SHAY ON SAX GOES TO MEMPHIS

Springfi eld saxophonist Shayla Logan participated in the funeral procession for blues legend B.B. King in Memphis, Tennessee, May 27. Logan was one of 15 musicians to be invited to play in B. B. King’s “Last Walk Down Beale Street.”

“It was such an honor to be asked,” Logan said this week. “I was walking right behind B.B. King’s guitar, Lucille, carried by Bobby Bland’s son. People were coming up asking for my picture all afternoon. I played from 11 a.m. until 6 p.m. My mouth was so sore.

“Musicians in Memphis were so kind, and I made some wonderful connections there,” she said. “Dr. Herman Green, tenor sax player for B.B. King, invited me back to play anytime.”

Logan performed in Memphis two years ago at the International Blues Challenge and plans to audition for that event this year. She studied music at Lincoln Land Community College, then transferred to Xavier University in New Orleans where she earned a degree in music performance. She played in bands on Bourbon Street before returning to Springfi eld a year and a half ago.

Logan bills herself as Shay on Sax and is a popular local musician. She has organized a 16-piece band, The PaperRoute, which will headline the Roots main stage outside The Alamo at the SOHO Music Festival Saturday at 11 p.m.