We’ve not only got a great blues guitarist and singer coming to the Palladium Side Door this Friday, the show is also the first of what we hope will be a great partnership with the Suncoast Blues Society.
The Palladium and SBS are co-producing Friday night’s Side Door show with the legendary New Orleans blues man, Bryan Lee and his Blues Power Band. Showtime is 8 p.m. Tickets are available at the door or at the Palladium box office.
The story below is reprinted from the latest edition of the 12 Bar Rag, SBS’s newsletter. We’re very excited with this new partnership and happy that Tampa Bay blues fans are telling us the Side Door our Side Door Cabaret is their favorite place to hear some blues.
Here’s the SBS story:
We are pleased that after several months of discussion, the Suncoast Blues Society and the Palladium Theater will be co-hosting the first show of what will hope will be a wonderful partnership between the two outstanding organizations.
Past President Ken Torvik set-up the first meeting between Suncoast Entertainment Director Mark Thompson and Paul Wilborn, the executive Director of the Palladium Theater. After working out the details of the partnership, an agreement was reached to hold our first joint venture.
On Friday, November 22, the outstanding blues singer and guitarist Bryan Lee will be appearing at the Side Door along with his outstanding Blues Power Band, comprised of Brent Johnson on guitar, John Perkins on drums, and Nick Hern on bass. Showtime is 8 p.m. Tickets are $12 in advance and $15 the day of the show. Suncoast members will be able to purchase tickets at the door for the advance price if the show is not sold out.
Originally from Wisconsin, Bryan lost his sight at the age of eight. He started playing guitar and was soon captivated by the primal music he managed to pick-up late at night on his radio. Hearing songs by Muddy Waters and Elmore James turned Bryan towards the blues. Bryan and his band gigged around Wisconsin, getting the chance to open for Muddy Waters at Milwaukee’s annual Summerfest celebration.
In 1982, Bryan relocated to New Orleans, where he quickly became the toast of Bourbon Street. His long-running gig at the Old Absinthe House was tough – five sets a night, six days a week running into the early morning hours. But the exposure spread word about Lee’s talent and skills all over the world. One night, a thirteen year old aspiring guitarist asked to sit in. Bryan welcomed the young man to the stage and treated him like a veteran musician. That was the start of Bryan’s friendship with Kenny Wayne Shepherd.
Known as the Braille Blues Daddy, Bryan has been touring steadily in recent years, giving audiences all over the world a taste of his soulful singing and memorable guitar playing. His set list features plenty of vibrant original songs that honor the tradition while including a touch of Bryan’s insights into love, money, and life itself. With more than a dozen critically acclaimed recordings to his credit, Bryan has proven time and again that he deserves consideration for status as a “living legend” – as Muddy Waters once predicted.
Bryan’s latest release, Play One for Me on Severn Records, is full of passionate performances from Lee on six originals plus a hard-hitting cover of Willie Dixon’s “Evil is Going On” and a finely etched tribute on “Aretha (Sing One for Me)”. He gets expert backing from the Severn house band and special guests Kim Wilson and Johnny Moeller from the Fabulous Thunderbirds.
We hope you will make plans to be there for this amazing night of blues music and lend your support to the new venture with the Palladium organization.
Thanks again to Ken Torvik for getting this partnership started. Also, a warm round of applause for Paul Wilborn for his willingness to join forces with Suncoast to offer area listeners the best in live blues music!
See you at the Side Door on Friday, November 22.
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