Summer Concert Guide: Top 6 Live Music Events in Sarasota, Bradenton, Venice, Englewood, and Port Charlotte
Summer is officially in full swing, and while the Sarasota area may not be hosting the biggest summer tours of its larger neighbors in Tampa Bay, there are still plenty of notable concerts to look forward to. This weekend, for instance, a Nashville-based singer-songwriter will return to Fogartyville after releasing her latest album, while a DownBeat award-winning jazz musician will perform at a venue in Venice. Another venue in Venice will feature two musicians who now live in Nashville but hail from the Sarasota area. And two of Sarasota-Manatee's top spots for live blues music will host a multiple Blues Music Award-winning harmonica player and a Billboard blues album chart-topping singer-songwriter/guitarist. First up is Liz Longley, a Nashville-based singer-songwriter who will return to Fogartyville this weekend after releasing her latest album "New Life" earlier this year. The album documents her transition into motherhood and the changes in perspective, routine, and peace that followed. Longley's previous releases have landed her on official Spotify playlists such as Deep Dark Indie. The show is at 7 p.m. with doors opening at 8 p.m. at the Fogartyville Community Media and Arts Center in Sarasota; tickets are $26 for the general public, $22 for members, and $13 for students aged 13 and up. Next up is Sarasota County-raised, now Nashville-based singer-songwriter John Salaway, who will return to the area to play at Venice's Troll Music (where he bought his first electric guitar in the late '90s) as well as Port Charlotte's The Twisted Fork. Salaway has released albums such as 2021's "Salvation," which features guest musicians including Foo Fighters keyboardist Rami Jaffee and former Cage the Elephant member Lincoln Parish. Salaway will perform with Sara Stovall of Sarasota alt-Americana group Passerine at the Troll Music show. The show is at 7:30 p.m. on Friday at Troll Music in Venice; tickets are $20. The show at The Twisted Fork in Port Charlotte is at 6 p.m. on Sunday; tickets are $20. Also on the lineup this weekend is Sarasota native Chris Anderson, a guitarist, singer-songwriter, and member of Tampa-formed Southern rockers the Outlaws, best known for the songs "Green Grass & High Tides" and "There Goes Another Love Song." Anderson also released the 1995 solo album "Old Friend," with its title track co-written with Warren Haynes and later recorded by the Allman Brothers Band as the final song on their final studio album, 2003's "Hittin' the Note." The show is at 7:30 p.m. on Saturday at Troll Music in Venice; tickets are $20. In addition to these concerts, there are plenty of other live music events happening throughout the Sarasota area this summer, including blues, jazz, and rock performances at various venues. So whether you're a fan of country, rock, or blues music, there's sure to be a concert to suit your taste this summer in Sarasota.
