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Johnny Rawls Headlines Boone Winter Blues Fest at the Boone Moose Lodge on Saturday, Jan. 24

By Madison Fisler Lewis

Jan. 22, 2015. Don’t let the winter weather get you down. On Saturday, Jan. 24, the Boone Winter Blues Fest will get you warmed up at the Boone Moose Lodge featuring “Most Outstanding Blues Singer 2014” Johnny Rawls. This “one of a kind event” will bring soul-blues right into the very heart of Boone.

BOONE WINTER BLUESFEST 3“This is not going to be a concert, it’s going to be a party!” said Rob Baskerville of The King Bees.

“It will be a party first and foremost. There will be great music, a lot of dancing and a great time.”

Starting at 7:30 p.m. the Boone Winter Blues Fest will feature local greats as well. Joining Johnny Rawls will be The King Bees, Hope Harvey and Mike Presnell Blues Duo and more!

Johnny Rawls is a National Blue Ridge Heritage Artist who at the 21st Annual Living Blues Awards critics poll was honored with Most Outstanding Blues Singer 2013 and Best Blues Album of the Year 2013 for “Red Cadillac.”

“The thing that was the catalyst for this event was our friend Johnny Rawls who has won multiple awards for blues and southern soul,” Baskerville said. “He called us up and wanted to put something together and that was what got us started on doing this. He is a very important guy in blues and he wanted to come to Boone. How could we say no?”

The King Bees are international blues artists from right here in the High Country, and local favorite Hope Harvey and Mike Presnell Blues Duo will round out the evening.

“We started out a while back doing this as part of WinterFest and now we have brought it back,” Baskerville said.

“It really seems like people are ready for some blues in the wintertime, something different than this area normally offers. So we are taking the momentum that we had before and bringing it into this new venue. There is a lot of interest and people really seem to be ready to chase the winter blues away, so this is our way of celebrating the winter weather.”

Tickets for this event will be $8 at the door and tickets will not be available in advance.The festival will feature a bull bar with beverages, and guests are welcome to bring snacks.

The Moose Lodge is located at 607 Deerfield Rd. in Boone.