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Award-winning vocalist, instrumentalist and songwriter Curtis Salgado is revered worldwide for his ability to wring every ounce of soul out of every song he performs. Salgado is famed not only for his powerhouse live shows and eleven albums, but also for his passionate and insightful original songs. He has been nominated three times for the Blues Music Award for Song Of The Year, winning in 2018 for “Walk A Mile In My Blues” from The Beautiful Lowdown. In 2025, he added two additional Blues Music Awards to his extensive collection, which now totals 13, including the B.B. King Entertainer Of The Year.Born in 1954, Salgado grew up in Eugene, Oregon with music all around him. After attending a Count Basie performance when he was 13 he decided that music was his calling. After getting his hands on a harmonica, Curtis began devouring the blues of Little Walter and Paul Butterfield, and taught himself to play. By his early 20s he was making a name for himself in Eugene’s bar scene, first as the vocalist/harmonica player of The Nighthawks, and later sharing lead vocals as a member of The Robert Cray Band.
In 1977, comedian/actor John Belushi was in Eugene filming Animal House. During downtime, Belushi caught a typically ferocious Salgado performance and introduced himself during a break. Once Salgado started sharing some of his blues knowledge and playing old records for him, a fast friendship grew. Belushi soaked up the music like a sponge and used his new awareness to portray “Joliet” Jake Blues in The Blues Brothers, first as a skit on Saturday Night Live, then a best-selling record album (which was dedicated to Curtis) and finally as a major motion picture (Cab Calloway’s character in the film was named Curtis as an homage).
Tonight, Curtis and his band celebrate the release or their latest album.
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Event Venue
3000 NE Alberta St, Portland, OR, United States, Oregon 97211
Tickets
Concerts, fests, parties, meetups - all the happenings, one place.
