We're Back!!! And our 7th Annual York County Blues Festival is going to be a rocker! Join us at Friendship Park in Waterboro, Maine for a Blues-Rock spectacular with the amazing Gary Hoey headlining and our Florida friends and Maine natives Memphis Lightning will be back along with Alex Lopez & The Xpress in their “Lightning Xpress” combo show! The Deej SG & Co. Pre-Show Jam featuring Voodoo Clowns will kick off the event just after the gates open at 3pm. And yet other great summer music event on tap right here in Southern Maine!

Musical Lineup:

3:00 p.m: Deej SG & Co. w/Voodoo Clowns - Gate-Opening Pre-Show Jam

Deej SG & Co. w/Voodoo Clowns - “Gate Opening Jam” - Gates open at 3:00pm and the jamming will commence pretty much immediately, so come early and don’t miss a minute of this year’s event! Deej SG & Co. will lay down some sounds for the earlybirds joined once again by the Voodoo Clowns.  Particularly unique to this act is the fact that Deej is an “older learner” who began studying lead guitar in 2010 at the age of 50 and has developed his own original style from scratch without any direct imitation of his influences. If you arrived early enough to catch the “pre-show jam” the past couple of years, we think you know it will be worth showing up early and enjoying what’s in store for 2025! Deej has fronted several bands going way back including Longshot, (Lynyrd Skynyrd tribute), Communication Breakdown (Led Zeppelin tribute) and one of the hottest bands on Cape Cod during the early 90’s, Disorderly Conduct. 

Voodoo Clowns - A dynamic band spanning styles from roots to contemporary blues, this driving 3-piece band is sure to scratch your blues itch. The band is fronted by the combo of musical powerhouses: guitarist and vocalist Dave “Fish” Bottom, Steve Kaulback on drums and vocals, and bassist “Dr. Dan” Dubuordieu. Dave picked up his first guitar from a dime store and started teaching himself to play. After flirting with pop music Dave was introduced to blues via the famed British Invasion. That influence underlies the bluesy soloing that Dave brings to his playing; feisty blues steeped in traditional idioms with modern aggression. Dave has performed with LA East, St Amand, Blue Sky Project, Blues Tonight, Maxwell Street and the Voodoo Clowns. Dave is a member of the Maine Blues Hall of Fame.

The son of a Navy Commander, Steve Kaulback started his musical journey in Texas in 1963 singing and drumming. After hearing Albert King’s Live Wire/Blues Power album he knew he was hooked for life. His bands have included Cottonmouth Blues Band, Arlo West and the LA Bluesmen, The Pinecasters, Juke Joint Devils, Continental Shakedown, Mike Hayward and the Blue Lions, Dave Mello Trio, and the Voodoo Clowns. Steve is a member of the Maine Blues Hall of Fame and is recognized by the Maine Blues Heritage Foundation Museum.

While Dr. Dan Dubuordieu has played bassoon in symphonic orchestra, his bass playing earned his reputation as the “People’s Bassist.” Dan climbed to the top in the Minneapolis blues scene with the Mudsharks back in the 1980’s before moving to the east coast to continue the blues journey playing with the sidemen of the sidemen to the stars on longtime stints with Tommy Dee, Mike Hayward, Andy Schoenfeld. Dan has helped organize and run longtime music festivals including Woodstick and York County Blues Festival.

4:00 - 6:00 p.m: “Lightning Xpress” Memphis Lightning w/Alex Lopez & The Xpress

Memphis Lightning - Don’t miss the return of these Maine natives (now residing in Florida) as they bring their own brand of ol’ school Rock & Roll and down and dirty Blues to the stage. Memphis Lightning was born out of tradition with a pedigree second to none. Having played with Blues Legend Eddie “Blues Man” Kirkland, Memphis Lightning are the real deal. Their energetic performances will bring you back to the days when the Juke joints were rocking and Blues was King. At 12 years old Darren “Lightning” Thiboutot was playing ol’ school, rock solid, tasty guitar on stage with the late Great Blues Legend Eddie Kirkland, and Buddy Guy. In recent years he was selected by The Maine Blues Society to represent the state of Maine in the International Blues Challenge Youth Show Case. His Dad is Grammy nominated and international touring and recording artist Darren “Big Red” Thiboutot who has recorded and/or played with artists such as Eddie “Bluesman” Kirkland, Pinetop Perkins, Lazy Lester, The Hoodoo Kings, Tab Benoit, Kenny Neal, Sonny Landreth, G.E. Smith, Clyde Stubblefield, T-Bone Wolk, Richard Bell, Christine Ohlman, Lucky Peterson, Troy Turner, Big Jack Johnson, Cub Koda, Colleen Sexton and others. Memphis Lightning is a crowd favorite and we know you’ll enjoy their show… guaranteed!

6:30 - 8:00 p.m: Gary Hoey

Headliner: Gary Hoey

Neon Highway Blues, Gary’s latest release, carries its 11 tracks with the confidence and assuredness of a veteran,and the freshness of someone who’s still in the process of discovery and refinement –with the help of famous friends such as Eric Gales, Lance Lopez, Josh Smith and Hoey’s 17-year-old son Ian Hoey. The release of Neon Highway Blues will, of course, take Gary Hoey back on the highways and byways for plenty of touring and playing, well, the blues –and more. He can’t yet predict where the next road will take him, but Hoey is confident it will be an adventure.

In 2012, he produced and co-wrote The Queen Of Metal, Lita Ford’s latest release Living Like Runaway for SPV records to rave reviews. As Music Director for Rock ‘n’ Roll Fantasy Camp, he’s worked with legends like Joe Perry, Roger Daltrey, Yes, blues icon Johnny Winter, Robben Ford, Leslie West, and KISS drummer, Peter Criss. And he has toured and traded licks with the likes of Jeff Beck, Brian May of Queen, Ted Nugent, Joe Satriani, Steve Vai, Peter Frampton, and Dick Dale.

With a collection of 21 albums it’s no wonder Gary Hoey is listed as one of the top 100 guitarists of all time. The world renowned rock guitarist’s first break came in 1987 when Ozzy Osbourne liked Hoey’s tape enough tofly him to LA for an audition and encouraging him to move to the West Coast.In 1990 Hoey was signed to Reprise Records with a short lived band called Heavy Bones, but followed up in 1993 with a solo album, and Gary’s cover of “Hocus Pocus” rocketed into the Billboard’s Top 5 Rock Tracks. He went on to score the successful “Endless Summer II” soundtrack for New Line Cinema and in 1995 started a trilogy of “Ho!Ho!Hoey,” a collection of instrumental Christmas classics that continues each year in his Rockin’ Holiday shows. And in 2013’s release, Deja Blues, he came home to the blues. Gary’s release in 2016, Dust & Bones, displayed an exuberant fusion of blues and rock. But whatever style he plays, one thing is certain, Gary Hoey is a fiery, charismatic player who connects with the crowd.

Whether he’s playing scorching originals or classic rock covers, his solos are thrilling and reminiscent of Clapton or Stevie Ray in their fiery youth. One thing that remains consistent is Hoey’s impassioned command of the guitar. He can attack his instrument with feral intensity and then play something very soft and achingly beautiful. This ability to mix feeling, phrasing, technique and tone is the true mark of a master guitarist.

Time: 4:00 p.m - 8:00 p.m.
Gates open at 3:00 PM with Pre-Show Jam

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