Head to waterfront for all shades of the blues

Lineup of national and local talent offers must-hear, must-see music July 2-5

Devon Allman sums it up.

“It’s weird to be in a world where there’s no B.B. King.”

Allman never got to meet King, who died in May, but like numerous other blues and rock musicians, he readily acknowledges his debt to the Mississippi bluesman as well as Robert Johnson, Otis Taylor and Buddy Guy. Any young blues player worth his or her salt has taken time to study masters like King, Allman says. Nonetheless, if the blues is to survive, Allman says its fans must embrace the younger men and women who are picking up where King and company left off.

“I think it’s also important for the blues to allow the younger artists to stretch the framework,” he says. “As long as there’s feeling and soul, it can be the blues.”

The son of Gregg Allman, Devon will be jamming with his dad following his own set at 8 p.m. Thursday, July 2, on the First Tech Blues Stage at the Safeway Waterfront Blues Festival.

Gregg Allman hits the Brewery Stage at 8:45 p.m. and both Allmans will be preceded by the Allman Brothers’ percussionist Jaimoe (Jai Johnny Johnson), whose band plays at 7 p.m. on the Brewery Stage.

Devon Allman, 42, has made a blues-rock name for himself, as a member of Honeytribe and the Royal Southern Brotherhood and also a solo artist. At times, the guitarist actually sounds more like Carlos Santana than his famed uncle, the late guitarist Duane Allman.

“He’s one of my favorite players, and when I roll the tone knob back and get that ‘brown’ sound I’m sure I sound like him,” Allman says of Santana.

A keyboardist and singer as well, Allman released a critically acclaimed record last year, “Ragged & Dirty,” cuts from which he plans to showcase at the waterfront festival. Among its more interesting numbers is a cover of The Spinners’ 1972 proto-disco hit “I’ll Be Around.”

“I loved that song, and I don’t know if anybody covered it,” he says. “It just worked out.”

He also turns in a fine version of Otis Taylor’s “Ten Million Slaves,” and got help from the rootsy Afrocentric songwriter himself.

“He came to one of our shows,” Allman says. “He was very cool, very gracious, and showed me how to play it the proper way.”

Originals on the record include the gently soulful swamp number “Leave the City,” which argues for doing just that.

“That was written the night before we went into the studio,” he says. “We live in such a crazy fast-paced, tech-savvy world. It’s good to remember we are children of the planet and to reconnect with Mother Earth.”

Speaking of parents, he says although he didn’t actually know his famous dad all that well until his teens (his parents divorced when he was an infant and Devon grew up with his mother), today they have a “great relationship."

Devon Allman says that about twice a year he and his dad wind up playing the same festival, as they will this week. Adds the son: “He keeps tabs on me. He’s a proud papa, and I’m very proud of him to know that he’s getting near 70 with no signs of slowing down.”

Soul man

Speaking of younger musicians with roots in blues-inflected music, the danceable neo-soul outfit Con Brio has taken a page from such artists as James Brown and Sly and The Family Stone, updating it in the manner that Janelle Monae and Bruno Mars have, notes the Bay Area band’s lead singer Ziek McCarter. The band performs on the Brewery Stage at 5:45 p.m. July 4.

Con Brio recently released its first EP “Kiss the Sun” and is fast becoming a festival favorite, in part because of McCarter’s Michael Jackson-like voice, as well as his funky feet. When asked how he’s able to sing in such a high register, McCarter notes it’s not as difficult as it sounds.

“The falsetto is actually one of my most comfortable places,” he says. “I’ve always wanted to keep that nice and smooth.”

As for his dancing on stage, he says it’s something he’s taken pains to improve.

“I’ve taken ballet classes,” he says. “I’ve practiced for awhile.”

In addition to McCarter, the band features Benjamin Andrews on guitar, Micah Dubreuil on keys, Jonathan Kirchner on bass, Andrew Laubacher on drums, Marcus Stephens on tenor saxophone, and Brendan Liu on trumpet.

“I think what is undeniable up to this point is our chemistry, how much we enjoy playing,” McCarter says.

Way down upon the Willamette

If you’ve got a little extra dough, the festival offers a special treat with separately ticketed DME Blues Cruises on the Portland Spirit on the Willamette River every day of the festival.

On July 4, for example, for $25 you can take a trip at 2:30 p.m. with Terry "Harmonica Bean,” Con Brio, Kinzel & Hyde, David Pinsky & Phil Newton, and Portland’s own Rose City Kings.

Dan Berkery, aka as Kolvane, is the Rose City King's singer and slide guitarist, and shares the stage with drummer Gary Keeney, keyboardist Steve Kerin, harmonica player David Lipkind, percussionist Katy Oberg and bassist Tim Shaughnessy. Berkery says he’s played the Blues Cruise before.

“I just remember it being a crazy good time,” he says with a chuckle, noting the bands on board play simultaneously on different levels of the ship. A fan of Howlin’ Wolf, Berkery says his band — named Best New Act in 2004 by the Cascade Blues Association — puts on an energetic live show.

“I do my best to write catchy good songs that people can identify with,” he says.

He adds that while some local blues purists think the Waterfront festival is a bit too eclectic, including bands and artists that stretch the definition of blues beyond 12-bar jams and droning boogies, he begs to differ.

“I think there’s a lot of great music that, if it isn’t pure blues, it’s touched by the blues,” he says. “I think (the festival is) better than it’s ever been. It really keeps the blues alive and in the forefront.”