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If there's one weekend in the whole year to visit the Arkansas Delta and Helena-West Helena, then blues weekend is the one. Almost 100,000 people packed the historical town that sits atop the Mississippi River October 9 through 11 to seep their souls in blues music at the 23rd Arkansas Blues & Heritage Festival. While old friends were reunited and new ones made, a wealth of opportunity and pleasant events transpired. Pine Top Perkins gained a deserving standing ovation as he and the Blue Shoe Project showed fans the Grammy they earned. Ansen Funderburgh and the Rockets put on a stellar performance and a young man from Moscow Russia, Arsen Shomakhov, showed the Delta why he was chosen from 150 performers to be the festival's top emerging artist. Sam Carr continued to be a staple of the festival while Bobby Rush accepted his "Sonny"-the Sunshine Sonny Payne Award-with style only he has. Shawn Kellerman was explosive and Big Eyes Willie Smith wore out his harp on the acoustical stage. While the AB&HF is still fresh on everyone's mind, the overall atmosphere of the event echoed and amplified a time from Helena's past when the streets were packed with bluesman and juke joints. The festival continues to preserve the blues and promote a new generation of blues greats. Visit the AB&HF website at www.bluesandheritagefest.com.
If there's one weekend in the whole year to visit the Arkansas Delta and Helena-West Helena, then blues weekend is the one. Almost 100,000 people packed the historical town that sits atop the Mississippi River October 9 through 11 to seep their souls in blues music at the 23rd Arkansas Blues & Heritage Festival. While old friends were reunited and new ones made, a wealth of opportunity and pleasant events transpired. Pine Top Perkins gained a deserving standing ovation as he and the Blue Shoe Project showed fans the Grammy they earned. Ansen Funderburgh and the Rockets put on a stellar performance and a young man from Moscow Russia, Arsen Shomakhov, showed the Delta why he was chosen from 150 performers to be the festival's top emerging artist. Sam Carr continued to be a staple of the festival while Bobby Rush accepted his "Sonny"-the Sunshine Sonny Payne Award-with style only he has. Shawn Kellerman was explosive and Big Eyes Willie Smith wore out his harp on the acoustical stage. While the AB&HF is still fresh on everyone's mind, the overall atmosphere of the event echoed and amplified a time from Helena's past when the streets were packed with bluesman and juke joints. The festival continues to preserve the blues and promote a new generation of blues greats. Visit the AB&HF website at www.bluesandheritagefest.com.
