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Downchild Blues Band 50th Anniversary Show 🎷
May 10, 2022 @ 7:30 pm – 10:00 pm
The Downchild Blues Band is excited to finally play their 50th anniversary show at the Fredericton Playhouse featuring special guests Matt Minglewood and Jenie Thai.
“There would be no Blues Brothers if it weren’t for Downchild”- Dan Aykroyd
One of Canada’s exciting, young up and coming blues talents, JENIE THAI will be opening the show. The 3X Maple Blues Award nominee made a major splash with Downchild in 2019 on their West coast swing, lighting up the stage with her stellar piano playing and singing on original material from her latest album “Night On Fire.”
Downchild experienced some unexpected changes during the two year pause due to the pandemic, including the loss of their long-time keyboard player Michael Fonfara (Lou Reed), who sadly pass away in 202,1 as well as the retirement of their drummer of over twenty years, Mike Fitzpatrick. Thankfully for fans, the band was keen to keep performing and recruited former member, Jim Casson to fill the drum throne and Thunder Bay native Tyler Yarema was a natural fit on Piano. The band is excited to hit the road with the new lineup and are sounding and performing better than ever!
Downchild is of course the inspiration for Hollywood stars Dan Aykroyd and John Belushi’s hit film The Blues Brothers. In fact, two Downchild songs “I Got Everything I Need (Almost)” and “Shotgun Blues” are found on The Blues Brothers smash album Briefcase Full of Blues.
The Longest 50th Anniversary Tour is dedicated to Michael Fonfara and to all of the many Downchild fans who patiently held on to their tickets from shows that were postponed in 2020.
Downchild has just released their 50th Anniversary Live At The Toronto Jazz Festival DVD, featuring special guests Dan Aykroyd, Paul Shaffer, David Wilcox, Kenny Neal, Gene Taylor and Erja Lyytinen, that was filmed at their 50th Anniversary Tour kick off shows in Toronto on June 22, 2019. The band shut down Bloor Street in Toronto for this once in a lifetime performance and torn it up for a magical night that was thankfully captured on tape by award winning producer, Joel Goldberg.
Downchild is a Canadian blues institution with an international reputation. They have shared the stage with blues icons B.B. King, Buddy Guy and John Lee Hooker to name a few and have performed around the world, leaving fans thoroughly entertained wherever the go.
Click here for tickets.