On Sunday July 6th the Commercial Hotel and Blues On Whyte put on the third annual "Takin' It To The Streets" Festival on Whyte Avenue. This is a street party where they shut down a block of Whyte Ave. and have three stages with bands, the day starts with a pancake breakfast and bands starting at 10am. The three stages are, one on the avenue is the main stage, a stage in the beer garden and then also bands playing in Blues On Whyte.
I got down there in time to catch the first band which was Krystie Dos Santos from Edmonton but now based in Vancouver. Her soulful, jazz blues music was a nice way to start the morning. I was surprised by how many people were already on the avenue for her set. I guess the pancake breakfast probably helped with that. She had an awesome voice and even did an Alabama Shakes cover, in which she did a great job of.
Krystie Dos Santos.
Next up was a band from Saskatoon called Blue Mules, this three piece band played some rocking blues and had the beer garden happening before noon.
Blue Mules.
After taking a break from the hot sun on a beautiful day, I headed back to the beer garden to catch Saskatoon guitarist Tim Vaughn. He and his wicked back up band put on a great show, again, the beer garden crowd was up and dancing and enjoying the music.
Tim Vaughn.
After some supper and a few beers at home, it was back out to the main stage to catch headliner Wild T & The Spirit. This was my ninth time seeing Wild T play live. While he put on a good show during his one hour set, I still miss the days when he did all original compositions. he did lots of covers, including a Jimi Hendrix cover which went on way too long. Kudos to the Commercial Hotel and Blues On Whyte for pulling off another great street party. Hopefully this will continue to happen as it makes for a fun way to spend a Sunday, and thanks to the weather gods for the beautiful weather. Good times!!!
Wild T & The Spirit.
