The Blues Train, Australia’s longest running Contemporary Blues and Roots music venue, which is based on the Bellarine Heritage Railway on Victoria’s stunning Bellarine Peninsula, has announced its newly curated Women In Blues Concert Series. The series kicks off early in 2024, and will help mark The Blues Train’s 30th Anniversary.
Launched with a series of performances at a specially curated free community stage during the Queenscliff Festival, the Women In Blues Concert Series will feature emerging and established female Contemporary Blue and Roots artists integrated into the main event line-ups to be delivered across every Blues Train event from January to May 2024.
The Women in Blues Concert Series will feature many regular Blues Train artists as well as introducing and championing up and coming female artists in the blues and roots music field.
Amongst the featured artists is Anna Scionti, the recent winner of the Melbourne Blues Appreciation Society’s (MBAS’s) Blues Performer of the Year 2023 (Solo/Duo category) – which means she’ll be representing Melbourne at the annual International Blues Challenge (IBC) in Memphis, Tennesse in January 2024.
THE LINE-UPS FOR JANUARY, FEBRUARY AND MARCH 2024 BLUES TRAINS EVENTS IS AS FOLLOWS:
(FEMALE ARTISTS ARE HIGHLIGHTED IN PURPLE)
16th December 2023
McNamarr Project (Duo)
Bret Mosley (Solo)
The Windsavers (Trio)
Damon Smith (Band)
20th January 2024
Miss Lou’s Blues (Duo)
Joel Havea (Solo)
The Windsavers (Trio)
Stonetrain (5 Pce)
27th January 2024
Jungle Jim Smith (Solo)
Jarrod Shaw (Solo)
Eddy & The Exciters (4 Pce)
Laurel & The Painkillers (4 Pce)
17th February 2024
George Kamikawa (Solo)
Joel Havea (Solo)
Jay Howie (Trio)
Laurel & The Painkillers (4 Pce)
2nd March 2024
Joel Havea (Duo)
Josh Batten (Solo) NEW
The Maskell Love Band (4 pce)
Stonetrain (5 Pce) NEW
16th March 2024
Kelly Auty (Duo + Brian Fraser)
Bret Mosley (Solo)
The Windsavers (Trio)
Laurel & The Painkillers (4 Pce)
THE ABOVE LISTED SHOWS ARE ONSALE NOW.
APRIL & MAY SHOWS ON SALE IN THE NEW YEAR AT
www.thebluestrain.com.au
The Blues Train has hosted many great musicians since its inception, including Aussie blues legends Chris Wilson, The Tesky Brothers, C W Stoneking, Dallas Frasca, Ash Grunwald, Mia Dyson, Jimi Hocking, Geoff Achison, Lloyd Spiegel, and Collard Greens & Gravy.
Established in 1994, The Blues Train provides a live music experience to more than 7,000 patrons annually, showcasing the best of Australian Contemporary Blues & Roots artists. The Blues Train operates 30-35 events from October to May each year, with founder Hugo T Armstrong handpicking up to 10 musicians per event, employing and promoting upwards of 300 Australian Contemporary Blues and Roots artists annually. Each night, Blues Train patrons enjoy a solo artist, a duo, a trio, and a full band, as they swap carriages throughout the evening experiencing four completely different interpretations and styles of blues and roots music.
A Blues Train event begins early in the evening at the Victorian Heritage Registered Queenscliff Station, where audience members grab a drink and enjoy dinner before they get rolling. Drinks to take on the journey are available on the platform from the T-bar in the guard’s van, open at each of the four stops. The Blues Train runs along the old Geelong train line, stopping in turn at Suma Park historic homestead and winery, and then at Drysdale before turning around and making its way back to Queenscliff, again via Suma Park.
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