Music Notes
Barbecue and blues are a great combination so start planning for the 12th Annual Bob Sykes BBQ & Blues Festival set for Saturday, April 29, 2023. The event will combine the best of blues music and legendary Bob Sykes Bar B Q from 12-8 p.m. with gates opening at 11 a.m. Be sure to bring your chair or blanket and set-up your spot for the day to enjoy talented blues musicians.
Since 2010, the event has been a local favorite for festival goers. Second generation owner and pit master of Bob Sykes Bar B Q Van Sykes says, “Each year the festival grows and we couldn’t do it without our sponsors and the support of the community.” The award-winning blues line-up includes Dynasty Isha & Sonic Energy, Hermon Hitson & the Music Maker Revue, Big Al & the Heavyweights, Geminii Dragon, Stacy Mitchhart, Jose Ramirez, and Kat Riggings.
Bob Sykes Bar B Q Restaurant has been a staple in Birmingham, Alabama for decades and is celebrating its 66th anniversary! Bob Sykes Bar B Q is proud to announce the release of a new book called From the Pit to the Plate. The book is a story told by the Bob Sykes family of how Bob Sykes Bar Q Restaurant has kept a family owned local tradition since 1957. Three generations of the Sykes family have proudly served authentic southern barbecue that literally goes from the pit to the plate. The late Bob and Maxine Sykes founded the restaurant and today their son Van runs the family business with the help of his nephew, Jason Jewell. “My ultimate goal,” Sykes writes in his book, “is for Bob Sykes Bar-B-Q to be remembered as one of those ‘great’ businesses. I can’t think of any better way to honor my parents than for the business they worked so hard to establish will remain an important part of the business landscape of Bessemer. If it is, then I feel that I will have contributed in some way to their legacy.”
Since 2010, the Bob Sykes BBQ & Blues Festival has provided funding for local charities including Red Mountain Grace, Children’s of Alabama, Bessemer Education Enhancement Foundation, and more. General admission tickets for the festival can be purchased at www.bobsykesblues.com or by visiting the Bob Sykes Bar B Q restaurant in Bessemer. †
