LH JAMS looks for another record turn out for 8th annual festival – Lock Haven Express

The event will feature music, arts and crafts vendors and more throughout the day and well into the evening.

Saturday will serve as the conclusion of three days filled with music — starting with Rockin’ the Roxy on Thursday, Aug. 10 with York Street Hustle and Chris Mingear and a Block Part on Main Street Friday, Aug. 11 at 7 p.m. featuring Velveeta.

“We are busy pulling together a great schedule of vendors, artists and musicians to the 8th annual LH JAMS summer festival! Last year’s festival set attendance records along with our expanded schedule to include the Thursday evening ‘Rockin’ the Roxy’ fund-raising concert,” Steve Getz, Clinton County Arts Council president and LH JAMS coordinator.

Saturday’s event will feature a plethora of bands and musicians performing a variety of music, from the staple Jazz genre that the festival is known for to Reggae, Blues, Soul and more.

PHOTO PROVIDED
You Do You will make their LH JAMS Festival debut at 4 p.m. on Aug. 12.

“The Clinton County Arts Council/LH JAMS goal has always been to expand how visitors view a wide range of musical genres and art, to never to be predictable and always push visitors into appreciating a unique cultural experience,” Getz said. “This year will be no exception with an amazing spectrum of music ranging from pop, jazz and reggae to funk, R&B and rock.”

“This is the uniqueness of the festival, bringing a diverse crowd of ethnicity, music and art backgrounds together in a family friendly environment that exposes visitors to a cultural smorgasbord right on Main Street,” he continued.

Saturday’s festival will feature the following artists on either the Main and Grove Street stage or the former Elks patio (now the Susquehanna Events Center):

CENTRAL MOUNTAIN JAZZ CATS

Noon to 1 p.m. on Main and Grove Street Stage

PHOTO PROVIDED
James Supra and the Sarah Ayers Band will perform at 5:30 p.m. on Aug. 12 as part of the festival.

The CCAC is happy to announce that a local student Jazz ensemble will open this year’s Saturday lineup of performances.

“Always in support of education in the arts, we hope you join us in our efforts to promote and encourage young artists in all disciplines,” Getz said.

The Central Mountain Jazz Cats ensemble includes students in grades 7 through 12 who want to explore music through jazz performance. All band and orchestral instrumentalists are welcome to join the group, which meets a few days a week, after school, from October to May. Students learn to play in various jazz styles, including swing, latin, rock, funk, and blues. The art of improvisation is emphasized, and students are afforded multiple opportunities throughout the school year to show off their musical creativity and skills. Annual performances typically include a Winter concert and a Spring concert at Central Mountain High School, a December performance at the Monument Tree Lighting Festival, and an adjudicated performance at Music in the Parks in the Hershey area. Additionally, the CM Jazz Cats ensemble usually schedules a mini-tour of performances in our community

PAUL JOST & THE STEVE

RUDOLPH TRIO

PHOTO PROVIDED
The Unstoppable Hack Beats will perform at 2:30 p.m. on Aug. 12 as part of the festival.

1 to 2 p.m. on the Elks Patio Stage

Paul Jost and the Steven Rudolph Trio along with drummer Larry Marshall and bassist Steve Meashey will be the first to hit the Elks Patio Stage. Rudolph, Marshall and Meashey have entertained LH JAMS jazz lovers on several occasions since the first festival in 2016. “Being true to the LH JAMS format, we offer a wide range of musical genres. We promise never to be predictable but always exceptional,” Getz said. This year Steve and the guys are joining Paul Jost for this special journey through the history of American jazz and pop right on Main Street. If you are a true jazz lover, you understand that usually you have to travel to a large metropolitan area to hear something of this caliber.

Rudolph has had an inspiring career in his 60 years of professional music making. Jazz Improv Magazine states, “Rudolph is a savvy, swinging, glimmering heavyweight…simply outstanding.” With fifteen acclaimed CDs as a leader,he has served as producer, arranger and pianist on many recordings. Steve’s career has taken him on tours throughout the U.S., India, Europe, Canada, Russia, and the Caribbean. His devotion to the art of jazz inspired him to found the Central PA Friends of Jazz, now in its 43rd successful year of monthly concerts, youth band, jazz camp and annual Central PA Jazz Festival. Steve was the recipient of the 2002 Harrisburg Arts Award for his dedication to the arts and community service and was awarded two Composition Grants from the PA Council on the Arts. In 2023 he was voted into the Central PA Music Hall of Fame.

When describing vocalist and arranger Paul Jost, two words come to mind… “passionate” and “storyteller.” To Paul, each lyric offers a story, a message and a vehicle to convey his own interpretation and message. While Paul is a multi-instrumentalist, composer and arranger, it’s his vocal style that makes him standout. With his reputation as a vocalist growing, Paul has been filling rooms on the New York club scene as well as captivating audiences on festival stages both in the US and Europe. Jost released the album “Simple Life” in the U.S. on March 29, 2019. He performs with his quartet including Jim Ridl-piano; Dean Johnson-bass; and Tim Horner-drums. Special guest on the album is vibraphonist Joe Locke on four songs.

THE UNSTOPPABLE HACK BEATS

PHOTO PROVIDED
The B-Street Band-A Tribute to the Boss will close out this year’s LH JAMS Music and Arts Festival.

2:30-4 p.m. on the Main & Grove Street Stage

UNSTOPPABLE. That’s how you describe the eight-piece sound of Unstoppable Hack Beats, a group that brings a soul-band attitude to classic rock, New Wave, soul and reggae tunes. Moving fluidly between Motown and Kingston, the Unstoppable Hack Beats are known for their colorful energy and blue-collar work ethic. USHB delivers an upbeat energy that will send a musical vortex from Jay to Vesper. Their repertoire focuses on deep cuts from the 60s to the 70s. The group is known for their careful song selection, which spans decades and a variety of musical styles. More than anything else, you will have fun dancing, singing along to familiar favorites, and enjoying the party atmosphere. This performance is guaranteed to be unforgettable, because the band is simply UNSTOPPABLE.

YOU DO YOU

4-5:30 p.m. on the Elks Patio Stage.

Elks Patio Stage

You Do You is a female-fronted band from Philadelphia known for their electrifying 70’s-era showmanship. Founded in 2012, the “genre-defying” 8-piece ensemble has drawn comparisons from Parliament-Funkadelic to Tedeschi Trucks Band and supported artists like Robert Randolph and George Porter Jr. Led by Katie Feeney’s raw, sultry vocal stylings, the band delivers a powerful performance characterized by funky danceable grooves, jazzy riffs, and wailing rock melismas. Their latest album, “Funky Dinos,” was released in January 2022, marking a new sonic era for the ensemble. They have received radio play on WXPN 88.5 FM, ALT 104.5 FM, WPPM 106.5 FM, and on Delaware Public Media.

JAMES SUPRA AND THE SARAH AYERS BAND

5:30-7 p.m. on the Main & Grove Street Stage

James Supra’s blues harmonica prowess is legendary in the world of blues. For more than 30 years he has been playing the blues with variations of his own bands and sharing the stage in the U.S. and abroad with blues notables as diverse as B.B. King, Catfish Hodge, Bobby Radcli, Tommy Castro, Rhett Tyler, Slam Allen and Kid Bangem. He has won Best Harmonica Player honors in a 19-year LVMA (Lehigh Valley Music Awards) streak before refusing further nominations and earning the first LVMA Legacy Award. James’ other LVMA multiple-year (Fan and Industry) awards have also included Best All-Around Performer and Best Blues Band. Classically trained Sarah Ayers began singing the blues while in college even before she graduated with a Bachelor’s degree in Opera Performance. Proving her chops early, Ayers has the honor of being one of the youngest ever to win an award at a Metropolitan Opera competition. She later sang with the Anchorage Opera Company in Alaska. While there she continued to expand her extraordinary vocal talent to the blues, jazz, and rock and roll. After returning to the Lehigh Valley and filling in for Bev Conklin of BC and Company at a Musikfest performance, Ayers formed her own blues band in 2002. Since than, Ayers has continued to pile up accolades and awards for her vocal virtuosity that has included multi-year LVMA (Fan and Industry) awards for Best All-Around Performer, Best Female Vocalist, Best Singer-Songwriter, and Best Album “3 AM Epipheny” (2007). Ayers has also recorded backup vocals for an early Tyrone Vaughn (nephew of Stevie Ray) CD.

B-STREET BAND:

A TRIBUTE TO THE BOSS!

7-9:30 p.m. on the Elks Patio Stage

Rock it out with B-Street on Main Street. This is the CCAC and Summer Concert Series collaboration performance to bring outstanding music each year to Main Street. Playing the music of the Boss since 1980, B Street is the longest running Springsteen Tribute Band in the U.S. From the heart of the Jersey Shore, “Backstreets” was the first band in the world to do a unique tribute to a live performer. Nearly 6000 performances later, now named the B-Street Band — they are still the hardest working tribute band on the circuit with 175 plus shows per year throughout the country — including really large venues! Huge crowds of over 30,000 fans attended the NYC Tunnel of Towers 15 year Anniversary event with the B-Street Band performing. Venues include opening before Springsteen shows outside at the Philadelphia Spectrum for the final 4 events of that historic arena. The band was honored to accept an invitation from the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame “Life and Music of Bruce Springsteen” exhibition to give multiple performances at the Philadelphia Constitutional Center. B-Street Band has had the honor and pleasure of performing with several members of the E-Street Band including “Miami Steve” Van Zandt, Mighty Max Weinberg, the late great Big Man Clarence Clemons, Garry W. Tallent and Vini “Mad Dog” Lopez. We may know your next question and the answer is yes, even “the Boss” himself has made an appearance to see the B-Street Band!

Getz and the LH JAMS coordinators are excited to bring such a wide range of bands and music to downtown Lock Haven.

Getz thanked the event’s sponsors for making this free event possible.

“The success of LH JAMS is truly a community endeavor. We have our many sponsors to thank, plus the hard work of the CCAC Board of Directors and the LH JAMS management team,” he said.

The following local businesses and organizations have sponsored the event:

Platinum Level

Clinton County Community Foundation, Inc.; Clinton County Arts Council; Pennsylvania Council on the Arts; Clinton County Visitors Bureau; Straub Brewery; First Quality; Clinton County Government; Doc Sweitzer; If – The Idea Factory.

Gold Level

The Express; Frank Vigani; City of Lock Haven; UPMC North Central PA ; Woodlands Bank; Clinton County Government; Murray Motors; M&R Contracting, Inc.; Stella A’s Bar & Grill.

Silver Level

Downtown Lock Haven, Inc.; The Record Online; Schlesinger Communications; Coploff, Ryan, Welch & Houser; Best Western Lock Haven; Fairfield by Marriott; Wayne Township Landfill; Vet; Force Security; The Roxy Theater.

Bronze Level

Jim & Carol Hanna; PA Wilds Center; Animal Medical Center; Lock Haven BPO Elks #182; Light My Fire Hearth Shop; ESS.