*Local musicians will be busy in town and the area the next few weekends.

THE DOUG WAHLBERG BAND will headline on Friday, August 8, over at the bandshell on the green in CityCenter Danbury. Doug and crew will perform their rock originals and covers starting around 7:30. It’s an outdoor show, so bring your own chairs or blankets for seating; picnics are welcome.

Then on Saturday it’ll be HAT CITY BLUES who have the headlining spot, also starting at 7:30.

These two shows are part of the ongoing CityCenter Summer Concert Series, which presents concerts each Thursday through Saturday. Thursday shows begin at 6:30 and there are usually additional activities for children; Friday and Saturday shows, as you saw above, begin at 7:30. Check the Enjoy calendar for upcoming performers.

*Then on August 16, TONY SUMMO and LOU BELLOFATTO will play at 100 Church Hill as OLD SCHOOL, performing a mix of classic rock and oldies. The guys will be at the Sandy Hook restaurant and bar for a 9:30 show that Saturday night.

Tony and Lou will be playing as a duo, but will be bringing along custom recorded tracks that give them the sound of a full band.

“Lou [will be] on keyboards and I play guitair,” Tony said via email this week. “We both sing lead and were in the popular regional band STEEPLECHASE that performed four to five nights a week from 1976 to 1982 in the tri-state area.”

Steeplechase, in fact, released an album in 1981 that got airplay on WRKI, WPLR and WPDH.

Tony has lived in Newtown and Sandy Hook for 22 years, and was the manager of Newtown Hardware for 20 years before leaving that gig in 2003. Lou is a professional studio musician and producer who most recently performed with Carly Simon and worked on the film Across the Universe. Tony and Lou are also members of a seven-piece band called The Bookends Band (BookendsBand.com).

Their Old School repertoire covers everything from the Beatles to the Stones, Billy Joel to Chicago, Hendrix to Stevie Ray Vaughn, and includes 60s soul like Wilson Pickett, Sam & Dave, and Otis Redding “for the dancing crowd,” said Tony.

*Next month the bandstand at CityCenter Danbury will welcome BLUE OYSTER CULT for a pair of shows.

The band will be the featured entertainer during the 22nd annual Taste of Danbury, which will be held Saturday and Sunday, September 6 and 7, on the green. Blue Oyster Cult will perform on Saturday at 8 pm and again on Sunday at 2 pm. These will be free outdoor concerts, so bring your own chairs (or rent one from CityCenter Danbury).

This will be far from the only musical offering during the weekend of tastings, however. On Saturday there are also performances scheduled by CURTIS T (12:30-2 pm), JERRY BROWN (2:30-3:30), GUNSMOKE (4-6), and DAVE POWERS BAND (6:30-7:45) before the Blue Oyster Cult show. On Sunday there will be a performance by WHITEWOOD (12:30-1:45) before the afternoon show by ‘Cult, which will then be followed by a short set by JERRY BROWN (4:30-5) and then a festival finale by DR YA YA’S GUMBO PARTY (5-7 pm).

*Also this week, Mohegan Sun announced that INDIGO GIRLS, who have been recording together for over two decades, will return to the casino’s Cabaret Theatre for three performances this fall.

Amy Ray and Emily Saliers will bring their celebrated harmonies to Uncasville for 8 pm shows on Friday and Saturday, September 26-27, and a 7 pm show on Sunday, September 28.

Tickets are $50 for all shows and can be purchased through TicketMaster or from the casino’s box office.

*Also from Mohegan Sun this week came work that former American Idol contestant SANYAJA will be doing a “Live Idols” event at the casino next Tuesday night. Note immediately that this is not a full concert; it’s a 30-minute appearance.

The performer will be at concourse of The Shops at Mohegan Sun on Tuesday for a 7 pm performance, followed by a signing session at 7:30; the former contestant will be signing copies of Chicken Soup for the American Idol Soul, which will also be available for purchase at Spin Street, a music shop at Mohegan Sun.

*BRAD PAISLEY, who just performed at the Dodge Music Center on July 24, will be returning to Connecticut on September 26. The Paisley Party Tour 2008 will still have Jewel, Chuck Wicks and Julianne Hough on the bill too when it hits Mohegan Sun Arena on September 26.

Tickets are a smidge higher than the Hartford show, at $50 and $70 apiece, but are still a good deal in today’s concert market. The Uncasville tickets are going on sale this morning (August 1) through TicketMaster vendors, and will also be available after 10 am tomorrow through the Mohegan Sun box office.

*And finally, this weekend’s Music at Mocha offerings will begin with DC JAMES, a Jamaican born composer, singer and virtuoso guitarist whose music is “a musical high wire act,” on Friday at 7:30, and then continue on Saturday with ANNA BLUES BARNS, a solo acoustic fingerstyle blues and folk guitarist, singer and songwriter.

Until next week I’ll be seeing you... on the road.

Questions and comments should be sent to Shannon Hicks c/o The Newtown Bee, 5 Church Hill Road, Newtown CT 06470, or shannon@thebee.com, or call the office at 426-3141. Shows listed at clubs are for ages 21 and over unless specified.

 

UPCOMING SHOWS

AUGUST 1 — Earth, Wind & Fire at Mohegan Sun Arena, Uncasville; The Black Crowes, Deep Banana Blackout, Zappa Plays Zappa, King For A Day, et al, at Gathering of the Vibes 2008, Bridgeport (opening night, event continues all day August 2-3); DC James at Mocha Coffee house, Sandy Hook;

August 2 — Coldplay at the XL Center, Hartford (rescheduled date; tickets from original date will be honored); Phil Lesh & Friends, Taj Mahal Trio, New Riders of The Purple Sage, Alternate Routes, et al at Gathering of the Vibes 2008 – Day Two (event also continues all day August 3); Anna Blues Barns at Mocha Coffee House;

August 3 — The Neville Brothers, Umphrey’s McGee, Derek Trucks & Susan Tedeschi, Organically Grown Gospel Choir, et al at final day Gathering of The Vibes 2008;

August 4 — Levon Helm at The Ridgefield Playhouse;

August 6 — Boston and Styx at Mohegan Sun Arena; Live and Collective Soul at The Chevrolet Theatre, Wallingford, Blues Traveler opening;

August 7 — Neil Diamond at the XL Center, Hartford; Nine Inch Nails at Mohegan Sun Arena, Deerhunter opening; John Voket at The Brass House Restaurant & Lounge, Waterbury;

August 8 —  The Doug Wahlberg Band at CityCenter Green, Danbury, Marc Huberman opening; John Fogerty at the Chevrolet Theatre, Wallingford; American Idols Live at the XL Center;

August 9 — O.A.R. at Dodge Music Center, Hartford, with Ozomatli opening; Hat City Blues Band at CityCenter Danbury;

August 10 — Toby Keith at Dodge Music Center, with Montgomery Gentry, Carter’s Chord, Mica Roberts and Trailer Choir opening.