Colorado Blues Society Mission Statement

The Colorado Blues Society is dedicated to preserving Blues heritage and increasing awareness of and appreciation for the Blues as an indigenous American art form (and the wellspring from which all contemporary popular American music originated).

2018 Members Choice Award Winners

Here are the winners of the 2018 Colorado Blues Society Members’ Choice Awards:

• Favorite Female Vocalist—Erica Brown
• Favorite Male Vocalist—Rex Peoples
• Favorite Guitarist—Jasco Duende
• Favorite Slide Guitarist—AJ Fullerton
• Favorite Harmonica—Nic Clark
• Favorite Bassist—Todd Edmunds
• JD Kelly Favorite Horns—The Chris Daniels Horns-Jim Waddell and Darryl “Doody” Abrahamson
• Favorite Keyboardist—Scott Hackler
• Favorite Drummer—Kyle Borthick
• Favorite (Other)—Lionel Young (Violin)
• Favorite Songwriter—Tie--Cary Morin, Eef
• Favorite Arranger—The Symbols
• Favorite Blues Band—Mojomama
• Favorite Acoustic Act—AJ Fullerton
• Favorite Solo/Duo—Tie--Scott Hackler, AJ Fullerton
• John Catt Young Performer Award—Grace Kuch
• Favorite Blues Jam—Rusty Bucket
• Favorite Festival—Greeley Blues Jam
• Favorite Club Owner—Ron Russo
• Favorite Blues Club—Rusty Bucket
• Favorite Club for Dancing—Nissi’s,
• Favorite Food-- Dannick’s
• Favorite Wait Staff—Rusty Bucket
• Favorite Blues Fan—Peggy Meis
• Favorite Dancer—Michelle Maxwell
• Favorite Local Recording—Cass Clayton Band, “Cass Clayton Band”
• Favorite Blues Radio Program—Strictly Blues, 103.5 Fox/I-Heart Radio
• Favorite Blues Radio Host—Kai Turner
• Favorite Photographer—Ken Arias
• Favorite Blues Educator—Dan Treanor
• Top Write-in Vote—Best Source of Local News-CBS Update
• Favorite Live Moment—Ronnie Earl and Duane Betts at Greeley Blues Jam
• Favorite National Blues Performer—Joe Bonamassa

2019 IBC Blues Competion application

Believe it or not, it's already time for the 2019 competition. Last years winners represted us very well and we know this years competition will be excellent as well.

Please download and review all three documents below.

IBC Rules - 2019 CBS Challenge Application - 2019 CBS Challenge Youth Application

Want Your Music Featured On This Site?

CBS is updating the music that is streamed from coblues.org . We will remove songs older songs and add new ones. If you are a member of CBS and you want your blues song featured on the site, please send a 320kbps MP3 file to webmaster@coblues.org . Please include your permission for CBS to stream the song from coblues.org. If you are covering another artist please include the mechanical copyright details that shows you are licensed to publish and stream the music.

CBS Needs Vital Volunteers

Your Blues society has an urgent need for some very special volunteers. Here is a great chance to meet a bunch of fellow Blues fans and make new friends!!! You can become part of a great community 501c3 non-profit, an award winning Blues Organization- the 2013 recipient of the Keeping the Blues Alive Award from the Blues Foundation!

The Colorado Blues Society is looking for some special blues lovers- a Volunteer Coordinator, Merchandise Coordinator/Chair, and a Web Admin. These positions work close with our members and blues fans. The Merchandise Chair helps with managing our merchandise that we sell at the CBS Booth at Festivals and CBS events. This person doesn’t have to actually attend the events or physically manage the booth but will make sure we keep a good stock or merch, look for new items we might want to sell, figure how many volunteers will be needed at the booth, as well as look for opportunities/events to have the CBS merchandise tent at.

The Volunteer Coordinator will put out calls for the volunteers we need at events and work with the Merchandise chair and other CBS Directors to make sure we have adequate volunteers at events we are at. It is a great position for meeting other members and making new friends.

The Web Admin is responsible for maintaining this web site and the Office 365 mail platform used by the CBS Board.

If you think any of these sound like something you might enjoy, send an email to info@coblues.org and let’s get together and talk! See you soon!

Get Your Ad In The Weekly Update and On This Website

CBS Business members (that includes bands and CBS acts) keep in mind as a member, for $25/month you can run an ad in the Weekly Update AND on this website. Send send us a .pdf or .jpg of your ad or poster (min size 293 width x 432 height) and we will link it to your website or event link. Not a CBS member? We'll give your ad the same two spots for $50 a month. That's a pretty cheap way to promote your act and something to keep in mind if you have a special show coming up down the road.

For more info send an email to info@coblues.org.

Do you receive the weekly Blues Update from the Colorado Blues Society?

Every week the Colorado Blues Society sends out a Blues Update that includes timely blues related news, band introductions, jam and performance schedules and more. There is no cost or membership required to receive the Blues Update. If you would like to receive this excellent Colorado blues resource please sign up here.

John-Alex Mason Scholarship Fund

The Colorado Blues Society has created an annual John-Alex Mason Scholarship to honor his memory and help continue the educational work he felt was so important. John-Alex took high school students from Colorado Springs to Mississippi on more than one occasion for an extended field trip that sometimes included visiting Memphis and New Orleans. This scholarship will help send student-aged musicians from Colorado to workshops and seminars that will further their blues music (and cultural) education. Your donations will help keep the dreams and memory of John-Alex alive.

Programs and Services Offered

To further our mission, we sponsor Blues in the Schools programs, in which musicians present music and information to students at all levels (kindergarten through college). We offer programs in American social history, women in blues, language arts, conflict avoidance, storytelling and even math. We also donate Blues-related materials (books, videos and CDs) to public libraries and offer educational programs in conjunction with those donations. We similarly work with other nonprofits, such as The Blues Foundation, Swallow Hill Music Association, The Colorado Music Hall of Fame, Blue Star Connection and The Colorado Music Business Organization.

Our members number approximately 600. Some are professional musicians; most are fans of the music and embrace the art and literature of the Blues culture. We publish a bi-monthly newsletter, The Holler, and a weekly email blast, The Blues Update.  The purpose of the newsletters, web site and social media platforms is to provide our members and the public information about Blues-related news and events in Colorado.

CBS created the John Alex-Mason Scholarship Fund to help send student-age musicians to workshops and seminars to further their Blues music education.   We sponsor youth performances where young blues performers can be seen making music on the “Blues 101 Stage”. Here kids of all ages have the opportunity to learn about the music which is part of their national heritage and the basis for present-day popular music.

We honor those individuals who have made extraordinary contributions.  Over time, CBS has honored Blues musicians and outstanding contributors with Lifetime Achievement Awards, Heritage Awards, In Memoriam or other special recognitions.

We work with local nonprofits, civic organizations and businesses to strengthen the awareness and appreciation of the Blues as an art form.

Date of most recent review by the Board of Directors:  June 12, 2018

The Colorado Blues Society Anti-Discrimination Policy

The Colorado Blues Society believes that equal opportunity is important for the continuing success of our organization. In accordance with state, federal, and municipal laws, this organization intends to comply with these laws which preclude negative discrimination against any person or organization because of race, disability, color, creed, religion, gender, age, sexual orientation, national origin, ancestry, citizenship, military status, sex, transgender status, gender identity, gender expression, marital status, veteran status, political service, affiliation or any other protected classification. This policy applies to all activities of The Colorado Blues Society, including but not limited to employment, selection of volunteers, selection of recipients of its programs, grant- making, purchasing, and selecting vendors or consultants. The Colorado Blues Society defines "negative discrimination" to include (but not necessarily be limited to) denial of services, employment, or volunteer opportunities to any class of individuals in a manner that negatively restricts opportunities to that class of individuals.