May 11, 2023 11:00 a.m.
In the KQEN Cultural Spotlight:
Riverbend Live! has announced the line-up for its 27th concert season.
Started by Dick and Mo Nichols in 1997, the non-profit organization is offering a five-week concert season this year with live music and youth theater.
The schedule includes:
*June 30 – Amythyst Kiah. Kiah fuses folk, blues and rock. Her most recent album combines alt-rock and roots/old time music. Considered by Rolling Stone magazine as “one of America’s great up-and-coming secrets”, her song “Black Myself” earned a Grammy nomination for Best American Roots Song in 2020.
*July 7 – Blitzen Trapper. A Portland based rock and roll band, their albums and songs have made Rolling Stone’s “Best of” list on several occasions. The group has performed for twenty years and has released ten albums. The latest release, “Holy Smokes and Future Jokes” was released in 2020.
*July 14: Jackie Venson. A multi-instrumentalist, singer/songwriter known for beautifully complex music and blazing guitar skills. Forbes magazine described her as “truly an Austin legend in the making”. Venson was named the Austin Music Award Winner Musician of the Year in 2020. Venson has traveled the world as a headliner and in support of artists like Keb Mo, Melissa Etheridge and many others. Her latest release is titled “Evolution of Joy” and came out early in 2023.
*July 21 – Randy Rieman, Sourdough Slim and Robert Armstrong. The annual evening of cowboy poetry and western music includes Rieman who is considered one of the finest reciters of traditional cowboy poetry and Australian bush poetry. Sourdough Slim and Robert Armstrong have shared their lively roots music at Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Center and at festivals and fairs around the country.
*July 28 and 29 – Youth Theater presentation of “A Year with Frog and Toad”. This is adapted from a Broadway hit and directed by Bart McHenry of Umpqua Community College.
Shows are held at Winston’s Riverbend Park and begin Friday nights at 7:00 p.m. Those attending can bring their own blanket or chair. Pets are not permitted. Food vendors will be at each performance, but people can bring their own picnic basket. The venue is tobacco free.
More information is at www.riverbendlive.org. Check the organization’s Facebook page or Instagram for updates.