 A short history of blues in Suwałki |
The beginnings of the interest of blues music in Suwałki dates back to the 1970s, when young bands were imitating English musicians. However, it was not until the beginning of the 1980s that a real era of blues in Suwałki was born. On the stage appeared the Browar Blues Band, who played at the Provincial Youth Club in Suwałki. These musicians give thanks to such people as Alicja Anuszkiewicz, Łucja Wardach and Bożena Wasilewska that they could develop and play concerts. The band performed twice at the Music of Young Generation Festival in Jarocin in 1981 and 1983, as well as at a few other festivals: “Olsztyńskie Noce Bluesowe” (“the Olsztyn Blues Nights”) and “Jesień z Bluesem” (“Autumn with Blues”) in Białystok. They performed with such bands as Dżem, Kasa Chorych, Ogród Wyobraźni, Easy Rider and TSA. In the year 1987, the group made its final performance.
During the years 1982 – 1984, the band Blue Express was a strong performing act. Its biggest achievement was playing in the review of music bands “Musicorama” in Giżycko in 1983. In the years 1988 – 1991 the band Haron Blues Band existed. The band’s greatest achievement was playing in the festival, “Jesień z Bluesem” (Autumn with Blues), in Białystok in 1989. During the years 1987 – 1989, the band Deszcz was formed. It was created by many musicians from Blue Express. The greatest success for Deszcz was receiving the first award in the review of bands “Musicorama” in Giżycko in 1988, and then following with a concert tour in Russia. The 1980s is characterized mainly by the concerts of local and regional music groups. At the beginning of 1991, the event “Bluesowe wykopki” (Blues Lifting) was organized. This event was a gathering point for blues and rock musicians from all over Suwałki. As a result of these meetings, a group of musicians formed Night Come in 1992 (www.nightcome.com). The band became a success and won the festival “Rawa Blues” in Katowice in 1993. They appeared at the most important blues and rock events in the country, such as: “Rawa Blues” (1992, 1993, 1994, 1995), “Toruń Blues Meeting” (1992), “Jesień z Bluesem” (1996), “Przystanek Woodstock” (1998), “Summer Blues Meeting” (1994, 1999), “Olsztyńskie Noce Bluesowe” (1996) and many others. They performed in Lithuania, Latvia (Bite’s Blues Club – the biggest blues club in Latvia), in the Czech Republic, France, Russia and Germany. At the end of the 1990s, the band changed its musical style into rock with a blues influence.
In 1997, the music festival “Wiosło Jaćwinga” was created as a festival for various music styles. Until 2006, very few blues performers appeared there. As of 2006, there have been blues performances by such bands as Obstawa Prezydenta, Tortilla Flat, Paweł Szymański, Night Come, Dreszcz Blues Band, Slam (Lithuania), Los Agentos, Nosy, Latvian Blues Band (Latvia) and many others. During the years 1999 – 2001, the band Kawa z Deszczem played. They received awards in a number of blues competitions in the country, such as: “Noc Bluesowa” (Rawa Mazowiecka, the award from the magazine “Gitara i bas” for the best guitarist), “Bluesiada” (Szczecin, a distinction for guitarists), “Blues Express” (Bolesławiec, a distinction for the guitarists), “Blues-Reagge-Folk” (Węgorzewo, the award for best guitarist), “Kraśnik Blues Meeting” (Kraśnik, an award for best guitarists) and many others. Since 2001 the Regional Culture and Art Centre in Suwałki has organized “Zaduszki Bluesowe”, at which local music performers can perform. In the middle of 2003, the band Dreszcz Blues Band was created, which later changed its name to Shiver Blues Band. The band is still together today and performs concerts in the region. Its biggest success was playing in the festival “Bliuzo Naktys 2003” in Lithuania, where it performed next to musicians from Lithuania, Latvia and the USA. In 2004, a group of blues and jazz fans set up the association Jazz Blues Suwałki, whose goal has been to support jazz and blues music. So far, a few blues concerts have been organized, with such participants as: Nocna Zmiana Bluesa, Easy Rider, Night Come, Kasa Chorych and others. At the beginning of 2005, Chip Jordan (USA) & VooDoo Soup (www.chipjordanvoodoosoup.go.pl) was created. The cooperation between a young American vocalist and blues guitarist, Chip Jordan, who currently lives in Vilnius, performed a number of concerts in Poland and Lithuania. For example, “Toruń Blues Meeting” (2005), concerts in Vilnius, Klaipeda, Palanga, Druskiennikai and many others. Since 2005, the Regional Culture and Art Centre in Suwałki has been cooperating with Agency Delta and the quarterly magazine ”Twój Blues”. Through these efforts, concerts have been arranged by such performers as: Ike Cosse & The Hooters Blues (USA, Norway), Phill Guy (USA), Earl Green (England), Johnny Rawls (USA), Frank Morey & His Band (USA) and others. During the years 2004 – 2007, the band Vacation Express Blues Formation existed, consisting of the musicians playing previously in different blues and jazz groups. They played concerts mainly in Suwałki and the surrounding region. In Suwalki, blues concerts are played in Pizzeria-Galeria Rozmarino and Na Starówce Restaurants. So far, among others: Lester Kidson (Canada), Night Come, Shiver Blues Band, Blue Sound, Łukasz Gorczyca and many other different performers from Poland and abroad have performed in these pubs. In 2005, as part of “Dni Suwałk” (“the Suwałki Festival”), the Latvian band Latvia Blues Band from Riga performed, and the concert titled “Spotkania bluesowe nad Czarna Hańczą” (”Blues Concerts by the River Czarna Hańcza”) took place, where Tadeusz Nalepa played with musicians from Suwałki.
In March 2007, as part of the project ”Koło Innowacyjne” (”Innovative Circle”), being carried out by the Municipality and the Regional Culture and Art Centre in Suwałki, the Music Festival ”W kręgu bluesa” was organized. During this two day festival, such artists performed as: Trond Ytterbö & Jostein Forsberg (Norway), Virgis Jutas & Aleksandr Belkin (Lithuania), Chip Jordan (USA) & VooDoo Soup, as well as some musicians from Suwałki. As part of the festival, exhibitions describing blues music in Lithuania and Norway were organized, as well as a display of the history of blues in Suwałki. After this event, at the Regional Culture and Art Centre, the band Blues Forever was formed. Since November 2007, a new blues group, Fret Blues Band, has also began performing.
On 17th and 18th July 2008, an amazing blues event took place in Suwałki – Suwałki Blues Festival. Included in this festival were performers and artists from Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, Norway, England, France, Germany, the USA and Poland. Two big stages, as well as two smaller ones, were built in the town centre. There were club concerts, acoustic concerts and night jam sessions. Apart from that, one could take part in workshops and meetings with the European blues community, as well as the presentations of blues publications and music equipment. Some blues performances included: JEREMY SPENCER (a legendary founder and a former guitarist of the band Fleetwood Mac, GB) & TROND YTTERBÖ BAND (NOR), DŻEM (PL), KHALIF WAILIN’ WALTER & HIS BAND (USA), KNUT REIERSRUD (NOR), NINA VAN HORN (USA/FR), STUDEBEKER JOHN & THE HAWKS (USA/PL), COMPROMISE BLUE (EST), SPOONFUL OF BLUES (NOR), KEITH THOMPSON’S STRANGEBREW feat PATSY GAMBLE (ENG/PL), VIRGIS JUTAS & ALEKSANDR BELKIN WITH BLUES MAKERS (LT), SŁAWEK WIERZCHOLSKI & NOCNA ZMIANA BLUESA (PL), BOOGIE BOYS (PL), KASA CHORYCH (PL), TORTILLA (PL), BLUESZCZ BLUES BAND (PL), CHIP JORDAN (USA) & VOODOO SOUP (PL), BRACIA I SIOSTRY (PL), MICHNO BLUES BAND (PL), AGE BLUES BAND (LT), SHIVER BLUES BAND (PL), BLUES FOREVER (PL), GAZ BLUES GRUPA (PL) and others. The festival turned out to be a huge artistic and organizational success. Moreover, according to the questionnaire Blues Top 2008 from the quarterly magazine “Twój Blues,” the Suwałki Blues Festival was the event of the year. It received more votes than Eric Clapton’s concert in Gdynia and other blues festivals and events around Poland.
In addition, in the year 2008 Martyna Jakubowicz with her band, as well as Frank Morey & His Band (USA), played two shows in Suwałki. During the event, “Pożegnanie Lata” (“Summer Farewell”), the band Easy Rider performed. As normally happens in March, there was a concert in memory of Tadeusz Nalepa. At the end of October, “Zaduszki Bluesowe” took place again. In Ogród Letni Rozmarino, there were concerts by: Easy Rider, Marciej Balcar with the band Nie-bo, and Alex Ross (a harmonica player from Brazil). In the beginning of November, the group Voodoo Soup separated with Chip Jordan and joined with Lithuanian musician Virgis Jutas. The new group Virgis Jutas (LT) & VooDoo Soup participated in “Zaduszki Bluesowe” in Białymstok and played on the Bydgoszcz Blues Festival. At the end of November, in Na Starówce Restaurant, performed an American blues vocalist with her band – Wanda Johnson & The Shrimp City Slim Band (USA/PL).
We are looking for souvenirs and archival information about blues in Suwałki (bands, concerts, events and other).
In this matter, please, contact us:
The Regional Culture and Art Centre
(Regionalny Ośrodek Kultury i Sztuki)
Bogdan Topolski
Noniewicza Street 71
16 - 400 Suwałki
tel. + 48 87 566 42 11
topolski@rokis.suwalki.pl
rokis@rokis.suwalki.pl
www.rokis.suwalki.pl