That’s the Spirit

Until now, the demise of Kansas City’s annual Blues and Jazz Festival ranked among the area’s saddest stories of the year. Citing a lack of funds and sparse support from sponsors, the event’s organizers pulled the plug in early spring, and efforts to revive the fest have been woefully insufficient. But unlike most downbeat local sagas, this one might end in storybook fashion, salvaged by an unlikely savior.

Spirit Inc., the venerable not-for-profit organization that has hosted nineteen large-scale community celebrations called Spirit Fests, was certainly the most qualified candidate to resuscitate the flatlined festival. However, it seemed improbable that Spirit Inc. would do so in 2002, given that it had just produced a three-day event in May, leaving little time for preparation; that its attendance figures, though still substantial, have been on a downward trend for several years; and corporate assistance for such shindigs is increasingly difficult to obtain. Nonetheless, Spirit Inc. managed to piece together an impressive Blues and Heritage Festival, set for this weekend.

Spirit Inc. executive director Tim Smith has a curt reply for the cynics who have doubted his ability to succeed where others had fallen short. “How’d we do it?” he asks, echoing the inquiry posed by pundits who point at Spirit Fest’s diminishing returns. “Well, we’ve been doing it for nineteen years. We’re somewhat adept at doing outdoor events.”

The Blues and Heritage Fest is all but fully funded, thanks to significant sponsorship and other revenue streams such as booth rentals and advance ticket sales. And it secured premium headliners, one of the major failings of recent Blues and Jazz Festivals. Spirit Inc. set up a steering committee, including Kansas City Blues Society president Stan Koron and B.B.’s Lawnside Barbecue’s Lindsay Shannon (who helped select B&J talent in recent years) to compose a wish list. From these names, the panel secured deals with Robert Cray, a contemporary blues titan with considerable crossover appeal, and Otis Rush, a living legend who makes standards his own and has crafted originals that even Stevie Ray Vaughan and Eric Clapton couldn’t do justice with cover versions.

If it’s that easy to get the best and brightest artists, why have Spirit Fest attendees had to endure the likes of Eddie Money and the Burger King All-Stars? Well, for one thing, blues singers age better than their pop counterparts. In the ’80s, Cray was as omnipresent on blues shows as Huey Lewis was on Casey Kasem’s Top 40, but Cray still gets radio respect while Lewis would have to fire up the DeLorean and get back in time to discover DJs eager to spin his latest single. For another, big-name blues players appear at festivals for a fraction of the price demanded by their rock peers.

Smith makes no apologies for his bread-and-butter event’s recent lineups. “We’re not trying to be Verizon Amphitheater,” he says. “We’re trying to route artists into Kansas City on a tight time frame. We’ve had to pull off some minor miracles. It’s almost magical.”

The Blues and Heritage Fest required less wand waving. Without having to blow the whole budget on one or two acts, Smith has secured a consistently solid roster. On Friday evening, Max Groove, Big Bill Morganfield (Muddy Waters’ son) and Latin jazz ensemble Los Hombres Calientes warm the crowd for Cray. On Saturday, a ninety-minute local all-star jam featuring the Blues Notions, D.C. Bellamy, Danielle and dozens of other attractions kicks off the festivities at noon, followed by sets from Rory Block, C.J. Chenier, Chris Duarte, Walter “Wolfman” Washington, John Mayall, Joe Sample and Rush. The fact that the whole lineup fits into a tightly packed paragraph reveals another thing the Blues and Heritage Fest is doing right — keeping its inaugural event on a small scale.

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“It’s the kiss principle: Keep it simple, stupid,” Smith explains. “We’re really focused on the music and on the setting.” (The Blues and Heritage Fest happens on the hill north of the Liberty Memorial, as opposed to Spirit’s south-side home.)

The event’s simplicity might owe more to pragmatism than principle. With only three months to work with between this year’s early Spirit Fest and September, there was little room for frills, secondary stages or other auxiliary considerations. Initially, Smith was reluctant to embark on another massive undertaking so soon after scrambling to put together Spirit Fest for Memorial Day. But, he says, “We felt a responsibility. I’ve been to the Blues and Jazz Festivals, and it would be incredibly sad if Kansas City lost that kind of a venue.”

The “responsibility” angle is important, because no one else could have saved the blues festival, at least in 2002. The ill-fated efforts of “Blues Brothers” Owen Hawkins and Steve Miller, who were either charlatans or in-over-their-head opportunists (“A Sad, Sad Song,” June 27), doomed any subsequent attempts by private citizens. No matter how well-organized or endowed, anyone who tried to step into their sullied shoes would be met with skepticism.

“The outdoor festival business is highly specialized, and people always think it’s easy, but it really isn’t,” Smith says. “We didn’t want the waters mucked up when we were trying to do something legitimate and answer the call.”

Still, like Superman ironing his tights in a phone booth while a villain’s victim remains in peril, Spirit Inc. took its time coming to the rescue. “We did our due diligence prior to making an announcement,” Smith says, revealing that Spirit Inc. started planning its event in April. “Once we determined it was feasible, we moved forward.”

The next step was securing sponsorship, something the Blues and Jazz Festival struggled with post-9/11. Spirit scored some major support from big names, including Miller Lite, Ford, the Hyatt Regency Crown Center and Midwest Express. “We went to people who have sponsored Spirit Fest in the past,” Smith says. “We have some great relationships we’ve developed over the years.”

Unlike the Blues and Jazz Festivals of recent years, Spirit Inc. also enjoys the city’s cooperation. It obtained a $30,000 Neighborhood Tourism Development Fund grant ($5,000 more than B&J annually received). “We’re performing a service for the city, and they understand that,” Smith says.

And though Spirit Fest tended to clash with the Kansas City Chiefs, whose games often sacked its Sunday schedule, Smith opted for a two-day Blues and Heritage lineup that leaves a Sabbath-day hole for football fans.

“Our intent is to have it grow into an annual tradition,” Smith explains. “Then it might expand to Sundays.”

Then again, it might not. Smith knows the risks of starting this ambitious undertaking. “We don’t know what’s going to happen,” he admits. Smith pauses, then adds confidently, “If you have the right talent, they’ll come.”

More than any other event in recent years, the Blues and Heritage Festival is a controlled experiment to test that hypothesis. There’s no competition, no horrendous heat, no lack of big-name talent, no real reason for anyone who enjoys the blues not to go. There won’t be any opportunities to point fingers at the organizers, the weather or any other scapegoats. If this event succeeds, the condition of the city’s once-grim festival future will earn a significant upgrade. If it fails, there’s no one left to blame but the audience.