Harpdog Brown. (Publicity photo)

Osoyoos residents will continue to enjoy some of Canada’s finest blues musicians as long as they continue to fill the seats at the concerts being brought to the Elks Hall.

“We need bums in the seats,” said Earl Krushelniski, who is one of Canada’s leading blues music promoters and has helped turn Prince George in northern British Columbia into a hotbed for some of Canada and North America’s top blues acts.

“If local music fans continue to support these concerts to ensure the band can get paid, I will guarantee we will continue to bring more of these amazing Canadian artists and bands to Osoyoos.”

So how did a man who lives and promotes music from his base in Prince George manage to sign bands and promote shows in Osoyoos?

The answer is simple, said Krushelniski.

He became good friends with the wife of Ken Thibault, the long-time president of the Osoyoos Elks Club, when they were both teaching at a community college in Prince George.

When the board of directors with the Osoyoos Elks Club decided it might be a good idea to hold live music concerts, they got in touch with Krushelniski, and he started booking shows in Osoyoos.

Rick Halisheff, more commonly known as Poppa Dawg, a very popular blues guitarist from Kelowna, and his band recently played a gig at the Elks Hall.

This week, Canadian blues icon Harpdog Brown and The Travelin’ Blues Show played on Wednesday evening.

David Gogo, considered Canada’s finest blues guitarist, will perform on Wednesday, Nov. 1.

A couple of months ago, Kenny “Blues Boss” Wayne, considered the world’s finest boogie woogie piano player, and his band played at the Osoyoos Elks Hall.

Harpdog Brown was recently voted as Canada’s finest blues harmonica player for the third year in a row at the Maple Blues Awards, which recognize Canada’s finest blues musicians and bands.

Gogo is a multiple Maple Blues Awards winner as Canada’s best blues guitarists. He’s been nominated for six Juno Awards throughout his prestigious career.

“At the end of these next two shows, I will assess where we’re at and see if there’s enough support in Osoyoos to bring more shows,” said Krushelniski.

Krushelniski knows “almost all of Canada’s top music promoters” and he arranges for other shows in Kelowna and Vernon when top acts like this commit to coming to the Okanagan.

Krushelniski helped form a blues appreciation society in Prince George called Blues Underground 14 years ago and have sponsored dozens of shows bringing in many of North America’s top blues bands over that time.

Krushelniski said blues music lovers are committed and that’s a big reason the Osoyoos shows have done reasonably well since he got involved.

“To be honest, we’ve had mixed crowds at our shows in Osoyoos with some shows nearly sold out and others not as good,” he said. “We can easily fit 100 comfortably inside the Elks Hall, but we do need bums in the seats if we’re going to continue bringing in world class bands.

“The good news is blues music fans are very enthusiastic and dedicated and we’re getting a lot of fans from places like Keremeos, Grand Forks and even Penticton coming to Osoyoos for our shows.”

The musicians get paid “no matter what” so promoters like himself are not willing to spend money out of their own pocket for any extended period of local audiences aren’t big enough to pay the bills, he said.

Tickets for Harpdog Brown and The Travelin’Show and David Gogo are $20 apiece. They are available at Mills Office Pro on Main Street in Osoyoos or by calling Thibault at 250-495-3936.

KEITH LACEY

Osoyoos Times

David Gogo. (Publicity photo)