The Blues by Budweiser concert series will feature Charlotte Taylor and Gypsy Rain at 8 p.m. Nov. 1 at RJ’s Grill & Bar, 128 S. Main St.
The doors will open at 7 p.m. Port City Blues Society members are admitted free. Admission is $5 for others. The concert series is sponsored by MK Distributors.
Little Rock singer-songwriter Charlotte Taylor has been performing from an early age. Born and raised in Heber Springs, Taylor formed her first band, Project Blue, in 1994 after getting hooked on the blues, and went on to record on the Memphis label, Hi Records, according to a news release.
Taylor has been compared to blues legends Etta James and Bonnie Raitt, as well as being influenced by rockers Steven Tyler and Robert Plant, and soul singers like Aretha Franklin and Mavis Staples, according to the release.
The artist and her band, Gypsy Rain, have won numerous blues competitions across the mid-South and have played on Beale Street in Memphis at B.B. King’s, The Rum Boogie, The Hard Rock Café, King’s Palace and Blues Hall, and competed in the International Blues Challenge.
Independent reporting for Pine Bluff & Jefferson County since 1879.
Charlotte Taylor and Gypsy Rain have performed at many festivals, including Riverfest in Little Rock; the Riverwalk Blues Festival in Fort Lauderdale, Fla.; the Spa City Blues Festival; Big Steam Music Festival in Hot Springs; Blues Eureka in Eureka Springs; and the King Biscuit Blues Festival in Helena-West Helena, among others.
On Nov. 1, Taylor will be joined on stage by Matt Stone (guitar), Bruce Johnson (bass), John Roach (drums) and John Wier (trumpet).
Port City Blues Society, an affiliated member of The Blues Foundation, promotes the blues series. The society seeks to preserve and promote blues music, the culture of Delta blues, and educate the public about the history of the blues in the region.
Port City Blues Society also hosts a free blues jam every Wednesday at RJ’s Grill & Bar, where area musicians converge to play live blues from 8-11 p.m.
Details: pc-blues.com, or their Facebook page at facebook.com/PCBluesSociety.