The Jersey Shore Jazz and Blues Foundation will close out its Summer Series of Festivals on Aug. 29 in Long Branch.
The festival will take place from noon to 9:45 p.m. on the Great Lawn on the Long Branch Boardwalk at Cooper Avenue, with fireworks following the performance. The festival is held rain or shine and is free to the public.
Thousands of people are expected to come out for the day of live jazz and blues performances, food and beverages, crafters and sponsor exhibits, and a children’s activity area.
Unique to the festival will be a “Doggie Bar” to keep pups refreshed all day long.
“Our award-winning summer festival has been entertaining jazz and blues fans on the Jersey Shore for more than 25 years,“ said festival organizer Dennis Eschbach. “We attract thousands of visitors of all ages. Thanks to the support of our musicians, volunteers, sponsors and host towns, we are able to keep jazz and blues music alive and rolling in the region.”
The headliner for the Long Branch Jazz and Blues Festival is Funktion 11 with their “hard-drivin’ big band blues.”
The group mixes original compositions and dynamic interpretations of iconic and contemporary hits, and brings an international and contemporary spin to the funk tradition with three vocalists, an electric guitar, electric bass, keyboards, a four-piece horn section, drums and percussion.
For more on Funktion 11, visit www.funktion11.com. Other performers will include Stringbean & the Stalkers, Sherri Pie Band, Jonny B. & the Blues Blazers, Brianna Thomas and Sharon Crenshaw.
Food vendors, including Enzo’s Pizza, Station 1 Seafood, Squeezed Fresh Lemonade, Mobile Mardi Gras, Jakes Crab Shack, and many more, will provide a variety of options for hungry festival-goers. And for those with a sweet tooth, Kupcake Kouture, D.J.’s Ice Cream Truck and John & Debbie O’s will be on the scene.
The nonprofit Jersey Shore Jazz and Blues Foundation was founded in 1987 and remains dedicated to preserving, promoting and perpetuating jazz and blues on the Jersey Shore through performances and education. Visit the website http://www.jsjbf.org for more information.