Jim Byrnes performs during a special acoustic concert with special guest Simon Kendall at Simonholt Saturday (May 27). Photo Contributed

Jim Byrnes performs during a special acoustic concert with special guest Simon Kendall at Simonholt Saturday (May 27). Photo Contributed

Juno Award winning blues artist Jim Byrnes performs in Nanaimo

Musician performs during an acoustic concert in Nanaimo at Simonholt

Juno-award winning blues artist Jim Byrnes performs during a special acoustic concert in the Harbour City.

Byrnes performs with special guest Simon Kendall at Simonholt Saturday (May 27) at 8:30 p.m. Andrea Adams and Alan Medcalf will open the concert with a 30-minute set.

Byrnes, who was born in St. Louis, played his first professional gig in 1964 and has performed with Muddy Waters, John Lee Hooker and Robert Cray over his career. The musician moved to Vancouver in the mid ’70s when he formed the Jim Byrnes Band.

Byrnes has also enjoyed an acting career and has appeared in TV shows such as Wiseguy and the Highlander series.

In 2011 he received a Juno Award for Blues Album of the Year for his album Everywhere West, which was also nominated for a Western Canadian Music Awards for Blues Album of the Year. Prior to that, his album My Walking Stick won Best Album of the Year from the Western Canadian Music Awards

Tickets for the acoustic show are $30 available at Simonholt, Arbutus Music or the Cranky Dog. People can make reservations at the restaurant by calling 250-933-3338.

For more information about Byrnes, please visit www.jamestbyrnes.com.

Nanaimo News Bulletin