Joe Hirsh Productions

Centenary Blues Festival Schedule

2012-02-27T12:00:00.000-08:00

**Click the "Centenary Blues Fest 2012" tab at the top of the page for more info.**

All events in Hackettstown

Thursday March 8

5:00-7:00 pm:
Downtown Kickoff at the Gazebo on Main Street
Featuring Amplified Heat
*Free Event*

Friday March 9

4:00-6:30 pm:
Marley's Gotham Grill, Main Street

Featuring Rockin' Blue
*Free Event*

7:00-10:30 pm:
Lackland Center at Centenary College

Ticket Required (Click here to purchase)

Quimby Mountain Band

The VooDUDES

Rob Paparozzi (formerly of Blood, Sweat & Tears) and Hudson River Rats featuring Bernard "Pretty" Purdie on drums (taking the stage at approximately 8:30 pm)

Saturday March 10

4:00-6:00 pm:

Marley's Gotham Grill, Main Street

Featuring Great Fraud

*Free Event*

6:30-10:00 pm:

Lackland Center at Centenary College

Ticket Required (Click here to purchase)

Johnny Charles/Nasty Ned
Rhett Tyler
Roomful of Blues (taking the stage at approximately 8:30 pm)

10:30-midnight:

After-party at Marley's Gotham Grill, Main Street

Brooke Shive & The 45's

$5 admission or free with Centenary ticket

Click here to purchase Centenary show tickets

For Special Blues Festival Hotel Rates (for March 9 or 10):

Courtyard by Marriott - Mt. Arlington
15 Howard Boulevard, Mt. Arlington, NJ
Phone: 973-770-2000

Residence Inn Marriott Mount Olive
International Trade Center
Mount Olive, NJ
Phone: 973-691-1720

Thank you to our Blues Festival Sponsors!

PNC Bank

Mr. Music

GBW Insurance

Hackettstown Business Improvement District

Marley's Gotham Grill, Investors Bank

Courtyard by Marriott - Mt. Arlington

Residence Inn Marriott Mount Olive

Good Impressions Printing and Mailing

Karmabridge Acupuncture & Herbals, P.C.

Mountain Ledge Music

United Jersey Blues Network

Cathy Miller Photography

Sound Effects Records

HTVProductions

NWNJ Happenings

MoPromo

Featured in "Northwest New Jersey Happenings"

VooDUDES, Rockin' Blue, Amplified Heat, Quimby among regional acts on tap for Centenary Blues

2012-02-27T08:54:00.002-08:00

New Jersey festival favorite The VooDUDES will bring their super fun style of music to this year's Centenary Blues Festival when they take the stage on Friday March 9 at the Lackland Center at Centenary College.

Throughout the festival weekend, which starts with a free Downtown Kickoff show on Thursday March 8 and concludes with a Post Show party at Marley's Gotham Grill on Main Street on Saturday night March 10, there will be plenty of music to fill anyone's appetite.

While nationally known headliners Rob Paparozzi (formerly of Blood, Sweat & Tears and the Original Blues Brothers) and his band, Hudson River Rats featuring the incredible Bernard "Pretty" Purdie on drums, and with Roomful of Blues shaking the Lackland Center's Sitnik Theatre on Friday and Saturday nights respectively, a host of regional favorites will also be featured throughout the three days - among them The VooDUDES, Quimby Mountain Band, Amplified Heat, Rockin' Blue, Johnny Charles and Nasty Ned, Karen Kamenetsky & Friends, Kathy Moser, and Davey Werkhiser.

The 3rd Annual Blues Festival is presented by Joe Hirsh Productions and the Centenary Stage Company, with major support from PNC Bank, the Hackettstown Business Improvement District, Mr. Music in Washington, Marley's Gotham Grill in Hackettstown, GBW Insurance, and Good Impressions Printing and Mailing, features three days of the blues at Centenary College and around the Hackettstown area.

The VooDUDES' fun echoes down 20+ years of playing festivals, concerts, clubs, dances, cruises, parties, corporate events, and weddings in 14 US States, Canada, Switzerland, and Greece. They've traveled from Geneva's First Rock Café to Montreal's Rock Quai to NYC's Hard Rock Café to Cleveland's Rock & Roll Hall of Fame to Mid City Bowl Rock & Bowl in New Orleans.

The VooDUDES are Dave Ambrosy (drums, vocals); Gary Ambrosy (guitar/lapsteel/vocals); Andy "B" Bernstein (vocals/percussion/harmonica); Fred Saunders (bass). Individually they've played and/or recorded with Sonny Rhodes, Frankie Lee, Otis Rush, Homesick James, Glen Burtnik, the Zyde-Blues Revue, Billy Hector, and Capt. Hawker & The Allstars.

The VooDUDES have appeared as featured opener for these national acts: Johnny Adams, Buckwheat Zydeco, CJ Chenier, Commander Cody, Dirty Dozen Brass Band, Dr. John, John Eddie, The Fabulous Thunderbirds, Levon Helm, the Holmes Brothers, The Iguanas, Bill Kirchen & Too Much Fun, Rosie Ledet, Little Malcolm & His Zydeco Family, Branford Marsalis, The Red Elvises, Rockin' Dopsie, Jr, Roomful of Blues, Mavis Staples, Wayne Toups & ZydeCajun, the US Navy Jazzband, and Nathan Williams & The Zydeco Cha-Chas.

But the VooDUDES are not the only regional act set for the Centenary Blues action. Kicking off the festivities on Thursday night willl be Warren County-based Amplified Heat, playing from 5-7 p.m. at the Gazebo in Downtown Hackettstown. Music will also be at Mama's and Prickly Pear in town, from 7-8:30 p.m., with Davey Werkhiser of Davey & The Waverunners scheduled for Mama's.

The David and Carol Lackland Center at Centenary College hosts "the main attractions" Friday and Saturday nights, with The VooDUDES and Quimby Mountain Band also on Friday and another amazing regional act, Johnny Charles with Nasty Ned on Saturday. Rhett Tyler of New York will also be part of the Saturday schedule at Lackland.

"Matinee shows" at Marley's Gotham Grill take place in the late afternoon (4-6 p.m.) on Friday (Rockin' Blue) and Saturday (Great Fraud) and a "post-show party" on Saturday night with Brooke Shive & The 45s, also at Marley's (starting at 10:30). The Centenary shows begin at 7 on Friday and 6:30 on Saturday, with the headliners scheduled for 8:30 both nights. "Tweener Acts" at Centenary, sponsored by Karmabridge Acupuncture & Herbals, P.C., will be Morris County's Karen Kamenetsky & Friends (Friday) and Sussex County's Kathy Moser (Saturday).

Other key supporters for this year's festival are Courtyard by Marriott - Mt. Arlington, Residence Inn Marriott Mount Olive, Mountain Ledge Music, Investors Bank, United Jersey Blues Network, Cathy Miller Photography, CHP Communications, HTVProductions, Sound Effects Records, MoPromo, and NWNJ Happenings.

For ticket information and further details about the festival, go to www.centenarystageco.org or phone 908-979-0900.

One of world's greatest drummers, Bernard "Pretty" Purdie, joins Centenary Blues line-up with Hudson River Rats

2012-01-23T12:36:00.000-08:00

Bernard "Pretty" Purdie, considered one of the greatest - and arguably the most recorded - drummers, will bring his special brand of "sticks" to the Centenary Blues Festival when he appears with Rob Paparozzi and the Hudson River Rats on Friday March 9.

The 3rd Annual Blues Festival, March 9 and 10, presented by Joe Hirsh Productions and the Centenary Stage Company, with major support from PNC Bank, the Hackettstown Business Improvement District, Mr. Music in Washington, Marley's Gotham Grill in Hackettstown, GBW Insurance, and Good Impressions Printing and Mailing, features two full days of the blues at Centenary College and around the Hackettstown area, with the incredible Roomful of Blues headlining Saturday and Paparozzi on Friday.

The Blues Festival is a weekend-filled event for the Hackettstown area, with the David and Carol Lackland Center at Centenary College hosting music Friday and Saturday nights, preceded by "matinee shows" at Marley's Gotham Grill in the late afternoon (Rockin' Blue on Friday/Great Fraud on Saturday), and a "post-show party" on Saturday night with Brooke Shive & The 45s, also at Marley's. The Centenary shows begin at 7 on Friday and 6:30 on Saturday, with the headliners scheduled for 8:30 both nights. Other events are also being planned for the weekend including a free Downtown Kickoff Show at the Gazebo on Main Street on Thursday March 8 from 5-7 p.m. with the band Amplified Heat.

Born June 11, 1939 in Elkton, Maryland as the 11th of 15th children, Purdie began drumming as a six-year-old. By the age of 14 he had become the most important provider for his family - earning his pay with country and carnival bands. This "schooling" enabled Purdie to "feel my way into nearly every kind of music, 'cause I had to know all styles and was never afraid to try something new."

Purdie moved to New York in 1960 after finishing high school and played with Lonnie Youngblood before landing his first hit with King Curtis. This led to his work with Aretha Franklin in 1970 - and the beginning of an unparalleled career. Since then, Purdie has been a regular guest in the studios of the stars of Blues, Jazz, Soul, and Rock, working together with Paul Butterfield, Larry Coryell, Miles Davis, Hall & Oates, Al Kooper, Herbie Mann, Todd Rundgren and Cat Stevens. He has also anchored sessions with the Rolling Stones, James Brown and Tom Jones, among many others, as well as regularly producing his solo albums under his own name. With Purdie on stage will be Paparozzi (formerly of Blood, Sweat & Tears and the Original Blues Brothers), singer & harmonica player,

Rounding out the Friday schedule will be Quimby Mountain Band opening up followed by The VooDudes, and on Saturday, Johnny Charles with Nasty Ned, and Rhett Tyler & Early Warning featuring Al Buonanno on bass and Jeff Prescott on drums.

Other key supporters for this year's festival are Courtyard by Marriott - Mt. Arlington, Residence Inn Marriott Mount Olive, Mountain Ledge Music, Investors Bank, United Jersey Blues Network, Cathy Miller Photography, CHP Communications, HTVProductions, Sound Effects Records, and MoPromo.

For ticket information and further details about the festival, go to www.centenarystageco.org or phone 908-979-0900. Student priced tickets ($15) are available at the box office only. You can also LIKE the Centenary Blues page on Facebook. For more about Joe Hirsh Productions and its ongoing events, check out the Joe Hirsh Productions page on FB or email joehirsh@msn.com.

Roomful of Blues, Rob Paparozzi (formerly of Blood, Sweat & Tears), VooDudes, Quimby Mountain Band highlight Blues Fest

2011-11-22T18:49:00.001-08:00

HACKETTSTOWN, NJ - Internationally renowned Roomful of Blues and Rob Paparozzi (formerly of Blood, Sweat & Tears) and his blues band, Hudson River Rats, are the headliners for the 2012 Centenary Blues Festival March 9-10.

The 3rd Annual Blues Festival, presented by Joe Hirsh Productions and the Centenary Stage Company, features two full days of the blues at Centenary College and around the Hackettstown area, with Roomful of Blues headlining Saturday and Paparozzi on Friday.

The Blues Festival is a weekend-filled event for the Hackettstown area, with the beautiful and nearly new state-of-the-art David and Carol Lackland Center at Centenary College hosting music Friday and Saturday nights, preceded by "matinee shows" at Marley's Gotham Grill in the late afternoon and a "post-show party" on Saturday night, also at Marley's. The Centenary shows begin at 7 on Friday and 6:30 on Saturday, with the headliners scheduled for 8:30 both nights.

With a recording career that spans over 40 years, Roomful of Blues has toured worldwide and recorded many albums. Since 1967, the group's blend of swing, rock and roll, jump blues, boogie-woogie and soul has earned them five Grammy Award nominations and many other accolades, including seven Blues Music Awards (with a victory as Blues Band Of The Year in 2005). Billboard has called called the band "a tour de force of horn-fried blues. Roomful is so tight and so right." The Down Beat International Critics Poll has twice selected Roomful of Blues as Best Blues Band.

Currently an eight-piece unit led by guitarist Chris Vachon and featuring long-time tenor and alto sax player Rich Lataille, also includes singer Phil Pemberton, bassist John Turner, drummer Ephraim Lowell, keyboardist Travis Colby, and baritone and tenor saxophonist Mark Earley.

New Jersey-based frontman, singer, & harmonica player Rob Paparozzi has been a blues performer since 1967. But Rob is far from being strictly a blues musician. In fact, he's at home playing a wide range of music, ranging from rock to blues to jazz to pop. This versatility is reflected in the long and remarkably diverse list of major artists Paparozzi has worked with, including B.B.King, Dr. John, Bruce Springsteen, Whitney Houston, Carole King, Roberta Flack, Culture Club, Cyndi Lauper, Randy Newman, Jimmy McGriff, and James Galway.

Paparozzi has toured the world with the "Original Blues Brothers Band", featuring guitar legend Steve Cropper and special guest Eddie Floyd and also as Frontman-Lead Singer for the legendary "Blood Sweat and Tears"

Rounding out the Friday schedule will be Quimby Mountain Band and The VooDudes, and on Saturday, Johnny Charles Band with Nasty Ned, and Rhett Tyler & Early Warning featuring Al Buonanno on bass and Jeff Prescott on drums.

Major supporters for this year's festival are PNC Bank, Mr. Music, GBW Insurance, Hackettstown Business Improvement District, Marley's Gotham Grill, Investors Bank, Courtyard by Marriott - Mt. Arlington, Residence Inn Marriott Mount Olive, Good Impressions Printing and Mailing, Mountain Ledge Music, United Jersey Blues Network, Cathy Miller Photography, and HTVProductions.

For ticket information and further details about the festival, go to www.centenarystageco.org or phone 908-979-0900.