![Coeur d'Alene Blues Festival headliner Ana Popovic is a potent singer and guitar slinger.](https://livelytimes.com/wp-content/uploads/cache/2022/03/Ana-Popovic/517542728.jpg)
Coeur d'Alene Blues Festival headliner Ana Popovic is a potent singer and guitar slinger.
After a two-year pandemic hiatus the Coeur d’Alene Blues Festival returns with its annual soul swingin’ weekend, March 25-27 at the Coeur d’Alene Resort in north Idaho. Hear the best of modern blues at events ranging from the popular Blues Cruise to Saturday’s Main Event, featuring music by five bands.
![Soul and blues singer John Nemeth is among the headliners at Saturday's Main Event.](https://livelytimes.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/JohnNemeth-LauraCarbone-300x191.jpg)
Music kicks off at 3:30 p.m. Friday in the resort with Bubble and Squeak in the lobby followed from 4-7 p.m. by Doghouse Boyz at Whispers Lounge and Rusty and Ginger in the Terrace.
The Blues Cruise, featuring two bands playing on two boats, boards at 7 p.m. and features music by the Bobby Patterson Band and Montana fave, the Kenny James Miller Band ($32.50).
Music starts at 12:30 p.m. Saturday with the Rooftop Blues Party featuring Diego Romero at the Terrace Lounge; Rusty and Ginger entertain at Whisper’s from 12:30-3:30 p.m.
Saturday’s main event, from 4 p.m.-midnight in the Resort Convention Center, features non-stop music ($44.50, advance purchase only). Headliners include award-winning guitar slinger and singer Ana Popovic – called “one helluva a guitar-player” by Bruce Springsteen and a nominee for six Blues Music Awards – and Idaho native John Németh, who has an uncanny ability to blend retro and modern blues and soul into compelling music that’s simultaneously old and new.
Lloyd Jones Struggle, a Portland band, opens the show with his swampy sound, back-porch picking, and blend of funk, soul and old-school R&B. Also from Portland is the Rae Gordon Band, serving up a potent stew of gritty blues and heartfelt soul – driven by Gordon’s soaring vocals driven by searing guitar counterpoint, high-energy horns and a hard-driving rhythm section. Whack A Mole rounds out the Main Event roster with a mix of rock, Motown, funk and disco.
Top off the weekend with the Blues Breakfast at Dockside Restaurant, served from 9:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m. Sunday with music by Bubble and Squeak and Diego Romero.
Call 855-703-4648 for details or order tickets online.