The producers of the Bear Creek Music and Arts Festival have announced a new festival taking place at Mardi Gras World in the New Orleans bayou Sept. 30 and Oct. 1.
The Live Oak, Florida festival ran for eight years at the Spirit of the Suwannee Music Park. The 2015 edition was to have featured a funk heavy lineup, including Galactic, Soulive and Dumpstaphunk but was unfortunately canceled. The new fest promises a menu rich with the traditional sounds of New Orleans and bands similar to past Bear Creek headliners.
Mardi Gras World is located in the New Orleans Warehouse District along the banks of the Mississippi River and offers a view of the New Orleans skyline.
The full website for the fest will be launched soon, along with the initial band lineup.
This year’s New York State Blues Festival will be headlined by Butch Trucks & Freight Train.
Trucks, known best as a founding member of the Allman Brothers Band, will close out the free, two-night festival in Syracuse’s Clinton Square.
Also performing at the festival, to be held July 8 and 9, will be Sister Sparrow and the Dirty Birds, blues guitarist Sonny Landreth, and a host of other national, regional and local bands.
In addition to performing Saturday, blues artist Tas Cru, of Chaumont, near Watertown, will also hold a musical workshop Saturday afternoon.
This year’s festival will again include the Signature Student Series. Signature Music is a nonprofit group that teaches music to teens in Central New York who can’t afford private lessons. Students from the program will perform in between main stage acts at NYS Blues Festival.
An estimated 15,000 people from throughout the U.S. and Canada attended last year’s festival, which included the Robert Randolph Band, the Devon Allman Band and a reunion of legendary Syracuse blues band, the Kingsnakes.
The New York State Blues Festival was founded in 1991, and since then it has grown into the largest free blues fests in the Northeast. Over the years, it has hosted huge names like Buddy Guy, Little Feat, Dickie Betts, Bo Diddley and more. The festival is community focused and seeks to promote and cultivate the great American art form of the blues.
The full 2016 New York State Blues Festival lineup:
Friday July 8
Main Stage
4pm – MIKE DELANEY & THE DELINQUENTS – main stage
4:45pm – JANE ZELL – side stage
5:10pm – FUNKY BLU ROOTS – main stage
5:55pm – JANE ZELL – side stage
6:20pm – THE WESTCOTT JUGSUCKERS – main stage
7:10pm – JEFF JONES – side stage
7:30pm – BRANDON SANTINI – main stage
8:40pm – JEFF JONES – side stage
9:10pm – SISTER SPARROW & THE DIRTY BIRDS – main stage
Saturday July 9
12pm – Workshop w/ TAS CRU – side stage
1pm – SKIP MURPHY & HIS MERRY PRANKSTERS – main stage
1:40pm – SIGNATURE STUDENT SERIES – side stage
2pm – TAS CRU – main stage
2:55pm – SIGNATURE STUDENT SERIES – side stage
3:15pm – MIDNIGHT MIKE PETROFF BLUES HARP BAND – main stage
4:10pm – TOM DWYER – side stage
4:30pm – TORONZO CANNON – main stage
5:40pm – TOM DWYER – side stage
6:00pm – SOUL OF SYRACUSE w/ THE FABULOUS RIPCORDS w/special guests PETE MCMAHON, MAUREEN HENESEY, MARK HOFFMAN – main stage
7:10pm – BIG D – side stage
7:30pm – SONNY LANDRETH – main stage
8:40pm – BIG D – side stage
9:10pm – BUTCH TRUCKS & THE FREIGHT TRAIN BAND – main stage
Hurry! Lettuce and Griz will be headlining the inaugural Fool’s Paradise April 1st and 2nd! The festival will be celebrated at The St. Augustine Amphitheatre which is located in the oldest city in the United States and is famous for its Spanish style architecture. Located just an hour from Jacksonville and Gainesville and just two hours from Orlando, Fool’s Paradise could not be in a more picturesque and ideal location. The festival is hosted by Purple Hat Productions and Live For Live Music and is sure to be an amazing two day funk filled event. So pack your dancing shoes and come be part of the beginning of something spectacular! The music begins Friday at two’olock on the Shipwreck Stage.
There will be two stages, one of which is the Amphitheatre and the other is The Shipwreck Stage. There will also be late night sets by Vulfpeck and Break Science at the nearby Elk’s Lodge on Friday then Goldfish and a Fools of Funk Superjam on Saturday. Tickets to the late night sets are sold in a limited quantity and as a separate from the main event. There is also more late night music just two miles away at “Fool Moon” which is a staple in the St. Augustine music scene. Featured late night artists are Jacksonville’s own Herd of Watts, on Friday and Saturday, Gainesville’s Morning Fatty and Manyfest will play Saturday and Orlando’s Groove Orient will close out the night. Camping is available in an offsite location but all passes are limited. There are also a select amount of vip hotel packages. Which are available on the “Fool’s Paradise” website.
This festival is reminiscent of Jam Cruise because it offers fun excursions with the performing artists. There will be mini golf with Lettuce’s Adam Deitch and Jesus Coomes on Saturday at one o’clock, Sailing with The Shady Horns and Shmeemans at noon and also a zipline adventure with Break Science’s Borhahm Lee at twelve-thirty. All excursions are sold separately from the main event and the tickets are going fast!! There will be limited parking but fortunately there are many cab companies and Uber available.
Now that the basics have been covered, let’s get to the fun part, the music! Yes! finally Lettuce and GRIZ will be collaborating during the second half of GRIZ’s Friday night set in the ampitheatre. The remaining line-up also promises exciting funky fun times for everyone. There’s Chris Robinson’s Soul Revue featuring featuring George Porter Jr of The Meters, with Ivan Neville, The Nth Power, Goldfish, Corey Henry of Snarky Puppy, Marvel Years, Brasstracks, Herd of Watts. The Groove Orient, Morning Fatty and Love Chunk.
So pack your gear and prepare yourself for an awesome two days of music, and good times! Tickets are available on the website, and The St. Augustine box office.