What is the Arkansas Blues and Heritage Festival? It's when Delta Blues fans head on down to Helena, AR for 3 days of the best Blues in the Delta.
The King Biscuit Blues Festival began in 1986 as a one-day musical tribute to the Blues roots of Helena and the man at those roots, Sonny Boy Williamson. The "King Biscuit" in its name stems from the fact that Sonny Boy Williamson was a founding performer on King Biscuit Time,a live Blues program on the radio. The program was sponsored by King Biscuit Flour.
What started out as a small festival has gained a reputation throughout the nation and always draws a big crowd. Despite all the growth, the festival organizers have remained loyal to their roots. The festival is still dedicated to the Blues as performed by the musicians that were directly or indirectly influenced by Sonny Boy and his contemporaries. These artists include Pinetop Perkins, James Cotton, Robert Lockwood, Jr., Billy Branch, Kim Wilson of The Fabulous Thunderbirds, Anson Funderburgh and the Rockets featuring Sam Myers, Charlie Mussellwhite, Frank Frost, Sam Carr and a host of others.
The festival has four stages and it is estimated that over 100,000 people will be in attendance this year. They have dozens of Blues musicians and even a Gospel stage. The lineup for 2008 has not been announced.
