My name is Rick Street and I play the upright bass with the jumpin'est little old blues band in the New York metropolitan area, Lil' Cliff & the Cliffhangers .
Lil' Cliff & the Cliffhangers has just returned from Memphis where we were honored to compete in the 2006 International Blues Challenge (IBC). The Blues Foundation, headquartered in Memphis, Tennessee, holds the IBC each year. With the mission to find the best-unsigned blues band, this annual compeition is held worldwide on a regional level by The Blues Foundation's 100+ affiliated Blues associations around the world.
In early January 2006, Lil' Cliff & the Cliffhangers had been selected as the winner of The Downstate New York Blues Associations regional IBC competition. As the winner of this metro New York Blues associations annual competition, the band proudly headed to Memphis for the national finals held on historic Beale Street, and the opportunity to compete for over $20,000 in cash and prizes. This years competition showcased over 130 bands and solo/duo acts from around the globe.
After two nights of semi-final competition against over 130 of the best unsigned Blues acts in the world, Lil' Cliff & the Cliffhangers were selected with ten other acts as finalists. The band showcased their trademark brand of swinging fun and top-notch musicianship at the New Daisy Theatre on Beale Street in Memphis during their fine set. The crowd was cheering and dancing in the aisles, and you could tell by the smiling faces in the audience why these guys were honored as finalists in the 2006 IBC competition.
Lil' Cliff & the Cliffhangers have been bringing their brand of fun and excitement to the New York metropolitan area for many years now. The band mixes its blend of classic Chicago-style and West Coast "jump blues." The Cliffhangers take the audience on a joy ride through some great grooves and really get the crowd going with their upbeat stage show and top-quality musicianship. All of these elements combine to make for a great evening of entertainment, which is guaranteed to keep the paying customers smiling, drinking and dancing!
