Gem City Jazz Cats Swing in to Sierra Madre for Friday Night Live

August 12, 2011 – Downtown Sierra Madre was swinging this week, to the sounds of the Gem City Jazz Cats.  The Jazz Cats, formed in 2009 as a 13-piece combo, now have 18 players, plus three vocalists.  They performed in Kersting Court as part of Friday Night Live, put on each summer by the Sierra Madre Chamber of Commerce.  Veterans of street fairs, private parties and benefit concerts, the Jazz Cats have performed several times before in Sierra Madre, including the Wine and Jazz Walk, Friday Night Live, and this year’s 4^th of July Community Picnic.  The Band plays oldies, swing, and jazz but also includes some modem tunes, and was sponsored at FNL by Prudential California Realty.

There was a Hawaiian theme for the evening, with the band and much of the audience in their favorite Hawaiian clothing and leis. 

Anyone who spends $35 in a retail store or $50 in a restaurant during Friday Night Live hours (6:30 to 9pm) is invited to bring their receipt to the Chamber booth in Kersting Court.  They will be entered in a drawing to take place the final week of Friday Night Live.  Shoppers are eligible every time that they spend $35/retail or $50/restaurant – the more times they spend $35/$50 the greater their chances of winning.  On the final Friday, August 26th, two lucky shoppers will have their names drawn to win a shopping/dining spree at Sierra Madre businesses valued at more than $500!  With only five weeks of eligibility, the odds of winning will be quite good for those who are entered in the drawing.

Friday Night Live will take place in downtown Sierra Madre from 6:30 to 9pm through Aug. 26^th.  For more information, including an entertainment lineup, list of themes, and a list of businesses participating in the shopping spree giveaway, visit  www.SMFridayNightLive.info or call the Chamber at (626) 355-5111. 

Below the photos you’ll find a (brief) video from the Jazz Cats performance.