Annual Briggs Farm Blues Festival is just around the corner | News, Sports, Jobs

This year’s festical kicks off on Thursday, July 6 and continues through July 8 on the rolling hills of Briggs Farm in Nescopeck, according to a recent press release.

“While Briggs Farm Blues Festival has grown into the largest blues festival in Pennsylvania, its down-home feel remains. Everyone is friends at Briggs Farm,” the release said.

Two stages with over 20 international and regional acts will ignite the calm country air for a weekend of grass underfoot, campfires, and celebrating the long balmy nights of summer together.Bringing world-class music to the region has kept the heart of Briggs Farm Blues Festival beating into its 26th year.

“I grew up in the era of The Rolling Stones and Jimi Hendrix — those sounds stem directly from the blues. It’s America’s unique music,” said Richard Briggs, Briggs Fest founder and president.

And Briggs Farm has created a unique festival with strong musical lineups and a dedicated crowd that keeps coming back to hear a mix of old and new styles of ever-evolving blues music, according to the release.

Two stages rock throughout the festival.

The Main Stage headliner for Saturday, July 8, is Robert Randolph, “a true rock star and a virtuoso on the pedal steel guitar,” the release said. When Randolph jumped from church and spiritual music into the secular music world, he found an audience among blues fans. Rolling Stone magazine included him in their list of 100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time.

Also taking the stage that night are Bywater Call, Eddie 9V and Jackie Venson.

“Bywater Call is a 7-piece powerhouse of southern soul and roots rock,” the release said. “Raw emotion, strong musicianship, and the intention to create a moving experience for listeners remains the driving force behind this bands passion and unforgettable stage presence.”

Eddie 9V is a “blues-soul firebrand, full of electricity and scorching energy,” according to the release. He takes audiences back-to-basics-blues while evoking Memphis soul.

“Jackie Venson is a guitar revolution,” the release said. “Her iconoclastic style blends synthpop, electronic prog, rock, jazz and blues. Jackie Venson lights the future of blues music in a modern style that recalls decades, if not centuries, of the past. She’s a hard-to-explain phenomenon of pure cosmic energy.”

The headliner for Friday, July 7, is Victor Wainwright & the Train.

“Anyone who loves a show packed full of honky-tonk and boogie with a healthy dose of rolling thunder will love this high energy performance,” according to the release.

Other features include Joanna Connor, Super Chikan and RL Boyce.

Joanna Connor, “one of the most influential guitarists on the planet, is aggressive, edgy and innovative,” the release said.

Super Chikan hails from Clarksdale, Mississippi, to deliver Delta Blues “in all its grand tradition and glory,” the release said. “Steeped in the culture of blues history, his family lineage makes him music royalty. Super Chikan says it best, ‘I don’t sing the blues, I am the blues,’” according to the release.

RL Boyce is a “master” of Mississippi Hill Country Blues, the release said. He has 50 years of playing, singing and living the blues, and is known far and wide as “King of Hill Country Boogie.”

Beyond the Main Stage, the intimate Back Porch Stage burns with international and regional talent. Playing on Friday, July 7, are Brandon Santini, Justin Mazer, Craig Thatcher and Nyke Van Wyk, New Moon Acoustic Blues and the Uptown Music Collective.

On Saturday, July 8, Ghalia Volt, R.L Boyce, Benny Turner and Old Man Mojo will be in the spotlight.

The whole thing kicks off on Thursday, July 6, with a pre-party from the cozy Back Porch Stage.

“It’s a great way to break into the easy summer mood of a world-class music festival,” the release said.

Thursday’s music begins at 6 p.m. and kicks off with Doug McMinn, a local favorite who plays the gamut from Chicago to Texas blues to New Orleans and more. Next up is the Clarence Spady Band, a musical giant in NEPA.

“The headliner for Thursday is the wild and unpredictable Scott

Pemberton,” the release announced. “A repeat offender at Briggs Farm, Scott Pemberton’s unorthodox approach to the guitar creates an utterly unique and powerful experience that harkens back to the days of 90s grunge rock, progressive funk and deep blues delivered improv style. Every show is an entirely new experience.”

Briggs Farm Blues Festival is just a few miles off Interstate 80, 30 minutes from Wilkes Barre and 25 minutes from Bloomsburg. On-site camping, a network of vendors, delicious food, and beer sales from Berwick Brewing round out this unique destination, the release said.

Patrons can bring in their own beverages (no glass bottles), coolers and snacks. Free parking is available, and kids 12 and under are free.

Tickets for the event are on sale now and are available at the gate day-of.