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A dose of blues on a Friday the 13th
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Posted on May 14 2005
Blues fans on Saipan gathered Friday night at the AJ’s Restaurant along Beach Road to get a dose of their favorite music, courtesy of Guam’s Micronesian Blues Society.
KRNM, the public, non-commercial radio station at Northern Marianas College that sponsored the concert, managed to raise at least $420 worth of pledges from the night’s patrons, according to KRNM general manager Carl Pogue. The concert itself was free.
Pogue said the amount he raised would help the station fund its programming costs, to include the National Public Radio dues, as well as satellite fees.
At least three members of the Micronesian Blues Society flew from Guam for the show. Pogue said he is grateful to the musicians for playing on Saipan just for the love of music. He said he did not pay the musicians for this show, although he shouldered the airfare for the three blues artists.
He said he is also thankful to the management and staff of AJ’s Restaurant for providing them the venue for this concert.
Some local musicians from the CNMI led by Sam Joyner joined the visiting blues artists and played several numbers.
The once-in-a-blue-moon musical extravaganza attracted guests from local government agencies and media personalities.
Pogue said he was surprised with the excellent turnout of the event considering there were other events going on that night, such as the Marianas March Against Cancer at the Hopwood Junior High School field.
The musicians played three sets and ended the last set at around 11pm.
Pogue is inviting the community to log on to the station’s website at www.krnm.org for program schedules and descriptions of all of the diverse shows that the station airs year-round. For more information about Public Radio for the Northern Marianas, call Pogue at 234-5766.
