13th Cherokee Jazz & Blues Festival

Jazz students - One of the most interesting parts of the Cherokee Jazz and Blues Festival is the Jazz Music Clinic, where students from around the area get a chance to learn from some of the top musicians on the Iowa music scene today. Shown here are the members of South O'Brien High School's talented Jazz Band at this year's clinic.

South O'Brien talent - Members of the South O'Brien High School Jazz Band spent some time on Friday learning valuable tips from some of the music professionals at this year's Jazz and Blues Clinic held at the Cherokee Middle School. South O'Brien was one of five schools that participated at this year's clinic.

Jamming with Jim - Students from Cherokee Washington High School spent Friday morning at the Cherokee Jazz and Blues Festival's Music Clinic, held at the Cherokee Middle School and hosted by Jim Oatts (seen here on trumpet) and members of his band.

Bringing out the best - Jim Oatts is pictured here with members of the Cherokee Washington High School Jazz Band at the Cherokee Jazz and Blues Festival's Jazz Clinic held at the Cherokee Middle School on Friday. Oatts has been a performer, and has also led the Jazz Clinic here in Cherokee for the past several years, and he has brought out the best in area students who enjoy playing Jazz and Blues.

Sharing some tips - Percussionist Jim Eklof has been with the Des Moines Big Band since 1960. A graduate of Drake University, he has taught music in and out of the public school systems for nearly 50 years and is highly regarded as a clinician. Eklof took time to shared some tips with students from Cherokee Washington High School at Friday's Jazz Clinic.

Jim Oatts - Jazz legend Jim Oatts is pictured performing at the Cherokee VFW on Friday as he, along with his brother Dick and sister Sue and their band Jim Oatts Family Jazz, rocked the house at this year's Cherokee Jazz and Blues Festival.

Steve Charlson - Steve Charlson, bass player for the Jim Oatts Family Jazz, is pictured here playing at Friday's Cherokee Jazz and Blues Festival. Charlson and his fellow band members also provided their musical talents earlier that day at the Jazz Clinic for area students, which was held at the Cherokee Middle School.

Sue Oatts Tucker - The Jim Oatts Family Jazz performed at the Cherokee VFW Club on Friday. Pictured is Sue Oatts Tucker, who demonstrated that she is an extraordinary jazz vocalist at this year's Cherokee Jazz and Blues Festival.

Tanner Taylor - Providing his keyboard talents to the Jim Oatts Family Jazz on Friday was Tanner Taylor. Taylor was one of the many musicians who played at the Jan. 18-19 Cherokee Jazz and Blues Festival.

Elliott/Crowe return to Festival - Folk performers Chad Elliott and Bonita Crowe played to a packed house on Friday at The Gasthaus. This marked the second year in a row that the talented duo has played at the Cherokee Jazz and Blues Festival.

Bonita Crowe - Performing at this year's Cherokee Jazz and Blues Festival at The Gasthaus Friday was Bonita Crowe, who, along with Chad Elliott, brought a soulful grace with her vocals.

Brad Pelkey - Brad Pelkey is the bass player for Ross William Perry, who performed at the Cherokee Bowl on Friday as part of the Cherokee Jazz and Blues Festival. Besides being a fabulous bass player, Pelkey is also a talented vocalist.

Dave Hinners - On Friday, the Buffalo Ridge Band played with Kelsey Klingensmith at The Gathering Place, and drummer Dave Hinners of Storm Lake is pictured here doing what his does best.

Northwest Iowa Musicians - Dave Napier, Stephen Smith, Ray Guntren, Joey Gulizia, Pete Hittle and Eddie Dunn make up a group they call the Northwest Iowa Musicians, and they delighted those in attendance at this year's Cherokee Jazz and Blues Festival when they performed at The Copper Cup on Friday.

Napier and Dunn - Dave Napier and Eddie Dunn of the Northwest Iowa Musicians are pictured here getting sweet and lowdown during their performance at The Copper Cup on Friday.

Pete Hittle - Pete Hittle of the Northwest Iowa Musicians is pictured during Friday's performance at The Copper Cup as part of this year's Cherokee Jazz and Blues Festival.

Rocking night - The Gathering Place was rocking on Friday with performances by Kelsey Klingensmith and The Buffalo Ridge Band, featuring Theodore Brooks Begay, Steve Alingh, Jimmy Davis, Dave Hinners, and special guest Charlie Leissler.

Kelsey Klingensmith - Talented 13- year- old Kelsey Klingensmith played many original songs during her performance at this year's Cherokee Jazz and Blues Festival. Klingensmith is a prodigious songwriter and musician, who has already written well over 100 songs.

Steve Alingh - Extraordinarily gifted keyboardist Steve Alingh of the Buffalo Ridge Band performed with Kelsey Klingensmith at The Gathering Place on Friday. Alingh has performed many times at the Cherokee Jazz and Blues Festival.

Ross William Perry - Twin Cities' guitar sensation Ross William Perry has been making waves on the blues scene throughout the Midwest for the past several years. On Friday, he and his band performed for the second year in a row at the Cherokee Jazz and Blues Festival, playing to a packed house at the Cherokee Bowl.

The Candymakers - Making their first appearance at the Cherokee Jazz and Blues Festival on Saturday at the Cherokee VFW Club were the Candymakers. The young blues band from eastern Iowa showed class and style that is only seen in veteran musicians. The band also hosted this year's Cherokee Jazz and Blues Festival Jam Session, held at The Gathering Place on Saturday afternoon.

Sweet sounds - Evan White, saxophone player, along with Al Sweet, vocals, Randy Leasman, bass, Bret Dale, guitar, Nick Vasquez, keyboards, and Michael Miller on drums make up the Candymakers, whose sweet sounds delighted the packed crowd at the Cherokee VFW Club on Saturday.

Blues at the Bowl - Saturday was the second night of the Cherokee Jazz and Blues Festival and the nightly Pub Crawls were a popular part of the event. Those who crawled to the Cherokee Bowl were entertained by Blues Drivin', from Storm Lake.

Sounds of Blues Drivin' - Barb Johnson, Mel Kimblad and Henrique Batistti of Blues Drivin' are pictured at The Cherokee Bowl on Saturday. The Storm Lake Band features two female lead vocalists, and they have one of the most unique and professional sounds of any live band playing today

The rhythm section - The dramatic rhythm section of Blues Drivin', who played at the Cherokee Bowl on Saturday. consists of reliable veterans, drummer Scott Shevel, right, and bassist Doug Adams.

Taking requests - Performing for the first time at the Cherokee Jazz and Blues Festival this year was Sherri Cafaro, who was born in Columbia, S.C. and began her career singing in gospel choirs, as well as singing and playing piano with her parents at the church they attended. At age 16, Cafaro began appearing on her own at small jazz clubs and lounges. She delighted the crowd at The Gathering Place on Saturday with her southern charm and powerful voice, and she surprised the audience by taking any and all requests. Amazingly, Cafaro sang the songs without missing a beat - a testament to her talent and professionalism.

Sounds of the Big Band - Providing the Big Band sounds at this year's 13th Cherokee Jazz and Blues Festival was the Mearl Lake Orchestra, which played for the dance at Western Iowa Tech Community College on Saturday . The orchestra had its beginning in the mid-1930's, and the present day band has 11 members.

Mearl Lake Orchestra - The Mearl Lake Orchestra musicians include Darrell Lake (leader), Dustin Bliven, Jim Schroeder, Cliff McMurrey, Cherokee Middle School Band Director Casey Kingdon, Keith Krueger, Kevin Massey, Dan Hutchinson, Jerry Houpt, Arnie Grindberg, and Janice Ames. The orchestra played at Western Iowa Tech Community College on Saturday, and are pictured here between songs, as everyone makes sure they're on the same page.

Swinging to the Big Band sound - The music of The Mearl Lake Orchestra brought out the dancers at Saturday's performance at Western Iowa Tech.