AROUND 30 artists, including Maximo Park and Billy Bragg, honoured the memory of River Reeves on Saturday.

Ben Dunne, dad of the late Viola Beach guitarist, described RivFest as a magical event which attracted 3,000 people.

The most emotional moment for the Grappenhall Heys resident was when his childhood hero Billy Bragg altered one of his songs as a nod to River’s family.

He said: “While talking all things music with Billy I told him we had played John Mayer’s cover of Free Fallin’ by Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers at River’s funeral and that his girlfriend Chloe sang it at last year’s RivFest.

"I was then completely floored during Billy’s set when during I Keep Faith he cut in a verse of Free Fallin’. I was completely overcome. The spirit of Rivfest and the people it touches captured in one magical moment.”

The Priestley College festival, now in its second year, also saw the launch of the ‘Viola Beach Introducing’ stage. This is to give emerging musicians who have been inspired by the Warrington band’s story a platform.

Viola Beach and their manager Craig Tarry tragically died in a crash in Sweden in February 2016. But before that they had taken the music industry by storm with gigs booked everywhere from the Parr Hall to South by Southwest festival in Texas.

Ben, 50, said: “We had members of all the other families there which was great.

“The feedback we had from people about the Introducing stage was that the quality of the music was superb.

“Priestley College took responsibility for the sound and staging and that was a real success. We want youngsters across Warrington aspiring to play on the Viola Beach Introducing stage.

“The benchmark will be really high but I’m not worried about that because the talent is out there.”

River’s stepmum Sharon added: “It was without doubt a spectacular day. The atmosphere was amazing, the music was great and the sun shone.

“It’s quite hard to find the words to describe it because on the one hand it was the best day of my life but on the other hand it was so emotional and sad.

“For example, watching Quin play on stage with the image of his big brother behind him. Our dream of a family festival full of fantastic music came true.

“That is very special. It’s like the phoenix rising out of the flames – happiness and opportunity for youngsters on the back of a catastrophic tragedy. It’s never going to heal the pain of losing Riv and the lads but it helps to know we can build better futures for other young men and women.”

Another personal highlight for River’s family was when Billy Bragg presented a banjo to Off The Grid, a promising band of teenagers from Helsby who are inspired by Mumford and Sons.

The instrument was donated to the event and one of the festival’s most devoted supporters Kenneth Saunders – better known as ‘the Colonel’ – drove from his home in Exeter to Coventry to pick it up before travelling to Warrington.

Ben said: “It was the most beautiful instrument with an inlayed neck and carvings on the back. The boys were dumbstruck when Billy presented them with it.”

The festival raises money for the River Reeves Foundation, which provides bursaries for young people who want to build a career in the arts.

Ben added: “Billy watched the first four songs by Off The Grid and I said: ‘This is what the River Reeves Foundation is about – inspiring young talent’. And those lads will never forget that moment.”

Work has already started on RivFest 2018 with the date yet to be confirmed.