By Melissa Gaudette
A power outage abruptly ended the opening night of the 9th Annual Blues Festival on Friday July 9, which was held at Marina Park. As Robert Randolph was ending his unbelievably great set, a main transformer broke causing part of the stage to lose power. A disappointed Randolph left the stage and the band waited until it was confirmed that the rest of the set was cancelled. Luckily, there were only two songs left on their set list, so the audience was privy to see the majority of the musical talent.
Immediately, crew attempted to fix the outage and Thunder Bay Hydro was quickly called. Bob Halvorson, General Manager of the Thunder Bay Community Auditorium, maintains optimistic about the outcome. He says that the power should be fixed quickly and hopefully will not cause anymore glitches with the Blues Fest. Up until the power outage, the Fest was amazing and well received; there were fantastic acts performing the first night.
Local musician Mark Potvin opened the Blues Festival this year with his always entertaining set. Potvin was joined onstage by his three sons who formed the brass section. Although his daughter was not present on stage last night, Potvin said he felt honoured playing along with his boys. Potvin’s performance last night marks his second appearance at the Blues Festival.
Because Michael Burks was unable to perform, Albert Cummings took the spotlight on stage. With his strong vocals and solid bass lines, Cummings warmed the crowd up. Towards the end of his set, and as a preview for Saturday, Cummings asked “one of [his] idols,” Jimmy Thackery to perform with him. Ending his set, Cummings covered Zepplin and Hendrix.
Within the first few meters, Robert Randolph captured the crowd. The band’s charisma and genuine talent lit up the stage. Randolph thanked the coordinators and crowd for performing last night, adding that the Northern climate was new for him. Randolph said that he “never been somewhere where it’s daytime at 9:45 at night . . . feels good to be here.”
Randolph performed his hits: “If I Had My Way” and “Ain’t Nothing Wrong With That” and even tossed in a version of “When the Saints Go Marching In,” which the audience loved. Lead singer and slide guitar player, Robert Randolph brought his own set of dance moves and it was rare to not see him smile. The band’s enthusiasm and love of performing made for one entertaining performance, even with the outage.
photos by Dave Koski
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