BLUES N'AT

It’s summertime and that means festivals are popping up all over the tri-state area. Washington is no exception as they’ll be hosting the Whiskey Rebellion Festival on July 11-13. Friday, July 12 will be the annual Blues, Brews & BBQ show. The audience will be seeing (and hearing) red that night as Washington’s very own Ruby Red and the Dirty Devils kick off the evening’s festivities. They’ll be joining 2 legendary Pittsburgh blues bands, Jill West & Blues Attack and The Billy Price Band. I was fortunate enough to meet with 3/5 of the band, vocalist Kim Lucchini, keyboardist Jeff Kessel and guitarist/vocalist Tom Pollok. Although I wasn’t able to speak with bassist/vocalist Paul Kuzupas and drummer Kevin Hollinger, I did have the pleasure of finding out what drives this band to the bluesy rhythms that they provide fans. Billing themselves as an "eclectic electric blues band" their diverse musical tastes help form the ground work for their sound. Their influences range from the Rolling Stones and the Allman Brothers Band to Louis Armstrong and Ella Fitzgerald to the Clash and Saffire the Uppity Blues Women. As a matter of fact, Kim sights Saffire's Gaye Adegbalola as her mentor, or "blues mama" as she calls her. The band mentioned how fellow blues musicians near and far as well as the blues community as a whole have welcomed them with open arms via friendliness and encouragement. The Blues Society of Western Pennsylvania will even feature the original tune, Gypsy Blues, on their forthcoming Blues from the 'Burgh IV CD. But wait, there's more! There will even be a Ruby Red & The Dirty Devils CD out by 2014. If you can't wait for that, there's plenty of opportunities to catch their live shows in the coming months starting with the Whiskey Rebellion. You can get listings for their latest gigs as well as breaking news at rubyredandthedirtydevils.com or like them on their Facebook page. Yes, things are coming up rosy red for Ruby Red and the Dirty Devils.