Feb. 6, 2003 – Frederiksted is readying itself for the arrival next week of 1,500 passengers aboard the "Legendary Rhythm and Blues Cruise" ship Melody for an afternoon and evening of big-name acts and entertainment.
The festival kicks off at 3:30 p.m. Tuesday afternoon at Paul E. Joseph Stadium with the local quelbe sounds of Stanley and the Ten Sleepless Knights. Next, a group from the boat will take the stage, Saffire — The Uppity Blues Women.
They're to be followed, in order of appearance, by L'il Ed with The BelAirs, Jimmy Thackery and the Drivers, Taj Mahal and Tyrone Davis, and the Platinum Band. Reverend Billy C. Wirtz will emcee the show.
Our Town Frederiksted is in charge of organizing the festival, which is expected to cost $35,000 to put together, according to St. Croix's Charlie Campbell, who has organized previous cruise ship-connected blues festivals on the island and was hired by Our Town Frederiksted to put together the musical talent for this one.
The seven-day cruise, out of Fort Lauderdale, Florida, will feature some 40 on-board performances. Just three ports of call are scheduled — Puerto Plata on the northern coast of the Dominican Republic on Feb. 9, St. Croix on Feb. 11 and at Tortola on Feb. 12.
Admission to the stadium is $10 in advance and will be $15 at the gate. Advance tickets outlets are the Sunset Grill and the Lost Dog Pub in Frederiksted, Pancho's in Sunny Isle, SCUBA at the Carvelle Arcade and Solitude Store on the East End.
According to a Campbell associate, anyone traveling from St. Thomas to attend the festival will get a free admission ticket if they take a Seaborne Airlines flight departing between 9:30 a.m. and 2:30 p.m. Tuesday.
Prior to the fest itself, Virgin Islanders can check out several acts at "tune-up" parties on St. Thomas and St. Croix.
On Friday, Jimmy Thackery and the Drivers, along with Wirtz, will appear at 8 p.m. at J'Kays Restaurant in Tillett Gardens. Tickets are $20.
On Saturday, the show moves to the Lobster Reef Café on St. Croix's North Shore, beginning at 4 p.m. The Shades of Blues and the Queen of Boogie Woogie, Windy DeWitt, also will play at the Lobster Reef. Attendees are encouraged to bring blankets and lawn chairs; admission is $10, at the gate only.
Word from an Uppity Blues Woman
One of the three members of Saffire — The Uppity Blues Women
Speaking by telephone from Virginia, Andra Faye said she is looking forward to returning to St. Croix for her second visit to the festival. The band played one of the early St. Croix Blues festivals years ago, she said.
"I loved it there; the people were great," Faye said. "We're leaving the next day, and that's not nearly enough time."
For the trio, St. Croix is the end of the Blues Cruise. Because of other commitments, they have to leave the ship and fly back to Virginia on Feb. 12 to do some gigs there, Faye said.
The three Uppity Women will be offering up their own brand of blues for the residents of St. Croix, Faye said. "We're women of a certain age with different experiences, sort of a diverse group — we like to call our music a 'blues stew,'" she said.
Tuesday show-goers can expect "a trip through our warped little minds," Faye said. "We deal with love, loss and pain, but we try to do it with humor. Hopefully we'll have them laughing and crying."
Faye sings and plays bass, fiddle, mandolin and guitar. Ann Rabson does vocals, piano or keyboards and guitar. Gaye Adegbalola plays guitar and harmonica and also sings.
A lot of their music is original, Faye said, but the group also performs a lot of old blues songs not done much by other groups. "We also have what we like to call blues 'chestnuts,' the songs everyone wants to hear," she said. "Ann has a great boogie woogie piano thing going. We're basically an acoustic act — it's a different sound. You can hear the words, but you can still dance to us."
To learn more, check out the Uppity Blues Women Web site.
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