After a two-year hiatus due to the pandemic, the City of Santa Barbara announced a return for the summertime Concerts in the Park series on Thursday nights at Chase Palm Park, starting with ’80s tribute band The Molly Ringwald Project on July 7.
Since the program was started in 2000, it has become an annual favorite for people wanting free musical entertainment and a night under the stars at one of the city’s most beautiful parks, right across the street from the ocean. The City was forced to cancel the series in 2020 and 2021, and the Parks and Recreation Department scheduled four concerts to bring the program back this July.
Concertgoers are invited each Thursday, 6-7:30 p.m., to Chase Palm Park, where thousands typically crowd the grassy lawn between the stage and the shipwreck playground, either lounging on picnic blankets or dancing with friends as the sun goes down.
The 2022 concert series will start with the high-energy ’80s cover band playing everybody’s favorite throwback tunes on July 7, followed by the Motown/soul/funk/jazz fusion of the Blue Breeze Band on July 14.
The third week will feature a “high-voltage party rock-and-roll show” from the band with the catchiest, most alliterative name in town — Captain Cardiac and the Coronaries — on July 21, and the series will close out on July 28 with Santa Barbara–based Latin R&B outfit the Pepe Marquez Band.
Seating is on a first-come, first-served basis, and people must bring their own chairs and blankets. For more information on the Concert in the Park series, visit SantaBarbaraCA.gov/Concerts.
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