Mick in Nebraska for Bluesmasters

[michelej1]

The Daily Nebraskan
http://www.dailynebraskan.com/a-e/bl...fund-1.2755108
Bluesmasters show to include top-notch performers, benefit university scholarship fund August 31, 2012

Lincoln does not realize the sheer madness about to hit this city this weekend.

With the first Husker football game on Saturday and perhaps the largest collaborative force of blues artists the city has ever seen, Lincoln will be bursting at the seams.

The blues will be flooding the capital city this Friday for the Bluesmasters Concert, a tribute to the late Hubert Sumlin and Pinetop Perkins, as well as a benefit for the University of Nebraska’s Legends Scholarship fund.

Mick Fleetwood, drummer of the band Fleetwood Mac, will host the event. Bluesmasters is a chart-topping collaborative effort featuring artists of national renown and special guests, including Eric Gales and Otis Taylor. The Allman Brothers Band will headline the billing Friday. Elvin Bishop and Leon Russell will also perform.

Tim Tucker, chief architect of the concert and guitarist in the group, describes the presence of The Allman Brothers Band as reason enough to attend.

“It’s a one-time deal with the Allman Brothers,” Tucker said. “You’re not going to see that show too many times. It’s a one-time deal. Spare no expense.”
In addition, Tucker said he believes this is the last time to see The Allman Brothers Band west of the Mississippi.

Tucker, a Lincoln native, had no hesitation planning the concert in Lincoln. He anticipates it will generate a large amount of money for the university.

Andy Washburn, the senior director of operations for the Nebraska Alumni Association, said the money will benefit the Nebraska Legends Scholarship, which is a key ingredient in Chancellor Harvey Perlman’s goal toward generating a student body of 30,000 by 2017.

“We (alumni) are looking to do something to give back to the university at the end of the day,” Tucker said.

However, when it came to getting legendary artists to the Star City, Hubert Sumlin and Pinetop Perkins were the driving forces.

Both men passed away after recording the second Bluesmasters album and for some, performing at this concert is the least they could do to honor the men. All it took was a phone call.

“They influenced every type of music along the way,” Tucker said of Sumlin and Perkins. “Everyone wanted to be involved some way.”

This includes Eric Gales, an American blues-rock artist and special guest at Friday’s concert.

“Hubert Sumlin was like a godfather to me,” Gales said. “We played together several times. I have mad respect for him.”

Gales and other artists will gather Friday at 6 p.m. for the concert at Haymarket Park.
The event is a partnership between Blues Events, the Lincoln Saltdogs and the University of Nebraska Alumni Association. Tickets run from $85 to $165 and can be purchased online at etix.com.

Not only will the event be for those physically at the concert, but the show will also be taped for distribution all over the world.

Even Howard Stern partnered with the event, according to Tucker.

“It (the blues) touches your soul,” Gales said. “There are a lot of deep things about it. Even if there were no lyrics in the song, you’d still be moved by it. There’s just something about it.”

When asked what people can expect from the Bluesmasters concert, Gales offered simply, “Man, expect to be blown away.”

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