BLUES AT BRIDGETOWN 2005
By Dave Roberts
Some events burst instantly onto the scene and burn brightly, others take a while to warm up.
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The Bridgetown Blues Festival, now known as Blues at Bridgetown, seemed pretty bright to me when it started, but clearly there was growth left in the format. Now in it’s thirteenth year, the lineup is bigger every time, the crowd is bigger every time, and it seems that both performers and punters finish every year with one thought – “wow, let’s do that again”.
This year is like years before, a look at the roster of performers shows a range of acts, some new, some clearly established. Some famous across the world, and some who manage to be crowd favourites at the festival while not seeming to have a great profile elsewhere. |
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A quick look at this year would show us Tony Joe White, who as a solo performer has hit the top of not just blues but popular charts, and representatives from a veritable who’s who of Australian and international bands. It’s not every week that anyone could see guys from Chain, Spectrum, and Canned Heat all in one place, and in the South West you’d have to guess it could be your last chance.
That brings us to the Blues being what it is. There is a willingness to keep coming back to listen to old masters, but there is space to hear someone who has been in the field for a very short time and know they’ve got something to offer. Blues at Bridgetown might show you all of that.
The festival was started by a community group, and is still owned by the community. So many of these stories start, and this was a low key way to do something for the community, but if that was ever the case, there’s no low key part of it now.
A look at the website for the event shows that this organisation currently aims “to be recognised as the Blues centre of Australia”. Blues isn’t going away either, and any small town that can genuinely think that it has achieved the status as centre of the Blues in this country is a long way toward having a sustainable place in the national psyche, and obviously a healthier economy. Try to think about Tamworth going broke while they still have country music.
A festival that reaches this level of professionalism does it firstly by the dedication of a quality group of people on the committee. Along the way though, some other things need to fall into place, and this committee has had the talent to attract some serious sponsors who support the arts in the south west and (clearly), are getting value for money exposure for the cash or other support they are tipping in. Check out the list of who sees the value in being part of this festival, and make sure they get support in return.
So the bottom line is, if you want to see some blues players in a really good setting, you need to find your way to Bridgetown for 11, 12 and 13 November this year. There is a fantastic street party to be enjoyed, and acts throughout a range of venues in what is still a pretty authentic Australian country town.
This is a living, moving, growing event. We could give you details but the organisation keeps a pretty good website at www.bluesatbridgetown.com.au and there is plenty to see there. Note that the tickets are moving and the venues for accommodation are filling fast, so if you want to get a piece of this big weekend, it would be better to move sooner rather than later.
Just like everyone else, there is the chance that you’ll say “wow, let’s do that again”, and need to be involved for next year. There are a lot of ways that could happen, from buying earlybird tickets, to getting the band cranked up, to getting a sponsorship deal in place and gaining some credibility, but whatever the plan, remember that this is still a serious festival, and you’ll really need to have something to offer. Of course the other way to look at it is that you could just show up and get a load of some really good blues.... see you there.
Win tickets to the 2005 Blues At Bridgetown Festival by clicking here.
September 2005
