Rawa Blues Festival is one of the largest (world's largest indoor blues festival) and most popular blues festivals in Europe

Europe

Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...

 and in the world. The festival was named after the Rawa River

Rawa River

Rawa , older name Roździanka) is a minor river in Silesia, Poland. It is the largest right tributary of the Brynica, itself a tributary of the Przemsza, which in turn is a tributary of the Vistula. The entire length of the Rawa is within the Upper Silesian Metropolitan Union...

, which flows through the city

City

A city is a relatively large and permanent settlement. Although there is no agreement on how a city is distinguished from a town within general English language meanings, many cities have a particular administrative, legal, or historical status based on local law.For example, in the U.S...

 of Katowice

Katowice

Katowice is a city in Silesia in southern Poland, on the Kłodnica and Rawa rivers . Katowice is located in the Silesian Highlands, about north of the Silesian Beskids and about southeast of the Sudetes Mountains.It is the central district of the Upper Silesian Metropolis, with a population of 2...

. The first edition was held in April 1981.

Among the highlights of past festivals were: 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...

, Junior Wells

Junior Wells

Junior Wells , born Amos Wells Blakemore Jr., was an American Chicago blues vocalist, harmonica player, and recording artist...

, Koko Taylor

Koko Taylor

Koko Taylor sometimes spelled KoKo Taylor was an American Chicago blues musician, popularly known as the "Queen of the Blues." She was known primarily for her rough, powerful vocals and traditional blues stylings....

, Carey Bell

Carey Bell

Carey 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...

, John Cephas and Phil Wiggins, C. J. Chenier, Rory Block

Rory Block

-Festival appearances:*Long Beach Blues Festival - 1993*San Francisco Blues Festival - 1999*Notodden Blues Festival - 2006-See also:*List of blues musicians*List of contemporary blues musicians*List of Austin City Limits performers-External links:****...

, Little Charlie & the Nightcats

Little Charlie & the Nightcats

Little Charlie & the Nightcats is an American four-piece electric blues / jazz combo, consisting currently of guitarist Kid Andersen, harmonicist/lead vocalist Rick Estrin, bassist Lorenzo Farrell and drummer J...

, not to mention Shakin' Dudi and other greatest Polish blues legends such as Tadeusz Nalepa

Tadeusz Nalepa

Tadeusz Nalepa – was a Polish composer, guitar player, vocalist and lyricist.-Career:Nalepa graduated from the Music Academy in Rzeszów in the departments of violin, clarinet and contrabass...

, Slawek Wierzcholski, Dżem

DZEM

DZEM is an AM station owned and operated by Christian Era Broadcasting Service which is the religious broadcast arm of the Iglesia Ni Cristo in the Philippines. The station's studio is located at Maligaya Building 2, 887 EDSA, Quezon City, and its transmitter is located at Obando, Bulacan. it is...

 and many others. Chief of the festival is Ireneusz Dudek "Shakin' Dudi".