6th Annual Blues, Brews & BBQ
2023 Festival Recap
SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 17, 2023
12pm-6pm
Free & Family Friendly
NEW LOCATION: 740 Central Ave.
Washington Park with acres of green space, easy access, and great facilities!
Alameda’s favorite music festival, Blues, Brews & BBQ, returns for its 6th edition bringing together world-class Blues musicians, a myriad of local craft breweries, and smoking BBQ vendors. Drink packages will be offered so you can sample from over a dozen craft beers plus local wines or inspired cocktails.
In addition to the festivities, attendees will have the opportunity to peruse locally-crafted wares from Bay Area vendors. Kids can get crafty and stay engaged at the Family Zone.
Brewers include: Alameda Island Brewing Co., Ballast Point Brewing, Bear Republic, Berryessa Brewing, Boochcraft Organic Hard Kombucha, Deschutes Brewery, Faction Brewing, Hop Valley Brewing, Kona Big Wave, Oakland United Beerworks, Sierra Nevada Brewing Co., Stella Artois, and more.
Spirits include: Absolut, Jameson, Malibu, Teremana, and more.
Past BBQ and food vendors include: Phat Matt’s Barbecue, The Locos Truck, Roderick’s Barbecue Truck, Uncle Willie’s Original Barbecue and Fish, Speer Family Barbecue, Mae Mae’s Kitchen, The Cupcake Shoppe, Hook You Up Catering & Barbecue, Got Italian Ice, Tante’s, Shannon Cooks, Vegan Mob serving vegan barbecue, and more.
VOLUNTEERS NEEDED! Our volunteers get 2 free drinks, an official Festival T-shirt (worth $25), snacks, and our heartfelt gratitude. Bonus: It's fun!
LIVE MUSIC
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“There is no blues band performing today as different as HowellDevine—nor as delightful.” — Lee Hildebrand, Living Blues Magazine/SF Chronicle
A triple threat talent, Joshua Howell (guitar, harmonica, vocals) and percussion savant, Pete Devine (drums, washboard), plus veteran upright bassist, Joe Kyle Jr. deftly mix rural blues with wildly syncopated rhythms to create a rollicking sound that stands in stark contrast to the typical blues heard these days.
The band was the first blues act signed by Chris Strachwitz to his legendary Arhoolie Records label in over 25 years, a testament to HowellDevine’s ability breathe life back into the early blues with their stamp of propulsive, hypnotic rhythms.
YouTube 1: youtu.be/pmwJib_tdrw
YouTube 2: youtu.be/Z5Bf_UpCHyQ
YouTube 3: youtu.be/jaDAqeD_ljs
Website: howelldevine.com
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Award winning California native Tia Carroll has quietly accumulated one of the most impressive entertainment resumes in the Bay Area and has become one of the most sought-after female singers on the West Coast.
Tia has headlined venues and festivals all over the world with her band as well as some very well-established host bands. She has shared stages with legends Ray Charles, Jimmy McCracklin, Syl Johnson, Sugar Pie DeSanto and B.B King, Tommy Castro, Elvin Bishop, Igor Prado, and Eric Gales.
She has earned a reputation for her up-beat and engaging manner on stage and audiences around the world are treated to an unforgettable show.
YouTube 1: youtu.be/2b-ehUf76wU
YouTube 2: youtu.be/Agg5zd13AAU
YouTube 3: youtu.be/XOU7ujDkqmE
Website: tiacarroll.net
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"San Jose’s reigning king of ‘Bollywood blues’ music." — San Jose Mercury News
Aki Kumar left his native home in Mumbai, India for the USA with the intention of working as a software engineer. Then he discovered the sounds of the blues.
Honing his music chops on the side for years, over time, he successfully blended elements of Indian music into his musical and visual presentation of the blues. Kumar has made multiple appearances at The Hardly Strictly Bluegrass festival, has been featured on PRI “The World,” and has toured in Russia, Scandinavia and South America.
His ground-breaking Little Village Foundation albums have garnered international critical acclaim. In 2019 Kumar signed with Sony Music India to release a blues-inspired, bi-lingual album "Dilruba".
YouTube 1: youtu.be/DNNs8i-NkiE
YouTube 2: youtu.be/fgerOzGhXDE
YouTube 3: youtu.be/d5XefrZrARU
Website: akikumar.com
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Attending a MJ’s Brass Boppers shows is the next best thing to following a brass band down New Orleans’ famed Claiborne Ave. The swinging and singing brass-line is the Bay Area’s only New Orleans-style brass band whose founding members were born and raised in New Orleans itself.
This group’s sound has been meticulously formed over years of practicing and experimenting together from concert halls to street corners, fusing classic cultural New Orleans performance with funk, jazz, modern pop, and a second line twist.
Since 2008, the tight knit musicians have written, practiced, and performed together at festivals, community events, nightclubs, and street corners around the Bay Area and beyond. They’ve opened for a variety of acts, including George Clinton & Funkadelic, The O’Jays, Trombone Shorty & Orleans Ave, Funky Meters, George Porter Jr., Zigaboo Modeliste, Kermit Ruffins, Katdelic, and many more. They offer a taste of authentic New Orleans style with a West Coast flair.
FESTIVAL AFTER PARTY ON WEBSTER ST.: MJs Brass Boppers will be closing out the festival by leading a 2nd Line parade from Washington Park to The Healing Garden (Webster Street & Taylor Avenue).
YouTube 1: youtu.be/fS24ZQp-XTw
YouTube 2: youtu.be/2vcZ07Z8feU
YouTube 3: youtu.be/8LoOFcSHRFg
Website: mjsbrassboppersband.com
Festival MC Dr. Loco
Meet this year’s Festival MC, Dr. Loco.
Jose Bernardo Cuellar (a.k.a. “Dr. Loco”) is a Chicano music performer and producer, ethnologist and Ethnic Studies educator with an Anthropology Doctorate (UCLA, 1977). The San Antonio, Texas native and long-time San Francisco, California resident serves as Francisco State University Professor Emeritus (since 2010), and performs with Dr. Loco’s Rockin’ Jalapeño Band (since 1988). Among his recent honors: Harvard University’s Hrdy Curatorial Fellow at Peabody Museum of Archaeology and Ethnology (2012), The San Francisco Mayor's Latino Heritage Arts Award (2014), the Loyal Order of Outstanding and Accomplished Texas Musicians (2016). University of California at Riverside’s Radio Aztlan Lifetime achievement Award (2019).
GOING GREEN
WEAD works hard to reduce the environmental impact of our events. In accordance with the City of Alameda's Disposable Food Ware ordinance, plastic single-use foodware is prohibited. To be able to serve you drinks without throwing out thousands of glasses, we provide glass beer mugs and wine glasses for the event. The glasses cost $4 each and can be purchased with your standard drinks tickets. If you prefer to bring your own glassware, that's fine by us! We just want to ensure that we're using less plastic, and that people hang on to their glasses so that they are not left around to be knocked over or broken during the day. All of our food vendors will serve your orders on disposable compostable-fiber food service ware.
A FESTIVAL WITH BIG IMPACT
Blues, Brews and BBQ is thrilled to showcase the inspirational work of Little Village Foundation, a 501(c)(3) organization which specializes in presenting different sounds and stories by often overlooked artists operating outside the mainstream. Looking to break the stranglehold of the large commercial record labels, Founder Jim Pugh imagined a donor-driven organization which could finance the recording of the music and an initial run of one thousand CDs for each artist they work with. The artists sell the albums themselves, keeping the profits, and Little Village maintains the copyrights to all of their recordings. Founded in 2015 (the same year as West End Arts District), Little Village Foundation supports the dreams of artists from nontraditional backgrounds who are working in genres with deep roots in American culture.
Blues Brews and BBQ is the brainchild of West End Arts District founder and president, Sandra Russell (owner of The Fireside Lounge). As WEAD’s main annual fundraising event, proceeds support many artistic endeavors throughout the year including providing support and fiscal sponsorship services to artists working in our local community. We invite you to join us, and enjoy knowing that your support has ripple effects in supporting the arts!
AFTER PARTY ON WEBSTER STREET
MJs Brass Boppers will be closing out the festival by leading a 2nd Line parade from Washington Park to The Healing Garden (Webster Street & Taylor Avenue). Join the parade (kids and not-so-young kids wanting to add some musical flair can head to the Kids crafting zone to make their own instruments with Thingamajigs during the day) and then continue the party with West Alameda Business Association at The Healing Garden, 1435 Webster St.
FESTIVAL FAQ’S
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Parking around Washington Park is limited. Where possible, we recommend coming by bike (drop it at our on site Bike Valet). Or take the bus (AC transit line 20 stops right at the park and the line 51 is 2 blocks away). Plan your bus trip here; your destination is 740 Central Avenue, Alameda.
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No, the festival is free and open to all. We encourage you to sign up on Eventbrite/ Facebook so that we can send you festival updates. Discounts on drinks packages are also available before 8/31 on Eventbrite.
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Yes, all areas of Washington Park are fully accessible. We encourage you to reach out to us at info@westendartsdistrict.org if you have specific access requirements &/or questions.
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There will be some seating at the event and some shaded areas. Feel free to bring a lawn chair as this is also a public park.
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Well-behaved dogs are welcome, in accordance with park regulations they must be kept on a leash. Should they need a bit of exercise, there is a dog park in lower Washington Park.
FOOD VENDORS & FESTIVAL SPONSORS
VENDORS: We are sold out for this year’s Blues, Brews & BBQ. Please consider vending at our upcoming Fiesta Alameda event.