Long Beach Keeps Getting the Blues

When Johanna Mathieson was set to stage the first Barrier Beach Blues & Arts Festival in 2009, she spoke admiringly of the Riverhead Blues Festival’s ability to draw a crowd of 10,000, when Pat Hunter, a well-known Long Island blues artist, performed there the prior year.

Three summers later, the Riverhead festival has been canceled while the Long Beach festival, held from June 29 to July 3, branched out to multiple venues.

“I was really saddened by the news of the [Riverhead] festival’s demise, but heartened by the fact that we were able to employ so many of our local and tri-state blues performers,” Mathieson said of this year’s “Memphis Blues” festival.   

The inaugural festival was held at the Long Beach Library and Lola’s restaurant, but this year eight venues played hosts, including Stone Turtle restaurant and HUB Billiard’s Club in Island Park. The Polly O Band offered their bus to transport festival-goers to the different locations.

Mathieson and co-producer Howie Haber set a goal this year to include as many local artists that had been finalists or division winners in the International Memphis Blues Competition.

“Toby Walker, who won in his division in 2002, amazed, educated and entertained the audience at the library, as did the Better Late than Never Jug Band,” Mathieson said about the event's highlights.  

She characterized each venue as busy with blues-lovers who seemed to enjoy the music—some more than others.

“After an eclectic and original set from Tennessee native, Valerie June, the Alexis P. Suter Band got the audience up and ‘shaking what their maker gave them,’ as promised,” she continued.

The festival is sponsored by Artists in Partnership, a local arts group that hosts many events in Long Beach, from an annual cabaret to a Folk-2-Funk festival.

While in Riverhead in 2008, Mathieson noticed the festival there had few female performers. She was inspired to and did feature several women blues artists at Long Beach’s first festival, entitled “Ladies Sing the Blues.”

“I know we have the jazz festival here in town that’s very popular, and I just really wanted to give females an opportunity to have a showcase,” she said.

Artists in Partnership had applied for a grant with the Long Island Arts Council and the New York State Arts Council, and secured $1,500. Mathieson also recruited other financial contributors, including the library and local merchants.

The next year, the Delta Blues-themed festival added three venues, and with the success of this year’s festival, Mathieson believes the blues may be taking root in Long Beach.

Artists in Partnership will continue to partner with the library and local restaurants and seek state grants for next year’s festival that will be framed around the history and sounds of Chicago “City” Blues.  

“We’re in the preliminary stages of planning an A to Z arts festival fundraiser that the whole community can participate in and ultimately profit from by way of our providing family friendly, high-caliber, free cultural and arts programs throughout the year,” Mathieson said.

For information on Artists in Partnership, visit their website at www.aip-arts.org, or contact them at aip4arts@gmail.com.