Second Annual Historic Wallace Blues Festival

Thank you to the members of the Inland Empire Blues Society for voting our first Historic Wallace Blues Festival the
Best Blues Event of 2012.

As one observer said, "It was like winning Most Valuable Player and Rookie of the Year at the same time." We hope to stay worthy of such praise. So for our second Wallace Blues Festival, we did not want to disappoint. We will have TWENTY PERFORMERS downtown on three stages over two days for an outragious Blues Festival that you will never forget!

As plans advance, follow along to see the new acts as they are booked. Since our town of 784 individuals has been dubbed The Center of the Universe, it is only fitting that this year we span the globe for entertainment. Thus we currently have performers lining up for your enjoyment from England, The South, Seattle, Boise and The Inland Empire.

Originally we had planned to feature The Blues Cousins from Russia, but they were recently forced to cancel their second Pacific Northwest Tour. So we replaced them with the Ian Siegal Band from England in keeping with our universal meme. And then a personal emergency within the Terry Evans Band caused us to replace this Mississippi blues band with the Seth Freeman Band from Arkansas. Our line-up has now stablized at twenty blues artists from around the world; they are being added to this internet presentation as rapidly as possible.

MOJO Magazine calls Ian Siegal "one of the most gifted singers and writers in contemporary Blues." He is also the only artist outside North America to be nominated in the 2013 Blues Music Awards. This is in the Contemporary Album of the Year category for Candy Store Kid. He is also the winner of these BRITISH BLUES AWARDS: Male Vocalist of the Year in 2011, and Blues Band of the Year in 2010.

A detailed account of Ian's rise to European fame may be found at iansiegal.com/about.

Excerpts:
• His career got under way in 2003/04 with two successive European tours as the opening act for ex-Rolling Stone Bill Wyman's Rhythm Kings.
• In 2005 he topped the Soul/Blues/Jazz charts in Holland.
• In response to fans requests for an acoustic album, The Dust was released at the end of 2008.
• His Oct 09 release Broadside, an album that is selling in more than 20 countries, finally gave Ian the top spot in MOJO’s annual Blues album chart.
• Siegal’s May ‘11 release The Skinny is an album recorded in north Mississippi with Grammy nominee Cody Dickinson of the North Mississippi Allstars as producer.
• Ian has become established in Europe as one of the most natural, exciting and vibrant talents on the scene today.

Another blues performer traveling to Wallace from far away is an amazing newcomer possessed by the R&B demon shouters of the past, a woman who will entertain your socks off, Nikki Hill. "The fast-rising, hard-charging, 20-something, North Carolina born-and-bred singer Nikki Hill has more than earned her evocative 'Southern Fireball' moniker." (LA Weekly)

Now almost thirty, Seth Freeman has played the guitar since the age of four. He was was taught by his grandfather, his dad, and Jim Turner, and later by Paul Travis, one of the leading instructors in Arkansas. Growing up in a musical family, Seth is a third generation guitar player. Family reunions consisted of big circles of musicians playing bluegrass and old gospel hymns. Seth used to teach guitar in his spare time, but now spends most of his time on the road with his band. In addition to guitar, Seth also plays the drums, bass, lap steel, piano, mandolin, weissenborn and dobro. Listen to 13 audio tracks on Seth's homepage.

Stacy Jones Band continues to blow fans away with their high-energy, genre bending performances. Amazing vocals, incredible musicianship, outstanding songwriting and powerful, dynamic arrangements. No wonder that they earned the Washington Blues Society's 2009 BEST NEW BAND Award.

Stacy Jones not only impresses with a vocal richness beyond her years, but is also a top-notch harmonica player as well as playing keyboards and acoustic guitar. It's easy to understand why Stacy was honored as the "Female Vocalist of 2010" by the Washington Blues Society.

The entertaining trio of Rick Bowen (drums), Tom Jones (bass), and Jeff Menteer (guitar) provides the foundation for a strong ensemble sound and the band's obvious joy of making music together is contagious.

We found an Idaho boy who now has a national reputation and is a phenomenal entertainer: John Németh. He was recently nominated for FIVE BMA awards for 2013:

• Soul Blues Album
• Contemporary Blues Album
• Soul Blues Male Artist
• B.B. King Entertainer of the Year
• Instrumentalist-Harmonica.

We will also feature most of your favorite Inland Northwest bands as well, including Bakin' Phat and Big Mumbo Blues Band. Bakin' Phat, despite being made up of three veteran Inland NorthWest musicians, won "Best New Band in 2012." Big Mumbo Blues Band has been placed in the I.E.B.S. Hall of Fame having won "Best Blues Band," among many other awards, so many times that they have to now wait three years before they can again be nominated!

Seeing as how Wallace was voted the "Best Blues Event for 2012," it seemed only right that we should also present the 2012 Inland Empire Blues Society's "Best Female Blues Performer." Sara Brown loves performing and has a passion for powerhouse vocals. She has an infectious smile, unending energy, a voice that will excite you... and there's no stopping all the talk about her shoes.

Sammy Eubanks was a huge hit last year at our first Blues Festival, so we are excited to again have him play Wallace. Quite possibly the most reputable musicians in the Inland Empire, Sammy Eubanks, Michael Hays and Jake Barr deliver a quality performance every time they take the stage, playing a variety of Blues, Country and Rock n' Roll Classics as well as originals. When you think of it, artists like BB King, Robert Cray, Little Ed and Blues Imperials, Philip Walker, Kenny Neal and anyone that plays the Blues has been honing their craft their entire lives. At the other end of the spectrum, artists like George Jones, George Strait, Marty Stuart, Merle Haggard, Lee Roy Parnell and anyone who has ever banged it out in a Honky Tonk have been honing their craft as well. Sammy can stand on either stage and has many times. It was recently stated, "Along the borderline between Country and Blues, some genius arises. Delbert McClinton and Sammy Eubanks have the same borderline genre."

Also a hit at the first Wallace Blues Festival, The Fat Tones will return to entertain our village at the center of everything. The Fat Tones are Hall of Famers with the Inland Empire Blues Society having won multiple awards multiple times. The Fat Tones' Bobby Patterson won Best 2011 Blues Guitarist as well. "Bobby ... possesses world-class talent that he does not hold back when playing live shows especially. ... Whether playing purely instrumental jams or showcasing their trademark harmonic melodies and clever lyrics, The Fat Tones bring it every time." (Matt Nagle, Tacoma Weekly)
Two of their outdoor YouTube videos are presented below, but a 1 hour, 42 minute TV LIVE concert, recorded Feb 20, 2013, is also available in a separate window.

So book a room in Wallace already! Or pack the camper! Air out the tent! See you in Wallace July 12 & 13 at the Inland Empire's Best Blues Event!

As it develops, more information will follow.

Contact: Craig Heimbigner
• DBA Too Far North Productions
• kraag@msn.com or (509) 534-1187 for festival questions
• for questions about Wallace, accommodations, locale, or attractions
  call Jackie instead (208) 512-1260

Thank you for your interest in Wallace Idaho and the Silver Valley,
Greg Marsh, Ph.D.
Marsh Scientific Services

By all accounts, our first annual Historic Wallace Blues Festival on July 13-14, 2012, was a great success for the town, the performers and the approximately 2000 Blues Fans who attended. The most amazing thing is that our little town of 784 individuals pulled this event off in 90 days from concept initiation! A photographic reprise of the performances and a depiction of festival ambiance tell the story of a great day in Wallace's cultural history. Click on the variable band photo to go to their place in the reprise.