Madison Blues Scene – A Living Tradition On any given night in Madison, Wisconsin, the blues isn’t just something you hear—it’s something you feel. It spills out of neighborhood bars, echoes across outdoor summer stages, and lives in the hands of musicians who treat every performance like a… Read more: Blues News & Local Blues Heros

We are planning on Dec 1st for the 2025 Annual Membership Meeting! More information as soon as plans are solid!

The Madison Blues Society’s monthly meetings are held the 2nd Monday of each month. Our Board meets both In-Person as well as virtually via Zoom. Meeting information will be emailed to members; others may contact a board member for access. Our next Board Meeting will be on Monday,… Read more: MBS Board Meeting Monday September

Blues Dance September 8 Lesson and Social Mon, 08 Sept 2025 at 07:30 pm to 10:30 pm (CDT) Harmony Bar & Grill, 2201 Atwood Ave, Madison, WI 53704-5601, United States Celebrate the changing season with Blues Dance Madison—where good music, great people, and soulful movement come together. Lesson… Read more: Harmony Bar Blues Dance Lessons 9/8

2025 Event Headliner Chicago-based blues singer, songwriter & guitarist Biography Excerpt by Thom Jurek Chicago-based guitarist and singer/songwriter Joanna Connor is a virtuoso stylist in modern electric blues, R&B, and blues-rock. Her take-no-prisoners playing style joins fiery single-string runs to dazzling, rough-and-ready slide guitar pyrotechnics in an approach at once… Read more: MBS End of Summer Blues Artists

Discussion of the End of Summer Blues Event. Need volunteers. D. Speers has two new names. Discussion of how we attract new members and encourage members to volunteer. Creation of a ‘willing/talents list”… Possible increase communication with existing members. Increase social media presence. Work with educational institutions to… Read more: MBS July Notes

The Madison Blues Society’s monthly meetings are held the 2nd Monday of each month. Our Board meets both In-Person as well as virtually via Zoom. Meeting information will be emailed to members; others may contact a board member for access. Our next Board Meeting will be on Monday,… Read more: MBS Board Meeting Monday August 11

The Madison Blues Society’s monthly meetings are held the 2nd Monday of each month. Our Board meets both In-Person as well as virtually via Zoom. Meeting information will be emailed to members; others may contact a board member for access. Our next Board Meeting will be on Monday,… Read more: MBS Board Meeting Monday July 14

Steve PorterPresidentMeet Steve  Rod GirkinVice PresidentMeet Rod Paul GibsonTreasurerMeet Paul Kole KleemanSecretaryMeet Kole Bruce Wasserstrom, Music Chair, Social Media Meet Bruce Lisa KosmondWebsite, Social MediaMeet Lisa David Speers Membership Meet David Shari DavisPast PresidentMeet Shari Nancy Miller Events SupportMeet Nancy Tim Payne IT AdministratorMeet Tim Kate MBS Founder,… Read more: MBS Board of Directors & Key Volunteers 2025

We are a freindly, open organization with the primary goal of supporting and sharing blues music in the Madison area. MBS always needs help with to keep the blues going in the Madison area. Anything from one‑time event help to joining a committee for an ongoing effort. You… Read more: Join us! Madison Blues Society “Needs You!”

Wisconsin Community Blues Festivals Over many years, MBS has worked with many popular Madison music festivals to help bring Blues music to fans and to support community organizations.  We’re pleased to have been a part of these great groups. Sources for Festival Information Categories: Band News, Live Blues Alert,… Read more: Wisconsin Community Blues Festivals

This narrative (in progress) is derived from the work of Wikipedia contributors, “Origins of the blues,” Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Origins_of_the_blues&oldid=1293292810 (accessed June 18, 2025). Little is known of the beginnings of the blues music genre — no specific year is known, in part because of the extended time period in… Read more: Blues Roots

MBS’s 1st Annual Blues Picnic was held on June 22, 2003, in Warner Park, with nine hours of free Blues music. A crowd of 500-700 enjoyed the gorgeous setting, Blues music, and food on their picnic blankets and lawn chairs. Over the years, the annual Madison Blues Society Annual… Read more: Annual Blues Picnic

Tell us a little about your history as a blues artist. Bands you’ve played with, how long, etc. I started The Blues Disciples over 30 years ago. In the late 80’s, I lived near Brady Street and started spending a lot of time at the Up & Under… Read more: Featured Musician – Jeff “H” Harrington

MBS board meetings are held every 2nd Monday of the month. Next meeting:June 9, 2025, 6 pm. MBS Board meetings are both in person and on Zoom Feel free to join us! Email the Board for more information or contact a Board Member to gain access on Zoom.… Read more: MBS Board Meetings

The Isthmus https://isthmus.com/search/event/calendar-of-events Music Festival Wizard https://www.musicfestivalwizard.com/ Monroe Balloon & Blues Festival, June 13-14, 2025, Monroe, WI https://www.facebook.com/balloonrally/| Bryan Lee Memorial Blues Festival, July 12, 2025, Two Rivers, WI Link to Two Rivers Festival New Glarus Blues, Brews and Food Truck Festival, July 19, 2025 https://www.facebook.com/NGBBFTF/ Blues on… Read more: Find Festivals

Over 30 years I’ve been privileged to have so many great musicians come through the band, and this current group is a dynamic collection of a 5-piece group that plays with 1 musical mind.

Early Beginnings: Dave Cornette discovered his passion for music at an early age, starting to play piano, baritone horn, and eventually focusing on drumming and percussion when he was 15 years old. His foundations in various instruments enriched his musical vocabulary and performance skills. Career Highlights: Throughout his… Read more: Featured Musician – Dave Cornette

Eric Heiligenstein  AKA Too Sick CharlieCigar Box, Vocals Tell us a little about your history as a blues artist.  Bands you’ve played with, how long etc. Too Sick Charlie plays the cigar box guitar, a once forgotten instrument of American blues and roots music. His music has been described as… Read more: Featured Musician Too Sick Charlie

Sister Rosetta Tharpe Rock-n-Roll was invented by a woman who played the electric guitar in ways very few people could have ever imagined. By Eric Heiligenstein, MD (aka Too Sick Charlie) The Godmother of rock music is Sister Rosetta Tharpe. Her Gibson guitar and voice changed the trajectory… Read more: Sister Rosetta Tharpe

Chester Arthur Burnett (Howlin’ Wolf) ….was born on June 10, 1910, in West Point, Mississippi. He was in his early forties when he made his first records for Sam Phillips in Memphis. Phillips later said that Wolf was the most arresting figure he ever saw play music, and… Read more: Chester Arthur Burnett (Howlin’ Wolf)

By Shari Davis Former Madison Blues Society Board President Shari Davis and the Hot Damn! Blues Band Greetings,fellow Blues lovers, Here we are on the brink of summer – always a welcome time in Wisconsin – and now more than ever. Summer 2021 holds a special hope and… Read more: A message of hope & renewal

We are so excited to partner with Kujichagulia Madison Center on this community event. Join Madison Blues Society this Saturday 6/19/21 at the JUNETEENTH Celebration in the Park at Penn Park (2101 Fisher St, Madison.) Stop by our booth and say hello and ask about memberships! Other events… Read more: Join us at Juneteenth Celebration in the Park

Harmonica Player “Tall” Paul Sabel, originally from DePere, WI, started his journey in music oddly enough during his first year of Physician Assistant school at UW Madison. On a Monday night he heard Westside Andy Linderman playing harmonica into a bullet microphone and a tube amp with The… Read more: Featured Musician Tall Paul Sabel

By the end of the 1950’s, blues music was at a crossroads. The blues was dying, as it so often does, in mainstream culture. It was disparaged as low-class, old fashioned, and unenlightened. Many blues musicians chose to readjust and redefine themselves to cope with changing tastes.

MBS raised funds for this scholarship at our Bowling & Brews event.MBS volunteers contacted Madison High School Music Departments for potential scholarship recipients. They eventually picked Anthony from East High, based on recommendations from the music director. The music director identified him as a student that was quite… Read more: Scholarship Guitar Lessons

MBS Member Event Free appetizers and beverages at FLIX Brewhouse for MBS members! Flix Brewhouse Madison in East Towne Mall has graciously invited a limited number of Madison Blues Society members to attend a special showing of The Blues Brothers on Tuesday, September 25th, 2018. The event will feature… Read more: Join us at FLIX Brewhouse!

Enjoy the music! But please don’t forget that the Blues Picnic is the annual fundraiser for the Madison Blues Society! We will have raffles tickets available! Tickets are $5 for one or 5 for $20. (cash only) Thank you to our raffle donors! Please visit their businesses and… Read more: Raffle Tickets Available at the Picnic!

Rain or Shine! Blythe Gamble & the Rolling Dice – Noon The Blues Kids – 1:35 pm Altered Five Blues Band – 2:25 pm Ivy Ford Band – 4:00 pm Boom Boom Steve V and the Knockouts – 5:40  pm Chris O’Leary Band – 7:30 pm Food vendors,… Read more: 2018 Annual Picnic Line Up