The 24th Annual Blues From The Top Festival returns to Winter Park, Colorado from June 26 through June 28, and the Grand County Blues Society has assembled one of the strongest lineups in the event’s two-decade history. Kenny Wayne Shepherd, Los Lobos, The Wood Brothers, Jimmie Vaughan and the Tilt-A-Whirl Band, North Mississippi All Stars, Bywater Call, Marc Broussard, Southern Hospitality featuring JP Soars, Victor Wainwright, and Damon Fowler, Blind Boys of Alabama, Vanessa Collier, and the Tyron Benoit Band are all confirmed across 3 days at the Rendezvous Event Center in downtown Winter Park.
The setting alone makes this festival worth the trip. Winter Park sits 67 miles west of Denver in the Rocky Mountains, with views of the Continental Divide framing every performance. Festival attendee Jamie Caffrey, a 16-year veteran of the event, puts it plainly: “It’s the best music festival in the western United States with views of the Continental Divide, great music, and easy access to outdoor recreation.” That combination of world-class music and genuine mountain atmosphere is what keeps Blues From The Top in a category of its own.
The festival runs multiple stages, a silent auction benefiting Blue Star Connection, and a full vendor village. The Check Out The Music Side Stage on Electric Avenue features young musicians from the School of Rock alongside local and regional artists during set changes, giving the next generation of blues and roots performers a real platform. It’s one of the more thoughtful programming decisions in the festival circuit.
Attendees arriving Thursday June 26 catch a free concert starting at 6:00 p.m. at the Rendezvous Event Center, with music continuing nightly throughout town across the entire weekend. General Admission and VIP tickets are both available, with pricing set to increase closer to the event.
The Grand County Blues Society is the engine behind all of it. Founded in 2002 as a nonprofit, GCBS has produced 21 blues festivals and more than 285 individual blues concerts over its history. Its Blue Star Connection program, now in its twentieth year, has supplied more than 92 children’s hospitals with instruments for music therapy departments and gifted personal instruments to more than 800 children. The festival is the fundraising backbone of that mission, which means every ticket purchased does more than get you into a great show.
Tickets are on sale now at BluesFromTheTop.org.