LOCAL SCENE: Mavis Staples closes this year's blues fest

Chicago music legend Mavis Staples — a member of the Rock And Roll Hall of Fame who has been ranked as one of the "100 Greatest Singers of All Time" by Rolling Stone Magazine — has been pegged to headline the third and final day of the 29th Annual Chicago Blues Festival in Grant Park this summer.

The Windy City blues and gospel great, who has been honored with a "Lifetime Achievement Grammy Award," will close the festival June 10, a day featuring women performers at the Petrillo Music Shell. Preceding Staples will be sets by Melva "Chick" Rodgers, Jackie Scott, Deitra Farr and Nora Jean Brusco.

Following the major loss in the last year of Blues Fest stalwarts David "Honeyboy" Edwards, Pinetop Perkins, Hubert Sumlin and Willie "Big Eyes" Smith, many blues fans were wondering who from the "old guard" was left to close the celebrated Grant Park event.

Staples is a wonderful choice for the key performance spot, as her career began more than 60 years ago, when she first started singing with her ground–breaking family group, The Staple Singers. Decades later, Staples is more popular than ever and has gotten much deserved recognition.

Staples took home a Grammy Award in 2011 for "Best Americana Album" with her latest release, "You Are Not Alone, produced by Chicago's alt–rock icon Jeff Tweedy of Wilco.

While Staples will be the highlight of this summer's blues romp, ghosts of the past will be present. Tributes by various present-day "young guns" are planned in remembrance to the aforementioned greats who shuffled off to Blues Heaven during the past year. Other famous Chicago blues pioneers — Howlin' Wolf, Muddy Waters, Lightnin' Hopkins and Koko Taylor — will also be honored.

Staples' closing Sunday night performance follows headline sets on June 8 by Texas Johnny Brown, and June 9 by Floyd Taylor.

Others slated to perform include: Steady Rollin' Bob Margolin, Barrelhouse Chuck, Bob Stroger, Eddie Shaw, Dave Spector, Paul Kaye, and second–generation bluesmen Mud Morganfield (Muddy Waters' son) and Kenny Smith (son of Willie "Big Eyes" Smith).

FYI: WWW.CHICAGOBLUESFESTIVAL.US

Music notes ...

• Chicagoland hard and heavy alt–rock trio Chevelle kick off a headline tour next weekend with a pair of Midwest dates, before heading to the East Coast for a six–week run of shows. The tour begins Feb. 24 in Grand Rapids, Mich., followed by a Feb. 25 gig in Fort Wayne, Ind. Opening all dates for the Gurnee–based band are the groups Middle Class Rut and Janus.

Chevelle's newest album, "Hats Off To The Bull," recently debuted on the Billboard Top 200 Albums chart at No. 19. Its first single, "Face The Floor," a topical tune which rails against the corporate corruption of Bernie Madoff and Wall Street, made it to No. 1 on the Active Rock  singles chart and broke the Top 10 on the Modern Rock singles chart. FYI: WWW.CHEVELLEINC.COM

• After years apart, a reunion is reportedly in the works for Violent Wisdom, one of Northwest Indiana's premier heavy metal groups during the 1990s. A live concert is planned for next month by the Whiting–based band. FYI: WWW.FACEBOOK.COM/VIOLENTWISDOM

• Local AC/DC tribute band Little Lover mark the 32nd anniversary of AC/DC lead singer Bon Scott with a Feb. 18 performance at J.J. Kelley's in Lansing. Showtime is 10 p.m. with an opening set by Thin Lizzy tribute Cold Sweat.

The opinions expressed are solely the writer's. Reach him at beatboss@aol.com.