Cousin Curtiss pays tribute to Blackberry Smoke Friday in Beaver Creek

The Vilar Performing Arts Center originally booked Cousin Curtiss and Harrison B to open for Friday’s Blackberry Smoke concert. But word spread Sunday after Blackberry Smoke posted on social media that drummer Brit Turner, 57, passed away from glioblastoma. As a result, the band canceled its show at VPAC, and openers Cousin Curtiss and Harrison B will perform a full concert Friday.

Both bands expressed their deepest regrets for the loss. Part of Blackberry Smoke’s post read:

“If you had the privilege of knowing Brit on any level, you know he was the most caring, empathetic, driven and endearing person one could ever hope to meet.”

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While Curtiss looks forward to playing a full set at VPAC Friday, he also hopes to open for the Southern rock-based band again.

“My heart goes out to those guys,” Curtiss said. “B and I have lost close friends this year, so when we found out about Brit (it hit home). It’s all hard. If there’s any way we can pay tribute to Brit and to pay honor to the Blacksmoke family and fans, we want to do that.”

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Curtiss and B first took the VPAC stage last September, opening for Miles Miller. The fiery duo only had 30 minutes to play, so they look forward to presenting a deeper dive into their collaboration, which has included just over three years of touring the nation together and a new EP, released last year, titled “Cousin Curtiss x 2023 EP.”

“It’s hard to create that emotional arch of songs (in 30 minutes). We’ll be able to put on a performance versus a smash and grab,” he said. “We’ll leave it all out there.”

“When it comes to getting the audience involved, our music is a relatable and recognizable sound to stomp to, dance along to and clap your hands to,” Curtiss said, adding that they also have a call-and-response tune. “It’s an all-ages show. We try to get everybody involved with the music. That’s the universal language of music, is having a good time.”