As the local music scene continues to heat up, this weekend is one of the best in recent memory. You can catch local shows featuring The Selwyn Birchwood Band, Ari & the Alibis, the Butch Trucks Band, Caravan of Thieves and Kettle of Fish.
THURSDAY
Things get started in Bradenton tonight with Jason Harem's Strictly Blues Jam on the Bay, a no cover show over at the Swordfish Grill and Tiki Bar in Cortez Village. This is one of the most beautiful waterfront venues in the area and features cheap beer and good food. Right down the street, the Billy Rice Band will be playing the Seafood Shack from 5-11:30 with a $5 cover.
Down in SRQ, Kettle of Fish has a 6 p.m. no cover gig at Marina Jack's, while reggae legends Democracy take the stage at the Five 'O Clock Club at 10. Dance/pop band All the Answers have a 9:30 p.m., no cover show at the Gator Club.
FRIDAY
On Friday, Butch Trucks, the legendary drummer of the Allman Brothers Band, will be over at Ace's in West Bradenton. Tickets for his 9 p.m. show are $35, and Trucks usually packs the house, so get there early.
Across town at Motorworks, Kettle of Fish will play a 6:00 p.m., no cover show. KOF is one of the best live bands on the Suncoast, featuring an eclectic mix of rock and blues covers along with their top-shelf original material, and the large, open air beer garden at Motorworks is one of the very best places to see them.
On Old Main Street, Koko Ray Hansen will have his three-piece Koko Menage at McCabe's pub for an 8 p.m. no cover show. This authentic Irish pub is a great small venue near the river and the perfect place to see one of the area's best all-around musicians play an intimate live show.
Down in Sarasota, Ari and the Alibis will bring their blues-jazz-rock-fusion mix to the Blue Rooster for an 8 p.m. show with only a $5 cover. The Blue Rooster is quickly becoming one of the area's best live music venues and is a great place to see this incredibly-talented band in their last show before taking to the road for gigs in New Orleans and Austin.
Around the corner at WSLR's Forgartyville venue, you can catch the gypsy jazz rhythms of Caravan of Thieves, also at 8 p.m. Tickets are $12 in advance and $15 the day of the show.
Ari McManus and James DaBone of Ari & the Alibis
SATURDAY
Bradenton will host its annual De Soto Grand Parade on Saturday, with the Mardi Gras-styled event stepping off from Manatee High at 6 p.m. After the parade, you can head over to Ace's for Grateful Dead cover band Ship of Fools for a 9 p.m. show with a $5 cover. Koko Ray will be out at Slim's on Anna Maria Island.
Down in Sarasota, Blues guitar superstar Selwyn Birchwood will be at the Blue Rooster for an 8 p.m. show. Tickets are only $15 to see one of the Suncoast's premier blues acts. Next door at Servando's, blues songstress Shelly D and her Blue Velvet Band will be playing a no cover show from 8-12.
This little street is quickly becoming the coolest patch of concrete in town with the Blue Rooster, Servando’s and Fogartyville, all within a city block. Last weekend, I caught Kettle of Fish’s first set at the Blue Rooster and was able to walk right next door and catch the second set of an Ari & the Alibi’s show at Servando’s, making for one of the best nights of local live music one could ask for.
Selwyn Birchwood
SUNDAY
Sundays feature lots of one-artist-acts at small tiki huts all over Sarasota and Bradenton, but there are also a couple of full shows to take in, including Truality at the Blue Rooster's popular Gospel Brunch from 11:20 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.
Ship of Fools returns to Ace's for a 5:00 no-cover show and Kettle of Fish will be at Stottlemyer's Smokehouse, a cool new BBQ and music joint east of I-75 off of Fruitville, next to the Sun-N-Fun RV resort.
It’s been a long time since there’s been so much good live music in
Sarasota and Bradenton, so get out this weekend and support your local
artists so we can keep it that way!
Dennis
Maley is a featured columnist for The Bradenton Times. His column
appears each Thursday and Sunday. Dennis' debut novel, A Long Road Home,
was released in July, 2015. Click here to order your copy.
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