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The Big Blues Bender X in Las Vegas Recap

 As a veteran of multiple blues festivals over the years, Keeping the Blues Alive at Sea, Telluride Brews and Brews, Tampa Bay Blues, Blues from the Top, and several others from the Waterfront Blues Festival in Portland to Clearwater Sea and Blues festival in Clearwater, The Big Blues Bender in Las Vegas has been on my radar since the 2019 lineup caught my eye before the pandemic. With Gov’t Mule, Robert Cray, Little Steven, Tab Benoit, Ronnie Earl, Ruthie Foster, Mike Zito, Larkin Poe, and a long list of others the 2019 lineup was one I really didn’t want to miss. With five festivals on the docket that year, I just could not make it work. As it turns out the Big Blues Bender occurs the weekend before the Telluride Blues and Brews festival. Living in Denver, Telluride was always the choice as I continued to eye the Bender’s lineups each year like a child looking at presents in the days leading up to Christmas. Santa delivered this year and there was no coal in my stocking.

Pre-booking started last October and is highly recommended as the Bender is an event that routinely sells out. Once pre-booked you will be notified when the various packages open for purchase in the following weeks. Packages vary by room type and include the 4-day wrist band for access to all the music venues. Solo traveler and wristband only options are available for those not staying on site. Add on items include upgrades that include drinks at venues, premium seating, or a combination of these in the Big Daddy Baller package that also comes with meal vouchers and extra goodies provided at the event check in. There are also add-ons for extra days before and/or after the event and the HART party show the night before the event formally kicks off. Extra days and the HART party are not part of any package and must be purchased separately. Since this was my first Bender, I went all out and bought the Big Daddy Baller package, HART party and extra days.

The Big Blues Bender takes place at the Westgate Las Vegas Resort & Casino, the home for the Bender since 2021. Previous Bender hosts include the Riviera Hotel & Casino for the inaugural Bender in 2014. The Riveria was the home of the Bender’s predecessor, The Sin City Soul and Blues Revival. The Bender moved to The Plaza Hotel & Casino from 2015 to 2018 and then to the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in 2019. In the lost year 2020, the Bender at Home was a YouTube offering featuring highlights from previous year’s shows. The Westgate is an older Vegas hotel that was originally The International Hotel and then the Las Vegas Hilton. As the Hilton the property was home to Elvis Presley where the King performed 837 consecutive sold out shows over an 8-year residency. “Everything, An Elevator Ride Away” is part of the Bender’s branding and it couldn’t be more accurate. I didn’t venture out into the triple digit Vegas heat for the first three days after my arrival. For venues, the conference center was renamed ‘Bender Village’ and the ballrooms consolidated down to a pair of massive rooms for the Paradise Main Stage and the Revival Stage. The International Theater and the Cabaret were the smaller indoor performance venues. A stage was set up by the pool for limited outdoor performances in the afternoon each day. Plenty of covered seating, many with misters were provided by the pool and ‘Bender Heads’ as we refer to ourselves could also wade into the pool with a floatie and a beverage and view the performance from there. At times as many as three shows could be taking place, but they were timed well enough to minimize overlap and one could catch a portion of a couple of conflicting shows if desired.

The lineup was what had always piqued my interest in this event as not only the quality, but the quantity of talent stands out when compared to other festivals. This year was no different with Beth Hart, Trombone Shorty & Orleans Avenue, Los Lobos, Tab Benoit, The Record Company, Canned Heat, Anders Osborne, Samantha Fish, Marc Broussard, Eric Gales, Blood Brothers feat. Mike Zito & Albert Castiglia, Victor Wainwright and The Train, Bender Brass Band, Mike Zito, Wayne Toups, John Primer, Jimmy Hall, Curtis Salgado, Sugaray Rayford, John Németh and The Blue Dreamers, Albert Castiglia Band, Leon Blue, Johnny Sansone, Taj Farrant, Chambers & DesLauriers Band, Kevin Burt and Big Medicine, Robert Jon and The Wreck, Anne Harris, Buffalo Nichols, DK Harrell, Jimmy Carpenter Band, Terrie Odabi, Vaneese Thomas, Tad Robinson, Dylan Triplett, Chris Barnes, Piper & The Hard Times, and Joe Waters. Several artists would appear multiple times as collaborations were common and special events would involve cameos galore. There was also a fair number of one and done shows as to be expected given the rigorous touring schedules these performers maintain.

Eric Gales on stage at the Big Blues Bender

The Bender officially kicked off on Thursday, however, on Wednesday evening a special event the HART Party was held in the theater. Not to be confused with headliner Beth, HART (Handy Artist Relief Trust) is a benefit to provide medical, dental, and even funeral expense assistance for artists in financial need. This was my introduction to the Bender Brass Band. A creation of Bender founder AJ Gross and Jimmy Carpenter who is also the band’s musical director and saxophonist provides the backbone of many of the Bender shows. Carpenter, along with Doug Woolverton (trumpet), Mark Earley (saxophone), Red Young (piano), Nick Schnebelen(guitar), Mike Merritt (bass), and David Kida (drums) bring together a band with an exemplary history of awards and accomplishments. Special guests Jimmy Vivino and Dale Spalding of Canned Heat, Mike Zito, Jimmy Hall, Albert Castiglia, Victor Wainwright, John Németh, Johnny Sansone, Chambers & DesLauriers, Kevin Burt, Terrie Odabi, Dylan Triplett, Tad Robinson, Vaneese Thomas, Piper and The Hard Times, and Joe Waters would come and go throughout the nearly 3 hour show with classic covers and originals. Kevin Burt and violinist Anne Harris acoustic cover of “Midnight Rider” brought the crowd to their feet early in the show. Former Wet Willie frontman Jimmy Hall got the audience fully engaged as he strutted up and down the aisles bellowing his classic blues vocals. As I mentioned this was a benefit and there were a couple of breaks to auction off autographed guitars. The bidding was playfully fierce as the cause was one all could support. The highlight of the 2nd auction was that it was presented by a non-musical special guest celebrity. Actor and comedian Bill Murray came to the stage to the delight of the audience as the celebrity influence inspired the guitar to go for nearly double the bid for the first one. Victor Wainwright, John Nemeth, and Johnny Sansone would follow the auction break and then Blood Brothers, Mike Zito and Albert Castiglia took the stage. Sansone would remain on stage to provide harmonica and Jimmy Vivino came out to play keys on “Down to the Nitty Gritty” from the award-winning Blood Brothers album. One final cameo to close out a surprisingly well choreographed multi-artist show. Bill Murray who was MC at Eric Clapton’s Crossroads festival a year ago wasn’t just a celebrity name brought on to auction guitars, he rolled up to the mic and sang the last two songs of the show. The finale, Bob Dylan’s ‘Like a Rolling Stone’ had everyone standing and singing along. Murray’s vocals weren’t anything to write home about, but his enthusiasm and engagement set the tone that though we were serious fans, this was going to be a lot of fun!

Thursday was the official kick off for the 2024 Bender with most fans checking in that day. The front desk had a Baller express lane for expedited check in as another perk for those ‘Big Daddys.’ Bender attendees also had to check in separately at the Bender Support Desk where one would receive their wristbands for the packages that they booked, a venue map and schedule along with various other goodies. A special “Baller Only” show with Tab Benoit in the Cabaret opened the festivities. With a standing capacity of a little over 300 the Cabaret would be the most intimate setting for shows all weekend. After the show, the crowd was ushered through separate exit doors where none other than founder AJ Gross served as the Grand Marshall of a New Orleans style Second Line parade. Along with the Bender Brass Band, Jimmy Hall and others handing out beads, they ushered the party through the halls of the hotel to the Bender Village, and the Welcome Party. It then became time for hard (but fun) decisions. Return to the Cabaret for a solo show with Anders Osbourne or stay in the village for Victor Wainwright and The Train in the Paradise Stage. Having seen Anders perform previously I chose to see what I’d been missing with Wainwright and his band. I was rewarded with a high energy Jerry Lee Lewis in a Juke Joint style performance that will put this artist on my not to be missed radar. With Canned Heat and Los Lobos following, I decided to stay in Paradise for a double dose of nostalgia with Los Lobos celebrating their 50th year in existence to the Woodstock alums Canned Heat playing their hits from the 60’s and 70’s. Jimmy Vivino joined both sets performing vocals on Canned Heat’s “Going Up the Country” and guitar with Los Lobos on a cover of Little Walter’s “Up the Line”. Yet it was the final show of the evening that stirred the soul. Mike Zito took the Cabaret stage around 11:30pm for a solo acoustic show that was live album worthy. His vocals were on point as he played stripped down versions of songs across his library and notable covers. The most striking were “Hold Me Now” by Thompson Twins and “Little Red Corvette” by Prince which were surprisingly excellent acoustic renditions. It was close to 1am when I exited the venue and while the casino bar would have live blues until after 4am, there was energy to be conserved for there were three full days of music to go!

Friday would present the first full day of Bender magic. While I was rewarded yesterday by stepping outside of the comfort zone, I would spend this day sticking with familiar faces. Albert Castiglia would open the theater fresh off the release of Righteous Souls, followed by Mike Zito coming off his release of Life is Hard. Both releases are their first since they collaborated on Blood Brothers and have already garnered critical acclaim. Their live performances exceeded the lofty expectations I had coming in and are a must see individually or together. Castiglia featured his new material as did Zito with a stirring rendition of “Forever My Love” a tribute to his late wife Laura. Mike also had his son Zach on stage with a great father son dueling guitar jam followed by a Zeppelin riff laden jam of “Judgement Day” to close out his show. With Eric Gales coming up there was no reason to leave the venue. However, sound issues delayed his start 20 minutes providing extra time to use the facilities and grab a beverage. The wait would be worth it as Gales brought the energy and emotion onto the stage and into the crowd, literally, he walked and played up and down the aisles in the lower section to the delight of all the phone cameras present. He would then sit on the stage for an intimate version of “Southpaw Serenade,” his song about his struggles gaining acceptance with his lefthanded playing style. The evening slate would bring a change of venue to the Paradise stage. With the Eric Gales show running over in the theater to make up for the sound delay, there was a rush to make for the 6pm start for The Record Company. Sound issues appeared to follow as during the early part of the show frontman Chris Vos requested the stage monitors be turned off. The trio from LA managed to overcome the challenges with solid versions of well-known songs “Life To Fix” and “Off The Ground.”  Samantha Fish was next, and her set would also get off to a rocky start with the sound techs tweaking settings resulting in a moment of teeth rattling feedback followed by muffled vocals in opening minutes. Things would settle down and an unfazed Fish blistered through her set featuring older tracks “Miles to Go” and “Black Wind Howling” in her usual exceptional fashion. The evening would close out for me with Tab Benoit and Anders Osbourne doing a set featuring I Hear Thunder, Benoit’s newest release in over a decade with collaborative contributions from Osbourne who co-produced his previous album, Medicine. The set included title tracks from both albums along with many others from the featured release. If it weren’t for the sound issues, this may have been the single most enjoyable day of live music I’ve experienced. All artists were engaged with the audience and brought an energetic fun vibe to the stage. It showed in their performances which were all outstanding!

Saturday would find my rear end parked once again in the International Theater. I had heard that Curtis Salgado was the inspiration for John Belushi’s Blues Brothers. Upon seeing his performance with the Bender Brass Band this afternoon it’s easy to see why. His vocals and harmonica style are the epitome of that style of blues. A crowd favorite was “I Want My Dog to Live Longer” for all the fur face lovers thinking of their four-legged friends back home. Robert Jon and the Wreck took the stage next with their southern blues rock style that caught the attention of the Bender faithful. When guitarist Henry James gets going it’s impossible to ignore. Their recent release Red Moon Rising was featured on the set list that also included “Tired of Drinking Alone” and “Ole Miss Carolina.” What happened next would be the buzz around the Casino Bar which was conveniently located between the venues and the elevators to the rooms. Castiglia and Zito had both logged noteworthy individual performances and now they would take the stage as the Blood Brothers. During the band intros it was mentioned that a ‘special percussionist’ would be appearing during the set which was a curious statement given that the band already featured a pair of drummers. As they jammed through a set list from the Grammy nominated album including “A Thousand Heartaches,” “Tooth and Nail,” and the Allman Brothers flavored instrumental “Hill Country Jam,” I noticed none other than the HART party crasher Bill Murray in the back between the two drum sets working the tambourine and bongos! Ah-ha! The set would progress into a series of covers including “Gimmie Shelter,” Bob Seger’s “Sunspot Baby” with Murray coming forward to reprise his frontman role for covers of “Mustang Sally” and again “Like a Rolling Stone.” However, I believe I may have been mistaken as Murray may not have been the special percussionist mentioned earlier. Tab Benoit would take over one of the drum sets and hit the skins for the grand finale, Neil Young’s “Rocking in the Free World”! I needed a break to catch my breath before the next show.

Robert Jon and the Wreck perform at the Big Blues Bender

That next show would take me back to the Paradise stage for Sugaray Rayford. I didn’t take long to see why Rayford won a Blues Music Award for Entertainer of the Year. With elements of soul, blues, gospel, and a little funk sprinkled throughout the set the music was lively and fun. Rayford’s engagement with the audience was active and humorous. I was not familiar with Sugaray before stepping into this set, but this was really an uplifting experience. Towards the end of the set, Rayford jokingly handed off the reigns of the setlist to guitarist Danny Avila. What happened next was jaw dropping. Avila broke into a cover of the Floyd classic “Comfortably Numb.” The crowd already energized shifted gears effortlessly and began echoing the lyrics. Rayford encouraged the audience break out their phone lights. Ballers had access to an area next to the stage with tables, coffee, and snacks, from there one could see the artists’ perspective. I just happened to be there at the time, and it was magical. Another hard decision followed. I could stay at the Paradise stage for Trombone Shorty & Orleans Avenue or hustle over to the Cabaret for Blues Legend John Primer. I had seen Trombone Shorty years earlier, but never Primer. Add in the intimate venue and off I went. The set was like a time capsule of Chicago blues as Primer went through classic after classic. Violinist Anne Harris joined on stage for a fun version of “Rosalie” featuring a lively duel with Harris’ violin and Steve Bell’s harmonica. I would later hear great things about Trombone Shorty’s show, but, with no regrets. There were a couple of show options following Primer’s set, but this was one emotionally spent Bender Head.

Sunday shows kicked off at noon. However, I got off to a late start as I mentally prepared myself for a venture to the pool stage. The triple digit heat had kept me and many others away as I heard that the crowds were generally light and shaded seating could be had. Kevin Burt and Big Medicine played at 1:30 and the was a good group gathering for prime seating while others grabbed beverages to enjoy in the pool for the show. Burt had impressed me during the HART party with his big vocals which weren’t quite the same in the open air outside. I must admit I wilted in the 105-degree heat and could not finish the show in the interest of conserving energy for what was going to be a long night. I didn’t really show hop to catch overlapping sets until this afternoon. Starting with John Nemeth and the Blue Dreamers in the Cabaret, I would then run to catch Taj Farrant at the Revival stage before catching Mike Zito reprising his amazing acoustic performance back in the Cabaret. Still on the sunny side of 50, John Nemeth is a vocalist and harmonica player and been gathering awards going back a decade. Keep an eye out for nineteen-year-old guitarist Jon Hay. This was a remarkable set that made it difficult to cut out early to see an even younger guitar phenom. I was fortunate to be blown away by Farrant’s guitar mastery and mature vocals for a fifteen-year-old at Blues From The Top back in June. This set was equally as amazing as this Stevie Ray Vaugh savant electrified those first timers in the crowd with SRV covers “Lenny” and “The Sky Is Crying.” Again, another set begrudgingly cut short to see another. By the time I pulled myself away from being mesmerized by Farrant, the Zito show had already started. The Cabaret had reached capacity and there was a line waiting for spots to open as people left. Word had spread about his amazing acoustic show late Thursday night and I found it difficult to think there would be anyone exiting this one early. Taj was wrapping up his set by the time this realization hit and so it was off to get an early seat for the next show in the theater.

The Bender One Series is a themed collaboration show that debuted in 2017 with ‘One for the Brothers’ a celebration of the Allman Brothers. Since then, there have been shows for the 50th anniversary of Woodstock, The Women of the Blues, The Kings (Freddie, Albert, and BB), and others. This year’s edition was ‘One for the Soul’ celebrating how gospel influences on the blues in the 50’s created soulful legends like Sam Cooke, Marvin Gaye, Wilson Pickett, Bill Withers, James Brown, and others. Once again, the Bender Brass Band would be the beating heart of the show as a parade of artists took turns to pay tribute to these legends of soul. The production was top notch all around with each performance noteworthy. Victor Wainwright’s “Mess Around” and “Shake A Tail Feather” by Ray Charles, Kevin Burt’s “Lean On Me” by Bill Withers, John Nementh’s “Love and Happiness” by Al Green, and the Booker T. & The MGs “Green Onions” cover by the Bender Brass Band were just a few of the highlights of this exceptional tribute. Then it was off to see Marc Broussard with his velvet vocals take the Paradise Stage to start off the final evening. “Home,” Stevie Wonder’s “Higher Ground,” and a personal favorite “Lonely Night in Georgia” were a few of the highlights of his set. One of the most anticipated shows of this year’s Bender was Beth Hart. Beth has been battling mental health issues causing her to cancel multiple shows over the past year and was the topic of many conversations over the course of the weekend. All doubts were dispelled as Hart’s performance was spectacular. Her vocals were impeccable and the sound problems of earlier were non-existent through a remarkable set. Whether it was behind the piano “Fire on the Floor”, “Chocolate Jesus”, sitting on the stage’s edge “Your Heart is as Black as Night”, or on a stool during the mini acoustic set “Sugar Shack”, “Baby Shot Me Down” she was relaxed and seemed to be truly enjoying herself. A stirring moment came toward the end of her set with a solo performance of “My California” relating how much she credits her husband and road manager Scott Guetzkow for getting her through her trials and tribulations. At the end of an emotional rendition, Scott emerged from backstage and gave his wife a hug and kiss in what was an incredibly touching moment. Time for the Grand Bender Finale, Tab Benoit’s Midnight Ramble! This last show started with Benoit’s power trio band that quickly morphed into another multi-artist jam session. Jimmy Hall joined for “Talk to Me Baby.” Johnny Sansone came up for “Standing on the Bank.”  Anne Harris brought her violin to join Tab on a stunning duet of “Long Lonely Bayou.” The party kept rolling with D.K. Harrell, Johnny Sansone and Victor Wainwright for “Every Day I Have the Blues” and another collaboration for “I Got Loaded” featuring Pat Harrington, The Bender Brass, and Kevin Burt. The Bender closed as it had started, late nights and a whole lot of musical euphoria!

For a first-time attendee, I found The Big Blues Bender to be worthy of any blues fan’s festival itinerary. From a cost perspective, I found that with the Big Daddy Baller package it was comparable to Bonamassa’s Keeping the Blues Alive cruise with the full drink package, though the Bender offered three and a half days of music compared the two full days and two half days on the cruise. From an experience perspective, the opportunity to see multi-artist collaborations and themed shows are what makes these festivals unique. I really enjoyed how the Bender Brass Band was present throughout the festival providing a fuller authentic sound to the performances. The Bender One Series show was really enjoyable and an awesome part of the festival. There was a white board in the merchandise area that would list artist availability for autograph sessions though it wasn’t really scheduled in advance or openly promoted. However, artists openly mingled with fans at the casino bar and/or at the tables. The Bender staff was exceptional, and the fans are the warmest most welcoming group one could share a long weekend with. If you haven’t been to the Big Blues Bender, you are missing out. I’m so happy I went and know I will again!

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