There were more people on stage than there were fans in the stands in 2001, and ticket sales did not increase much the next year.
Following the third annual Heritage BluesFest, co-founder Bruce Wheeler found himself in a “put-up-or-shut-up” predicament and put up is exactly what Wheeler did. He cashed in a retirement account, took a second mortgage on the family home in Woodsdale, and convinced his wife, Phyllis, that it was the right thing to do.
The 20th Heritage Music Bluesfest is scheduled for this weekend at Heritage Port after the three-day concert was canceled last year because of the pandemic. The gate will open Friday at 4 p.m., and the finest blues artists in the world will begin at 5 p.m. Over the three days, 17 bands will perform and After Jam shows are scheduled each evening in the ballroom of the McLure Hotel at 1200 Market St.
“I may have been right to take those risks. Maybe. But you never really know,” Wheeler said. “But I do think I was right to not give up the ship because that ship appears to be sailing along famously. But yes, I cashed in a retirement fund and took the second mortgage in order to do this. I could have had a nice retirement sitting on a rocking chair on my porch, but decisions like the ones I made were more about mental health.
“I would have been thinking about it if I had decided to give it up. I know it would have been on my mind because of how badly I wanted it to be successful,” he explained. “Today, I have no regret. Maybe some scars from some bumps in the road, but no real regret.”
A Popular Person
The Heritage BluesFest always has taken place during the second weekend in August, and it is the only ticketed, three-day event that takes place at Heritage Port. His wife, daughter, Amanda, and her husband, Chris, manage the main gate each year, and his son, Leland, serves as the main stage manager.
The lineup for each day follows:
FRIDAY AUGUST 13
5:00 Davy Knowles
6:30 Carolyn Wonderland
8:00 Ronnie Baker Brooks
9:30 Coco Montoya
10:30 Ronnie and Coco’s Tribute to Albert Collins
AfterJam HOST – Davy Knowles
SATURDAY AUGUST 14
Noon Soulful Femme
1:30 Nick Schnebelen
3:00 Gumbo Grits and Gravy
4:30 Indigenous
6:00 Hannah Wicklund
7:45 Jason Ricci & JJ Appleton
9:45 Ronnie Earl & the Broadcasters
AfterJam HOST – Nick Schnebelen
SUNDAY AUGUST 15
1:00 IBC Winner HOROJO Trio
2:30 Ruf Records Blues Caravan
4:00 JP Soars’ Gypsy Blues Revue
JP Soars, Jason Ricci & Anne Harris
5:45 Ana Popovic
7:45 Bobby Rush
AfterJam HOST – HoRoJo Trio
“I believe it took some time for people to realize what it was and that it is a great festival,” Wheeler said. “Now, people expect for the Bluesfest to happen, and ticket sales have gone well, and we are ahead of the pace from 2019. We have fans coming in from all over the country, and we’ll have plenty of local fans, as well.
“In the beginning, people would ask me if I did some kind of music thing when I was in Kroger, and I would explain it to them,” he said. “But then after seven years or so, people would tell me they were excited about the Blues festival. These days I am the ‘BluesFest Guy,’ and they honk and wave to me. That’s how I know the Bluesfest has reached the mainstream here in the Wheeling area.”
A New Partnership
Yuengling became a presenting sponsor of the Heritage BluesFest a few years ago, and Wheeler has added a second with Roxby Development partnering with the annual festival. Roxby, in fact, recently purchased the McLure Hotel, and thanks to a few quick fixes even more blues fans will be able to reside in downtown Wheeling this weekend.
“Now that Roxby has purchased the McLure Hotel, more of our fans will be staying in downtown again, and that will be great for the other businesses in that area of Wheeling,” Wheeler said. “It’s true that we were on the fence about doing the festival, but when Jeffrey Morris from Roxby caught wind of that, he contacted me and wanted to make it happen. That is why Bluesfest will take place this week for the 20th time.”
And that is why several Wheeling-based businesses will realize an economic impact thanks to the thousands of blues fans that now attend each year.
“I always believed the Bluesfest would be great for our area, and when I look at the number of people who come in from out of town, they are staying in hotels and spending their money here. That means there is an economic impact that is being realized because of the Bluesfest.” Wheeler added. “And now we have a second presenting sponsor in Roxby Development, and that partnership is terrific for us.”
