JAZZ FEST PREVIEW

Alex City Jazz Fest

STORY BY BETSY ILER

Joslyn & The Sweet Compression

The Talismen

The 32ndAnnual Alex City Jazz Fest concert series June 10 and 11 will feature two American Idol veterans, as Taylor Hicks returns to headline the Saturday night concert at Lake Martin Amphitheater while Tristen Gressett opens the Saturday night show. Saturday’s line up also includes Joslyn & The Sweet Compression. Friday’s headliner at Strand Park in Alexander City will be T The Hot 8 Brass Band, following The Talismen, who will open this year’s series at 6:30 p.m. Alabama native Taylor Hicks won the fifth season of the popular singing competition television series, which has become one of the most successful shows in the history of American television. He started his professional music career in his teens, performing across the Southeast and releasing two albums. Known for his energetic performances, Hicks’ shows include music influenced by classic rock, blues and R&B. Since his Idol win, Hicks has made appearances with Snoop Dog, Widespread Panic and Willie Nelson and headlined Alexander City’s Jazz Fest concert series four years ago in 2018.

Saturday’s concert at the lake will begin at 6 p.m. when American Idol contestant and Pell City native Gressett takes the stage. At 17 years old, Gressett brings a rockstar persona to his performances. His delivery marveled judges throughout the Idol season as he performed Colors, Try Me, Come Together and With a Little Help From My Friends. Gressett placed in the Top 11 on the network TV show and, with his soulful retro rock n’ roll spirit, has already released his first EP.

Funk and soul will take the middle stage at Saturday’s Jazz Fest show as Joslyn Hampton and her band, The Sweet Compression, deliver an engaging

Tristen Gressett

performance at Lake Martin. The band features a professional lineup in Hampton’s stepfather, Marty Charters on guitar, Steve Holloman on keyboards, Smith Donald on bass, Rashawn Fleming at the drums, Trevin Little on saxophone and Chase Fleming on trombone and trumpet.

Friday night’s concert at Strand Park in downtown Alexander City will open with The Talismen, a Montgomery based band formed in 2015. Combining energy with sophistication beyond their years, The Talismen put on a show of soulful and funk-filled originals, along with music from their favorite artists across the spectrum of jam, rock and funk.

And closing Friday’s concert in the entertainment district in downtown Alexander City, The Hot 8 Brass Band will join the fun, coming up from New Orleans to blend hip hop, jazz and funk. The 2021 Grammynominated band was formed in 1995 when Bennie Pete, Jerome Jones and Harry Cook merged two earlier bands, the Looney Tunes Brass Band and the High Steppers Brass Band.

Put on your dancing shoes and pack some lawn chairs and a blanket for the grassy hillside venues. Bring a cooler or purchase a beverage and picnic from an entertainment district restaurant or bar as you settle in to enjoy the longest-running free outdoor concert series in the state. The event is hosted by the Alexander City Chamber of Commerce and sponsored by Russell Medical, Russell Lands, Lake Martin Dock Company, Tallapoosa County District 2 Commissioner Steve Robinson, Tallapoosa Publishers, LBI Media and more than 30 additional businesses and friends.

Visit alexcityjazzfest.com or call 256-234-3461 for details.