Good Friday at Bluesfest 2016

This year instead of driving back and forth between Brisbane and Byron Bay I booked a motel room in Brunswick Heads and spent three nights down there starting on Good Friday and coming back Monday night.

Ah, the comforts of a motel room
and a good night's rest

Archie Roach playing the Crossroads tent

After checking into my motel room I arrived at Bluesfest to see Archie Roach playing the Crossroads tent and planted my butt on the grass to have a listen to one of my favourite singers while waiting to see another of my favourite singers who was meant to be next on the program, but Don McLean wouldn't be coming until next year now according to this news article -

Don McLean: American Pie singer delays Australian tour to reunite with wife
So, it's lucky I already have my ticket for next year, I guess.   

Elle King playing the Mojo tent

When I found out Don wasn't going to show I wandered over to the Mojo tent and caught Elle King, so I guess that kinda made up for Don's no-show at the festival.
Elle has a powerhouse voice and loves using the f#cking F word between songs. 
She put on a great show, and I loved when she sang "Ex's & Oh's".
I couldn't get that song out of my head for a while.

Grace Potter on the Mojo stage

Then Grace Potter hit the stage and sent my blood pressure to dangerous levels, I'm sure.

I loved her tribute to David Bowie earlier this year in that You Tube above.

I missed her last time she played Bluesfest when everyone was telling me how good she was, and they weren't wrong.

And I was convinced when I took the photo below that Grace gave me a wink, but I think looking at it now that a bug must have hit her in the eye;-)

Tom Jones may have reigned supreme over the Bluesfest long weekend, but my underpants belong to Grace.

Nahko & Medicine for the People
on the Mojo stage

Then it was Nahko & Medicine for the People who followed Grace on to the Mojo stage, and unlike when I saw them in play in Mullumbimby, or attempted to, I didn't have someone constantly dropping their guts next to me, so I could enjoy the show surrounded by fresh air and good vibrations. 
The Mullum(bimby) Music Festival 2014 (Part 2)

I was really impressed by the guy playing the electric violin ... fiddle ... or whatever it was.

Snapped a few shots of the guys afterwards at the signing tent while I was waiting for Steve Earle to sign my CD.

I might have made it into the background of this shot above.
I hope Nahko likes those rabbit ears that will show up in that shot seemingly sprouting from his head, after-all it was Easter:-)
Only kidding, but it was tempting not to give him a peace sign coming out of his head for the shot.

Steve Earle signing the CDs of two
lovely young ladies from Canberra

I met two young jazz musicians from Canberra who were in the Steve Earle line and and they were telling me all about Canberra when I told them that I had never been there before, but I was driving down in mid-April to visit my son and his girlfriend and take in the sights and watch the Sharks smash Canberra in the Rugby League clash in the capital that weekend that I'm down there.
But that didn't get them riled up over me slinging off at their home team the Canberra Raiders, because one didn't follow the NRL and the other was a Rabbitohs supporter.
Of course she would have to be a Rabbitohs fan being Easter and all:-)

Actually, with a helmet and a set of horns Steve would make a good Canberra Raiders mascot, don't you think?-)

I'll be getting a lot of mileage out of this CD when I hit the road to Canberra and back in a few weeks and it may be the last one Steve ever signs for me again if he ever stumbles across this post and the Canberra Raiders mascot jibe.
Reminds me to slap my sticker on the car before I head off on my trip to the nation's capital;-)

Steve Earle playing the Jambalaya stage

Steve Earle playing the Jambalaya stage

Tex Perkins and the Ape headlining the Delta stage

The last act of the night should have been a toss-up between Tex Perkins and the Ape and Mick Fleetwood and his band, but me not being a fan of Fleetwood Mac it was a no brainer, and I didn't need a coin to decide that I was off to see Tex and the boys ... or ape/s.

The last time I saw Tex was at the 2015 Bangalow Billy Cart Races -
Pictures from the 2015 Bangalow Billycart Races Last Sunday
But the last time I saw him play live was as Johnny Cash at Jupiter's Casino in 2014.

63 Not Out? 
The weird thing about 2016 being the Chinese Year of the Monkey and the band Tex Perkins and the Ape was that the guitarist in the red shirt kept reminding me of Mike Nesmith from The Monkees.

Mike Nesmith from The Monkees?

Mike Nesmith

The full moon rising over the Pacific
Ocean and Bluesfest on Good Friday

Well, that was how I saw Good Friday at Bluesfest.
But I'm inclined to call it Great Friday after all of that great music.