Blues BBQ: Otis Taylor Band, Naomi Shelton & The Gospel Queens, Jarekus Singleton, Vaneese Thomas, The Ed Palermo Big Band

Moving to its new, larger home at Pier 26, Hudson River Park’s Blues BBQ Festival returns for the 16th season! Pairing America’s best Blues and Roots musicians with New York City’s best BBQ restaurants, makes for an unforgettable summer day on the Hudson River! Rain or Shine

With Otis Taylor, it’s best to expect the unexpected. While his music, an amalgamation of roots styles in their rawest form, discusses heavyweight issues like murder, homelessness, tyranny, and injustice, his personal style is lighthearted. “I’m good at dark, but I’m not a particularly unhappy person,” he says. “I’d just like to make enough money to buy a Porsche.”

Part of Taylor’s appeal is his contrasting character traits. But it is precisely this element of surprise that makes him one of the most compelling artists to emerge in recent years. In fact, Guitar Player magazine writes, “Otis Taylor is arguably the most relevant blues artist of our time.” Whether it’s his unique instrumentation (he fancies banjo and cello), or it’s the sudden sound of a female vocal, or a seemingly upbeat optimistic song takes a turn for the forlorn, what remains consistent is poignant storytelling based in truth and history. On his sixth CD, Double V, Taylor unleashes intimate tales as he produces an aural excursion inspired by an unconventional childhood.