 Musicians, concertgoers revel with Beale Street Music Festival despite rainby Bill Hyden
Although Tom Lee Park was once again the location where this year’s Beale Street Music Festival took place, first-time attendees and people unfamiliar with downtown Memphis might have thought they standing on nearby Mud Island after rain fell virtually uninterrupted on the final two days of the festival.
Fortunately for those who ignored a dreary forecast, the musicians they wanted to hear also had no reason to concede their acts due to the elements. Thus, the rain only enhanced the entertainment value of the concerts held on the banks of the Mississippi River.
Nearly 60 musical acts performed at the Beale Street Music Festival held in downtown Memphis at Tom Lee Park this past weekend (May 1-3, 2009). Those in attendance at the weekend festival were entertained by a variety of genres and acts as artists played at six different venues as a part of the scheduled events.
Randy North from Cleveland, OH said he wanted to hear the blues musicians in his first visit to the festival on Friday night. “I’m looking forward to hearing Lurrie Bell, Tommy Castro, Bonnie Raitt and John Mayhall along with Guitar Shorty,” North said. “I will also head over to the Sam’s Town Stage and listen to the Steve Miller Band later tonight.”
Another first-time visitor to the Beale Street Music Festival was Richard Breland of Trulock, Calif. “Although I lived in Missouri for over 30 years before moving to California, I wanted to come back to this area and be part of the experience,” Breland said. “Now that I’m finally here, I look forward to seeing Three 6 Mafia, Snoop Dogg, Hinder, and all other sorts of performers.”
Blues musician Lurrie Bell was a part of the opening night lineup Friday in the Blues Tent. Bell said Memphis is a great place for anyone with an appreciation for musical history. “It’s a lot of fun to play in Memphis and I have a great time whenever I’m here,” Bell said. He also reiterated the importance of blues music.
“I try to tell people that the blues are alive and will be here forever as they are a savior and a healer,” he said. “That’s why I play the blues, because I love it and I’m following in my father’s footsteps, and those of B.B. King, Albert King and old players like Otis Rush and Eddie Taylor.”
A warm, humid Friday night would drift into a rainy, overcast Saturday on the riverfront. However, the music continued on day two as the park devolved from a parched green plot into something that resembled a cow path. As the second day got underway, the lines leading to up Will Ridley’s beer stand were drastically smaller than opening night. The Memphis resident bemoaned the decline in mid-day beverage revenues.
“The rain slowed down our beer sales and right now it’s just too cold,” Ridley said. “People need beverages to cool down when it’s 85 degrees outside. Would you have a barbeque on a day like this with the wind and rain?”
Those seeking respite from the weather found refuge in the only indoor venue at the festival, the Blues Tent. Once fans took their seats inside the tent, they received a surprise as Elvis Costello made a guest appearance at the Blues Tent before his scheduled performance at the Sam’s Town Stage. Costello also appeared at the Los Lobos and Al Green performances later that evening. Costello talked about his experiences at the festival.
“It’s always great to be here performing in Memphis. I haven’t played too much here,” Costello said. Some music fans and critics associate Costello with New Wave standards such as “Everyday I Write the Book” and “Watching the Detectives,” but he expressed an appreciation for blues artists.
“A lot of great music is derived from blues and there are many different ways to play it, you can even hear it coming from a whole orchestra,” he said. Costello also gave aspiring musicians advice pertaining to the recording industry.
“Young artists have to be ready for some disappointments,” he said. “They have to get there with the music and by not worrying about fame. If fame happens to come, then it does but it can go away again.”
The rain subsided temporarily Saturday evening. However, few people trickled through the gates at the south entrance to the festival as nightfall swept across the area. Cynthia Scott from Dallas was one of those who refused to stay indoors because of the conditions.
“I am here to see Al Green, George Clinton and John Lee Hooker. The rain won’t impact my fun, I can deal with walking in the mud,” Scott said. She also mentioned what the musical culture in Memphis means to her.
“I love it, it reminds me of growing up in a bar,” she said. “I’ve been to this festival a couple of times and will return in the future.”
Sunday brought more soggy skies and turf. On the final day of the festival the areas between the stages where people sat and watched performers like the Steve Miller Band on Friday night resembled a plodding surface that was ideal for events like tractor pulls and trench warfare.
Memphis blues singer and guitarist Richard Johnston jammed before crowds who gathered at the Southern Comfort Blues Shack on Saturday and Sunday. Johnston said he is indebted to the artists who influenced his style.
“My heroes are Mississippi Fred McDowell, Robert Belfour, Junior Kimboough and R.L Burnside,” Johnston said. “A lot of people consider these artists to be the equivalent of punk rock groups such as the Ramones.
“They made music that refused to follow traditional blues chord progressions,” he said. “This is the only kind of blues where I can keep my sensibilities.”
Johnston said his music conveys a message and culture that embraces everyone. “Everyone is important and the losers are the majority of us,” he said. “If our music doesn’t include the busboy, the Ferris wheel operator and those who clean this place up after we leave, then it becomes essentially worthless.” |
