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Colin James headlines Burnaby Blues + Roots Fest

Canadian blues-rocker Colin James is coming back to Burnaby. James is headlining the 2016 edition of the Burnaby Blues and Roots Festival, coming Saturday, Aug. 6 to Deer Lake Park.
Colin James
Canadian blues-rocker Colin James is back to headline the 2016 Burnaby Blues + Roots Festival.

Canadian blues-rocker Colin James is coming back to Burnaby.

James is headlining the 2016 edition of the Burnaby Blues and Roots Festival, coming Saturday, Aug. 6 to Deer Lake Park.

The bill also includes Frazey Ford, known as a founding member of the alt-folk band The Be Good Tanyas, and Cyril Neville – of Neville Brothers fame – and the Royal Southern Brotherhood.

James, who last played the festival in 2008, has been a popular performer for local audiences in the past, bringing to the stage a combination of his earlier rock music, his blues guitar and the swing sounds he became known for with his Little Big Band.

Ford, meanwhile, returned to the limelight with her second solo effort, Indian Ocean, a country soul album that was widely acclaimed as one of the top releases of 2014.

Neville – who earned international stardom for his vocal and percussion skills as a member of the Grammy Award-winning Neville Brothers – has been making music since 2012 with the Royal Southern Brotherhood.

Joining the lineup are gospel singers the Como Mamas, guitarist and singer-songwriter Cécile Doo-Kingué, indie singer-songwriter Lindi Ortega, B.C. folk-rockers Shred Kelly, folk-soul artist Michael Bernard Fitzgerald, Vancouver funk-soul star Dawn Pemberton, Western Canadian folk star Ben Rogers, soul singer Billy Dixon and blues musician Wes Mackie.

Tickets go on sale Friday, April 22 at noon. Earlybird single tickets are $50, and four-packs are available for $150. After June 1, single tickets are $60 and four-packs are $200. See www.burnabybluesfestival.com or book through the Shadbolt box office at 604-205-3000, starting Friday.