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John Peel OBE, 1939 - 2004
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This was the tenth such ‘East Coast’ cruise and after our ‘once-in-a-lifetime’ in 2010 we were back for more! There was a bewildering array of rhythm and blues on offer –a ‘broad church’ if ever there was one – from the cheerful-cajun of Terrance Simien to the Hendrixesque- pyrotechnics of Kenny Wayne Shepherd, from the West-Coast swing of Rick Estrin to the sweet-soul of Ryan Shaw, from the N’Awlins boogie-piano of John Cleary to the gospel-harmonies of the Holmes Brothers, from the Chigago old-school-blues of Bob Margolin to the funk of the Chicago Playboys; the list goes on-and-on with no fewer than seventy shows in seven days. Bestriding them all is the ‘patron-saint’ of blues-cruisers, Taj Mahal and guest appearances from other legends such as Lonnie Brooks and Matt ‘Guitar’Murphy. Amongst the great advantages of this against other festivals are the winter sun, the ‘cruise-ship-quality’ of the food on offer, the proximity of your accommodation, the opportunity to see your favourite acts three-or-four times in one week and, uniquely, the flying fish! The artists love it, too, and regularly turn up on each others’ stages to provide memorable jamming (Cory Harris playing frottoir- rub-board with the Zydeco Experience was surreal but not atypical). Canadian acoustic IBC winner, Matt Anderson, was the great breakthrough ‘surprise package’ with Lonnie Brooks joining his son onstage on his 44th birthday providing the most moving moment. We went ashore to Caribbean islands three times and had open-air concerts on two of them. It’s a heck-of-a-gig –we’ve already booked for our third once-in-a-lifetime cruise in 2012! More info www.bluescruise.com
Michael and Barbara Ford |
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Thanks to Michael and Barbara Ford for the
review and photos. |
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