Keeping DC's dreams alive                                                                                                                                                                                                       
THIS YEAR, September 3, 4, 5  •   5pm - 5am Nightly    •    in Rentiesville OK
READ ABOUT EACH ACT ON THE SHOW HERE:

                BUD   Phoenix   OK Arts Council   
FRIDAY, September 3rd — Main Outdoor Stage
 

Soul Album of the Year Winner
"Mr. Romance!!"

JOHNNY       RAWLS
Fri - Sat - Sun
                                                                                        

                                     

Selby worked as D.C.'s bassist for 30 years across the US and overseas. She has perfomed with Hubert Sumlin, Drink Small, Albert Collins, Lowell Fulsom and garnered the KBA (together with D.C.) Keeping the Blues Allive Award from the Memphis based Blues Folundation for her work with kids doing Blues in the Schools. Also an OK Blues Hall of Fame Inductee. Like D.C. she switched back to guitar as it became time for her to front the band. --all 3 nites

 

The Native American blues band formally known as Cecil Gray and the Red Dawn Blues Band has migrated to the Cecil Gray and the Flying Eagle Blues Band.  The southwest Oklahoma bluesmen are currently working on a cd, which will feature ten original songs by Cecil Gray.  The band members are Cecil Gray (lead singer, lead guitar, harmonica), Troy Simmons (drummer), and C. F. Gray (bass player). The talented musicians blend their musical abilities to contribute to the continuation of the Blues music. 

In 2004 an exuberate Cecil Gray and the Red Dawn Blues Band took the stage and proudly accepted the prestigious NAMMY Award at the 7^th Annual Native American Music Award. The “Best Blues / Jazz Recording” award was for the cd “Indian Harmony”.  The music was unique as all twelve songs on the cd were originals.  The blues songs were composed and sung by Cecil Gray, who plays lead guitar and harmonica.  This achievement was the pinnacle of his musical talents. The four times NAMMY nominee has been heavily influenced by Jimmy Reed, Robin Trower, and the great Jimi Hendrix.

Cecil Gray is an enrolled member of the Kiowa Nation.  He is from the Saddle Mountain area near Carnegie, Oklahoma.  An accomplished singer, songwriter, and guitarist, he has been playing guitar and harmonica for forty-one years.  At the age of fifteen, he was playing gospel music for his aunt Stella Rivera.  In the 11^th grade he formed his own band called the Shades of Gray.  In 1973 he joined the Native American dance troupe and toured the southwestern United States.  In 1980 he formed the band called the Flying Eagle Band.  In 1986 Cecil obtained his Bachelor’s Degree in Business Administration with a 3.2 GPA.  For the next twelve years he sang and played lead guitar and harmonica with the Blackhawk Blues Band.  The band recorded two cds titled “Gypsy Blue” and “Rainy”.  In 2002 at the 5^th Annual Native American Music Award, the second cd “Rainy” was nominated in two categories:   Best Blues / Jazz Recording and the Debut Artist / Group of the Year.  Eight of the twelve songs on the cd were original songs written and sung by Cecil.  In 2003 he formed his own blues band called “Cecil Gray and the Red Dawn Blues Band”.  The band’s first cd “Indian Boy / Indian Girl” was nominated in 2003 for the 6^th Annual Native American Music Awards in the Best Blues / Jazz Recording category.  However, it was in the following year at the 7^th Annual Native American Music Awards that Cecil and his band were publically announced as the winners for the “Best Blues/Jazz Recording” award for the cd “Indian Harmony”.  In 2005 he sang and recorded the gospel cd “Prayer Warriors”, whose singers featured his mother Dorothy Gray and his aunt Vivian Komardly.  In 2006 at the 8^th Annual Native American Music Awards the gospel cd was nominated in the “Best Gospel/Christian/Inspirational Recording”.  In the testament to Cecil’s faith, all of the proceeds from the recording go directly to the family church “Cedar Creek Indian Methodist Church”.  The church was ministered by his grandfather Cecil HuntingHorse, who was a preacher and a medicine man.  After the passing of Cecil’s close friend and bass player Melvin Scott, he regrouped and transitioned the Native American blues band into the present “Cecil Gray and the Flying Eagle Blues Band”.  In the last two years Cecil has been lending his musical talents as a vocalist and guitarist to front numerous professional blues bands.

Troy Simmons is an enrolled member of the Comanche Nation from the Apache, Oklahoma area.  He has been playing the drums for thirty-two years.   He began listening and practicing to Steve Miller, Beatles, Kiss, soul, and R&B 8track music, since he was fourteen years of age.  In 1978 thru 1980 he played with the Flying Eagle Band with Cecil Gray, C. F. Gray, Terry Bennet, and Patrick Tointigh.  In 1988 thru 1990 he played with the hard rock band called Speak Thunder.   In 2001 he joined the Grizzleheads, who play a variety of music from classic rock and country for local and out of state events.  In 2005 he joined the Red Dawn Blues Band and played numerous Native American events, festivals, and casinos.  In 2008 he loaned his talents to the OIT (local Native American band) and played local events in Oklahoma and Texas.  In 2009 he migrated from the Red Dawn Blues Band to the Flying Eagle Blues Band.  He has been drumming for Cecil Gray’s band for the last four years.  His main influences are Robert Cray, Jimi Hendrix, Robin Trower, John Hooker, Iron Maiden, and BB King.  Troy’s years of drumming experience and his passion for drumming are readily seen when he becomes so immersed in the blues music that he twirls a drumstick overhead and does not miss a beat.

C. F. Gray holds down the bottom as the bass player.  He is the brother of Cecil Gray and is also, an enrolled member of the Kiowa Nation.  He is from the Saddle Mountain area near Carnegie, Oklahoma and has been playing bass for the last thirty years.  In 1980 he began playing bass with the Flying Eagle Band.  His main influences are Steve Harris, who is the bass player with Iron Maiden and Geddy Lee, bass player with RUSH.  He has played with a variety of music from rock and roll, heavy metal at numerous local activities.  Now he is back to the blues.  In 2010 his unlimited musical talents are a very, welcomed addition to round out the unique and distinctive sound of this Native American blues band from  southwest Oklahoma.    

Tara Cargill is the back-up singer for the all Native American blues band.  Tara is an enrolled member of the Comanche Nation.  In addition, she is Kiowa, Navajo, Choctaw, and Chickasaw descent.  She lives in Cache, Oklahoma.  During high school, she sang at several local town festivals in the southwest area.  She admires Etta James and Koko Taylor.  Cecil asked Tara if she would like to audition for the one of the original songs “I Need You”.  The results were magic and brought soul to the song.  Tara’s deep, rich vocals adds a new dimension to the songs.  Although, the newest addition to the band, she shows great promise as a Native American female blues singer.

PAT MOSS of Tahlequah – a leader in his Cherokee tribe who has worked as a domestic violence prevention
advocate, an advisor to prisons on Native American spiritualism, and is gifted in the use of herbal medicine. Accomplished on harp and guitar, Moss approaches the music with
humility then soars into powerful, moving expressions of deeply felt appreciation for its
transcendent qualities.

CD RELEASE PARTY AT THE FESTIVAL for PAT MOSS!

BAR ROOM PREACHER created in the best studio in Memphis with the best musicians and PAT!!!

Pat Moss hails from Tahlequah with his Native blues - slide, harmonica. His hit song is Bar room preacher and he sure rocks on Wang Dang Doodle... here he plays with Yogi on harp on our main stage.

 

MOJO SONATA BIOGRAPHY

A few years back, Deb Bynum and Steve Hahn turned off their TV, and filled the air with the sound of their guitars instead; and the music they made was good. By and by, Deb met Tina Southworth, who soulfully sang an a cappella “Milk Cow Blues.” Deb said, “you're hired,” and the music of the three was fun. Plastering WANTED posters all over Northeast Oklahoma lured former Seattle bassist, Karen Woody, providing “Mo' Bottom” attitude; and the music was magic. David Small was brought in to lay down a funky drumbeat, and now the music was smokin'. Conjuring up a brew of Tina & Deb originals, and covers of both well-known classics, and more obscure gems, got the mojo workin'. Mojo Sonata is unique Oklahoma blues: powerful vocals, haunting harmonies, fun arrangements and inspired instrumentals.

Earlier this year, representing the Friends of Rentiesville, Oklahoma, Blues Society, Mojo Sonata competed with over 100 bands from throughout the world in the 26^th Annual International Blues Challenge on Beale Street in Memphis, Tennessee.  After hearing the band in the semi-finals at Ground Zero Blues Club, Ricky Stevens, Chairman of the Blues Foundation, organizer of the challenge, stated, “If you've never heard Mojo Sonata, this group had the tightest vocal harmonies I've ever heard at the International Blues Challenge.”  Mojo Sonata has also pleased audiences throughout Northeast Oklahoma and Northwest Arkansas.

It has been a long-time dream of Mojo Sonata to play on the bill at the Dusk ‘til Dawn Blues Festival in Rentiesville – now, finally, that dream will be a reality!  Come on out and help us celebrate this milestone, groove to the music, and shake your tail feather!

A NOTE ON THE JAMS (Jam Sessions) – as it wouldn’t be fair to schedule a band indoors while the headliners are onstage outside, the 10 pm til midnight INVITATIONAL JAM in the club is a chance for any musician ever hired on the Festival to ‘musically get to know’ any other…great surprises every night. THE ALL STAR JAM from about 3 am on is the headliners who feel the spirit working out together. In the past this has included Kenny Neal jamming with Magic Slim…many magic moments.

FRIDAY & all 3 nights..., Sept 3, 4, 5 — Back Porch Stage
includes workshops and is part of KID’s VILLAGE at this family-friendly Festival.
F.O.R. Blues let's kids in free and buys some of the best talent from OK Arts Council.

A NOTE ON THE KID’S VILLAGE – ongoing through entire fest, and free—

LINDA DIXON of Shawnee will do facepainting all three nights

JOANN McMILLAN, OK Arts Council Artist in Residence, is a mainstay of the Kid’s Village, bringing in loads of costumes, puppets and fun for the kids

PATRICK DUFFY runs The Ceramics Encounter – a chance to get dirty and mom cannot complain – a pottery wheel!

       pottery

Blues Fest Guide's Tom and Cheryl Yearnshaw wrote:
"In keeping with DC’s and Selby’s active participation in the Oklahoma school system through their innovative ‘Blues in the Schools’ programs, the Kid’s Village has also been a big part of the event.  Face painting, costumes, ‘dragons’ (a la Chinese New Years parades), clay pottery, and puppet shows are made lovingly available by a group of exceptional volunteers.  These are all hands-on activities, keeping young minds occupied while the hypnotic sounds of blues slowly soak into the young minds that will be the future of the blues.  This Kid’s Village is unlike anything we’ve seen before!!! "