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Irvine Lake Blues Festival 2010 by Casey Reagan
Saturday was the 13th Annual Irvine Lake Blues Festival and I can bear witness that it was anything but unlucky. I had originally suggested that the event sponsors skip number 13 and go from last years 12th annual directly to number 14 sort of like the floor numbers in hi-rise buildings but nobody would listen.
Organizers this year combined the music with another favorite American pastime, motorcles, and held a bike show at the lake the same day, talk about some sweet rides...wow.
If all the chrome and incredibly detailed bikes weren't enough eye candy for one day the scenery at the lake was absolutely gorgeous,.
.. and the landscape is nice too.
Despite the unlucky number this festival was so much fun I had to videotape it to prove it to my friends who couldn't attend. The line-up of entertainment was incredible and me [MusicUCanSee Productions] and my buddy Howie Rogers over at Axis 4 Studios in Hemet, Ca. teamed up and were fortunate enough to arrange a full on video shoot of just about every artist who performed. We captured some incredible live performance video of Tommy Castro (See video below) Tommy is a guy who knows his way around this business, American Blues News has covered him in depth and you can check out all of it right here: http//:www.ameriblues.com .
If he's not sailing away on a legendary blues cruise he's rockin the house all over the US and Canada, read the Ameriblues coverage for all the TC news you need to know. I met Tommy before he went on stage and he is a very cool cat, with legions of loyal fans and a tour schedule like the Harlem Globetrotters, Tommy is a busy guy but still made time to meet and greet a bunch of us, thanks Tommy, you da' man.
We taped Rod Piazza, (...thank you Honey) and The Mighty Flyers. The Flyers played an awesome set including this rocker, 'Hate To See You Go'(see video below). I had the pleasure of seeing Rod and Honey Piazza a while back at the CoachHouse down in San Juan Capistrano, with a slightly leaner version of the Mighty Flyers and they impressed me a lot. When I say 'leaner' I'm not saying the band was on a diet, I mean, sometimes the 'Flyers' don't include a bass player like the one in the video, sometimes the bass player is Honeys left hand, and I'm even more impressed by the fact that she can do it after seeing the full band. She is as incredible a keyboard player as Rod is a harmonica player, between the two...watch out man, because when these two play...it's magic.
The 44's featuring Kid Ramos took us to the church and rocked us to the bone with songs like 'Johnny Cochino' which includes a killer guitar duel between Johnny Main and the 44's long time friend, producer and guest guitar slinger Kid Ramos... Watch closely and you'll catch a glimpse of Coco Montoya backstage groovin' to the sound of Johnny and Kid trading licks. The 44's are out supporting their new record 'Boogie Disease' and if you don't own it, check it out, this band has chops without Kid Ramos, and with him...WOW. Watch and enjoy these two as they tear it up!
...and Shari Puorto, LA's own rock diva. Shari talks the talk and walks the walk and does so with class and a style all her own, I've been watching Shari for a while now and she's definitely coming of age with performances like the one she delivered at the lake this day,, her set was hot, Shari can sing baby...from roots rock to deep blues, I won't compare her to Bonnie Raitt, Janis or more recently Teresa James, because, you should know by now, I don't ever like to compare one artist to another, but, if the shoe fits... watch for Shari Puorto video coming soon!.
We missed Coco Montoya,
Johnny Mastro and The Blue Note Project
...missed recording them on tape anyway, but the performances by all three of these artists were incredible, especially Coco who can really get down and play the blues. It was nice to have a break from taping to sit and enjoy the jams and Blue Note..., Johnny and Coco made sure it was a treat. I got set lists from everybody but I won't bore you with too many detail's. Suffice it to say, I wish I had taped it all but I enjoyed every act to the fullest.
Backstage was a treat, meeting folks whom I've admired for years and who I've wanted to work with for a long time. So this was a pretty special day for me and the crew.
By the time we packed our cameras and loaded the van the sun had set on Irvine Lake and the last guy we saw leaving told us to turn out the lights when we left... ...and we did. Great gig Irvine Lakers, you made the show, keep rockin' and thanx for the ride!
The Irvine Lake Blues Festival 2010
By Casey Reagan for
American Blues News
All Rights Reserved
