The 2017 Dereham Blues Festival Is Here

It’s here! The fifth annual Dereham Blues Festival starts next week on 6th July. Over 50 acts playing at 15 venues makes this year’s festival bigger and better than ever. Apart from the opening concert, the gigs are free to enter as they are sponsored by the host venues.

 

The festival kicks off in grand style with a concert at The Dereham Memorial Hall on Thursday evening 6th July featuring the international star Andy Fairweather Low and his band The Low Riders. A top musician, Andy is much in demand and has played alongside some of the rock and blues music greats over the past six decades as well as having hits in his own right as lead singer with Amen Corner and as a solo performer. Supporting Andy at the opening gig will be local favourites The Dove and Boweevil Band.

 

The opening concert is kindly organised by the Friends of the Dereham Memorial Hall and is almost sold out, but there are still a few tickets left. To get the last few tickets go to http://www.derehambluesfestival.org.uk/tickets—andy-fairweather-low.html before they all go.

 

Tim Cara, Chairman of The Friends Of Dereham Memorial Hall, says, “It is tremendous to get Andy Fairweather Low to come to play in Dereham. Equally fantastic is the response from the public coming from all over the East of England to support this event with the gig virtually selling out long before the concert”.

 

The festival starts on Thursday evening 6th July and runs through to early Sunday evening 9th July. Some 55 of the very best blues and roots acts drawn from the region and across the UK will be playing their very heart and souls out in Dereham town centre venues. So if your music tastes lie either with rocking blues to soulful or country blues or through to the sultry introspective “rootsy” end of the blues and roots music spectrum, there’s something for everyone. Truly a “whole lot more than 12 bars of blues”!

 

For the full line up of who is playing where and when, go to http://www.derehambluesfestival.org.uk/timetable-of-events.html . There will also be a festival information stand in the market square during the morning of Saturday 1st July ahead of the festival weekend and again on the Festival Saturday morning 6th July.

 

Festival Chairman John Vasco says “I am so pleased to see the festival growing year on year. The interest in coming to Dereham both by acts wanting to play and blues lovers wanting to see them is truly impressive and gratifying, and is testimony to all the hard work put in by volunteers and other organisations, including the tremendous support afforded by the sponsors, to put on the event.”.

 

So if you like blues and roots music come to Dereham from Thursday 6th July to Sunday 9th July for the fifth annual Dereham Blues Festival – this year with more free acts than ever. A hot bluesy Norfolk welcome awaits you.

DEREHAM BLUES FESTIVAL 2017 – OUR SPONSORS

GREENBANKS HOTEL:

One of the Headline sponsors of the 2017 Blues Festival is an independent family run business. Over the last 27 years, Greenbanks hotel has evolved and seen the introduction of a swimming pool and self-catering accommodation. The property lends its self well to those less able, with level access to most areas including the pool and makes an ideal base to explore Norfolk , being set in the heart of the county. The team at Greenbanks have successfully been awarded The Excellence Award by Trip advisor and Booking.com in the last few months. Greenbanks Hotel is pleased to announce we will be supporting the 2017 Dereham Blues Festival. The event brings together visitors to the area and the local community through the common interest of music. The Festival also highlights what is available in and around Dereham area and is fast becoming a “must attend” event.

BUSSEYS:

Founded in 1911, Busseys, a Main Ford and Peugeot Dealer in Norfolk, have always been keen to support local events and businesses and are Headline Sponsors of the DBF in 2017. The company has particularly close ties to Dereham, as 2016 marked 20 years since the company opened a Ford dealership in Dereham and have since then added a Peugeot dealership to the area early last year. Paul Bussey, Marketing Director at Busseys said “We are extremely proud to be a headline sponsor at this years Dereham Blues Festival and look forward to a weekend full of good music!”

GREENE KING:

Greene King was founded 200 years ago, in 1799, by 19 year-old Benjamin Greene. As a company, we pride ourselves on consistently offering exceptional value, service and quality to all our customers. This ethos is central to everything we do in our business. Mark Holland, sales development manager at Greene King said, “Greene King has been brewing in and serving East Anglia for over 200 years, and we have always looked to offer our support for events close to home. Our pubs are part of communities, so we are proud to once again sponsor the popular Dereham Blues festival, which is a brilliant home-grown event that goes from strength to strength every year. Many of our beers will be served at festival venues, including the Bull, Gemini, Kings Head Hotel and the Cherry Tree, so blues fans can enjoy great local ales alongside a line-up of top notch acts from around the UK.”

STEPHENSON SMART:

We are a firm of chartered accountants with offices in King’s Lynn, Great Yarmouth, Fakenham, Downham Market, Wisbech and March. For over 100 years we have provided expert, tailored advice to our clients, working together to deliver the very best for them. We are delighted to support the Dereham Blues Festival in their efforts to organise such quality entertainment in the community.

ORCHARD CARAVANS:

Based in Wells-next-the-sea, Orchard Caravans has been a family business since 1967, starting with a small caravan park in Wells-next-the-sea that it still operates today, it is a very much loved Orchard Holiday Park and run to a very high standard. Caravan sales was introduced back in the mid-70s and has grown into one of the biggest new and used static caravan distributors to trade and retail in East Anglia. Offering the full service from supply, transportation, siting and commissioning with a full after sales service, park owners and their customers can rely on a company that is an NCC approved Holiday Caravan distributor. Orchard Caravans is delighted to support the Dereham Blues Festival in 2017