Riding a train and playing or listening to music conjures up romantic images of Woody Guthrie and his guitar witnessing the country by boxcar during the Great Depression. The music-train connection runs deep — Boxcar Willie made a career of hobo songs, Steve Goodman had a hit with “City of New Orleans,” and in 1970, the Festival Express rolled across Canada with Buddy Guy, Janis Joplin, The Band, the Grateful Dead, and others on board.

In 2001, music manager Charlie Hunter organized a trans-Canadian train trip to a folk music conference in Vancouver, British Columbia that led to the creation of Roots on the Rails, with the first trip from Toronto to Vancouver in 2003. Hunter now offers four trips each year and has run thirty-five music-themed train excursions since its inception.

The railroad fits quite comfortably into the world of roots music. Folk, blues, western, jazz, and American music will be the order of the day when the Roots on the Rails Revue hits Portland on Thursday, August 25 with a show at The Old Church. The line-up for this event is spectacular, featuring Blues Music Award nominees Dave Alvin & Phil Alvin, Grammy nominee Eliza Gilkyson, and singer-songwriter Butch Hancock.

Dave Alvin and his brother Phil formed the roots rock band the Blasters in 1979 and soon developed a strong fan base throughout the United States and Europe. The brothers separated in 1986 with Dave going on to work with the bands X, The Knitters, The Flesh Eaters, and then eventually to a successful solo career. Phil continued to work with The Blasters and after some serious health issues, the brothers reunited in 2013 with a pair of highly acclaimed recordings and tours.

Eliza Gilkyson is a 2-time Grammy-nominated singer, songwriter and activist who has become one of the most respected musicians in Folk, Roots, and Americana circles. Her songs have been covered by musicians as diverse as Joan Baez, Bob Geldof, Tom Rush, and Roseanne Cash.

Butch Hancock is a world traveling troubadour with a long string of recorded songs and albums. Peers and critics alike acknowledge Hancock as “one of the finest songwriters of our time” and as one of the premiere singer-songwriters Texas has ever produced.

Tickets for Roots on the Rails are available through BrownPaperBagTickets.com or at The Old Church office, for $30.00 advance, $35.00 day of show. Show time is 7:30 pm and all ages are welcome. The Old Church is located at 1422 SW 11^th Avenue.

Hailing from Austin, Black Joe Lewis & The Honeybears’ music has been described as  the collision between Southern soul, Midwestern blues, and vagabond punk.  Compared to “The Godfather of Soul” James Brown and inspired by Howlin’ Wolf, Black Joe Lewis let his punk-flag fly on the group’s third studio album, Electric Slave, where he has honed their signature sound and perfected his gritty, shouting, and raw guitar riffs. Lewis refuses to confine himself to genre-defining boundaries and cater to only one of his many musical influences. Having plenty of women chasing, hard-knocks, and all-around good time tales to tell, he also always finds a way to make his tracks full of horns and blues riffs that rival the likes of rocker Iggy Pop.

Black Joe Lewis & The Honeybears will be returning to one of their favorite venues in the Portland area as they perform at the Doug Fir Lounge on Friday, September 2 at 9:00 pm. Tickets for this 21 & over show can be purchased in advance through Ticketfly.com ranging from $15.00 – $17.00. The Doug Fir Lounge is located at 830 E. Burnside St.

Unless you’ve been hiding under a rock or have not been paying attention to all the media about young blues phenom Christone “Kingfish” Ingram, it’s time to jump into your car and head down to The Birk for a true awakening. The stories are not hype — this is a musician who just may be the future of the blues. Sure, we’ve heard that before, but Kingfish follows a long line of Delta artists that have helped mentor and teach this young man properly, and he has heeded these lessons with both ears.

Born in 1999, Christone “Kingfish” Ingrtam experienced the sounds of gospel music in church, but he also took note of the great bluesmen of the region including Big Jack Johnson and Michael Burks. From the age of seven Kingfish has been studying music, first with drums, then bass, and now as an exciting, creative guitarist who has shared the stage alongside the likes of Buddy Guy, Guitar Shorty, and Bob Margolin. His influences are widespread, ranging from early blues musicians to southern-rock band The Allman Brothers, English blues-rocker Steve Marriott, and funk and R&B god Prince, all of whom have driven Kingfish to expand his own direction in the music he creates.

People everywhere are taking note of Kingfish, and he has appeared on numerous television shows, on festival stages across the country and into Europe, and even performing for President Obama. On Friday, July 8, Kingfish will join Jeff “Drummerboy” Hayes and local musicians to take the stage at The Birk for what will surely be a full house. This show will start at 7:00 with tickets available through Tickettomato.com for $20.00 advance and $25.00 day of show at the door. The Birk is located at 11139 Hwy 202 in Birkenfeld. Don’t miss out on a performance that will certainly be talked about for some time to come!