Metuchen’s summer of music and art continues as the annual “METUCHEN ROCKS! outdoor concerts series gets underway in August.
The Metuchen Arts Council, in association with the Metuchen Recreation Commission, will present its annual outdoor summer series with concerts on August 15, 22, 29, and an end of summer street party on Sunday, September 1st.
The concerts are free and take place at 7:30 p.m. on the Metuchen Summer Stage in the heart of downtown Metuchen on the corner of Center and New Streets.
This year’s concert series includes four New Jersey bands that demonstrate the States diverse musical talent starting on August 15th with classic jazz and swing from The Philadelphia Jazz Orchestra. The music continues with the get down rhythm and blues of Eryn Shewell and The Whiskey Devils on August 22nd. On August 29th, the Jersey Shore Reggae Band, Random Test returns to Metuchen with their dance party rhythms. The country rock band, Citizens Band Radio will officiate at an end of summer street party on Sunday, September 1st.
Just back from their European tour, The Philadelphia Jazz Orchestra, under the direction of Joseph Bongiovi, takes the Metuchen Summer Stage on Thursday, August 15th . The Orchestra was founded in 2003 as a vehicle to allow exceptionally talented high school and college students to continue playing jazz over the summer months. The Orchestra was originally hosted by the University of the Arts in Philadelphia, thus it’s name. The Orchestra has been centered in Princeton, NJ since 2010 and consists of young all-star musicians from a all over New Jersey playing classic jazz and swing to the delight of regional, national and international audiences.
Next up on Thursday, August 22nd is Eryn Shewell and The Whiskey Devils who hail from Hightstown. Eryn, with her mix of Janis Joplin and Adel style vocals, produces a sophisticated song writing mix of jazz, blues, country, Motown and soul. She has developed the reputation as one the premier up and coming voices on the New Jersey music scene today.
The Summer Stage switches to a Caribbean beat on Thursday, August 29th when the Asbury Park Reggae band, Random Test pays tribute to pioneers in reggae and soca music. With members hailing from all over the Caribbean, the group brings a cache of authentic reggae and calypso rhythms in true West Indian fashion. They were the hit of THE METUCHEN ROCKS! concert series last summer when the audience kept them playing well beyond the witching hour.
On Sunday, September 1st , CITIZENS BAND RADIO will close out the summer with their deep-rooted American rhythms in the tradition of Waylon Jennings, Willie Nelson and Emmy Lou Harris. It has been said that their music is so pure that there isn’t a Texan, Kentuckian or Carolinian who can tell where they are from, though they make no secret of their New Jersey roots. The band members hail from Woodglen and Greenbrook.
The Metuchen Rocks!! concerts start at 7:30 p.m. on the Metuchen Summer Stage on the corner of New and Center Streets in Metuchen. In case of rain the concerts move inside the Senior Center at the same location.
This free concert series is sponsored by The Metuchen Arts Council and Metuchen Recreation with generous support from the Metuchen Savings Bank. It is also funded in part by the Middlesex County Board of Chosen Freeholder, Middlesex County Cultural & Heritage Commission, with assistance through a grant provided by the New Jersey State Council on the Arts/Dept. of State.
For more information about the Metuchen Rocks! concert series contact Nancy Goldberg at (732)632-8502 or visit the Metuchen Arts Council on Facebook.
For a full calendar of summer arts programs in Metuchen, log onto www.boroughimprovementleague.org.
