Tucson blues artists inducted into hall of fame

When the ceremony begins at Saturday’s Arizona Blues Hall of Fame Induction Show, don’t be disappointed if there’s no real sense of surprise among the four 2025 inductees.

We’ll let you in on a little secret: They were inducted in a ceremony on Jan. 19 in Phoenix.

Seems the Blues Hall of Fame likes to spread the love between Arizona’s two blues-belting metros, giving Phoenix the first shot at welcoming the newest hall of famers and following up months later with an event in the Old Pueblo.

With the lineup of Tucson blues artists welcoming the four inductees, though, we’re going to just say the obvious:

They saved the best for last.

The induction show runs from 6-10 p.m. Saturday, April 26, at Monterey Court, 505 W. Miracle Mile. Tickets are $20 at the door, but reservations are recommended by visiting montereycourtaz.com.

2025 inductees

Tucson blues guitarist Joe Scibilia has played with Riff Raff, Flathead 6, Rocket J and Wood and the G-Men in a career that goes back to the early 1980s. He adds the Blues Hall of Fame to his 2023 induction into the Tucson Musicians Museum Hall of Fame.

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Phoenix bluesman James “Dr. Fish” Price, an organist, singer, trumpet player and arranger originally from San Antonio, Texas, had been a fixture in the Valley’s blues and R&B scene since the early 1970s. Price died on Jan. 18 at the age of 80.

Tucson-raised blues guitarist Sir Harrison Begay is the frontman for the Native American Music Awards-nominated Sir Harrison Band. In 2020, they won the Arizona Blues Competition. Begay left his career as a national award-winning video journalist in 2002 to pursue music full time.

Chopper John’s is a quintessential dive bar on East Indian School Road in Phoenix, but its personality changes ever so slightly when the focus is on the stage. The bar, which can only accommodate 150 people, hosts blues, rock and country artists.

The performers

Tom Walbank, Whose Blue, Porch Rockers, Aaron McCall, Bad News Blues Band, Bryan Dean Trio and The Coolers.