Harvest Announces 2012 Winter Blues Series
December 12, 2011
The Harvest Jazz and Blues Festival announced today what proves to be the strongest Winter Blues line-up in the series’ history with acclaimed roots-blues artists Peter Karp and Sue Foley, Kansas roots-rockers Moreland & Arbuckle, and poplar hometown bluesman Ross Neilsen.
Harvest’s Winter Blues Series begins on January 18th with the annual IBC fundraiser with Ross Neilsen, who will represent the Festival at the 2012 International Blues Challenge in Memphis later in the month.
Neilsen has built a reputation as one of the hardest working blues-rockers in Canada and has established himself among the country’s best. Ross has released seven albums, including 2010’s Redemption, which was produced by Grammy-nominated producer Cody Dickinson of North Mississippi Allstars. Neilsen has secured himself as the real deal among both peers and fans, earning a Maple Blues Award nom for Best New Artist, a Rising Star win from the CBC, back-to-back ECMA noms for Blues Album of the Year and a MusicNB Award for Best Blues Recording. He will travel to Memphis in late January to compete in the International Blues Challenge, the world’s largest gathering of blues acts.
The IBC fundraiser will take place at Dolan’s Pub on Wednesday, January 18th at 7:30pm. Tickets are $10.
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The second show in the Winter Blues line up will take place on Friday, February 3rd at the James Joyce Pub with the formidable duo of gifted American troubadour Peter Karp and Juno-winning roots artist Sue Foley.
Widely considered one of the finest blues-roots artists working today, Foley first established her unique talents as a blues guitarist and songwriter in 1992 with her debut album Young Girl Blues. Throughout the 90’s she took to the road with her paisley Telecaster and honed her craft working and sharing the stage with such artists as BB King, Buddy Guy, Lucinda Williams and Tom Petty.
Karp is also known on the national scene as an accomplished guitarist and pianist, as well as a critically acclaimed songwriter, often drawing comparisons to songwriting greats like John Hiatt and John Prine for his impactful Americana songs.
The two have joined forces for a show dubbed He Said - She Said, an inspired collaboration based on letters written over a year between the two, which became the songs. Blues Revue Magazine called He Said - She Said “a unique, daring idea beautifully executed by two talented, inspired artists unafraid to express themselves outside of - but still influenced by - their respective genres.”
Peter Karp and Sue Foley will perform at the James Joyce Pub on Friday, February 3rd at 8:30pm. Tickets are $15.
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Last but not least in the Winter Blues Series are gritty blues-rockers Moreland & Arbuckle, who will return to Fredericton on March 2nd for the first time since blowing Harvest crowds away at the 2009 Festival.
Since their beginnings in the Kansas heartland a decade ago, guitarist Aaron Moreland and vocalist/harpist Dustin Arbuckle have taken music places it’s never been. They are traditionalists and innovators at the same time, merging Chicago and Delta blues styles with modern garage rock sensibilities. The Edmonton Journal calls them “one of the more inspiring young acts putting a new shine on music rooted in a century-old tradition.”
They recently released their second album Just a Dream, which maintains the gritty, raw feel they are known for, but is executed with heightened polish. Along with drummer Brad Horner, Moreland & Arbuckle have been touring extensively in support of the new album, sharing the stage with the likes of Jonny Lang, Buddy Guy, Robert Cray, Kenny Wayne Shepherd and Johnny Winter in the process.
Moreland & Arbuckle will perform at the James Joyce Pub on Friday, March 2nd at 8:30pm. Tickets are $15.
Tickets for all three shows are available through Ticketpro – by phone at 1-888-311-9090 or online at www.ticketpro.ca.
