Too Slim and the Taildraggers
Thursday at 8:30 pm, Lilac Stage
After spending many years leading one of the Northwest's very best (and busiest) blues bands, Tim "Too Slim" Langford moved his Taildragger operation from Seattle to Nashville in 2012. Now they're back where it all started — Langford formed the band in Spokane in the mid-'80s. Thankfully, one thing hasn't changed: Langford's gritty blend of low-down blues, smoldering roots-rock, guitar heroics and honest lyrics. Welcome home to one of the sturdiest musical acts this town has ever turned out. (BEN SALMON)
Paul Revere's Raiders
Friday at 12:30 pm, Clocktower Stage; 8:30 pm, Lilac Stage
The original founder and namesake of Paul Revere and the Raiders — Paul Revere himself (not the American Revolution hero, but the Idaho-born keyboardist) — passed away in 2014. But his classic band continues on as Paul Revere's Raiders, playing iconic hits like "Kicks," "Hungry" and "Indian Reservation" for happy, dancing people across the country and beyond. In a world that seems scarier every day, losing oneself in the cozy familiarity of mid-20th century mega-hits doesn't sound so bad, does it? (BS)
LeRoy Bell and His Only Friends
Friday at 9 pm, Clocktower Stage
LeRoy Bell's career spans five decades, and yet he's still finding his way to new audiences. With his longtime songwriting partner Casey James, he's penned blues and R&B tunes that have been recorded by the likes of Elton John, Gladys Knight and Teddy Pendergrass, and he was recently a competitor on the American version of The X-Factor as a protégé of pop star Nicole Scherzinger. He hits Pig Out with backing band His Only Friends, which promises to deliver some A-level musicianship. (NATHAN WEINBENDER)
Elvin Bishop Big Fun Trio
Saturday at 8:45 pm, Lilac Stage
Both as a solo artist and guitarist for the groundbreaking Paul Butterfield Blues Band, Elvin Bishop has been recognized as one of the preeminent blues guitarists of the '60s and '70s. He's probably best known for the AM radio classic "Fooled Around and Fell in Love," a hit single in 1976 which has had a second life as a movie soundtrack staple, popping up most memorably in Boogie Nights and Guardians of the Galaxy. Inducted into the Blues Hall of Fame last year and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame the year before, the 74-year-old's newest project, the Big Fun Trio, is playing Pig Out and features Bishop alongside guitarist and pianist Bob Welsh and drummer Willy Jordan. (NW)
Rail
Saturday at 9 pm, Clocktower Stage
The story of the Seattle-area hard rock band Rail is one marked by incredible high points. After first coming together in junior high school, the quartet opened 47 U.S. tour dates for Van Halen in 1980, before they even had an album out. Three years later, Rail won a nationwide contest on MTV and earned a major label recording contract. Since, they've settled into a long career on the regional scene, with all four original members still writing and recording their fist-pumping brand of '80s-flavored melodic rock together. That's pretty cool. (BS)
Sir Mix-A-Lot
Sunday at 9 pm, Lilac Stage
Mix must really love Spokane. The "Baby Got Back" rapper, based in Seattle, performed at Pig Out last year, and also headlined 2015's Perry Street Shakedown. Perhaps next time he's in town, he'll play your kid's bar mitzvah. If you missed either of those free shows, you really don't have much of an excuse to skip this one. I mean, you probably already know all the words to his ode to voluminous posteriors, so you may as well see it performed in the, ahem, flesh. (NW) ♦
Pig Out in the Park • Wed, Aug. 30 through Mon, Sept. 4 • Free • Riverfront Park • spokanepigout.com
