Saturday, July 13: Tacoma Old Town Rhythm and Blues Festival

Old Town Tacoma

By Rockford Rowley on July 11, 2013

The Tacoma Old Town Rhythm and Blues Festival, founded as the Tacoma Old Town Blues Festival in 1991 by Ted Brown and Mike Mitchell, will add more rhythm to the annual beloved blues festival. Saturday will find the festival back in Tacoma's Old Town Park on North 30th, with eight stages featuring about 22 musical acts, along with many vendors and food.

The festival will begin at 9:30 a.m., and a full 13 hours of entertainment will ensue with the music lasting all the way until midnight. This year headliners DoctorfunK will be making their way down from Seattle to perform at the Slavonian Hall stage at 8:30 p.m. The 10-piece ensemble is a premier tribute band of the Northwest, performing music by Tower Of Power, James Brown, Earth Wind & Fire and others.

Some other familiar names will be making appearances as well. Rafael Tranquilino of Maurice the Fish Records will be performing at the Old Town Park outside stage at 3 p.m. Also on the outside stage will be guitarist Nolan Garrett, scheduled at the 6 p.m. slot. Steve Cooley and the Dangerfields, Sweetkiss Momma, T Town Aces, Dean Reichert Band, Palmer Junction, Billy Stoops and many others will perform in the Old Town venues, all a stone's throw away from each other. The popular 9:30 a.m. pancake breakfast show will carry Johnny Long's live soundtrack.

TACOMA OLD TOWN RHYTHM AND BLUES FESTIVAL, 9:30 a.m. to midnight, Old Town Tacoma, North 30th and McCarver, $20 evening shows, tacomaoldtownrhythmandbluesfest.com.

LINK: Tacoma Old Town Rhythm and Blues Festival schedule