It's about raising the bar for local and regional jazz/ blues musicians, and helping each artist to be discovered on a broader scale.

It's about giving the supporters and fans a great entertainment value for their time and money. 

It's about connecting communities with music by providing a stage and audience central to a location in our own backyard.

It's about summertime, people, music and food, and being a positive element in developing community camaraderie.

About Jazzsouth

  The cost of keeping the annual Jazz In The Valley festival free to the public in Winchester, TN has become a significant amount.  With this, Jazzsouth (a project for both jazz and blues) began as an idea to raise money to help keep Jazz In The Valley free to all who wanted to attend. 

So rather than doing the usual fundraisers and adding another drain to the already strained donation purses around town, the idea of a blues festival in another location seemed like a very workable project.

In Belvidere, TN, the community club and volunteer fire department had ceased holding tractor pulls on their property behind an empty school building.  With this event now defunct, the community agreed to participate in holding a blues festival at the same location as the tractor pulls to help offset maintenance costs. 

With the location of the blues festival secured, I met with a few local blues musicians to enlist their support in developing a blues venue that would be suitable for a cross cultural fan base.  It did not take very long to learn there are a lot of blues artists in this community and throughout the region who wanted to be a part of this project.   They too became excited to be a part of this first "Blues At Belvidere" event.  Some of the artists soon referred to this event as a "local blues revival" and with all the excitement it's stirring, It just may become that.

Rounding out this blues project in true southern style, the gospel artists Amy Cooley and Marlon Spears joined in without hesitation, and agreed to help make this project a annual event in the Belvidere community near Winchester, TN.

Other great things are happening in Belvidere.  Go to the links page and log on to the Belvidere Market icon or click here.

Sonny E. - sonnye@jazzsouth.org

 

1.     The cost to attend a typical concert featuring 2 bands or 2 shows with nationally known acts can be $40 to $80 or more.  With local and regional artists performing you can enjoy 5 - 8 bands or more for under $30.

2.     With large venues you often have to pay $10 to $30 for parking. Here just to park on site is $2 (and you can see your automobile).

3.     At most large venues you can't dance (here you can bust out all over....within reason of course)!

4.     At most large venues you can't meet the band members.  You won't make any new friends at a large show, but here you can make friends with the bands.  You can also make many new friends and always plan to get together the next year.

5.     The cost of food, CD's and T-shirts are less with local venues.

6.     When local bands make it to the top nationally, they will always come back to be with their favorite fans.

7.     At the local venues you can bring your recording devices, cameras, etc.

8.     Support your local musicians so you won't have to spend all night trying to get out of the parking lot.

9.     You can bring your grandmother and not loose her.

10.    You get to bring a big grin, get a hug from your in-laws, and with that big healthy appetite no need to worry about who heard you ask for "taters n' cat-fish," or "chicken n' greens!"    Everyone is at the same vendor's food line.

"Ten rules for getting rid of the blues -go out and do something nice for someone - then repeat it nine times."