by Mike Mering, cbbfestival.com Senior Correspondent, mikemering@gmail.com
It’s almost a given that the assortment of music at the Chicago Bluegrass & Blues Festival
Biscuits & Gravy = Bloodshot & Alligator
will go together like biscuits and gravy this November 22nd.
“The variety of bluegrass, blues, roots rock, and indie acts we put together for the Chicago Bluegrass & Blues Fest makes sense for me as a fan and a Chicagoan. I’ve met very few folks here that aren’t looking for some range when they go out to catch a show, ” says Mike Raspatello, the festival’s founder and organizer.
When you add two Chicago-based record industry powerhouses, pivotal in cooking up the very cultures that embody the Chicago Bluegrass & Blues Fest, it seems like a classic recipe.
Blues label Alligator Records and roots-rock label Bloodshot Records are sharing a bill for the first time this fall at the Congress Theater, teaming up to bring some homegrown legitimacy to the young festival.
“Surprisingly,” admits Raspatello, “it’s rare to find a one-day festival with this much to offer by way of variety and Chicago flavor. Nevertheless, without the scene’s more influential Blues and Roots music labels on board it just wouldn’t have been kosher in my book.”
Bloodshot will be adding Lollapalooza standouts Ha Ha Tonka and Waco Brothers offshoot Dollar Store to a stacked bill co-headlined by The David Grisman Quintet and The Avett Brothers. Alligator will throw Lil’ Ed and his fez-covered head into the mix to make sure classic Chicago Blues are represented on festival’s main stage.
Heather West, co-owner of Bloodshot Records since its inception in 1994, admits that this truly independent festival immediately intrigued her.
“Chicago has the best indie music scene of any city in the world,” she says. “A festival like Chicago Bluegrass & Blues, and a label like Bloodshot, can thrive here.”
The seeds were sown for collaboration between the record labels when an executive from Bloodshot advised the festival producers to contact Tim Kolleth, her contemporary at Alligator. Since 1971, Alligator has released more than 250 blues and blues/rock albums.
“We suggested Lil’ Ed & The Blues Imperials to play the Chicago Bluegrass & Blues Festival,” says Tim Kolleth, Director of Radio Promotion at Alligator. “In my opinion, they are one of the greatest live bands in the city.”
Aside from creating what Tim predicts to be, “a fun and unique live experience at a legendary venue,” both labels are in it for charity. A portion of all proceeds will be donated to the Saving Tiny Hearts Society.
