The Sandy Beaches Cruise has announced the initial line up for the 2025 voyage, welcoming an incredible line-up of artists that represent an array of American roots music. The seven-day trip will take place on Holland America’s beautiful Nieuw Amsterdam which departs out of Fort Lauderdale, FL on January 12th, with stops in San Juan, Puerto Rico and St. Croix, USVI before returning to Ft. Lauderdale on January 19th.

Award-winning roots singer/guitarist JW-Jones announces a May 26 release date for his new solo album, Everything Now, on Solid Blues Records, distributed by Stony Plain. Joining him on the new disc are special guests Jimmie Vaughan, The Texas Horns, Rob McNelley, Stanton Moore and Gordie Johnson of Canadian roots monsters, Big Sugar, among others. JW penned the entire album with fellow Canadian legends Dick Cooper and Johnson (who also produced).

Guitar legend Eric Clapton announced today he will be hosting a limited series of concert dates across North America in September 2023 with support from Jimmie Vaughan. Ticket presales begin March 28 at 10am local time with the public onsale starting March 31 at 10am local time. For more information, please visit ericclapton.com

Folksinger Michael Johnathon’s WoodSongs Old Time Radio Hour continues taping its new season of shows at Lexington’s historic Lyric Theatre in October, welcoming to the stage a nice variety of performing musicians and songwriters, including guitar virtuoso Jimmie Vaughan (Oct. 18), a four time GRAMMY winning musician from Austin, Texas who is the older brother of the great Stevie Ray Vaughn. Plus, IBMA winning fiddle champion Becky Buller with singer-songwriter Erin McKeown (Oct.

Blues guitarists have been the foundation of American music for more than a hundred years, back to early acoustic musicians performing in the Deep South. The evolution of the blues has been one of the truly captivating legacies of popular music in America, from early jazz to even country and, to everlasting success, rock ’n’ roll.

A decade ago Jimmie Vaughan released his definitive album Blues, Ballads and Favorites. It was a stunning collection of 15 of his favorite songs, from Billy Emerson’s “The Pleasure’s All Mine” to Willie Nelson’s “Funny How Time Slips Away,” and featured guest vocals from band members Lou Ann Barton and Bill Willis. Vaughan followed the album up in 2011 with More Blues, Ballads and Favorites, digging deep into the music that had helped shape his life in the blues.