Bluesmore
Festival 2026
Brucemore Mansion
Cedar Rapids, Iowa
August 1, 2026
By Phillip
Smith; August
3, 2026
Original source : phillycheezeblues.blogspot.com
Linn County Blues Society based in Cedar Rapids, Iowa has brought live blues to the front lawn of the historic Brucemore Mansion with its much-beloved Bluesmore festival once again. The rain which had been falling earlier in the day ceased and thankfully was replaced by sunny skies, making way for perfect weather to grace this outdoor show with. It was great to see my friends of the blues community come together for this beautiful event.
The music began with one of my favorite Eastern Iowa-based blues acts, Cedar County Cobras. This duo is comprised of singer/slide-guitarist Tom Spielbaur and singer/upright bassist April Dirks. Due to a shoulder injury, John Hall (Craig Erickson Band) filled in for Dirks on upright bass. Dirks joined along on vocals for the second half of their set, and they sounded fantastic. Craig Erickson, also joined by Hall on bass, appeared between main acts to keep the music going. It’s always a great pleasure to hear Erickson play. It truly is amazing what he can do with a guitar. The Janeys took the stage next. Billylee and Bryce Janey both with guitars blazing, played a killer set of blues. Backed by Tom ‘T-Bone’ Giblin (Lonnie Brooks) on keys, Dan Johnson on bass guitar, and Eric Douglas on drums, the band was later joined by local music hero Dennis ‘Daddy-O’ McMurrin. It was really nice to see him on that stage again. Alligator Records recording artist Selwyn Birchwood and his extraordinary band topped the evening off with a riveting set as the headlining act. His special blend of what he would refer to as “electric soul-funkin’ blues” made for a spectacular performance. His band comprised of Regi Oliver on sax, Sebastian Sykah on bass, Henley Connor III on drums, and Nick Peters on keys, was epic to say the least.
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· All photos by Phillip Smith
Cedar County Cobras
Craig Erickson
The Janeys
Selwyn Birchwood
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· All photos by Phillip Smith
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For more info on Cedar
County Cobras, visit their website at https://cedarcountycobras.com/
For more info on Selwyn
Birchwood, visit his website at https://www.selwynbirchwood.com/
Read my previous reviews for Cedar
County Cobras > https://phillycheezeblues.blogspot.com/search?q=Cedar+County+Cobras
Read my previous reviews for The
Janeys > https://phillycheezeblues.blogspot.com/search?q=The+Janeys
Read my previous reviews for Selwyn
Birchwood > https://phillycheezeblues.blogspot.com/search?q=Selwyn+Birchwood