Internationally acclaimed guitarist Ana Popovic, 2016 Blues Music Awards “B.B. King Entertainer of the Year” Victor Wainwright and more lead a dynamic lineup of traditional and contemporary blues acts performing at the sixth Blast Furnace Blues Festival presented by Highmark Blue Shield March 24-26, 2017 at the ArtsQuest Center at SteelStacks in Bethlehem.  Three-day festival passes and single-day tickets for the event, which will feature more than 15 different performers, are on sale at www.steelstacks.org and 610-332-3378.

Butch Trucks and the Freight Train Band, led by Rock and Roll Hall of Famer and Allman Brothers founding member Butch Trucks, will headline the 6th Blast Furnace Blues Festival on March 25, 8:30 p.m An original member of the legendary Allman Brothers Band, Trucks, along with former Allman Brothers bandmate Jai Johanny “Jaimoe” Johanson, was named one of the 100 Greatest Drummers of All Time by Rolling Stone Magazine earlier this year. His Freight Train Band, featuring guitarist Vaylor Trucks, bassist Berry Oakley Jr., percussionist Garrett Dawson, guitarist Ben Sparaco, keyboardist Bruce Katz and vocalist Heather Gillis, serves up favorites from the Brothers like “Rambling Man” and “Whipping Post,” as well as blues and classic rock covers.

On March 26, Blast Furnace Blues is headlined by the one and only Ana Popovic. This sensational blues guitarist and her band tour tirelessly, playing major blues, jazz and rock festivals around the globe. Popovic has been nominated for multiple Blues Music Awards, appeared on the cover of Vintage Guitar and Guitar Player magazine, and shared the stage with artists like B.B. King, Joe Bonamassa and Gary Clark Jr. Since her 2007 release Still Making History, Popovic’s albums have consistently landed in the Top 5 of the Billboard Blues Charts.

Also performing at Blast Furnace Blues March 26 is Victor Wainwright, winner of the “B.B. King Entertainer of the Year” and “Band of the Year” awards at the Blues Foundation’s 2016 Blues Music Awards.  A composer, producer, vocalist and award-winning piano player, Wainwright is a raucous, high-octane performer and crowd pleaser with soul to spare. Over the years, he and his band, the WildRoots, have consistently produced songs that push the boundaries of what great music could and should sound like.

Among the many other artists taking the stage during Blast Furnace Blues are GRAMMY nominee and Blues Music Awards winner Kenny Neal, 2016 Blues Music Awards “Best New Artist” winner Mr. Sipp, renowned sacred steel ensemble The Lee Boys and Texas blues artist Diunna Greenleaf. On March 25, the festival also welcomes Leon Blue, the legendary boogie blues piano player who has recorded and performed with B.B. King, Albert King, Albert Collins, Muddy Waters, Ike & Tina Turner and more. On Friday, Blast Furnace Blues gets underway with a dynamic night of music by local blues artists Friar’s Point, Clarence Spady and The Craig Thatcher Band, and on Sunday the popular blues brunch returns, highlighted by a set from the BC Combo.

Looking for the ultimate experience at Blast Furnace Blues? The festival offers three-day VIP Packages, which include admission to the entire festival, as well as a Sunday Blues Brunch ticket, meet & greets with select performers, commemorative poster, valet parking and more. VIP Packages, which are available in limited quantities, are only $199.
BLAST FURNACE BLUES PRESENTED BY HIGHMARK BLUE SHIELD LINEUP:

March 24
Musikfest Café presented by Yuengling
7 p.m.              Friar’s Point
8:15 p.m.         Clarence Spady
10 p.m.            Craig Thatcher Band


March 25
Musikfest Café presented by Yuengling
12:30 p.m.       Guy Davis & Fabrizio Poggi
1:45 p.m.         Diunna Greenleaf
3:15 p.m.         Leon Blue
5 p.m.              Kenny Neal
6:45 p.m.         Mr. Sipp
8:30 p.m.           Butch Trucks and the Freight Train Band


Fowler Blast Furnace Room
1 p.m.              Leon Blue
2:30 p.m.         Mr. Sipp
4:15 p.m.         Guy Davis & Fabrizio Poggi
6 p.m.              Diunna Greenleaf
7:45 p.m.         Kenny Neal


March 26
Musikfest Café presented by Yuengling
11 a.m.            BC Combo
1:15 p.m.         Dwayne Dopsie & the Zydeco Hellraisers
2:30 p.m.         The Lee Boys
4:15 p.m.         Victor Wainwright & the WildRoots
6 p.m.              Ana Popovic


Fowler Blast Furnace Room
12:30 p.m.       James Supra & Sarah Ayers Quartet
2 p.m.              Magic Dick & Shun Ng
3:45 p.m.         Dwayne Dopsie & the Zydeco Hellraisers
5:15 p.m.         The Lee Boys