He is set to swap the Windy City for a mid-Norfolk town, but the arrival of blues star Mud Morganfield to this year's Dereham Blues Festival is being heralded as a major coup for the region.
Chicago blues maestro Morganfield, the eldest son of Muddy Waters and Mildred McGhee, plays to sell out audiences around the world, but on Thursday, July 9, he will play at Dereham's Memorial Hall to kickstart the event which has become a must for all blues music lovers.
Now in its third year, the Dereham Blues Festival, organised by Norfolk Blues Society (NBS), is once again expecting to welcome music fans from across the country.
Morganfield will be supported by NBS house band The Shunters, with guest host Paul Tinkler.Organisers Stewart and Doreen Aitken are also pleased to see the return of the Gemini to the list of venues. They would like to add one more venue to the current list of eleven venues so the festival could be the only 'Twelve bars of Blues' festival in the country.
So far, they have The Gemini, The Cherry Tree, The George, The Standard, Heroes Sports Bar, The Bull, Red Lion, The Railway Tavern, The Kings Head, The Plough, and Dereham Railway Station.
The opening concert has been moved to the Thursday night to extend the festival from three dates to four. This will give the audience a chance to see Mud Morganfield and still be able to see the start of the main festival on the Friday night, which will feature the best blues bands in the region.
Tickets for Mud Morganfield will not go on sale until NBS members have had their priority booking week in April. They will then go on sale to the general public online through the Festival website www.derehambluesfestival.org and through Sounds Music in Dereham.
Are you organising an event? Email kathryn.cross@archant.co.uk
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