21st Annual Prairie Dog Blues Festival, July 28 and 29, Prairie Du Chien, WI – featuring... :: RBA Publishing, Inc

Kevin Burt (2018 IBC Winner)
5:00pm

For the 1st time in the 34 year history of The International Blues Challenge held in Memphis, TN, Kevin Burt from Waterloo, IA representing the Central Iowa Blues Society won 1st place in not only the solo/duo competition, but he won best solo/duo guitarist, and the Lee Oskar Award for Best Harmonica Player! For more than 25 years Kevin B.F. Burt has been electrifying audiences throughout the Midwest dispelling the myth that true blues has no roots in Iowa. His soul-inspired presentation is unique which consistently gets him compared to a range of artists like Bill Withers and Aaron Neville, with the ability to build an audience rapport that has been compared to B.B. King. Kevin is a self-taught musician (vocals, harmonica, and guitar). His voice and presence are powerful. Though he performs between 325 and 400 shows a year, he holds nothing back night after night and audiences leave knowing that.

Altered Five Blues Band
7:00pm

From day one, Altered Five dared to be different. The quintet formed in 2002 and earned a reputation for its inventive arrangements and distinctive sound winning over audiences with a swaggering stomp of bruising, barrelhouse grit. Blues Bytes magazine declares the group features the funkiest rhythm section outside of Memphis.

In the ensuing years, Altered Five turned its attention to recording and performing its own material. Their third album, Cryin Mercy, an 11-song set is a fierce collection of original, contemporary blues fused with vintage soul. The album earned the band two Blues Blast Award nominations and five WAMI Award nominations, including Artist of the Year, Album of the Year, and Song of the Year. It reached #3 in the iTunes blues store, hit #1 on the Roots Music Report blues album chart, and won Best Self-Released CD at the 2015 International Blues Challenge. The song, Find My Wings,also made it to the finals of the International Songwriting Competition.

Their fourth album, Charmed & Dangerous, the Milwaukee-based quintet joined forces with Blind Pig Records, one of the world premiere blues labels. Produced by multi-Grammy-winner Tom Hambridge, the 13 tracks of original, contemporary blues prove worthy of the recent groundswell of acclaim. American Blues Scene stated the album, will be making huge waves... one of the year's best! The Blues Foundation in January of this year announced the band is nominated for a prestigious Blues Music Award in the category of Best Emerging Artist Album.

Josh Hoyer & Soul Colossal
9:00pm

Josh Hoyer & Soul Colossal's combination of soul, funk and R&B is in a word, electric and is best displayed in their high-energy live show. If James Brown and Otis Redding had a love child, it would be Josh Hoyer. Blending Hoyer's honest lyrics and his rich, intensely soulful vocals with his top-notch band, creates an undeniable chemistry. Hoyer formed Josh Hoyer & Soul Colossal in 2012 in Lincoln, Nebraska. The award-winning five piece band includes some of the areas most revered and accomplished musicians. Inspired by the sounds of Stax, Motown, Muscle Shoals, New Orleans, Philly and San Francisco, the band continuously crosses musical boundaries both in style and era, and joins forces each show with a common goal - to have the crowd dancing so much they forget even their smallest troubles.

In 2017, Josh was featured as a contestant on NBC's The Voice, and the band completed their first European tour; a 27-city stint capped with a live album release from their show in Brussels, Belgium. The hard working band completed several national tours from 2015-2017, playing more than 150 shows in 32 states annually, including several major summer music festivals!

Samantha Fish
11:00pm
Samantha Fish has been on a roll ever since she teamed up with Cassie Taylor and Dani Wilde on 2011's release, Girls With Guitars and fueled by the trio's Blues Caravan tour of Europe and the U.S. Later that same year she recorded her debut album Runaway. The blues and rock press hailed the album as a thrilling opening statement, earning rave reviews and radio airplay, climaxed by her winning the Blues Music Award for Best New Artist Debut in 2012. Growing up in a musical family in Kansas City, Missouri, she became obsessed with music in early life, taking up drums before switching to guitar at the age of 15. After launching her recording career in 2009, Samantha Fish quickly established herself as a rising star in the contemporary blues world. Since then, the charismatic young singer-guitarist- songwriter has earned a reputation as a rising guitar hero and powerful live performer, while releasing a series of acclaimed albums that have shown her restless creative spirit consistently taking her in new and exciting musical directions. As far as Samantha Fish is concerned, her musical future is an open road. I'm never gonna be a traditional blues artist, because that's not who I am,she asserts. But it's all the blues for me. When Muddy Waters and Howlin Wolf came out, what they were doing didn't sound like anything that had been done in blues before. You've gotta keep that kind of fire and spirit. I'm never gonna do Muddy Waters better than Muddy Waters, so I have to be who I am and find my best voice. You should always get outside of the box, Samantha Fish says while discussing her boundary-breaking new album Belle of the West. Challenging yourself is how you grow.”

Paul DesLauriers Band
Under the Tent

This blues/rock band was crowned 2018 Entertainer of the Year for the second year in a row at the 21st annual Maple Blues Awards held in Toronto, Canada; in 2017 along with Entertainer of the Year, they also won the Maple Blues Awards for Electric Act of the Year, Bassist of the Year (Greg Morency) and Drummer of the Year (Sam Harrisson). In 2016 the band took 2nd place at the 32nd International Blues Challenge (IBC), besting 119 bands competing for a spot on the podium.

They are currently touring Canada, the USA and Europe in support of the album with notable performances past and present that include the Big Blues Bender in Las Vegas NV, the Montreal International Jazz Festival, the Tremblant International Blues Festival, Ottawa BluesFest and the Daytona Blues Festival among many others. Undeniably part of Canada's musical elite, all three members are regular nominees and winners at the Maple Blues Awards and Quebec Lys Blues Awards.

Mama's Worry
12:30pm

Local musicians Jeff Welter and Mel Wild, having just returned home from living in Austin, Texas, formed Mama's Worry in the summer of 1978 and their first gig was the River Queen Bar in Mc- Gregor, Iowa (now Josie's River Queen). Mel says he got the name from a club he played by the same name in Beaumont, Texas. Mama's Worry played their upper Mississippi River brand of good rockin' rhythm and blues through out the Midwest, including appearing at the first three Prairie Dog Blues Fests. In 1999, Mama's Worry released their CD titled, Good Rockin' Blues Tonight, featuring all original music by the group. For most of Mama's Worrys history the band consisted of all local musicians: Jeff Welter (lead vocals, guitar, harmonica), Mel Wild (lead vocals, lead guitar), Bill Obmascher (bass, vocals), Mike Kricke (drums), and Randy Lucas (sax, vocals). Today, Jeff and Mel continue playing as Mama's Worry and the other fellas join in occasionally. Joining Jeff and Mel for the Prairie Dog Blues Fest this year will be Richard Palucci (saxophone, keyboard), Kendall Techau (bass, vocals), and Tim Wilson (drums). This year marks the 40th anniversary for Mama's Worry, and you can still hear their soulful sets as they perform for special events in the area.

Two-time Grammy nominated artist and American blues legend John Primer was the bandleader and guitarist for Muddy Waters, Willie Dixon and Magic Slim & The Teardrops. Having played or recorded with a who's who of blues greats including Junior Wells, Gary Clark Jr., Derek Trucks, Johnny Winter, The Rolling Stones and Buddy Guy to name a few, John Primer's personal accolades, including a Lifetime Achievement Award, reflect his countless contributions to the history of Chicago blues. John's father died tragically in Mississippi when he was young. When his mother found work in Chicago, John followed, bringing the sounds and spirit of Mississippi with him in 1963. Falling for the music of both the city's west and south sides, John fronted his first band, The Maintainers. He was asked to join and eventually lead the house band at the world famous Theresa's Lounge in 1974. Over the next seven years, John would play with such blues originators as: Sammy Lawhorn, Junior Wells, Buddy Guy, Smokey Smothers, Lonnie Brooks and many others shaping the foundations of the Chicago blues to come.

John Primer has undisputedly helped build the sound and style of Chicago blues as we know it today. The echos of tradition bellowing from the birthplaces he played such as: Maxwell Street, Theresa's, Checkerboard and Rosa's Lounges, pulse from every chord in his fingers today. John Primer is a Chicago Blues Living Legend. He has received 2 Living Legend honors as well as a Blues Music Award for Best Traditional Blues Artist from the National Blues Foundation. There are very few fans, critics or musicians who will deny the fact that John Primer is the real deal.

Corey Dennison Band
4:30pm

The Corey Dennison Band has become a favorite attraction at Chicago blues venues, including twice-weekly appearances at Kingston Mines. Led by Corey Dennison's soulful voice and muscular guitar, the band released its self-titled debut for the legendary Delmark Records in 2016 after honing 13 original songs night after night on the bandstand. Corey's decade-long stint with Carl Weathersby and Gerry Hundt's tenure with Nick Moss are evident on the disc but blend effortlessly into a dynamic new Chicago sound, anchored by Aaron Whittier and drummer Joel Baer. Critics responded favorably as the album garnered glowing reviews and constant worldwide airplay, netting chart positions on the Roots Music and Living Blues Radio Reports. Nominations followed, with a nod for Best Emerging Artist from the Blues Music Awards, a pair from Blues Blast Magazine, and Grammy balloting. This year the band received a BMA nomination for Best Contemporary Blues Album.

Scottie Miller Band
6:30pm

Twin Cities stalwart Scottie Miller has been around long enough to acquire a funky nickname (Bones), membership into the Minnesota Blues Hall of Fame, experience touring with blues icon Bo Diddley, and three-time Grammy nominated singer Ruthie Foster. He Co-wrote the song , I Was Called, with Ruthie Foster and it was featured on the 2018 release , Almost Home, by the six-time Grammy Award winning gospel group The Blind Boys of Alabama. He has a signature style that is more reminiscent of the far south than of his northern home and an undeniable international reputation. His muscular vocals boast grit and ï¬rewater!

Dana Fuchs
8:30pm

Dana Fuchs life has been laced with triumph and tragedy and her backstory is as compelling as any in rock 'n' roll. For this purpose, we will focus on the Triumphs, but to really understand how this artist became what she is today, I would recommend reading the bio on her website. At the age of 19, Dana moved to New York City, her birthplace. One fateful day, she heard a guitar coming from a little club. Jon Diamond a heavyweight session guitarist who could boast credits with Joan Osborne was playing. I introduced myself to Jon, told him I thought he was great, and that I'd come to New York to be a singer. He invited me up to sing, and I faked Stormy Monday. Afterwards, he said, You have a good instrument, but you really need to learn what you're doing. After Jon exposed her to his blues vinyl collection, Dana's astonishing natural vocal prowess took on new depth and nuance. Together, Jon and Dana hit the Lower East Side's live circuit like a wrecking ball, holding their own on bills featuring titans like James Cotton and Taj Mahal. Drawn by the pair's original songs and incendiary performances, crowds were soon stretching round the block, at hot-spots like The Mercury Lounge & B.B. King's Blues Club. After being spotted by musicians from Broadway, Dana won the lead in the hit musical, Love, Janis, followed up by the role of Sadie in 2007's Golden Globe-nominated cult movie, Across The Universe. The demands of stage and screen inevitably impacted the band's output, but 6 albums later and tours around the world, Dana is going strong and we are happy to have her finally at The Prairie Dog!

Electric blues and rock fans searching for a new guitar hero need look no further than Terry Quiett, roaring from the heartland like a tornado. In just a few years the Terry Quiett Band has become a mainstay across America's Heartland. From 6th Street in Austin to the windy city of Chicago, through the mountains of Colorado, across the deserts of Arizona, jamming down on Beale Street in Memphis, wherever they go Terry has won over young and old with his energetic and soulful sound. During his journey Terry, has shared the stage with legends including Buddy Guy, Robert Cray, B.B. King, Jonny Lang, Kenny Wayne Shepherd, Johnny Winter, Walter Trout, Robin Trower, Tab Benoit, Robert Randolph, Bernard Allison, Big Head Todd and the Monsters, .38 Special, Dave Mason and Los Lonely Boys.

Based out of Omaha, Nebraska Kris Lager Band has been zig zagging the country spreading their brand of Feel Good Funk & Heavy Soul for over 15 years. KLB's latest album is already garnering rave reviews and airplay all over the world and was mixed by Grammy Award Winning Producer, Jim Gaines (Santana, Van Morrison, Steve Miller, Stevie Ray Vaughan). Kris Lager Band is quietly establishing themselves as one of the most storied and treasured groups in the Midwest's music scene. They honed their skills for many years in and around Nebraska when in 2007 they were invited to hit the road as Indigenous. They backed up frontman and guitar hero, Mato Nanji for over two years. A genuine musical journeyman, Kris Lager brings a feel good musical experience everywhere he goes. One of those rare and dynamic performers who deliver a combination of musical ability and charisma creating a fun and interactive show laced with road tested songs, and contagious grooves.

Prairie Du Chien, Wisconsin, USA