Austin Blues Masters Series: The WC Clark Blues Revue (2009)
~ Coming Back To Where He Got His Start ~
W.C Clark comes back home to
The Historic Victory Grill May 14
Who: DiverseArts Blues Family Tree Project and KAZI-FM Present...
What: Austin Blues Masters Series at the Victory Grill: W.C. Clark and the Blues Revue
Soul Food dinner, Screening of "T.D. Bell Live at Antones 1998," Stage Talk, Concert dance Featuring W.C. Clark
Where: Historic Victory Grill, 1104 E.11th Street, Austin, 78702
When: Thursday May 14, 2009, Doors and seating for dinner 7:30pm; Screening 8:00; W.C. Clark 8:30pm
Contact: Harold McMillan, 512-477-9438; Victory Grill 512-472-3700
Cost: $10 reserved seating (table service for dinner; to reserve call 477-9438 or email info2@diversearts.org;
$7 generally admission
At 16 years old W.C. Clark, Austin’s Godfather of the Blues, had his first gig. He was on stage at Austin’s oldest blues joint, the Victory Grill, on East 11th Street.
Now, more than 40 years later, after critical acclaim world-wide as a singer, songwriter and guitarist, after rave reviews for his string of stellar albums, after touring the globe and landing W.C Handy Awards, after mentoring two generations of aspiring Austin blues artists and wanna-bes, on May 14 W.C.’s blues journey comes full circle.
DiverseArts Blues Family Tree Project (BFT) is proud to launch the 2009 Austin Blues Masters Series @ the Victory Grill with a special and rare dinner concert and dance starring Austin’s Godfather of the Blues, Mr. W.C. Clark and his Blues Revue. On May 14 at 7:30pm we feature W.C. on the very stage that first launched his career in music.
The evening will include a sit-down classic soul food dinner from the Victory’s Café, a screening of BFT archival documentary performance footage of T.D. Bell and the Blues Specialists’ 1998 Antone’s performance (W.C. joined T.D.’s Cadillacs soon after that first Victory performance), and a relaxed and intimate Q&A/stage talk by W.C. on his musical career, the Victory Grill, and local cultural history.
The highlight of the evening at 8:30pm, of course, will be a blisteringly hot and soulful dance concert of W.C Clark’s originals, R&B standards, and the down-home blues that has propelled his career for close to 50 years.
We want Austin to join us for this very special evening. Please help us welcome W.C. back home, to his East Side roots and the stage of the Historic Victory Grill.
The Austin Blues Masters Series @ The Historic Victory Grill
During DiverseArts Spring/Summer 2009 Season we are intent on producing high quality cultural programs that provide glimpses into why Central East Austin—the East End—is a designated Cultural Heritage District.
The Austin Blues Masters Series will present a performances, stage talks, and screenings that pay tribute to the East Side’s historic identity as Austin’s original home of the Blues, and to the community of musicians whose careers directly connect them to the roots of Austin’s blues tradition. The series, scheduled for the second and fourth Thursdays in May, and the first and third Thursdays in June will feature members of Austin’s Blues Family Tree whose career spans and advanced musicianship truly qualify them as Blues Masters. In most cases these musicians represent the historic East Side roots of the tradition, but not exclusively. The series will also showcase significant members of the connecting generation of players whose work has helped define the contemporary sound, look, and feel of present-day blues in Austin. And, with each installment of the Series, the Victory Grill remains a key player, major factor, and significant monument in our efforts to preserve the tradition and provide quality cultural programming content in Austin’s newly designated African American Cultural Heritage District.
