Candy Foster Live 
at the Iron Post

Preview Party: 8 pm Tuesday, December 7, at the Iron Post, Urbana

8:30 pm Wednesday, December 8

Listen to a clip from the show

If R & B music hasn’t gotten the attention it deserves in central Illinois, it’s not because Candy Foster hasn’t been trying to give rhythm and blues a boost.

He’s singing every weekend at clubs, drawing big crowds of fans that just have to get their “Candy fix.” Yet, he said, somehow the Motown sound gets drowned out by jazz when it comes to the public eye. “Around here, the jazz thing has been pretty big, especially with the university,” said Foster. “R & B has always been popular, it hasn’t been promoted much.”

Now the spotlight will shine clearly on R & B as Foster and his band The Shades of Blue appear in their first televised special during WILL-TV’s Winterfest, Candy Foster Live at the Iron Post.

“Candy is the hardest-working rhythm and blues entertainer between Chicago and St. Louis,” said Terry Des Jardins, the band’s rhythm guitar player. “I think he is truly a treasure that we have locally. He has the ability to make every person who comes in feel like he sees them. He has a natural ability to connect with an audience.”

In the local production taped by WILL-TV last spring at the Urbana club, Foster and the band perform “Take Me to the River,” “Licking Stick,” “Here I Am,” “Let’s Stay Together,” “Sweet Home Chicago,” “Brick House” and “Last Two Dollars.”

WILL-TV’s Tim Hartin, who produced the program, said Foster’s personality isn’t lost on tape. “We think he connects with the TV audience just as he does in person,” said Tim. “He appeals to all age groups, from college kids to retirees."

Foster, who as a young man traveled the country performing at Air Force bases, started out singing jazz because his mother was a jazz singer. But he moved to R & B because it gave him more of an opportunity to express himself through the music. “I thought entertaining was my strong point,” he said.

Other members of the band include Ernie Thompson, guitar; Kevin Flowers, bass; Nate Hatcher, trumpet; Peter Roubal, tenor sax, Jeff Helgesen, trumpet; and Danny Philips, drums.