FINAL artist announcement for Bluesfest 2011’s outstanding lineup of star performers!

March 16th 2011 – Here it is folks, the final artist announcement for Bluesfest 2011. As you can see, we’ve definitely saved some of the best till last with these stellar talented musicians, so if you weren’t excited before, you will be now! Tickets for Thursday 21 and Tuesday 26 April are still available – don’t miss out, the clock is ticking and it’s only a bit over a month until Bluesfest finally kicks off!

The whole lineup has become picture perfectly clear with the official downloadable Bluesfest Playing Schedule now online at www.bluesfest.com.au .

That means you can now make all those big decisions and plan your complete Bluesfest itinerary. Check it out for all artist times and stages – download it, print it out, circle your options – whatever you need to do to make sure your Bluesfest 2011 experience is all set to go in glorious fashion!

Please note that on Tuesday April 26 Bluesfest will open its doors at 11am, music starts at 2pm and finishes at 10pm, allowing everyone to get home in plenty of time for work the next day.

Festival director Peter Noble said, “What a year we’re having so far – the biggest in our event’s history – so a big thank you goes out to all our loyal Bluesfest fans, what a bunch of great people you are! Four days/nights are now sold out, a fifth is on the verge of a sell-out, and our 6th day (added for the first time in Bluesfest history) is also on the way to a full house. Grab your tickets now for Thursday 21 and Tuesday April 26!

“True to form, our final announcement is the icing on the cake – those finishing touches that continue to display a depth of artistry from the biggest names to the most up and coming, emerging artists. This year, perhaps more than ever, you’ll really need to plan your Bluesfest experience carefully – there’s just so much now in the spicy gumbo mix to fill you with joy, love, peace and good times. So get stuck in!”

The FINAL Bluesfest announcement for 2011 includes:
Warren Haynes, Clare Bowditch, Dale Watson & His Lonestars, Neil Murray, Shane Nicholson, Frank Yamma, Buddy Knox, Lisa Miller, Louis King and the Liars Klub, Hat Fitz and Cara Robinson, Grace Barbe Afro Kreol, Ajak Kwai, The Blackwater Fever, Bobby Long, Nga Tae, Collard Greens and Gravy, Old Spice Boys, The Secret Sisters, Victor Valdes & the Marin Brothers, Raghu Dixit, Jackson Firebird, Hank Green’s Blues, A French Butler Called Smith, U Blues Band, Microwave Jenny, Kingfisha, Mojo Bluesmen, Bob Abbot & the Fabulous Green Machine, Joewah, Transvaal Diamond Syndicate, PLUS The Incredible Sky Pilots Plasticiens Volants.

BRING ON EASTER 2011!
Tickets are running out fast as you know – so be quick to secure yours!

Here’s a few highlights on some of the NEW artists announced today – for full bios of all NEW artists announced, please visit the Bluesfest web site!

Warren Haynes – celebrated American guitarist, vocalist and songwriter, Warren Haynes is the guitarist for The Grateful Dead, The Allman Brothers (and of course Gov’t Mule) and also named as the 23rd best guitarist of all time by Rolling Stone! At Bluesfest, Warren will play with a new ALL-STAR BAND featuring Ron Holloway, Ruthie Foster, Terence Higgins, Ron Johnson and Danny Louis – see the Bluesfest website for their full credentials – their collective musical resume is dizzying! The music on display will include some of Warren’s new soul-oriented material in anticipation of his first solo album for 19 years, tentatively titled “Man in Motion.”

Clare Bowditch – delightful, soulful Melbourne singer-songwriter Clare Bowditch will return to Bluesfest in 2011 with her fourth and latest album, Modern Day Addiction. Clare’s music these days features a heavenly mix of vocals, Casiotone keyboards and drum beats. The new album is a handcrafted, heartcrafted masterpiece and on it Clare manages to sex up, rock out and wrap up in warmth and a human heartbeat and a cheeky, very grown up, irreverence. Don’t miss this ARIA award winning artist who is also currently Yen Magazine’s “Young Woman of the Year” (Music).

Dale Watson & His Lonestars
Hold the phone! This is big news for genuine, gritty, real-country or alt-country music fans. Check out this acclaim: “The kind of stuff country music legends are made of.” – Austin Chronicle. “Dale Watson writes songs that wouldn’t sound out of place on one of Johnny Cash’s best albums.” – The Washington Post. “Believe me: when he sings something, it stays sung… it’s kinda difficult to argue with a man who sounds like God.” – No Depression. A staunch adherent of old-style honky tonk and Bakersfield country, Dale Watson has positioned himself as a tattooed, stubbornly independent outsider only interested in recording authentic country music. As a result, he has never sold that many records, but his music has been championed like crazy by numerous critics and alternative country fans. Though his recording career spans two decades, the maverick country traditionalist has never before released an album like this. “There’s nothing here that’s retro,” insists Dale of his latest record Carryin’ On. “I was really hoping to make a record with today’s technology, but with the musicians who played on the music I grew up on. I’m pretty happy with the way we’ve merged today with yesterday on this album. It will remind people of the old records, but it sounds like something new.” The new album on a new label marks a fresh start for Watson, a major leap from the hardscrabble honky-tonk that has won him an international following, earned him induction into the Austin Music Hall of Fame and established him as a leading crusader against the “Nashville Rash” (his most popular anthem among fans) plaguing the country music industry. Without compromising his musical values, he sounds here like a singer with nothing to prove and no one to fight. The angry young man has matured. The result, says Dale, is “the pinnacle of what I’ve done, in terms of the songs, the production, the musicianship.” If you want it real, if you want it compelling, and if you want it impeccably written, played and sung – then don’t miss Dale Watson & His Lonestars at Bluesfest 2011.
www.dalewatson.com

Shane Nicholson – one of the leading lights of the Australian country music scene, singer songwriter Shane Nicholson will bring his great new solo album Bad Machines to Bluesfest 2011. Shane first came to prominence as the lead-singer and guitarist for the rock band Pretty Violet Stain, after which came a highly regarded solo career. Then after marrying the charming country star Kasey Chambers, the pair joined forces for the critically acclaimed Rattlin’ Bones roots/country album which eventually won an ARIA Award for Best Country release in Australia 2008, and also picked up five Golden Guitar Awards in 2009.

Lisa Miller – here is an artist that has what every singer strives for – a voice of her own. There are very few other singer songwriters with the ability to convey such a degree of soulful emotion, and who are able to write songs that cut so close to the heart of the matter. Since the release of her debut album in 1996, Miller has received consistent and unanimous praise from reviewers and earned a place as one of our very finest musical artists. With the release of her fifth solo album, the beautiful and moving Morning In The Bowl Of Night, Lisa Miller has cemented that place once and for all. Altogether she has been nominated seven times for solo ARIA awards. Maybe one day very soon she will win an ARIA, but you suspect that doesn’t really matter does it? The music does – and it is exceptional.

Bobby Long – here is a classic, emerging star of the future that Bluesfest is very proud to present in 2011! At just 24, Bobby is an accomplished guitarist, having mastered an uncommon finger-picking guitar style through non-stop performing in seven countries. The young British singer-songwriter creates memorable songs inhabited by hauntingly poetic lyrics. The Boston Herald praised his “likeable, rough-hewn voice” and “catchy way with a chorus,” while Pollstar reported that he “continues to amaze audiences with a bare-bones sound reminiscent of early Bob Dylan. “…a spirited, thoroughly enjoyable folk-blues collection featuring his gritty singing and well-crafted songs…”
“…a sound that’s redolent of many classic folk recordings as well as contemporaries like Damien Rice and Mumford & Sons.”
He is a formidable presence even before he begins to sing. And when he does sing, it’s with a heart-wrenching soulfulness that crushes any chance for apathy. Make sure you catch this fascinating and authentic artist on the rise…

Remember: our previous Bluesfest announcements for 2011 included:
Bob Dylan, B.B. King, Ben Harper & Relentless7, Elvis Costello & the Imposters, Michael Franti & Spearhead, Rodrigo y Gabriela, The Cat Empire, Blind Boys of Alabama featuring Aaron Neville, Derek Trucks & Susan Tedeschi Band, Robert Randolph & the Family Band, Fistful of Mercy, Mavis Staples, Xavier Rudd, Trinity Roots, Kate Miller-Heidke, Washington, Little Bushman, Tony Joe White, Indigo Girls, Eric Bibb, Ash Grunwald, Ruthie Foster, C.W. Stoneking, Jeff Lang, Saltwater Band, and RocKwiz Live.

Grace Jones, Jethro Tull, ZZ Top, John Legend, Gurrumul (Bluesfest exclusive), Toots & the Maytals, The Funky Meters, Irma Thomas, Los Lobos, Kasey Chambers, Captain Matchbox Whoopee Band, Tim Robbins & the Rogues Gallery Band, The Dingoes, Trombone Shorty & Orleans Avenue, B.B. & the Blues Shacks, Joe Louis Walker, Phil Jones & the Unknown Blues, The Snowdroppers, Ray Beadle, Nat Col & the Kings, and Barrence Whitfield.

Paul Kelly, Buffy Sainte-Marie, Tim Fin, Eli Paperboy Reed, and The Mad Bastards.

Leon Russell, George Clinton Parliament Funkadelic, Luciano and Jah Messenjah Band, Imogen Heap, Ernest Ranglin, Raul Malo, Michelle Shocked, Peter Rowan Bluegrass Band, Public Opinion Afro Orchestra, The Bamboos, Warrior King; The Hands, Bobby Alu and Hussy Hicks.

Little Feat, Fishbone, Cecilia Noël, Osibisa, Leah Flanagan, Kim Churchill, Grace Woodroofe, The Red Eyes, Low Rider, Melbourne Ska Orchestra, Jack Thompson & The Original Sinners, Bayjah, The Aggrolites, Wagons, Resin Dogs, and Yodelice.

About Bluesfest
Bluesfest has grown to be one of Australia’s premier music festival events. Held annually for the last 21 years over the Easter long weekend, the 5 day musical extravaganza attracts people from around the World and across Australia to the North Coast of New South Wales, Byron Bay.

From humble beginnings in 1990 attracting a modest audience size of 6,000 music lovers from around the country, Bluesfest has steadily developed its reputation of excellence amongst musicians and concert goers nationally and internationally throughout its 21 year history.

Tickets can be purchased by: Phoning the Bluesfest office on 02 6685 8310
or visiting the website at www.bluesfest.com.au


Related:
* BOB DYLAN touring Australia in April 2011! [Tour News]
* Bluesfest Sideshows – Mavis Staples [Tour News]
* Joe Bonamassa 2011 Australian Tour – May 2011 [Tour News]
* Grace Jones – the one and only – powers into Bluesfest 2011 mega lineup!
* Bluesfest 2011 consolidates supersonic line up with class 2nd artist announcement!
* Indigo Girls (USA) Australian Tour – April 2011 [Tour News]
* Bluesfest 2011 unveils joy and wonderment with signature super 1st artist announcement!


Related:

* Bluesfest 2011 Dates Announced!
* Bluesfest 2010 Highlights!
* Bluesfest 2010 wraps up its 21st Birthday
* Photo Gallery: Bluesfest 2010 Photos Preview
* Bluesfest 2010 artist Bela Fleck wins his 12th and 13th Grammy Awards!
* Byron Bay Bluesfest 2009 Photo Gallery 1
* Elize Strydom gets stuck in the mud at the 20th Annual East Coast Blues and Roots Festival [2009 Festival Review]
* “No Shoes, at Blues…” – By Tara Kai Hammond [2009 Festival Review]
* The East Coast Blues & Roots Music Festival Byron Bay – BluesFest [2008 Festival Review and Photos]


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