Great time, place to sing the blues

Lolita Harper

The sun sulked behind the horizon Saturday night in perfect time with

the smooth, melodic tunes being belted from the Waterfront Blues

Festival at the Newport Dunes.

Notes from the lively festival floated in the cool night air, as

the sun made its final curtain call. Blues enthusiasts tapped their

feet and nodded their heads to the rhythm, while watching the sky

turn a fiery shade of pink.

It doesn’t get much better than this, agreed a group of friends

sitting outside the main stage area.

“The blues are here to stay,” said Gilbert Lozano from Perris.

It was the second year of the Waterfront Blues Festival and such

noted blues artists as Coco Montoya, Blu Tobako, Guitar Shorty, the

Johnny Tucker Band and Elnora & Sumpthin’s Cookin’ were on the play

bill.

The event was sponsored by the American Motorcycle Group and in

addition to top rate music, impressive choppers were on display.

Lozano said he read about the Waterfront Blues Festival from a

blues newsletter he subscribes to. He spread the word and rounded up

a group of friends to attend the festival with him.

“Man, Guitar Shorty stole the show,” Lozano said. “But then again,

Coco is about to come on. Coco is a notorious guitar slinger.”

“By far, my money is on Guitar Shorty, 100%,” added Dan Lewis.

Lozano nodded and smiled, then turned his attention back to the

music.

Lozano, Lewis and his wife, Jacqueline Harper, and Ernie Solorzano

were making a night out of the all day event by camping at the dunes

after the tunes were finished.

“We came down here specially for this,” said Lewis, who is from

Cherry Valley near Yucaipa. “And we’ll do it again next year for

sure.”

It was too bad more people couldn’t make it down to the Newport

Dunes, Lozano said.

“They are missing out on some really good music,” he said.

The friends drank cocktails, Harper cracked jokes and they all

laughed. They poked loving fun at Solorzano, who threatened to walk

the few blocks to his Newport Beach home, and talked about how good

the tamales were going to taste once they got back to the campsite.

Guitar Shorty let loose a few riffs, announcing it was time for

his set and the group took the cue and headed inside.

“See, this is what the blues is all about,” Lozano said. “Friends

getting together with good music and good times.