The Blues Are Coming to Town

This year, Eric Bibb has been nominated for yet another Grammy Award in the Best Traditional Blues Album category for his latest album, *Ridin’*. He has been performing on stage for over five decades and has earned his reputation as one of the most acclaimed musicians in the international blues scene.

Eric Bibb, who lives in Stockholm, grew up in 1960s New York, where he was inspired by encounters with many of the era’s most influential artists. Throughout his long career, he has collaborated with greats such as Taj Mahal, Odetta, Bonnie Raitt, The Blind Boys of Alabama, and The Dixie Hummingbirds. In 2019, he played to sold-out crowds at the legendary Ronnie Scott’s in London for an entire week. One evening, he was joined on stage by Van Morrison.

It has been over twenty years since Eric last toured the inland region of Västerbotten, and it is with great pleasure that we welcome this world-renowned artist back, along with his fellow musicians Christer Lyssarides on guitar, Lamine Cissokho on kora, and Ulrika Bibb on vocals.

Childhood Memories

Eric’s father, the artist Leon Bibb, fought alongside Martin Luther King, Harry Belafonte, Joan Baez, and many others for Black rights in the United States in the 1960s. Leon’s vision for the future and his determination found expression in his music and shaped Eric’s artistic development from an early age.

The Bibb family home was a constant hub of activity, with a steady stream of renowned musicians and artists such as John Lewis, Paul Robeson, Pete Seeger, and Josh White coming and going. Eric remembers particularly clearly how, at the age of eleven, he stood in his pajamas in the living room and told Bob Dylan that he, too, played the guitar…