Artwork by M.Jones.
It’s been years since the last big blues bash in Madrid at the old ballpark—those all-day, three-chord celebrations of blue notes that corralled every blues man and woman for miles around. It was good times for kids and adults alike, but spending hours in the dusty field under a hot sun could take its toll.
The New Mexico Jazz Workshop has found a way to revive those good times but under what should be more comfortable conditions. This weekend, they’ll launch the latest edition of the Madrid Blues Fest at the Mine Shaft Amphitheater, a tented venue with a small stage and cover for several hundred blues fans. The facility is right next to the longest bar in New Mexico,
located in the Mine Shaft Tavern (est. 1899), which also has one of the better green chile cheese burgers in the state, tasty hand-cut fries, and a longstanding dedication to good music.