The Clearwater Chamber of Commerce wanted a big a festival to attract European visitors to the area, and in 1980 sponsored a 10-day series of jazz concerts. So began the annual Clearwater Jazz Holiday, a FREE festival celebrating great jazz music.
It was shortened to a long weekend, and over the past 29 years, the Jazz Holiday has become Clearwater’s biggest annual event. Even though some deride this year’s lineup as not much more than a bunch of smooth jazz, the Holiday is expected to welcome 50,000 visitors to downtown Clearwater over the four nights. Last year, the city added the Jazz ‘n’ Art walk.
The FREE event at Coachman Park begins this Thursday, October 15, and the big finale on Sunday includes a live performance by The Neville Brothers. Other headliners this year include Al Jarreau on Thursday, Chris Botti on Friday night, and Boney James on Saturday.
Fans of the genre are probably familiar with other local organizations and websites, including the Al Downing Tampa Bay Jazz Association, the Tampa Jazz Club, and Tampa Bay Jazz.org. Blogs include Phillip Booth’s Scribe Life, and Tampa Jazz. WSJT plays smooth jazz on 98.7 FM.
philip booth
10 months ago
Tommy: Thanks for the mention. Looks like weather will be good for the Jazz Holiday, maybe the start of the “real” fall here.