Quantcast

The DNAinfo archives brought to you by WNYC.
Read the press release here.

Blues Festival Debuts Downtown

By Della Hasselle | July 25, 2011 12:06pm | Updated on July 25, 2011 1:11pm

LOWER MANHATTAN — New York's largest free blues festival is about to play for the first time Thursday in Downtown's World Financial Center.

The Lowdown Hudson Blues Festival will be a celebration of all things blues, complete with top-notch music, art and food and set against the backdrop of the Hudson River.

"We wanted to kick it off by celebrating the genre’s deep roots in all aspects of American culture, beyond just music,” said Debra Simon, Artistic Director of the Arts World Financial Center.

“We’re thrilled to bring audiences a complete blues experience where they can catch some of the best blues artists around.”

Celebrated musician Taj Mahal, a Grammy Award winner and international star who has collaborated with Ry Cooder, the Rolling Stones, Etta James and Eric Clapton, will kick off the event Thursday night.

James Blood Ulmer will also play.
James Blood Ulmer will also play.
View Full Caption
Courtesy of the Lowdown Blues Festival

James Blood Ulmer, a South Carolina man and guitar hero, will also strum it out with a newer generation of blues aficiadonos, a group that includes heroes Amy LaVere, The Growlers and The Beauties.

Other artists will gather from farther south than the Delta, and as far north as Canada to bring some soul to the Big Apple, including New Orleans piano legend Henry Butler and soul prodigy Ryan Shaw, an artist who has also been nominated for two Grammy's.

To see the full schedule of events for the Lowdown Hudson Blues Festival, please click here.