Word of a blues festival at the upcoming St. Paul Winter Carnival is good news for music lovers and carnival supporters.

The Jan. 23 event, on two stages at the Roy Wilkins Auditorium in downtown St. Paul, highlights national and local talent. Thank goodness it's not an outdoor event or the musicians’ lips would have the blues. A schedule is here.

The Winter Carnival has had its own share of the blues in the past decade or so -- a financial meltdown after the 1992 Ice Palace, molestation charges against the Vulcan King a few years ago, too cold for a parade two years ago. So, carnival officials have been looking for ways to broaden the appeal for the historic event that began in the 1880s.

Each time they offer a new event, like the blues fest, it brings more people into the tent, so to speak, and helps assure a continuation of a landmark St. Paul tradition.

Performances run from 5:30 p.m. to 11:30 p.m., with performers on a main stage and an acoustic stage. Tickets are $15.