Arts & Culture

The Winthrop Rhythm and Blues Festival is a three day, award-winning blues festival (named ‘Best US Festival 2015’ by Memphis-based Blues Foundation) features such legendary performers as Mavis Staples, John Mayall, Eric Burdon, Charlie Musselwhite. Draws, music fans from across the US West and Canada. The Methow’s largest event. Produced by the non-profit Winthrop Music Association, the festival has donated over $50k in the past 10 years to support hunger relief, music education in the Methow.

Located at the Blues Ranch on the Methow River in the resort town of Winthrop, Washington, the Winthrop Rhythm & Blues Festival is a three-day event packed full of exciting national and regional entertainment for all ages. There is on-site camping, food and craft vendors, portable showers, and a beer garden. The Blues Ranch is the perfect setting for one of Washington’s finest music festivals. The Winthrop Rhythm & Blues Festival is the largest and longest running blues festival in the state of Washington. Over eighty thousand people have attended this event in the past twenty-nine years. Past festivals have featured such national artists as Los Lobos, Larkin Poe, Los Lonely Boys, Samantha Fish, The California Honeydrops,  Lukas Nelson & Promise of the Real, Robert Randolph & the Family Band, Johnny Winter, Royal Southern Brotherhood featuring Cyril Neville and Devon Allman, Allen Stone, The Holmes Brothers, Roy Rogers, Janiva Magness, Ivan Neville’s Dumpstaphunk, Too Slim & the Taildraggers, Jimmie Vaughan, Booker T., Commander Cody, Little Feat, Mavis Staples, Bo Diddley, JJ Cale with Christine Lakeland, Bobby Rush, Susan Tedeschi, Koko Taylor, The Fabulous Thunderbirds, Tower of Power, Delbert McClinton, Elvin Bishop, Little Milton, Tommy Castro, Eric Burdon, Chubby Carrier, Charlie Musselwhite, The Blasters, Buckwheat Zydeco, James Harman and many others. The festival has rightfully become a destination event with fans traveling from all over the world to enjoy and celebrate the Blues.

The Winthrop Rhythm & Blues Festival is brought to you by Winthrop Music Association (WMA), a 501(c)3 non-profit organization. All board members, staff and volunteers pride themselves in providing the very finest in rhythm & blues entertainment each year. We look forward to another great year and hope to see YOU at the 33rd Annual Winthrop Rhythm