, songwriter, and guitarist.-Life and career:Born the son of a candy store owner, at age thirteen Horowitz began playing drums; shortly thereafter, he...
- ColosseumColosseum (band)Colosseum is a pioneering British progressive jazz-rock band, mixing progressive rock and jazz-based improvisation.-History 1968 - 1971:The band was formed in September 1968 by drummer Jon Hiseman, tenor sax player Dick Heckstall-Smith and bass player Tony Reeves, who had previously worked together...
(2011) - Shemekia CopelandShemekia CopelandShemekia Copeland is an American electric blues vocalist.-Career:Copeland was born in Harlem, New York City, United States. She is the daughter of Texas blues guitarist and singer Johnny Copeland...
(2000) - Jimmy DawkinsJimmy DawkinsJames Henry "Jimmy" Dawkins is an American Chicago blues and electric blues guitarist and singer. He is generally considered a part of the "West Side Sound" of Chicago blues.-Career:...
(1994) - Willy DeVilleWilly DeVilleWilly DeVille was an American singer and songwriter. During his thirty-five year career, first with his band Mink DeVille and later on his own, Deville created original songs rooted in traditional American musical styles. He worked with collaborators from across the spectrum of contemporary...
(2007) - Bo DiddleyBo DiddleyEllas Otha Bates , known by his stage name Bo Diddley, was an American rhythm and blues vocalist, guitarist, songwriter , and inventor...
(1997) - Rockin' DopsieRockin' DopsieRockin' Dopsie was born Alton Rubin in Carencro, Louisiana. He was a leading Zydeco musician and button accordion player who enjoyed popular success first in Europe and later in the United States...
(1993) - Honeyboy Edwards (1991, 2003)
- Fairport ConventionFairport ConventionFairport Convention are an English folk rock and later electric folk band, formed in 1967 who are still recording and touring today. They are widely regarded as the most important single group in the English folk rock movement...
(2003) - The FleshtonesThe FleshtonesThe Fleshtones are an American garage rock band from Queens, New York formed in 1976.- 1976-1979 :The Fleshtones were formed in 1976 in Whitestone, New York by Keith Streng and Marek Pakulski The Fleshtones are an American garage rock band from Queens, New York formed in 1976.- 1976-1979 :The...
(1990) - Robben FordRobben FordRobben Ford is an American blues, jazz and rock guitarist.-Biography:Ford was born in Woodlake, California, United States, but raised in Ukiah, California, and began playing the saxophone at age 10, picking up the guitar at age 13...
(2001) - Ruthie FosterRuthie FosterRuthie Foster is an American singer-songwriter of blues and folk music.Foster is from Gause, Texas and comes from a family of gospel singers. She studied music at McLennan Community College and then worked in the US Navy, where she started performing. Her debut was released in 1997 and she has...
(2010) - John HammondJohn P. HammondJohn Paul Hammond is an American blues singer and guitarist. The son of record producer John H. Hammond, he is sometimes referred to as "John Hammond, Jr.".-Background:...
(1990, 2001) - Corey HarrisCorey HarrisCorey Harris is an American blues and reggae musician, currently residing in Virginia. Along with Keb' Mo' and Alvin Youngblood Hart, he raised the flag of acoustic guitar blues in the mid 1990s...
(1999, 2005) - Alvin Youngblood HartAlvin Youngblood HartAlvin Youngblood Hart is a Grammy Award-winning American musician.-Career:Born in Oakland California, Hart had family connections with Carroll County, Mississippi, and spent time there in his childhood, hearing his relatives stories of Charlie Patton, "being around these people who were there when...
(2003) - Scott HendersonScott HendersonScott Henderson is a fusion and blues guitarist best known for his work with the band Tribal Tech.-Early days:Born in West Palm Beach, Florida, Henderson began playing guitar at an early age...
(1998) - Holmes Brothers (2009)
- Dr. JohnDr. JohnMalcolm John "Mac" Rebennack, Jr. , better known by the stage name Dr. John , is an American singer-songwriter, pianist and guitarist, whose music combines blues, pop, jazz as well as Zydeco, boogie woogie and rock and roll.Active as a session musician since the late 1950s, he came to wider...
(2010) - Jimmy JohnsonJimmy Johnson (blues guitarist)Jimmy Johnson is an American blues guitarist and singer.-Biography:...
(1998) - Jorma KaukonenJorma KaukonenJorma Ludwik Kaukonen Jr. is an American blues, folk, and rock guitarist, best known for his work with Jefferson Airplane and Hot Tuna.-Biography:...
(2003) - Willie KentWillie KentWillie Kent was an American blues singer, bassist and songwriter.-Career:Kent was born in Inverness, Sunflower County, Mississippi....
(2001) - Al KooperAl KooperAl Kooper is an American songwriter, record producer and musician, known for organizing Blood, Sweat & Tears , providing studio support for Bob Dylan when he went electric in 1965, and also bringing together guitarists Mike Bloomfield and Stephen Stills to...
(2006) - Sonny LandrethSonny LandrethSonny Landreth is an American blues musician from southwest Louisiana who is especially known as a slide guitar player. He was born in Canton, Mississippi, but soon after, his family moved to Jackson, Mississippi, before settling in Lafayette, Louisiana...
(2004, 2011) - Paul LambPaul LambPaul Lamb is an English footballer. He currently plays in midfield for Daventry Town, who he agreed to become player/coach of in the 2009 offseason....
(2003) - Bettye LaVetteBettye LaVetteBettye LaVette is an American soul singer-songwriter who made her first record at sixteen, but achieved only intermittent fame until 2005, with her album, I've Got My Own Hell to Raise...
(2011)
- Albert LeeAlbert LeeAlbert William Lee, born 21 December 1943 in Leominster, Herefordshire, England, is an English guitarist known for his fingerstyle and hybrid picking technique. Lee has worked both in the studio and on tour with some of the most famous musicians which stretch through a very wide of genres...
(2011) - Magic SlimMagic SlimMagic Slim is an American blues singer and guitarist.-Biography:Magic Slim was forced to give up playing the piano when he lost his little finger in a cotton gin mishap. He moved first to nearby Grenada. He first came to Chicago in 1955 with his friend and mentor Magic Sam...
(1988, 2000) - John MartynJohn MartynJohn Martyn, OBE , born Iain David McGeachy, was a British singer-songwriter and guitarist. Over a forty-year career he released twenty studio albums, working with artists such as Eric Clapton and David Gilmour...
(1990) - John MayallJohn MayallJohn Mayall, OBE is an English blues singer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist, whose musical career spans over fifty years...
& the Bluesbreakers (2001) - Mighty Sam McClainMighty Sam McClainMighty Sam McClain is an American Grammy nominated soul blues singer and songwriter.-Life and career:As a five year old, he began singing in his mother's Gospel Church...
(1999, 2004) - Elliott MurphyElliott MurphyElliott James Murphy is an American rock singer-songwriter, novelist, producer and journalist living in Paris.-Biography:Elliott James Murphy, Jr. was born in Rockville Centre, New York to a show business family...
(2003) - Matt 'Guitar' Murphy (1999)
- Charlie MusselwhiteCharlie MusselwhiteCharlie Musselwhite is an American electric blues harmonica player and bandleader, one of the non-black bluesmen who came to prominence in the early 1960s, along with Mike Bloomfield and Paul Butterfield. Though he has often been identified as a "white bluesman", he claims Native American heritage...
(2000, 2007) - Kenny NealKenny NealKenny Neal , son of Raful Neal, is an american blues guitar player, singer and band member. Neal comes from a musical family and has often performed with his brothers in his band.-Career:...
(1999, 2003) - Maceo ParkerMaceo ParkerMaceo Parker is an American funk and soul jazz saxophonist, best known for his work with James Brown in the 1960s, as well as Parliament-Funkadelic in the 1970s. Parker was a prominent soloist on many of Brown's hit recordings, and a key part of his band, playing alto, tenor and baritone saxophones...
(2009) - PentanglePentangle (band)Pentangle are a British folk rock band with some folk jazz influences. The original band were active in the late 1960s and early 1970s and a later version has been active since the early 1980s...
- Pinetop PerkinsPinetop PerkinsJoseph William Perkins , known by the stage name Pinetop Perkins, was an American blues musician, specializing in piano music...
(1989) - Lucky PetersonLucky PetersonLucky Peterson is an American musician who plays contemporary blues, fusing soul, R&B, gospel and rock and roll. He plays guitar and keyboards...
(1999, 2004) - Noel ReddingNoel ReddingNoel Redding was an English rock and roll guitarist best known as the bassist for The Jimi Hendrix Experience.-Biography:...
(1989) - John RenbournJohn RenbournJohn Renbourn is an English guitarist and songwriter. He is possibly best known for his collaboration with guitarist Bert Jansch as well as his work with the folk group Pentangle, although he maintained a solo career before, during and after that band's existence .While most commonly labelled a...
- Zachary RichardZachary RichardZachary Richard is a Cajun singer/songwriter and poet. His music is an innovative combination of Cajun and Zydeco musical styles.-Biography:...
(2003) - Duke RobillardDuke RobillardMichael John "Duke" Robillard is an American blues musician.After playing in various bands and working for the Guild Guitar Company, he co-founded the band Roomful of Blues with pianist Al Copley in 1967. He has also been a member of The Fabulous Thunderbirds which included Kim Wilson, replacing...
- Jimmy RogersJimmy RogersJimmy Rogers was an American Chicago blues singer, guitarist and harmonica player, best known for his work as a member of Muddy Waters' band of the 1950s.-Career:...
(1997) - Roy RogersRoy Rogers (guitarist)Roy Rogers is an American blues rock slide guitarist and record producer. He was named after the singing cowboy, Roy Rogers...
(2002, 2005) - Roomful of BluesRoomful of BluesRoomful Of Blues is an American blues and swing revival big band based in Rhode Island. With a recording career that spans over 40 years, they have toured worldwide and recorded many albums. Roomful of Blues, according to The Chicago Sun-Times, “Swagger, sway and swing with energy and precision...
(1998) - Son SealsSon SealsFrank "Son" Seals was an American electric blues guitarist and singer.-Career:He was born in Osceola, Arkansas where his father, Jim "Son" Seals, owned a small juke joint. He began performing professionally by the age of 13, first as a drummer with Robert Nighthawk, and later as a guitarist...
(2000)
- Archie SheppArchie SheppArchie Shepp is a prominent African-American jazz saxophonist. Shepp is best known for his passionately Afrocentric music of the late 1960s, which focused on highlighting the injustices faced by the African-Americans, as well as for his work with the New York Contemporary Five, Horace Parlan, and...
(1990) - Jimmy SmithJimmy Smith (musician)Jimmy Smith was a jazz musician whose performances on the Hammond B-3 electric organ helped to popularize this instrument...
(2004) - The Soul StirrersThe Soul StirrersOne of the most popular and influential gospel groups of the 20th century, the Soul Stirrers were pioneers in the development of the quartet style of gospel and, without intending it, in the creation of soul music, doo wop, and motown sound, some of the secular music that owed much to gospel.The...
(1996) - Mike SternMike SternMike Stern is an American jazz guitarist. After playing for a few years with Blood, Sweat & Tears, he landed a gig with Billy Cobham and then broke through with Miles Davis' comeback band from 1981 to 1983, and again in 1985. Since then, he launched a solo career, releasing more than a dozen albums...
(1998) - Dr. Sunflower Jug Band
- Taj MahalTaj Mahal (musician)Henry Saint Clair Fredericks , who uses the stage name Taj Mahal, is an American Grammy Award winning blues musician. He incorporates elements of world music into his music...
(2005) - Melvin TaylorMelvin TaylorMelvin Taylor is an American electric blues guitarist, based in Chicago, Illinois.-Career:Born in Mississippi, Taylor relocated to Chicago in 1962....
(1996) - Mick TaylorMick TaylorMichael Kevin "Mick" Taylor is an English musician, best known as a former member of John Mayall's Bluesbreakers and The Rolling Stones...
- Otis TaylorOtis Taylor (musician)Otis Taylor is an American blues musician. He is a multi-instrumentalist whose talents include the guitar, banjo, mandolin, harmonica, and vocals. In 2001, he was awarded a fellowship to the Sundance Film Composers Laboratory.-Music:Taylor moved at a young age to Denver, Colorado where he grew up...
(2004, 2010) - NadaNada (Italian singer)Nada is an Italian singer. She was nicknamed Il pulcino di Gabbro ....
, Daniele Silvestri, Têtes de Bois (2006) - Hans TheessinkHans TheessinkHans Theessink is a Dutch guitarist, singer and songwriter, living in Vienna, Austria. He performs blues and roots music, particularly in a Delta blues style. Theessink has released 20 albums, a songbook, a blues-guitar instruction video and a DVD.-External links:* official website* myspace...
(1994) - Robin TrowerRobin TrowerRobin Leonard Trower , known professionally as Robin Trower, is an English rock guitarist who achieved success with Procol Harum during the 1960s, and then again as the bandleader of his own power trio.-Biography:...
(2005) - Derek TrucksDerek TrucksDerek Trucks is a Grammy Award-winning, American guitarist, songwriter, and record producer. He founded The Derek Trucks Band and worked as a session musician when he was still in his early teens. Throughout those teenage years, he toured with The Allman Brothers Band primarily as a slide...
(2009) - Ike TurnerIke TurnerIsaac Wister Turner was an American musician, bandleader, songwriter, arranger, talent scout, and record producer. In a career that lasted more than half a century, his repertoire included blues, soul, rock, and funk...
(1999) - Joe Louis WalkerJoe Louis WalkerJoe Louis Walker, also known as JLW is an American musician, best known as a electric blues guitarist, singer, songwriter and producer. A feature of his work is his recourse to older material or playing styles, which revealed his knowledge of blues history.-Career:Joe Louis Walker was born in San...
(1999) - Katie WebsterKatie WebsterKatie Webster , born Kathryn Jewel Thorne, was an American boogie-woogie pianist.-Career:Webster was initially best known as a session musician behind Louisiana musicians on the Excello and Goldband record labels, such as Lightnin' Slim and Lonesome Sundown...
(1996) - Junior WellsJunior WellsJunior Wells , born Amos Wells Blakemore Jr., was an American Chicago blues vocalist, harmonica player, and recording artist...
(1989) - YellowjacketsYellowjacketsYellowjackets is an American jazz fusion/smooth jazz quartet.-History:The original group, called The Robben Ford Group, was formed in 1977, and consisted of Robben Ford, Russell Ferrante, Jimmy Haslip and Ricky Lawson, all top-notch L.A. session musicians...
(2000)
Discography
Albums recorded at the festival- Dr. Sunflower and Piccola Orchestra La Viola: Omaggio a New Orleans (Live at Liri Blues 2006) (production: Liri Blues Festival and Terre in Moto, TIM011), 2010
See also
- Music FestivalMusic festivalA music festival is a festival oriented towards music that is sometimes presented with a theme such as musical genre, nationality or locality of musicians, or holiday. They are commonly held outdoors, and are often inclusive of other attractions such as food and merchandise vending machines,...
- Isola del LiriIsola del LiriIsola del Liri is an Italian town in Lazio, Frosinone. As its name implies, Isola is situated between two arms of the Liri. The many waterfalls of this river and of the Fibreno are used by factories.-History:...