The 2010 Fourth of July

Star-Spangled Celebration

Brooks and LeBlanc Provide a One-Two Punch for a Knock-Out Fourth of July on the Riverfront

This year's line-up for Baton Rouge's Fourth of July Star-Spangled Celebration is a heavyweight powerhouse for musical might.  Local favorite Chris LeBlanc returns to the line-up leading the way in to headliner Jenny Brooks.  The rhythm & blues and southern rock of LeBlanc and the rousing country of Brooks makes for a combination that cannot be beat.

The headline act at this year's event is Louisiana artist Jenny Brooks who hails from nearby Slidell.  If Brooks looks a little familiar to you, it's because you've probably seen her on your TV.  She has appeared in videos airing on CMT and GAC, including "Till I Was A Daddy Too" by Tracy Lawrence and "Let Me Love You" by Lonestar.

Jenny Brooks

But standing in someone else's spotlight isn't in the cards for this singer/songwriter.  A seven-month gig with Celebrity Cruise Lines touring the Mediterranean as lead vocalist wasn't a bad way to start.  Six years ago, she made the move to Music Row in Nashville to pursue her dream.  Since then, she has shared the stage during the Super Bowl halftime show with such greats as Doug Kershaw and Irma Thomas and spent over a year on stage at the world famous Tootsie's Orchid Lounge in Nashville.  Most recently on Memorial Day weekend, she performed on the Budweiser Fan Fest Stage at Bayou Country Superfest, leading up to such acts as Taylor Swift, Keith Urban, and Brooks & Dunn.

Brooks collaborated with producer Mark Oliverius to release her debut CD Down In The Bayou in 2009.  Oliverius has worked with such country music mainstays as Lorrie Morgan, Ashton Shepard, and Trick Pony.  Jenny's single "Baby Footprints In The Sand" is one of eleven original songs on the release and was included on the CD compilation album Sounds Of The Northshore.

Westbound Train returns to the Celebration this year.  Veteran Baton Rouge musicians Dale Craft, James Taylor, Brian Dubreuil, Alan Berteau, Rick Price, Kelly Hannan, and Brian Andrews team with vocalist Anita LeBlanc to put the crowds in the mood to celebrate with a mixture of country, pop, rock, and oldies.  The Train's members draw their influences from a wide palette, intermingling and cross-pollinating with such groups on the Baton Rouge music scene as Storywood, Colorblind, and Charade.  It may be that no one takes the train anymore, but everyone should take a listen to Westbound Train on July 4^th.

Westbound Train

The Chris LeBlanc Band

"Take one part reckless blues and one part polished pop, stir slowly 'til party is to taste."  That's how 225 Magazine has described the Chris LeBlanc Band and like a fine wine, time only makes it better.  The band received Best Original Music and Best Singer honors from 225 in 2006 and has rocked the Baton Rouge and South Louisiana music scene since the early 1990s.  LeBlanc and company have sold over 14,000 copies of their first two CDs, the self-titled Chris LeBlanc Band (1995) and the follow-up Talent Show (1998).  The impressive thing about this is that it was done on their own without a major label.  A solo album, Son of the South, followed in 2001.  The band is promoting their latest album, Starshine.  All four albums have been released to rave reviews.  CLB returns to the Star-Spangled Celebration after headlining in 2007 and 2008.

The Baton Rouge Concert Band

Rounding out the night's performances will be the Baton Rouge Concert Band, conducted by Ms. Sheily Bell.  A volunteer community band that performs several free concerts around the area each year, the band laid down their first recording since the 1980s in March of 2006, entitled The Baton Rouge Concert Band presents "The Sound of American Music."  The CD was released at their 2007 Labor Day Concert.  For this year's Fourth of July festivities, the band will be performing sterling renditions of everyone's favorite patriotic tunes.

Check Out Some of Our Featured Acts on the World-Wide Web at:

Jenny Brooks — www.jennybrooksmusic.com

The Chris LeBlanc Band —

                           www.chrisleblancband.com

Baton Rouge Concert Band —

                           www.batonrougeconcertband.org

HOW DO I GET THERE?  WHERE DO I PARK?

The parking garages listed below will be open on July 4^th at the times listed.  For more information on parking downtown, visit the Downtown Development District website.

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