ARTICLE
Award-winning blues singer, Michelle “Evil Gal” Willson and her Festival Orchestra will appear at West Falmouth Library on March 5 at 4 p.m. In honor of Women’s History Month, this tribute concert celebrates women blues singers in history. Tickets are $30 and available at www.FalmouthJazz.org. Known for her strong, distinctive voice and deep knowledge of the blues, Ms. Willson has been singing the blues around Boston for over 40 years. Like many blues and gospel artists, she grew up learning to sing in church. The Boston native had early career success, winning a battle of the blues bands competition in Boston and ultimately earning a spot in the national blues finals in Memphis. Her career took off when she put together a tribute show to the music of Dinah Washington, Etta James and Ruth Brown, three iconic vocalists who created music that told women’s stories with wit and humor. Ms. Willson adopted the stage name “Evil Gal”, a reference to the song “Evil Gal Blues” made famous by Dinah Washington and Aretha Franklin. What started as one set became five Evil Gal albums, performances in 16 countries, and appearances on many other recordings, including the title track of the 2016 Handy Award nominated “Fifty Shades of Blue on Delta Groove”. The Evil Gal Orchestra is comprised of top Boston blues musicians who have performed with Ms. Willson for decades. “Sax Gordon” Beadle on tenor saxophone will be a special guest for this performance. In addition to her performance schedule, Ms. Willson currently hosts “Morning Vibe Time” on one of the few remaining NPR music stations, WICN in Worcester, MA. Tickets for the March 5 concert are $30 and are available in advance at FalmouthJazz.org. The performance is at the West Falmouth Library, 575 West Falmouth Highway. Doors open at 3:30 for the 4 p.m. performance. This program is supported in part by a grant from the Falmouth Cultural Council, a local agency, which is supported by the Mass Cultural Council, a state agency.