| Mark Wendel photos
L-R: Kara Place of No Right Turn; Stephanie Rogers of Lady Bird and the Dirty Dirty Earth Worms; Dave Liles and Brett Mullins of Big Worm and the Nightcrawlers. |
ST. MARYS, OHIO -- Hundreds of blues fans packed the St. Marys Eagles Lodge on Sunday afternoon (May 18, 2008) to see the Finals competition of the Riverside Bluesfest 2008 Blues Challenge. After four hours of great music, "No Right Turn" was declared the winning band in a very close decision.
Four area bands competed to become the opening act of the Riverside Bluesfest, to take place in St. Marys at K.C. Geiger Park on Labor Day weekend. "M.C. Blue" and "Lady Bird & the Dirty Dirty Earthworms" both from Celina, Ohio; "Big Worm & the Nightcrawlers" from Delphos, Ohio; and "No Right Turn" from Lima, Ohio, had advanced to the finals from monthly preliminary rounds held in January through April.
Three people musically prominent in the area served as judges for the final event. Emily Schaaf is a music teacher at New Knoxville, Tim Townsend is an organizer and judge of the "Wish Upon A Song" talent competitions, and Bill "Blood" Jolliff is a well-known veteran of many popular area bands.
The least experienced band was a big surprise for many. "Lady Bird and the Dirty Dirty Earthworms" was formed just six months ago, and showed great improvement since their preliminary round appearance in February. Showcasing Stephanie Rogers' big bluesy voice on lead, they started the show on the right foot with blues classics ranging from Robert Johnson to Jonny Lang. "Lady Bird" impressed many and finished a close second in the judging.
The most experienced performers, "Big Worm and the Nightcrawlers," were up next. They warmed up with a couple of cross-genre songs, "Tulsa Time" and "Cold Outside", then broke into their judged set with a somewhat country version of "Sweet Home Chicago." Three solid blues numbers followed, highlighted by the sometimes dazzling duo guitar work of Dave "Big Worm" Liles and Brett Mullins: a Lynyrd Skynyrd rarity called "Mr. Banker," "One Foot On The Path" from Kenny Wayne Shepherd and Stevie Ray Vaughan's cover of "The Sky Is Crying."
Perhaps the day's biggest surprise, if not outright shock for many "Big Worm" fans, was the band's third-place finish in the judging. Read about their March preliminary round performance.
The third band to play was "M.C. Blue." In the time since their January Blues Challenge appearance, they suffered some bad luck and had to replace their lead guitar player on short notice. Band leader Jerry Orik's raspy blues vocals and Kent Krogman's screaming keyboard solos punctuated a Blues Hall of Fame set, including songs from Howlin' Wolf, Muddy Waters, Robert Johnson, Buddy Guy, Booker T. Jones, B.B. King, John Lee Hooker and T-Bone Walker.
Appearing last was "No Right Turn." Like their preliminary performance in April, they brought a crowd of fans from Lima with them. This time, the fans were as much a hindrance to the band as a help when they congregated up front to dance, obscuring the judges' view of the band and blocking the video camera's recording of the act.
But the energy generated by the band's tight support of Kara Place's passionate vocals was infectious and inescapable. Husband Chris Place's nonchalant guitar riffs and bassist Charlie Brinkman's antics all over the stage added to the show, and the overall performance earned just enough of an edge in the judging to win "No Right Turn" first place.
As a result, "No Right Turn" will be the opening act at the 2008 Riverside Bluesfest, starting their one-hour set on the big stage at noon on August 30, Saturday of Labor Day weekend.
Appearing after them will be The Jimi Vincent Band, Sonny Boy Terry, Stacy Mitchhart and Ana Popovic. Just announced is the festival's headline act, Elvin Bishop.
Ticket information and the latest Bluesfest news can be found online at www.stmarysblues.com.
| Mark Wendel photo
Blues Challenge winners No Right Turn. L-R: Kara Place, Chris Place, Charlie Brinkman, Matt Morgan, Dale Rucklos, Mark Edelbrock. |
