Rock Falls’ Bellson Music Fest features Journey drummer Smith

ROCK FALLS – The third annual Bellson Music Fest will be Saturday, June 8, 2024, at the RB&W District in Rock Falls.

This year is a centennial celebration of the legacy of Louie Bellson, the Rock Falls native who rose to become the renowned drummer, composer, band leader and six-time Grammy nominee.

The event is hosted by Rock Falls Tourism, which works closely with Bellson’s widow, Francine Bellson, and Josh Duffee, a music director from Davenport.

According to a news release, Steve Smith, who served as drummer for the iconic band Journey, will be the special featured musical guest. Smith was named best all-round drummer numerous times by Modern Drummer magazine as well as selected as one of Modern Drummer’s top 25 drummers of all time and Rolling Stone’s 100 top drummers.

In 2017, Smith was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame for his work with Journey. Smith will kick off the Bellson Music Fest by conducting a drum clinic at 11 a.m. at the McCormick Event Center.

Five bands consisting of big band, jazz and music honoring Bellson will play from noon to 9:30 p.m. at the RB&W District amphitheater. Steve Smith and Vital Information, consisting of Smith, Manuel Valera and Janek Gwizdala, will perform.

“Our music allows for individual expression and reinvention,” Smith said. “We thrive on swing, groove and creativity. We want to surprise each other every night on the bandstand with new ideas and in the process keep our audience ‘in the moment’ with us.”

Announcements of the other bands performing are forthcoming.

According to louiebellson.com, Louie Bellson was deemed “the world’s greatest musician” by Duke Ellington, “the epitome of musical talent and a very gifted composer and arranger” by Oscar Peterson, and “the best person I ever met” by Tony Bennett.

He performed on more than 200 albums with a range of artists, including Duke Ellington, Oscar Peterson, Count Basie, Benny Goodman, Tommy Dorsey, Harry James, Woody Herman, Oscar Dizzy Gillespie, Louie Armstrong, Lionel Hampton, Sarah Vaughan, Ella Fitzgerald, James Brown, Sammy Davis Jr., Tony Bennett, Mel Torme, Joe Williams, Wayne Newton and Bellson’s first wife, Pearl Bailey.

Bellson composed more than 1,000 pieces and wrote a dozen books on drums and percussion. He received the prestigious American Jazz Masters Award from the National Endowment for the Arts in 1994. He also was the recipient of awards from ASCAP and the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, was a six-time Grammy nominee and held four honorary doctorates.

For information, contact Melinda Jones, Rock Falls Tourism director, at 815-622-1106 or at director@visitrockfalls.com.