Blues and brews coming to Libby June 20

by Brent Shrum Special to The Western News
| June 16, 2015 8:32 AM

Libby’s Riverfront Blues festival and Cabinet Mountain Brewing Co. are teaming up to bring a Taste of the Blues and Brewfest to Riverfront Park on Saturday, June 20.

The event will run from 2 p.m. until 7 p.m. and will feature live music from the Mason Stone Band along with beers from several regional microbreweries, as well as a variety of food and craft vendors.

Admission is free, and $20 buys unlimited beer tastings for those 21years of age and over.

Beers will be on tap from Cabinet Mountain Brewing Co. in Libby, Tamarack Brewing Co. in Lakeside, H.A. Brewing Co. in Eureka, Flathead Lake Brewing Co. in Bigfork, and Kootenai River Brewing Co. in Bonners Ferry.

A special one-day only sale will be held for tickets for the 2015 Riverfront Blues Festival, set for Aug. 7-8. Weekend passes to the festival will be available for $25, half off the gate price of $50.

Based in Eureka, the Mason Stone Band was conceived by front man and guitarist Randy Hansberry in 2012 and since then has been performing together throughout the Northwest, dishing out gutsy rocking blues and classic hits, as well as the fresh sounds of today.

A fourth-generation Montana rancher, Hansberry’s musical roots come from the genres of country and gospel. However, growing up as a teenager in the early ’70s, the fusion of rock and blues as performed by bands such as ZZ Top, REO Speedwagon, America, Aerosmith, Eric Clapton, Robin Trower, Paul McCartney and Wings, the Eagles, Humble Pie, Bad Company, and Grand Funk Railroad shaped his playing style.

In addition to Hansberry, Mason Stone Band members include Connie Deeble on keyboards and vocals, Rick Ohnstad on drums and vocals, and Rob DeGolier on bass.