“A huge blues and boogie talent.” – Holger Petersen, Stony Plain Records

They don’t make them as real as David Vest anymore. Long revered as one of the great boogie-woogie piano players, he’s the son of an Alabama sharecropper and grew up in genuine juke joints. He played with many blues greats, from Big Joe Turner to Jimmy T99 Nelson, and his songs have been covered by artists ranging from Tammy Wynette to Downchild. 

Vest called Portland home in the early 2000s and was co-leader of the Paul deLay Band, winning a number of Muddy Awards, including best keyboard player. Since moving to Canada, Vest has won that country’s Maple Blues Award for piano player of the year six times. 

Since being asked to open for Roy Orbison in 1962, Vest has been onstage with an astonishing range of artists, including Bill Black’s Combo, Floyd Dixon, Miss Lavelle White, Carey Bell, Red Foley, Ralph Stanley, Johnny Cash, the Soul Stirrers, and Marcia Ball, to name a few.

This year’s festival marks his first appearance in the U.S. since 2018.