Media Contact: Connie Shaver
612-308-5785 ~ [email protected]
Lowertown Blues Festival Returns for Second Year at Mears Park
with a day of free entertainment on Saturday, July 25, 2015
St. Paul, Minn., Mar. 3, 2015 – The second annual Lowertown Blues Festival brings an exciting
lineup of blues musicians to Mears Park for a day of free music on Saturday, July 25th. After a
successful inaugural festival last year, 2015 promises more food, more vendors, and more music
including Elvin Bishop, Walter Trout, Jimmi and the Band of Souls, and Lisa Wenger.
The Lowertown Blues Festival is a cooperative effort by the Minnesota Blues Society and the
Lowertown Blues Festival Committee with support from the City of St. Paul. The mission of this festival
is to bring awareness of St. Paul’s Lowertown redevelopment, showcasing the vitality and beauty of
Lowertown’s Mears Parks with music and the arts.
Summit Brewing Main Stage
12:30PM
McNally Smith Blues Ensemble
1:45 PM
Winner of the Famous Dave’s Battle of the Blues
3:00 PM
Lisa Wenger & Her Mean Mean Men
4:30 PM
Jimmi and the Band of Souls
6:30 PM
Walter Trout – I’m Back! 2015 Tour
8:30 PM
Elvin Bishop
Ken Davis BBQ Sauce Juke Joint Stage & Food Court
2:45 PM
Jimi “Primetime” Smith
4:15 PM
Jimi “Primetime” Smith
6:00 PM
Big George Jackson
8:00 PM
Big George Jackson
About the Performers
Elvin Bishop
In April of this year, Elvin Bishop was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as an original
member of the Paul Butterfield Blues Band. Known for his rollicking blues and R&B and his stinging
fretwork performed with an undeniable spirit of fun, Elvin first hit the charts in the 1970’s with solo
tracks like “Travelin’ Shoes,” “Sure Feels Good,” and what would become his biggest hit, “Fooled
Around and Fell in Love,” with a powerful vocal by Mickey Thomas (later of Jefferson Starship). During
the 1980’s, Elvin spent most of his time on the road, and later in the decade, he teamed up with
Alligator Records for a number of albums that grew out of his blues roots. Elvin has continued to tour
and create new music with his most recent record, Can't Even Do Wrong Right, released in 2014.
Throughout the years, Elvin’s music has appeared in film and television, including the 1997 use of
“She Puts Me in the Mood” (from Big Fun) in Quentin Tarantino’s Jackie Brown. In 2005, he performed
on the internationally televised Grammy Awards broadcast alongside Keith Urban, Tim McGraw,
Gretchen Wilson, Lynyrd Skynyrd and Allman Brothers’ guitarist Dickey Betts, and he recently
appeared in the documentary Born In Chicago. www.elvinbishopmusic.com
Walter Trout
After spending all of 2014 recovering from a life-saving liver transplant, and after undergoing extensive
rehabilitation to get back into “fighting” shape, beloved blues-rock guitarist Walter Trout is returning to
the stage this summer to continue his career of 50+ years. Trout’s “I’m Back” tour kicks off on June 15
in London, followed by dozens of performances across Europe and North America, including the
Lowertown Blues Festival. Trout shares:
"The last year has been one where the blues truly came calling, and I came face to face with
death more than once. My wife moved me to Nebraska to improve my chances of getting a lifesaving liver transplant, and after a long wait, I got my new liver on May 26, 2014. Since then I
have been filled with immense gratitude. Gratitude for the fans who supported me via
fundraisers, cards, messages, thoughts and prayers, for the donor and his or her family, for
medical science, for my family, and for life itself. Everything matters more to me now. Now,
eight months after my transplant, I feel like a new man. I have strength and energy. In some
ways I feel like I am in my 20’s again! The past couple of years of playing I was getting dizzy
spells, severe cramps in my hand and forearm and played many shows in severe pain. It turns
out that was a result of my deteriorating liver. That is gone now! I am able to play better than I
have in years. I feel reborn. I cannot wait to get back out on the road again and do what I love
to do for my fans. The future looks great!”
www.waltertrout.com
Jimmi and the Band of Souls
Energetic, soulful, and genuine. The band pulls from the vast array of blues, roots and R&B in their
original songs and covers. They play boogie-woogie. They play slow and lonely. They play toe tappin’,
deep groovin’ and hard drivin’. You’ll hear Muddy, Minnie and Sonny Boy. You’ll hear Eric, Mayall and
Etta. It’s about diversity: Guitars. Slide. Harmonica. Mandolin. Bass. Drums. Two-part harmonies. It’s
a full sound that changes in tone and timbre with every song. Jimmi and the Band of Souls
represented Minnesota in the 2015 International Blues Challenge in Memphis, TN. "The Devil You
Know" was voted best self-produced blues album in 2011 by the Minnesota Blues Society.
www.jimmiandthebandofsouls.com
Lisa Wenger and Her Mean Mean Men
A fixture of the Twin Cities blues scene for over a decade now, the honest and soulful Lisa Wenger has
brought her funked up and stripped down, wall-shakin’ blend of blues-based American roots music to
audiences across the nation. She has shared the stage with celebrities like Jim Belushi, Robert Cray,
Leon Russell, and Pinetop Perkins, andl has recorded back-up vocals for many artists, including
singer and songwriter Bruce McCabe (Jonny Lang). After two highly acclaimed releases, including
“Can’t Stop the Girl” in 2008 and “Publicly Raw” in 2010, Lisa has followed up with a new release in
the summer of 2014 entitled “Simple as That”, which features a who’s who of local and national talent
performing as one phenomenal back up band, sometimes referred to as “Her Mean Mean Men.”
www.lisawenger.com
Jimi “Primetime” Smith
Twin Cities’ blues guitarist Jimi ‘Prime Time’ Smith was born into a musical family in Chicago and
moved to the Twin Cities in his early 20’s. Jimi ‘Prime Time’ resume consists of playing with the Blues
biggest names like Sam Lay, Jimmy Reed, Big Walter Horton, The Groove Merchants and many more.
Big George Jackson
Vocalist/harmonica player Big George Jackson was born November 16, 1949, and in the Twin Cities
he is known as the authentic big man of the blues. He sings with a distinctive bass-rich voice that only
a six-foot, six inch gentle giant would be blessed with. Add his fat harmonica playing, dead-on
phrasing, commanding stage-presence and instant audience rapport and it’s easy to understand why
the audience howls when he delivers his music.
Event Details
Date: Saturday, July 25, 2015
Location: Mears Park in Lowertown, 221 E 5th St, St Paul
Time: 12:00 – 10:00 p.m.
Admission: Free
Additional information at lowertownbluesfestival.com