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  • B.B. KING HEADLINES BLUES FESTIVAL AT HOLLYWOOD BOWL
  • Sep. 15, 2004
  • Lineup Includes Dr. John, Shemekia Copeland, Edgar Winter, and Elvin Bishop

    Wednesday, September 15, 2004, at 6 p.m.

    Sponsored by Lexus

    B.B. King, the reigning king of the blues, headlines the B.B. King Blues Festival, which returns to the Hollywood Bowl on Wednesday, September 15 at 6 p.m., with a stellar lineup featuring Dr. John, Shemekia Copeland, Edgar Winter, and Elvin Bishop. The evening is sponsored by Lexus, as part of the Lexus Passionate Performances series.

    The legendary B. B. KING is universally hailed one of the most important electric guitarists of the last half-century. Country and gospel music left an indelible impression on King's musical mindset as he matured, as did the styles of blues greats T-Bone Walker and Lonnie Johnson and jazz geniuses Charlie Christian and Django Reinhardt. King's immediately recognizable guitar style, utilizing a trademark trill that approximates the bottleneck sound shown him by cousin Bukka White, all those decades ago, has long set him apart from his contemporaries. Since 1946, he has been one of the busiest and most consistently satisfying live performers and still plays some 300 dates per year. B.B. King last performed at the Bowl in 2002.

    Born Mac Rebennack, DR. JOHN is a formidable boogie and blues pianist whose brand of New Orleans R & B, rock and Mardi Gras craziness has been a staple since the 1950s. He was also a session guitarist until a gun accident in the 1960s damaged his hand. After a lot of session work, he recorded the first of many of his own albums. He created his own record label Skinji Brim to issue his own archived live recordings and as well as other artists. His most recent EMI album, N'Awlinz: Dis Dat or D'Udda, is a perfect example of this Crescent City artist steeped in the roots music tradition. Dr. John last performed at the Bowl in 2001.

    The daughter of renowned Texas blues guitarist Johnny Copeland, SHEMEKIA COPELAND is a blues belter in the tradition of Etta James and Koko Taylor. Born in Harlem in 1979, she was encouraged to sing at an early age and her father brought her on stage at the Cotton Club at age eight. She began to pursue her singing career at age 16 and went on the road with her father, which helped her land her first record deal with blues label Alligator, where she has been ever since. She garnered rave reviews for her most recent album, Talking To Strangers, which was produced by Dr. John. Shemekia Copeland makes her Bowl debut.

    By the time EDGAR WINTER left his hometown of Beaumont, Texas in the 1960s, he was already technically proficient in every aspect of music. A child prodigy who achieved international success early on, Winter has found an audience in every major entertainment medium--music, film and television. He is a prolific writer whose music encompasses many different genres, including rock, jazz, blues, and pop. From his critically acclaimed 1970 debut release, Entrance, he has demonstrated his unique style and ability to cross the genre lines and do the unexpected. In late 1972, he brought together Dan Hartman, Ronnie Montrose and Chuck Ruff to form The Edgar Winter Group, the legendary band that created such hits as the number one Frankenstein and the ever popular Free Ride. Released in 1973, They Only Come Out at Night peaked at the number 3 position on the Billboard Hot 200 and stayed on the charts for an impressive 80 weeks. Edgar invented the keyboard body strap early in his career, an innovation that allows him the freedom to move around on stage during his multi-instrument high-energy performances. He was also the first artist to feature a synthesizer as the main instrument in a song. He has over 20 albums and numerous collaborative efforts to his credit.

    Blues guitarist ELVIN BISHOP was born in Glendale, California in 1942 but grew up on a farm in Iowa. It was not until he won a scholarship to the University of Chicago that his childhood love of the blues was realized and he dropped out of college to study blues guitar with Howlin' Wolf guitarist Smokey Smothers. In the '60s he formed the Butterfield Blues Band with Paul Butterfield and they played nationally for several years. Since then he has released his own albums which exemplify his unique style of slide guitar and fusion of blues, gospel, R & B, and country. His most recent album is From The Front Row: Live (Silverline).

    EDITORS PLEASE NOTE:

    Wednesday, September 15, at 6:00 p.m.

    B.B. King Blues Festival

    HOLLYWOOD BOWL, 2301 N. Highland Ave. in Hollywood

    B.B. King

    Dr. John

    Shemekia Copeland

    Edgar Winter

    Elvin Bishop

    The concert is a Lexus Passionate Performance

    Tickets ($1 - $88) are on sale now at the Hollywood Bowl Box Office, by calling Ticketmaster at 213.480.3232, at all Ticketmaster outlets (Robinsons May, Tower Records and Ritmo Latino locations), or online at HollywoodBowl.com. Groups of 12 or more may be eligible for a 20% discount, subject to availability; call 323.850.2050 for further details. For tickets, general information, or to request a brochure, call 323.850.2000.

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  • Contact:

    Laura Stegman, 310.645.1755; for photos: Amanda Ishak, 213.972.3409