Billy Branch at the Village Theatre -- February 9.
Wednesday, February 9, 8 p.m.
Village Theatre, 2113 East 11th Street, Davenport IA
A three-time Grammy Award nominee, Emmy Award winner, and the recipient of multiple Blues Music Awards and Living Blues Critics' Awards, Chicago-blues singer and harmonica maestro Billy Branch plays Davenport's Village Theatre on February 9 in a fundraising concert for the Mississippi Valley Blues Society (MVBS), the critically lauded music sensation also serving as the resident artist for the first 2022 MVBS Blues in the Schools program.
Born in North Chicago in October of 1951, Branch moved with his family from the Windy City to Los Angeles when he was five years old. At 10, he bought his first harmonica at a Los Angeles Woolsworth store, began playing simple tunes and melodies, and, as the artist has stated, was never without a harmonica again. In 1969, Branch moved back to Chicago to attend college. eventually graduating with a Bachelor of Science degree in Political Science from the University of Illinois at Chicago. Also in 1969, Branch attended the first Chicago Blues Festival, which was produced by Willie Dixon. Six years later, as a university graduate, Branch began touring with Dixon's Chicago Blues All-Stars and soon took the place of Carey Bell, Dixon's longtime harp player, when Bell left the group to form his own band.
In the 1970s, Branch founded his own group The Sons of Blues (SOBs) with Lurrie Bell (the son of Carey) on guitar and Freddie Dixon (the son of Willie) on bass. Since then, the singer and harmonica player has performed on more than 250 different recordings, including 12 under his own name. He has recorded with Willie Dixon, Keb Mo, Johnny Winter, Lou Rawls, Koko Taylor, Eddy Clearwater, Honeyboy Edwards, Syl Johnson, Lurrie Bell, Ronnie Baker Brooks, and Taj Mahal, and has received three Grammy nominations. Branch also served two consecutive terms on the Grammy Board of Governors and currently is chairman of the Grammy Blues Committee. He has won multiple Blues Music Awards, an Emmy Award, an Addy Award, two Chicago Music Awards, and numerous humanitarian and achievement awards, and in 2017 the Chicago Blues Fest celebrated the 40th anniversary of Billy Branch and the SOBs. Branch annually appears at major festivals around the world, including the Montreux Blues Festival, North Sea Blues Festival, Cognac Blues Festivals and Long Beach Blues Festival, Chicago Blues Festival, San Francisco Blues Festival, and the North Sea Jazz Festival. His 2019 recording Roots & Branches: The Songs of Little Walter, meanwhile, was chosen as a "Favorite Blues Album" by AllMusic.com.
Billy Branch plays his Village Theatre fundraising concert on February 9, admission to the all-ages 8 p.m. event is $8-15, and more information and tickets are available by contacting the Mississippi Valley Blues Society at (563)322-5837 and MVBS.org.
