Still adjusting to this Texas heat. That fog and cool air on the West Coast is appealing, but nothing beats the Texas music scene and the vista I have from my front door. I loved the waves crashing on piles of rock on the beach in Monterey, and I also love the pasture in front of my house, wildflowers blooming and scattering color again. Glad I don’t have to make a choice, just keep creating opportunities to travel and see more of this spectacular world. I know Kerrville is full of world-travelers so you know what I mean.

  The 18^th Annual Monterey Blues Festival proves that an annual event can just keep getting better. A team of people committed to the arts and education work all year on this event. Martin Fuentes, producer, was the subject of a long feature article in the Monterey paper. I couldn’t help but think of our own Kerrville Folk Festival with over 30 years of life! We are doing something special here, folks.

  Friday night Sister Carolyn and I enjoyed the Garden Stage, sitting on the front row and even dancing to some funk music. The festival occurs in the Monterey Fairgrounds. Two stages and rows of food booths and vendors fill the outer area. The “arena” stage is inside, surrounded by tiers of seats. All the music on every stage is good.

  Saturday, we headed back over to catch Karen Tyler at 1:00 p.m. I read of her Texas roots and wanted to hear some of that Texas shuffle. We were not disappointed. In an conversation with her after the show, she said, “I have been called a ‘wailer,’ but I feel like the rhythm and intensity need to vary. That’s what I do. I can be soft in one minute and wail in the next.” I was immediately reminded of the waves crashing the rock on the shore, the tide both going in and rushing out. That’s a rhythm that I have in my life as well.

  I watched Karen as she signed her CD and talked with fans, many of them new. Karen spoke fondly of her experience in Austin, Texas. She moved to California to be near older parents. “I realized that time is short and spending time with family is a priority.” She quickly found a niche in the California scene. “I find even more support for my music when I leave Texas,” she said, laughing. We all know that “profit without honor in the backyard” story.

  One page of the program book is dedicated to the story of Karen Tyler. She was the winner of the Monterey Bay  Battle of the Blues, a competition she entered just “for fun.” The program book is a piece of archival publishing, containing stories and photos of the performers, the directors, the story of the event. If you think of making the trip next June, call me for a look at this program book.

  Karen’s new CD (self-produced as is true for many great artists) captures her interest in a variety of styles. “All Shades of Blue” was the song I heard her singing as we entered the arena on Saturday. This title cut from her CD summarizes her own philosophy on music: many styles, many rhythms.

  A conversation with Shemekia Copeland on Sunday morning also revealed a woman, a young woman of 24, committed to bringing the blues to new heights. “I started out singing with my daddy (Johnny Clyde Copeland) when I was about eight, and I knew early on that I loved the blues. Of course, Shemekia has also included some rock and roll and soul on her albums with Alligator Records. She is a self-contained woman, full of pride in who she is and willing to share these precepts with other women. She constantly encourages women to take a stand, accept who you are, standing tall and proud. She says this in a conversation, she says this on stage.

  When she ran up to the mike on Sunday for her show, long hair flowing over a shiny sequined top and short skirt, we all knew this woman was going to tell us the truth! I’ll have to devote another entire column to her show.

  We also heard Lou Rawls, the Blind Boys of Alabama and Al Green on this arena stage. We entered the fairgrounds on Sunday, hearing the Blind Boys wailing a version of Amazing Grace. Al Green sang another version during his set at the end of the day. Full circle for me. Kelly Hunt was the last performer I heard, my second time to hear her. She played that keyboard, wailed and crooned, totally involving the audience. I heard an amazing song/story of her experience with her grandmother’s death. The chills that came up on my arms told me that this story/song evoked powerful archetypal images for many of us.

 Ahead this weekend at the Cailloux Theatre, July 11-13,  is a comedy with Texas appeal, Greater Tuna. Patsy Cline never dies in the small town of Tuna, Texas. Chili’s on the River keeps showcasing great music. And a Hill Country Opry is forming, the first performance at Choo Choo’s Barbecue featuring Stephanie Urbina Jones, a favorite of mine! That performance is July 19. Free Leonard and down the road.