National Steel "Vagabond" Blues Tour

Ride shotgun with Doc MacLean on North America's "biggest little blues tour." Four months of highway across 10 provinces and at least as many states. Nearly 100 shows. No fancy tour busses or slick new guitars– nothing but the Blues, the slow motion of the blacktop, a little broken glass on a rusted old National guitar... Out here the difference between heaven and hell isn't always clear. Some days I'd sell my soul for a tank of gas and a glass of red...

Biggest Little Blues Tour

Doc MacLean is a blues Vagabond. After a life spent traveling, he knows that on the Blues Highway there's no place too large, too small, too grand or too humble. Touching ten provinces and fourteen states, his 9th Annual National Steel Blues Tour includes a wide variety of venues ranging from urban theatres and festivals to cafes, house concerts, casinos, rural juke joints and gas stations. Dirt roads tied to super highways, bridges, truck stops, rusty ships. Big cities, small towns. All bets are open on the Blues Highway. Bowling with Johnny Winter, Bingo with Satan. The big Lincoln hums as it eats up the road.

Beginning in early August, the solo, all acoustic, delta songs and stories presentation will cross central and western Canada before routing into the United States. There, Pascagoula, MS based blueswoman Libby Rae Watson will join Doc for nearly a month of duo performances as far south as the Gulf Coast. The Tour continues with a month of solo shows across Maritime Canada and Newfoundland, finishing in southern Ontario in early December. Canada's Biggest Little Blues Tour.

The Artists

Doc MacLean has spent over 40 years travelling America's blue highways, performing and recording with a who's who of the blues. Building his career on hard travel and performance, he typically plays over 200 shows annually. For the last 9 years his National Steel Blues Tour has touched nearly every part of Canada- every year. He’s a blues vagabond, writing from the dark side of the highway. Doc explored and resided in the rural south at a time when it was much less visited than it is today, and had mentors like Son House, Peg Leg Sam, and Sam Chatmon. This year the Tour has even more to do with the rural south and Sam Chatmon-

Libby Rae Watson grew up in Mississippi. Captivated by the music, she became deeply involved with the Delta in the 1970's, searching, exploring, documenting, meeting and playing with people like Big Joe Williams, Furry Lewis, Johnny Woods, Son Thomas and many more. Legends and obscurities. But it was Hollandale’s Sam Chatmon that influenced her the most. They became fast friends from day one and remained that way until his death in 1983, where Libby Rae performed "Sitting On Top Of The World" at his funeral.

Doc MacLean, who recorded with Chatmon, and was in his BBQ Boys band, is very pleased to be joining Libby Rae for US dates which will include the Sam Chatmon Blues Festival, at Hollandale, MS. “Sam’s kids” are getting some road time together for the second year in a row! This tour will be welcomed by blues and folk fans alike, and by anyone with an interest in the delta before Disney. Real deal.

The developing schedule for fall, 2014, may be seen below. Links to detailed bios, audio samples, pics, and reviews will also be found below.

Tour Schedule

Developing Schedule, Oct 21, 2014

Aug 6 Lavigne, ON

Aug 7 Wawa, ON

Aug 8 Thunder Bay, ON

Aug 10 Winnipeg, MB

Aug 12 Regina, SK

Aug 15 Salmon Arm, BC

Aug 16 Salmon Arm, BC

Aug 17 Salmon Arm, BC

Aug 18 Vancouver, BC

Aug 20 Victoria, BC

Aug 21 Duncan, BC

Aug 22 Port Alberni, BC

Aug 23 Maple Bay, BC

Aug 24 Cedar, BC TBC

Aug 27 Vancouver, BC

Aug 28 Vancouver, BC

Aug 29 White Rock, BC

Aug 30 White Rock, BC

Aug 31 Vancouver, BC

Sept 3 Coleman, AB

Sept 4 Calgary, AB

Sept 5 Lethbridge, AB

Sept 6 Lloydminster, SK

Sept 9 Edmonton, AB

Sept 10 Edmonton, AB

Sept 11 Edmonton, AB

Sept 12 Jasper, AB

Sept 13 Red Deer, AB

Sept 14 Saskatoon, SK

Sept 16 Regina, SK

Sept 18 Weyburn, SK

Sept 19 Bismarck, ND

Sept 20 St. Paul (Bayport), MN

Sept 22 St. Louis, MO

Sept 24 Franklin, TN

Sept 25 Memphis, TN

Sept 26 Clarksdale, MS Cathead Delta Busking Festival

Sept 27 Hollandale, MS Sam Chatmon Blues Festival

Sept 28 Clarksdale, MS

Oct 2 Jackson, MS

Oct 3 Greenville, MS Hwy 61 Blues Festival

Oct 4 Varnado, LA

Oct 5 Fairhope, AL

Oct 8 Pascagoula, MS

Oct 9 Clarksdale, MS

Oct 10 Indianola, MS

Oct 11 Clarksdale, MS

Oct 12 Clarksdale, MS Pinetop Homecoming

Oct 13 Johnson City, TN

Oct 16 Fredericton, NB

Oct 17 Moncton, NB

Oct 18 Charlottetown, PE

Oct 18 Belle River, PE

Oct 22 Cap-aux-Meules, Iles-de-la-Madeleine, QC

Oct 23 Charlottetown, PE

Oct 24 Donaldston, PE

Oct 25 Antigonish, NS

Oct 26 Halifax, NS

Oct 29 Liverpool, NS w. Catahoula Brown

Oct 30 LaHave, NS

Oct 31 Hubbard's, NS

Nov 1 Centreville, NS

Nov 5 Windsor, NS TBA

Nov 6 Charlos Cove, NS

Nov 7 Amherst, NS

Nov 8 Sackville, NB

Nov 12 Fill This Date!! PEI

Nov 13 Pictou, NS

Nov 14 Tyne Valley, PEI

Nov 15 Alberton, PEI

Nov 17 Corner Brook, NF

Nov 18 Gambo, NF

Nov 19 St. John's, NF

Nov 20 Fill This Date!! NF

Nov 21 Conception Bay, NF

Nov 22 Lewisporte, NF

Nov 25 Quebec City, QC

Nov 26 Gatineau, QC

Nov 27 Peterborough, ON

Nov 28 Orillia, ON

Nov 29 Collingwood, ON

Dec 6 Oakville, ON

Any date not listed, TBA, or TBC may be available. Please ask. All dates and routing are considered accurate at time of posting, but remain subject to change and are provided for reference only. Bring the Blues to Your Town.

National Steel "Vagabond" Blues Tour

Wednesday, September 3, 2014

In and Out of Coleman, AB Crowsnest Pass in Summer

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