Bluesfest turns 30 and it is time to celebrate

It’s official Bluesfest has turned 30 and to celebrate that have just announced their first artists lineup that will be taking to the stage during their Easter 2019 (April 18 – 22) anniversary festival.

‘Our 30th Anniversary Bluesfest will be a MAJOR event in a long line of great festivals. We will only turn 30 once,’ said director Peter Noble, ‘and we intend to make this edition truly memorable!’.

Featuring two of their most highly requested performers, Jack Johnson and  Ben Harper & The Innocent Criminals, will both be headlining as part of their exclusive performances.

Jack Johnson will return for his first performance since 2014.

‘Ben Harper’s first performance at Bluesfest 1996 remains one of the most important in the history of our event, and actually gave us the inspiration to move out of being a purely Blues festival and evolving into being Australia’s first Blues & Roots Music festival,’ said Mr Nobel.

There are quite a few other favourites from over the years coming back, including George Clinton & Parliament Funkadelic playing on his final Australian tour, before retiring.

Kasey Chambers will perform ‘The Captain’ album in its entirety, as well as her other hits, on the 20-year anniversary of first playing it at her main stage festival debut at Bluesfest. 

Amongst the many other favourites returning will be Rockwiz Live, Aussie legends Tommy Emmanuel, Colin Hay, Richard Clapton, Russell Morris, The Black Sorrows and Tex Perkins, plus internationals St Paul & The Broken Bones, Vintage Trouble, Nahko and Medicine for the People, Arlo Guthrie, Snarky Puppy, Keb’ Mo’, Elephant Sessions, The California Honeydrops and Trevor Hall, some of whom have not played on our stages in many, many years. 

First timers include the incredible I’m With Her, Larkin Poe, Kurt Vile, Greensky Bluegrass, AND in saving some of the Best for last, the long-awaited return to Australia for his first performances since 2005, as well as his Bluesfest debut, an artist who truly has achieved greatness, Ray LaMontagne. He has been called a Singer’s Singer, and his albums contain an astonishing brilliance.

‘The preceding artists are only our first in a number of highly anticipated announcements of artists coming for our 30th, which will include Headliners, Blues and Roots and Indigenous artists playing across our stages AND at our Boomerang Festival within a festival, plus so much more,’ finished Mr Nobel.