The Pittsburgh Blues and Roots Festival is an American music festival that features local and nationally renowned

blues Blues is a music genre and musical form which originated in the Deep South of the United States around the 1860s. Blues incorporated spirituals, work songs, field hollers, shouts, chants, and rhymed simple narrative ballads from the Afr ...

musicians in performance in

Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, Allegheny County. It is the most populous city in both Allegheny County and Wester ...

. It is one of the region's "marquee annual concerts."

History

The inaugural event took place at the Riverplex at

Sandcastle Waterpark Sandcastle Waterpark is a water park located in the Pittsburgh suburb of West Homestead. The park is located on a piece of land along the banks of the Monongahela River. Sandcastle is owned by Palace Entertainment, subsidiary of Spain-based Pa ...

,
and since then has been held at

Hartwood Acres Park Hartwood Acres is a county park in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, Allegheny County, Pennsylvania in the United States. Hartwood is considered the crown jewel of the county's network of nine distinct parks. Purchased by the county in 1969, its ...

and at the

Iron City Brewing Company Pittsburgh Brewing Company (formerly known as Iron City Brewing Company) is a beer company headquartered in the Lawrenceville neighborhood of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States best known for producing brands such as Iron City Beer, I.C ...

factory. Proceeds from the event benefit charity. The Greater Pittsburgh Community Food Bank had been the recipient of the proceeds until 2017 when Band Together Pittsburgh, a local nonprofit that teaches those on the autism spectrum all about playing, writing, recording and even DJing music. It offers programs throughout the year to help those on the spectrum learn the magic of music. It is now held yearly at The Shriners Pavilion in Cheswick, Pennsylvania and is held over two days in the summer. There was no festival in 2020.

Previous acts

Many musicians have previously performed at the Pittsburgh Blues Festival:

Koko Taylor Koko Taylor (born Cora Anna Walton, September 28, 1928 – June 3, 2009) was an American singer whose style encompassed Chicago blues, electric blues, rhythm and blues and soul blues. Sometimes called "The Queen of the Blues", she was known for ...

Taj Mahal The Taj Mahal (; ) is an Islamic ivory-white marble mausoleum on the right bank of the river Yamuna in the Indian city of Agra. It was commissioned in 1631 by the Mughal emperor Shah Jahan () to house the tomb of his favourite wife, Mu ...

John Mayall John Mayall, OBE (born 29 November 1933) is an English blues singer, musician and songwriter, whose musical career spans over sixty years. In the 1960s, he was the founder of John Mayall & the Bluesbreakers, a band that has counted among it ...

Gatemouth Brown Gatemouth is an affectionate name for one who talks too much. Gatemouth can refer to: * Clarence "Gatemouth" Brown U.S. R&B singer * Arnold Moore, Arnold "Gatemouth" Moore U.S. singer * Louis Armstrong was nicknamed "Gatemouth" early in his career ...

Devon Allman Devon Allman (born August 10, 1972) is an American guitarist, vocalist, keyboardist, songwriter, and record producer. He is the son of musician Gregg Allman and has appeared occasionally as a guest musician for Gregg Allman and The Allman Brother ...

Bernard Allison Bernard Allison (born November 26, 1965) is an American blues guitarist, based out of Paris, France. Biography Bernard Allison was born in Chicago, Illinois, United States. His father, Luther Allison, was a Chicago blues musician. Allison moved ...

, Guy Davis, and

Robert Cray Robert William Cray (born August 1, 1953) is an American blues guitarist and singer. He has led his own band and won five Grammy Awards. Early life Robert Cray was born on August 1, 1953, in Columbus, Georgia, while his father was stationed at ...

Kidzone

The kidzone is a fairly new attraction of the Pittsburgh Blues Festival. Thanks to a few of the event's many sponsors, the Kidzone tent at the festival accommodates a wide range of children activities including story-telling, face painting, musical presentations, and crafts. The kidzone also provides healthy snacks.

References

External links

Pittsburgh Blues Festival
* Music festivals established in 1994 Festivals in Pittsburgh Blues festivals in the United States Folk festivals in the United States Music festivals in Pennsylvania {{DEFAULTSORT:Pittsburgh Blues and Roots Festival

History

Previous acts

Kidzone

See also

References

External links