Happy Holidays!

37th Annual Blues Music Awards

From Ed: The 37th annual Blues Music Award nominees have been announced and once again the Pacific Northwest has been represented. Around the club we have always considered Seattle and Portland as one big backyard when it comes to international representation out of Memphis, (The International Blues Challenge, Blue Music Awards and The Keeping The Blues Alive Awards.) We'd like to congratulate all of the 37th annual Blues Music Award nominees. An extra special Northwest congratulations to Pacific Northwest nominees Jimi Bott, Lisa Mann, Karen Lovely and Mary Flower. Now if you don't have your Blues Foundation membership please follow the link below and check out all of the Blues Music Award nominees while you sign up!! 37th Annual Blues Music Awards

Peace & chicken grease

"It takes a village." During the holiday season, please consider doing what you can for others. Perhaps that means kicking a nickel to a cause you believe in, donating cans to a food drive, or volunteering your time somewhere. Participating as members of our community is essential to the goodness of any society. Whichever causes may speak to you... help. In the winter, it's natural to focus on food and water. Whether it's World Hunger Year, water.org, Northwest Harvest, or any other worthy organization doing good work for folks who need a little help, millions of good people need food and clean water to survive. Got an extra buck or two? Got a couple/few hours time on a Saturday morning? Whatever it is, we're all in position to do something for our fellow Brothers and Sisters of the world.

Happy Holidays and Moving Forward

From Steve: Hope everyone had a Happy Thanksgiving! We hope that all of our fans/artists/staff/friends are having a great holiday season and enjoying your time with friends and family. Since the news broke about our opportunity to extend our lease for another two years, the response from everyone has been heartwarming; to know that we have become a vital part of the city's music scene is very rewarding. We have heard from many of the artists that play the club and they are equally excited about our news. The Washington Blues Society (WBS) ran a nice photo and story about our "hanging around" in their monthly newsletter - the Bluesletter. As we prepare for the New Year, we are deep into planning some really great new things for the club; I don't want to do a "spoiler alert" but we are gonna knock some things around and make the club even better. So be on the look-out for that as we head into January. Since we did not get the news about the lease extension until a week or so ago; we were unable to book the first couple of weeks of January; so we figured this would be a good time to makes some changes, do some cleaning and get our house in order. Our plan right now is to be closed from January 1-12, 2016; and then re-open on January 13. I am putting the finishing touches on the booking for the balance of January and I think you'll like what you see. Plus, now that the agents across the country know we are back, many have been calling and looking for dates for some major talent to play the room. There is no question that we are excited about the future and the chance to keep the blues alive at Highway 99!! We will still have our challenges - and our neighborhood will apparently still be under construction. We appreciate all of you and the efforts you make to patronize the club. As always - keep in touch - come see us before the year is over - GET YOUR TICKETS FOR OUR NEW YEARS SHOW!! Are you kidding me? The 44's AND Kevin Selfe and his wicked pissa all -star band from Portland and Chebon Tiger and more..!!! This is going to be a grand evening and tickets are selling fast... Thanks for being there for us and supporting the club and the blues - and live music. Without you - this doesn't work - and we knew that our work was not quite done yet. Thanks.

Highway 99 Blues Club Announces Two-year Lease Extension, remains open for Business and Blues on Seattle Waterfront

SEATTLE, WA - November 13, 20015 -- Highway 99 Blues Club (www.highway99blues.com), an iconic music venue on Seattle's waterfront and eight-time recipient of the Washington Blues Society's "Best Blues Club" award, today announced that it has extended its lease by two years. Located in an historic 1909 brick building on Seattle's waterfront (1414 Alaskan Way), the club faced imminent closure at the end of 2015 due to planned rent increases, but club ownership and building management today signed a more tenable plan. Terms were not disclosed. Inspired by the juke joints of The South and neighborhood blues clubs of Chicago, Highway 99 has brought hundreds of local, national and international music acts to a 200-seat venue where performers and audience are only feet apart. It has become a favorite destination for musicians and audience members alike, making Blues and related genres more accessible and affordable than just about anywhere on the West Coast. The Club has also been noted for its Blues-inspired menu of Southern cuisine as well as a lively dance floor. Since it became known earlier this year that the venue would likely have to close because of significant rent increases, Club founder Steve Sarkowsky, operating partner Ed Maloney and their staff were "overwhelmed" by support from patrons, performers, and the broader Seattle community. Faced with the prospect of closing, Sarkowsky and Maloney visited dozens of other potential homes for Highway 99 Blues Club, but none matched the downtown location and vitality of its home for the past 11 years. "This is really a day to celebrate the continuation of a Seattle institution and for all of us at the Club to thank our friends, families and performers for their incredible support," Sarkowsky said. "As Seattle grows rapidly, it's more important than ever to retain places like this that can define a city's culture and character. We are committed to bringing Seattle and the Pacific Northwest access to the very best performers in the business and creating an onsite experience to match." For performers, the continuation of Highway 99 is also cause to celebrate: "I've played Seattle-area venues ranging from The Gorge to Key Arena, but Highway 99 is unique in bringing audiences and artists face-to-face, providing an entirely different and intimate experience; one that rarely exists anywhere today," said Carl Verheyen, widely regarded as one of the world's top guitarists and Supertramp's lead guitarist. "It's also uncommon to find a music club of any size where everyone from management down to wait staff truly loves music. My own band and I love playing there on our West Coast tours and couldn't be happier to know that Highway 99 will remain an important part of the region's music scene." Media Contact: Mark S. Peterson mark@pointerpr.com 206-390-0204 highway99blues.com Steve Sarkowsky, Founder, groupmbj@earthlink.net Ed Maloney, Proprietor, maloney.ed@gmail.com Highway 99 Blues Club, 206.382.2171