WHITE MOUNTAIN BOOGIE AND BLUES 2009

Candye Kane made a lot of people cry with her story...

Subscriber Dave Ostman gets a CD and an autograph!

Dani Wilde gave it her all, which is her way...

The Delta Generators are beoming a very popular local band.
They sold out all their CDs!

Brad Benton talks to Tommy Castro after he autographs
the guitars Brad and Mike raffled off.

Racky Thomas opened the showwith an "acoustic" set. Very nice.

2008

The mountains are gorgeous up in Thornton, NH. This is the White Mountain range,
hence the name, the White Mountain Boogie and Blues Festival!
The distance is worth it, you get to see such great vistas of ranges of HUGE mountains.
I live in the Monadnock Region of NH and we have a nice mountain,
Mt Monadnock, cool because it is a mountain with no range,
but it is nothing like the White Mountains. this range is comprised of some really BIG mountains.

The Festival is just the right size. Lots of people but not too many people. They have food vendors, you can bring a cooler and a lawn chair and sit outside or under a communal tent up on the hill overlooking the festival stage and climbing wall. It is a very comfortable festival, really laid back and un threatening. All sorts of people just loving this music!

The weather was beautiful for this year's weekend event and there were record crowds.
The musicians were kept busy for hours after their sets, selling and signing hundreds of CDs in the autograph tent. The Blues Audience table was in there as well. Brad is so good to me.
It was very cozy in our shared tent, I tried to mostly stay out of the way. I did get to witness Watermelon Slim being offered a spoonful of watermelon, right out of the shell.
I think it had vodka in it or something judging from his reaction!
(roll your mouse over the picture)

Watermelon Slim played a great set.
He plays pedal steele slide and harmonica and sings.
He has a friendly, earthy, gritty, gravely voice with a very spitty way of singing.
At first when I heard him on recordings, I thought he had a speech impediment,
but I have since found out that he has no upper teeth,
as witnessed by the cover of his newest CD NO PAID HOLIDAYS.
Slim has a great self-effacing sense of humor about it all,
it can't be easy, but that doesn't stop Watermelon Slim!

He told me that he lived and worked in the Boston area many years ago
and that he started the Boston Blues Society with Holly Harris.
Now that is the second musician who said that,
I have heard Rick Russell say the same thing, I am sure they are both right.

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Janiva Magness and her very handsome and sexy guitar player, Zach Zunis, won the hearts of all the people at the WMBBF. They had such a great time together Janiva dancing and singing, Zach playing inspired guitar to her vocals.

photo by Subscriber, Jim Langley- 2008


Janiva has a great band with Benny Yee on keyboards and organ adding a lot of flair and pizazz to their set. The bass player Gary Davenport has been with Janiva for 5 years, and the new drummer at this show was Tom Fillman, he was right on the money with the stops, not like the drummer she had in Rockland who didn't get it.

I had seen with Janiva before, up at The House Rockin' Productions show in Franklin, NH over a year ago. Janiva's husband, Jeff Turmes is an outstanding songwriter. He wrote the song "You Sound Pretty Good" for Janiva and it is worth the price of the CD. It is about the music industry and how the agents and representatives of the record companies tak to an artist, such as Janiva, when she was 24 years old!
It is an impressive song and she does it so well!

She does a great rendition of it at festivals when she can tell the story behind it.
Really special, wonderful. She told us how she is 51 and a grandmother, she showed us her arms and "no under arm flab" it is true, she is very good shape and she made instant friends with all the women in the crowd, all of whom have VERY good arms!

There were so many other great acts: Mr. Nick's Queen City Kings, Albert Castiglia, Rod Piazza... see more and find out more about WMBBF

Last Year

It was a FABULOUS Weekend (2007)

s
pictured here are just a few of the acts that were on hand for the weekend!
See more about it at the WMBBF website

2007

Robert Day (House Rockin' Productions) and Brad Benton (WMBBF)

The Sapporitos love the blues

The Love Dogs

Chris Fitz

Albert Cummings