KOKO TAYLOR: QUEEN OF THE WANG-DANG BLUES.(TICKET)

Byline: Philip Booth SPECIAL TO THE HERALD-TRIBUNE;

Koko Taylor, the Chicago blues belter often called the Queen of the Blues, has a time-tested performance philosophy she applies to shows at South side nightclubs, theaters and outdoor concerts alike.

Call it the road-grind blues ethic.

"It doesn't matter whether it's 10 people or 10,000 people, I work it just as hard," Taylor, a headliner at this weekend's Tampa Bay Blues Festival, explained by telephone from her Windy City home. "It's a God-given talent. I'm just using what I got."

The two-day blues bash, Saturday and Sunday at waterfront Vinoy Park in downtown St. Petersburg, also …