Show Review

I took my 2nd annual trip to the 11th annual Telluride Blues &Brews Festival and, as expected, left impressed with another well-run weekend filled with great music and, of course, great beer. They held the festival a week later this year which led to some cooler temperatures, but also peak foliage on the ride from Boulder. We had a little rain on Saturday, and a lot more Sunday morning, but all in all, the weather held fairly well, and we were rewarded with some impressive mountain rainbows. Spending time with a friend from Boulder and my brother in T-ride was an added bonus.

Closed highway exits around Boulder led to a late arrival on Friday, and since the curfew for the festival was moved up a few hours, we got in late. But that’s what the late-night juke joints are for, and an unbelievable show by Mofro at the Fly Me To The Moon Saloon made us soon forget our late arrival. This is a great southern blues band from Florida that is worth checking out (I had the pleasure of seeing them the night before at the Fox in Boulder and was equally impressed).

Saturday brought the challenge of the three hour Grand Tasting, followed by a full day of music; this is not for novices. It takes many years of ‘practice’ to lay claim to still be standing by the end of the late-night juke joints after a full day like that. But since The Tasting features the best that close to fifty local breweries have to offer, we were more than up for the task.

Music for the day was highlighted by Anders Osborne, Stockholm Syndrome, and the headliner, Gov’t Mule with Gregg Allman. The later evening found us checking out Stockholm again at the Telluride Conference Center. For those not familiar, Stockholm features David Schools of Widespread Panic fame and Jerry Joseph from the Jackmormons. The set this band ripped out was by far the highlight of the weekend, as this band can play and is a must see if they come to your area.

Sunday brought rain. Cold, cold rain. Four layers were necessary, with an outer shell and a full beer essential for survival. While we dove into a bar for the worst of it, the day eventually cleared up for some great music from Dr. John and the king of the blues himself, B.B. King. B.B. still has as much energy now as he did years ago, belting out a stirring “The Thrill is Gone” that highlighted his set.

All in all, a great weekend once again. The accelerated curfew was a slight downer, and last year, outside of the Grand Tasting, regular concessions featured a local brewery as an alternative. This year, there was no alternative to your ‘standard’ fare, and we were all in agreement; a festival that calls itself “&Brews” should feature more than what you could get at any college bar. But these were minor quibbles when compared to everything that is great about this festival; beautiful mountains, light to moderate laidback crowds, great music, all in a classic western mining town.

Hope to be back again!

For more info, please visit tellurideblues.com