The 6th annual St. John Blues Festival kicks off Wednesday at 8 p.m. at the Beach Bar in Cruz Bay. The free opening party will feature Reverend Raven and the Chain Smoking Altar Boys. (Listen to samples of their blues at http://www.reverendraven.com/.
"The Festival has become one of the largest destination entertainment events in the Caribbean," said Steve Simon, the founder and producer of the five days of music. "With four major celebrity acts, this is the biggest Blues concert I have ever produced."
Simon is so excited about this year's Festival, he's arranged with a videographer to record some of the events. "We can't do a CD due to the restrictions with the artists' recording contracts, but we do plan on doing a DVD if the video comes out good.
There are additional free concerts and events Thursday and Friday and Sunday nights night at Shipwreck Landing, Aqua Bistro, and the Beach Bar. (The concert schedule is online at http://www.stjohnbluesfestival.com/new/schedule08.htm#schedule.
The big show is Saturday night in Coral Bay at the ball field. The headliner is Cajun blues star Tab Benoit. Others performing on the stage will include Chubby Carrier and the Bayou Swamp band, the Waylon Thedodeaux Band, and the Sean Carney band. The performers are all staying at the Tamarind Court in Cruz Bay.
Advance tickets are $25, and $30 at the gate. Ticket sales were characterized by Simon as "way ahead of last year, and last year was our biggest festival ever."