Growing Up Blue

Young talent colors festival expansion...

Samantha Fish initially turned heads as a young woman in an older man's game.

That was never her goal.

FYI

Blues in the Natural State

The Blues in the Natural State Festival is growing, and at least by a third. Last year’s two-day festival has expanded into a third day in 2014, courtesy of the partnership with First Thursday Fayetteville. Roger Plourde, president of the Ozark Blues Society, says he hopes the free show will draw attention to the paid events happening throughout the weekend. Already, word is getting out. Once a locally focused festival, Blues in the Natural state will this year bring fans from Illinois, Missouri, Oklahoma and distant parts of Arkansas. This year’s focus on booking marquee acts has more than doubled the rate of advance ticket sales of last year, Plourde says.

Thursday

7 p.m. — Brick Fields and the Chosen Ones, Fayetteville square (free)

7 p.m. — Samantha Fish, Fayetteville square (free)

April 4

6-8 p.m. — Earl & Them, George’s Majestic Lounge

7-9 p.m. — Isayah’s Allstars, George’s

9 p.m. — Samatha Fish, George’s

10:30 p.m. — Royal Southern Brotherhood, George’s

April 5

4 p.m. — Lucious Spiller, 324 Ballroom

4:30 p.m. — Levee Town, Smoke & Barrel Tavern

5:15 p.m. — Little Joe McLerran, 324 Ballroom

6 p.m. — Leah & The Mojo Doctors, Smoke & Barrel Tavern

6 p.m. — The Downtown Livewires, George’s

6:30 p.m. — Ray Bonneville, 324 Ballroom

7 p.m. — RJ Mischo and his Red Hot Blues Band

7:30 p.m. — Jigsaw Mud, George’s

8:30 p.m. — The Cate Brothers, George’s

10 p.m. — Tab Benoit, George’s

Midnight — Steve Pryor, George’s

FAQ

Blues in the Natural State

WHEN — April 3-5

WHERE — Various venues in Fayetteville

COST — $15-$25 per day; tickets for the festival are available only as a full-day pass with one exception — the shows happening during George’s Majestic Lounge Happy Hour from 6-9 p.m. April 4 will cost $5, just like they do every week.

INFO — ozarkbluessociety.o…

"I want to be known as a good songwriter, and for my guitar playing," says the Kansas City, Kan., native.

Both of those traits were put on display in her last release, September's "Black Wind Howlin.'" It's the one she'll highlight during a pair of shows next weekend in Fayetteville. She plays a free show on Thursday night as part of First Thursday on the square and then joins the Royal Southern Brotherhood for a show on April 4. Like her Thursday night show, Friday's takes place as part of the Blues in the Natural State event. The three-day event returns from Thursday through April 5 and takes place at venues such as George's Majestic Lounge, Smoke & Barrel Tavern and the 324 Ballroom. Other guests include Ray Bonneville, Earl & Them, Steve Pryor and Tab Benoit.

Fish says "Black Wind Howlin'" more effectively captures her intended sound.

"The technique starts to catch up to the ideas," she says.

Even though she's still in her mid-20s, she's had a lot of work on that technique. She started early on the Kansas City club scene, jamming with long-term members when she turned 18. Now her music reflects some of her earliest influences, from the classic rock/pop of Tom Petty to the songwriting of John Hiatt and the powerful, raw playing of bluesman R.L. Burnside.

She's parlayed her music into a budding blues career, and she returns to a town where she played for almost 2,000 people during a show at Bikes, Blues & BBQ last September. And maybe that's what she's best known for -- her incendiary live show.

"You want to give them shows to remember. That's what keeps you going," she says.

NAN What's Up on 03/28/2014

Upcoming Events