Sunshine Festival Returns for 3rd Year

Article Contributed by Woody Graber | Published on Friday, September 19, 2014

When it’s January in Florida, that means it’s time for the annual Sunshine Music and Blues Festival to bring some great music to the state.  And this year promises to be the biggest and best yet!  Once again headlined by the award-winning Tedeschi Trucks Band  the 2015 Sunshine Music & Blues Festival features our best line-up yet of exciting acts on two live music stages along with a wider array of refreshing craft beers and delectable menus from a wider variety of food vendors.  The Festival will kick off Saturday, January 17, 2015, NOON, at Vinoy Park, St. Petersburg in the Tampa Bay Area and then Sunday, January 18, 2015, NOON at Mizner Park Amphitheater, Boca Raton in South Florida.

Early Bird tickets for what has become a major annual event for the Sunshine State, the Sunshine Music & Blues Festival, will go on sale Tuesday, September 23/10AM through Thursday, September 25/10PM at www.livenation.co

All dates, acts and ticket prices are subject to change without notice. All tickets are subject to applicable taxes, parking and service and handling charges.

For the third year in a row the Tedeschi Trucks Band, or TTB as their loyal fans prefer to call them, headline what is fast becoming their signature Festival.  They are coming off of a year in which the 11-piece juggernaut led by husband/wife duo Derek Trucks and Susan Tedeschi released a chart-topping third album Made Up Mind.  Just four years since its inception, Tedeschi Trucks Band has already released three critically-acclaimed and commercially successful albums.  The Band’s debut, Revelator, earned a Grammy, while 2011's dynamic live follow-up, Everybody’s Talkin’, delivered a brilliant double-disc classic capturing the band’s incendiary musicianship on stage.   Made Up Mind landed #11 on Billboard's Top 200 Album chart as well as #1 Blues and #2 Rock charts.  Hailed by Rolling Stone as “equal parts Stax and Muscle Shoals without dilution of either, Made Up Mind's repertoire of blues-soaked, roots rock neo-classics add to an ever-evolving setlist that bolsters Tedeschi Trucks Band’s growing reputation as a can’t-miss concert experience.”  Clear more room on the mantel, as well, as the band recently collected three 2014 Blues Music awards for Best Band, Best Rock Blues Album for Made Up Mind, and Best Contemporary Blues Female Artist, which went to Susan Tedeschi.   This marks the unprecedented third consecutive year Tedeschi Trucks Band garnered Best Band honors.  With Trucks recently announcing his impending departure from The Allman Brothers Band at year’s end, it’s evident the renowned guitarist has made TTB his top priority.  Tedeschi Trucks Band has found a magical combination that delivers nightly an unforgettable evening of music, one the Boston Herald says, “booms like a soul thunderclap.”

Also appearing on this year’s bill for the Festival, making it our best ever,  are: Singer/Musician extraordinaire Grace Potter; legendary guitarist and former Allman Brother Dickey Betts; The Chris Robinson Brotherhood a rootsy and prolific jam band formed by the Black Crowes frontman; Los Lobos with their powerhouse mix of rock, Tex-Mex, country, folk, R&B, blues and traditional Spanish and Mexican music; The Both, the rockin’ new collaboration between Aimee Mann and Ted Leo; Grammy winning New Orleans institution the Rebirth Brass Band; Matt Schofield, voted one of the top ten British blues guitarists of all time; and guitarist Sean Chambers with his no-frills blend of Chicago, Texas, and Delta styles.

With More Great Music, More Great Craft Beers and More Great Food, the 2015 Sunshine Music & Blues Festival headlined by the Tedeschi Trucks Band comes only to Florida for two dates in 2015, Saturday, January 17 at Vinoy Park, St. Petersburg in the Tampa Bay Area; and Sunday, January 18 at Mizner Park Amphitheater, Boca Raton in South Florida.  Early Bird tickets for the all day event go on sale Tuesday, September 23/10AM through Thursday, September 25/10PM at www.livenation.com. No password is needed. General on sale is scheduled for Friday, September 26 at 10AM at www.livenation.com, all TicketMaster outlets or charge-by-phone at 1-800-745-3000.