UPPER LAKE — The Blue Wing Blues Festival opens Friday with performances by the Southern California based Delta Blues guitarist and entertainer Barry Brenner, followed by the six-piece David Landon Band from San Francisco.
The festival will be held in the garden between the Tallman Hotel and Blue Wing Saloon restaurant in Upper Lake. Gates each evening open at 5 p.m. with music starting at about 5:45 p.m.
Originally from Chicago and now based in Los Angeles, Brenner is a practitioner of Mississippi Delta Blues on metal-topped resonator guitars, providing natural amplification and that authentic Delta sound, according to Bernie Butcher, owner of the Tallman Hotel and Blue Wing Saloon restaurant.
“This will be my third appearance at the Blue Wing Festival,” Brenner said. “I absolutely love the ambiance at the Blue Wing and the great reception we always get from the Lake County crowd. I”m really looking forward to the trip north.”
David Landon is no stranger to Lake County audiences either, Butcher stated.
“I love the atmosphere at the Blue Wing,” Landon said. “I always wanted to bring up my full band with horns and all and show the good people of Lake County what the real blues is all about. Friday night should be fun.”
The Blue Wing Festival continues on Saturday evening with Brenner opening for the band Twice as Good, featuring the guitar and vocals of its leader Paul Steward.
Blues vocalist Jackie Payne will make a guest appearance with the group, Butcher stated.
The festival wraps up on Sunday evening with the blues band Steve Lucky and the Rhumba Bums. The Bay Area band plays blues of the 1930s and 1940s with Steve Lucky on the keyboards and Carmen Getit on guitar and vocals.
The cost of admission is $50 plus tax and includes a gourmet barbecue dinner with vegetable options.
Tickets and information can be obtained by calling the Tallman Hotel at 275-2244 ext. 0.
