Singer/Guitarist Concocts Own Brand of Blues

Corey Harris will be at SJCT this weekend

He’s toured, recorded and performed with some of the top names in music, including BB King, Taj Mahal and the Dave Matthews Band. At the same time, he’s managed to carve out his own niche in blues.

Guitarist, vocalist, and songwriter Corey Harris shares his unique musicianship during a concert at San Juan Community Theatre on Saturday, November 9 at 7:30 p.m. Earlier in the day, at 2 p.m., Harris will share his knowledge of the blues in a free presentation on the Whittier stage, The Evolution of the Blues.

Harris began his career as a New Orleans street singer, travelling throughout the southern U.S. In his early twenties he lived in West Africa for a year, which had a profound effect on his later work. He has recorded many traditional blue songs while creating his own vision of the blues by adding influences from reggae, soul, rock and West African music. As a songwriter, he has kept one foot in tradition and the other in contemporary experimentation.

In 2007, Harris was awarded a $500,000 MacArthur Fellowship—commonly referred to as a “genius award”—proclaiming him an artist who “forges an adventurous path marked by deliberate eclecticism.”

Harris’ visit to Friday Harbor was made possible through support from the Western States Arts Foundation (WESTAF) and National Endowment for the Arts.

The Business Partner for the evening is Kings Market. Tickets are $25 for adults; $12 for student reserved, with $5 student RUSH at the door. The SJCT box office is open Tuesdays through Fridays from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. and Saturdays from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. or buy on-line at www.sjctheatre.org

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