MEMPHIS, Tenn. — The harmonica wizard from Coralville, Iowa, a brassy blues band out of Houston, a Brazil-born guitar master, and a 21-year-old “wunderkind.” These are the acts that rose to the top of the pack at The Blues Foundation’s 34th annual International Blues Challenge Awards ceremony, which took place at Memphis’ historic Orpheum Theatre on Saturday, January 20.
Kevin “B.F.” Burt was the big man of the evening as the bluesman representing the Central Iowa Blues Society, picking up three awards: First Place Solo/Duo, Best Solo/Duo Guitarist, and the Lee Oskar Award for Best Harmonica Player. The Keeshea Pratt Band, from the Houston Blues Society, stormed out of Texas to grab First Place Band honors with judges universally rating them ready to headline major festivals and take the international blues scene by storm. The local band…
