Weekend Sounds: March 22-24

BRADENTON — It's another weekend, and you know what that means. If you guessed another great lineup of local, talented musicians in Manatee, Sarasota, and surrounding counties, you would be correct. Check out The Bradenton Times Weekend Sounds to see what bands you can catch at your favorite venues.

Steve Rand  
La Norma Ristorante & Pizzeria
Friday - 6:00 p.m. - 9:00 p.m.

Steve Rand is originally from the Boston area where he attended The Berklee College of Music. While at Berklee, he studied jazz guitar and arranging. Rand has played and arranged for jazz bands, big bands, rock, funk, top 40 bands, theater and recording sessions throughout the country.

Rand puts his own flavorings and arrangements to smooth jazz songs by the likes of George Benson, Al Jarreau, Lee Ritenour, Earl Klugh and others.

Inspirations:
George Benson, Lee Ritenour, Frank Gambale, Juan Carlos Quintero, Larry Carlton, Andres Segovia, John Williams, Mozart, Stravinski, Julian Bream, Freddie Hubbard, Don Sebesky, Ralph Vaughn Williams, The Beatles, Claude Debussy and countless other musical giants. No cover.

About the venue:

Welcome to La Norma, a charming family-owned Italian restaurant that brings the heart of Italy to your table. Join us for homemade dishes, fine wine and live music on our patio. At La Norma we pride ourselves on using only the freshest ingredients to create authentic Italian cuisine. Our homemade dishes and handcrafted pizzas are made with care and our fine wine list is carefully curated to perfectly complement our genuine flavors. Whether you're in the mood for a romantic dinner or a festive gathering with friends and family, our warm and welcoming atmosphere is the perfect backdrop for a memorable dining experience. Come discover why La Norma is the go-to choice for Italian Cuisine on the island.

Taylor Opie & Friends
Island Time Bar & Grill
Friday - 7:00 p.m. - 10:00 p.m.

Taylor Opie is a full time musician based in Sarasota, FL. Opie specializes in songwriting, performing, and studio recording. She comes from a family of artists, and music was always at the forefront of her upbringing. She writes authentic and vulnerable music that people can connect to. Aside from playing out regularly, she's currently focused on building up the original music scene in Sarasota, alongside the brilliant community of musicians that she's lucky enough to call her friends. No cover. 

About the venue:

Island Time Bar and Grill is located on Anna Maria Island’s Bridge Street. Situated on the ground floor beneath the Bridge Street Bistro, Island Time Bar & Grill offers an open "no-walls" tropical indoor/outdoor beachside bar setting with welcoming gulf breezes. Their varied menu serves from their upstairs restaurant, Bridge Street Bistro, featuring fresh ingredients, surf-to-turf, and made-from-scratch recipes by chef Jimmy Lopatinski. Full bar, beachy cocktails, specialty, and classic margaritas, and cold beer! 

The Spazmatics
Joyland
Friday - 9:00 p.m. - 12:00 a.m.

The Spazmatics will transport you back to the iconic sounds, styles, and dance moves of the 1980s. Complete with skinny ties, Brill Creamed hair, and horn-rimmed glasses, this band recaptures all the best of that unforgettable decade.

With outstanding musicianship, creative flair, and oodles of style, The Spazmatics deliver a high-energy, quality show that’s perfect for any occasion.

Cover $10.

About the venue:

Joyland Live Music Night Club in Sarasota is one of the area’s best experiences for live music. Our concert-quality sound system delivers premium sound fidelity, while elevated seating areas provide enhanced views of the stage and dancefloor. Concerts often feature national music artists.

Enjoy live music every Friday and Saturday night, along with dance music from the best DJs in Southwest Florida. Joyland is your favorite dance club to party with friends, meet new friends, dance, and enjoy the best live music in the Sarasota-Bradenton area.

Dean Johanesen
Birdrock Taco Shack
Saturday - 7:00 p.m. 

Dean Johanesen is a singer-songwriter and guitarist from New York. He has resided and performed in several US states, but currently calls Sarasota home. Johanesen's passion for gypsy jazz music in the vein of Django Reinhardt has put him on a musical path focused on stories of old times, placed in a backdrop of gypsy swing, a style that he has coined ""circus swing."" Throughout his career, Johanesen has shared bills with notable musicians such as Robby Krieger (formerly of the Doors), Donovan Frankenreiter, Martha Wainwright, Howard Jones, Steve Forbert, John Waite, and Peter Mulvey. Join Dean at Cafe in the Park. Cover $5. 

About the venue:

Located in Bradenton Florida's Village of the Arts,  Birdrock Taco Shack is not your average taco joint, but a unique funky-fun taco spot and live music venue. Owner and chef David Shiplett (who also owns the popular Cottonmouth South Soul Kitchen) doesn't serve up just any tacos. Dave has worked as a Chef in San Francisco, San Diego, Sarasota, and now Bradenton. Dine inside the eclectic artsy shack or outdoors on the porch and back patio. Great food, cool people... and TACOS! 1213 13th Avenue West, Bradenton.

Kevin Çelebi Jazz Trio
The Reserve Retreat
Saturday - 7:00 p.m.  - 9 p.m.

Kevin Çelebi is a jazz trumpeter, flugelhornist, composer & arranger from Detroit

Kevin Çelebi – trumpet & arranger. Kevin Çelebi is a jazz trumpeter, flugelhornist, composer & arranger from Detroit with a master’s in music from Indiana University. He is dubbed “trumpet mercenary” for his tendency to play with everyone from reggae and ska bands to orchestras and big bands, but he feels that jazz brings out his best. He is based in St. Petersburg, FL.

About the venue:

The Reserve Retreat is a unique property.

Chef Richard Smith has taken our food- American fare served in a casual, fine-dining atmosphere- to a whole new level of excellence! He continually revamps and expands our menu. Chef, who has more than 10 years of experience cooking French cuisine, looks forward to garnering rave reviews when customers sample items such as Steak & Shrimp Diane or Chicken Marsala. "I love cooking and eating French food," commented Chef Smith, "and I hope that customers will be enticed by our new entrees and keep coming back. I love offering gastronomic delights!" See our menu.

The beer/wine bar with large selections and coffee shop are favorites of guests and neighborhood regulars. Many people know us as a venue for live music, and we provide space for meetings, parties, or other events. We are independently owned and believe in a culture of diversity, inclusion, equality, and pride.

Mike & Ruthy 
Fogartyville
Saturday - 8:00 p.m.  

When it comes to chemistry, Mike Merenda and Ruth Ungar have plenty to spare. Onstage, they are Mike + Ruthy, a husband-and-wife duo setting the folk scene ablaze. Singers and storytellers, poets and parents, the two tour with their children in tow, embodying a down-home approach to Americana that is honest, beautiful and raw. Bouncing between festivals and intimate venues, these troubadours bring harmony-driven fiddle and banjo tunes to more than 100 shows a year.

Road-tested material such as the pair’s celebrated reharmonizing of Woody Guthrie’s “My New York City” cement Merenda and Ungar’s status as a “national treasure,” according to peer Anaïs Mitchell.

Merenda’s poignant songs paint pictures of the world we want to live in, inspired in great part by his favorite author, Daniel Quinn. With songs like, “What It All Is,” and “Beyond Civilization,” his lyrics embrace the notion that we are all connected, to each other and to the Earth. His crowd-pleasing piece, “Sunshiner,” is an ode to clean living which simultaneously honors the past and looks to the future with the sing-along lyric, “Yes my Daddy was a miner, but I’m gonna be a sunshiner” and was nominated for an International Folk Music Award for Song of the Year.

Ungar’s unique vocal style ranges from a capella balladry to earthy soul and country. She was raised in a folk music family and learned the fiddle at a young age. Her father is fiddler/composer Jay Ungar, best known for his composition Ashokan Farewell which she also enjoys performing. Like her father’s evocative fiddling which is well known to elicit tears from many a rapt audience, so too does Ruthy weave a magical spell with her sonorous and emotional singing – as they like to joke: “making people cry is the family business!”

Mike + Ruthy have recorded and performed their exquisite, original folk music together for two decades as the duo Mike + Ruthy and with their seminal folk rock quintet The Mammals. They make their home in the lush Hudson River Valley of New York where they and friends host their own thriving community folk festival, The Hoot.

A recent tour of the UK, prompted this concert review from Celtic Music Radio, “Hailed by many as Americana trailblazers, Ruth Ungar and Mike Merenda, happily married and exuding togetherness on stage, are also gently-mannered activists with well-crafted songs that successfully ask potent questions and raise issues to probe how we can improve the planet. They deliver their material persuasively and in an eloquent manner with enjoyment of their music underpinning the approach overall. The music is the motivator throughout.”

Mike + Ruthy concerts blend artistry and authenticity, with fiery fiddle & banjo, emotionally potent harmonies, and dynamic stories that deepen the experience. Tap your toes, dance, or sit back sing along as Mike + Ruthy “roam effortlessly through the whole span that is Americana, from alt-country to folk to bluegrass.” (The Bluegrass Situation)

Mike + Ruthy (of The Mammals)| Saturday, March 23, 8 p.m. | Doors open at 7 p.m.

Tickets: $20 members; $24 not-yet-members; $12 students (13+)

For tickets: Click here

Simply Greek Food Truck will be serving food beginning at 7 p.m.

Paid for in part by Sarasota County Tourist Development Tax revenues

About the venue:

Fogartyville is a special gathering place for those who truly appreciate music and community. Nothing draws people together like a shared musical experience, and the listening room atmosphere at Fogartyville enables people to fully appreciate that experience.

Sunday Brunch: Cassie Jean & the Fireflies
Cottonmouth
Sunday - 11:30 a.m.  

Cassie Barbaresi was born in Texas and it shows. Her songwriting and storytelling remind you of the finest Texas traditions--especially when it comes to breaking the rules. She boldly shares her ideas, her experiences, and her deepest feelings, and she won't hesitate to let each song take us where it wants to go.

With a voice that is sweet and soulful, and deceptively powerful, Cassie is a captivating performer and guitarist.

Cassie is a former D1 soccer player and three-time All American. Now a mother of three, she won't hesitate to suit up and take center mid every chance she gets. And she brings the intensity of an elite athlete to her music career.

Rich Odato is a singer-songwriter and lead guitarist. Born in Pittsburgh and raised on steel-town blues, classic rock, Motown, and R&B, Rich plays acoustic, electric, and resonator guitars, and supports the songwriting with his melodies and arrangement skills.

Rich is a survivor of the hair band era, but folky fingerpicking and blues rock have been constants in his repertoire. In live shows, he loves to go full jam band mode with his custom strat, "Goldfinger." 

Together, they make up Cassie Jean and the Fireflies.  No cover. 

About the venue:

Cottonmouth - Bradenton Florida’s music venue serving southern soul cuisine and live music on our beautiful patio in the Village of the Arts. Dave Shiplett and crew will to serve you and give you an evening you will long remember with seating inside and outside and art from local artists on display. Cottonmouth is the place to hang and feed your soul.

For more local music listings in Bradenton and throughout the area, check out GoTonight.com or download the GoTonight app.

Artists and local venues, you can now sign up and input your own calendar info directly into the Bradenton Times website. Click here to learn more.