Music at the Marina brings crowd favorites back for summer

Everett’s Music at the Marina is like a reunion of sorts for Billy Joe Huels, frontman for crowd favorite The Dusty 45s.

The Seattle-based honky-tonk, rockabilly and blues band has been playing the summer concerts at Port Gardner Landing on and off for the past 20 years — and they’ll be back with this year’s lineup July 12.

“For some reason, they’ve adopted us for that concert series,” said Huels, who sings and plays trumpet and guitar.

The Dusty 45s will play one of the 18 live shows scheduled every Thursday and Saturday evening from June to August. The free concerts are family-friendly, and each one draws about 500 to 700 people. There will be food trucks and a beer and wine garden.

Other top-billed bands include Randy Oxford Blues Band, Leroy Bell & His Only Friends, Aaron Crawford, Chance McKinney, Stacy Jones Band and DoctorfunK.

This year’s Music at the Marina has almost every music genre imaginable: country, funk, folk, blues, swing, rock, salsa and rockabilly. The eclectic nature of the series helps bring a wide range of people out, said Lisa Newland, cultural arts coordinator for the city of Everett.

“We try to have a pretty diverse lineup,” she said. “With each style of music, you get a different crowd of people.”

She said it’s one of the city’s biggest highlights of the summer. The idea for the series originated in the city’s Parks and Recreation Department as a way to give Everett residents more family-friendly activities. That’s also a big reason why it’s a free event.

Newland said it’s typical to have a mix of newcomers and fans who are following their favorite bands. The Dusty 45s is a perfect example of that. The band has long been a crowd favorite, and fans come back to see them every year.

The band has taken notice of their followers, too. It might have something to do with Huels’ grand finale.

“I light (my trumpet) on fire and play it,” he said. “Don’t miss it.”

The band was formed the same year the inaugural Music at the Marina series was held in 1997. The group later toured with rockabilly star Wanda Jackson, and joined Jackson on stage when she opened for Adele’s “21” tour in 2011.

The Dusty 45s just wrapped up a tour in Europe and will hit the East Coast in the fall. Though they’ve played shows as big as Bumbershoot in Seattle, Huels said they’ve come to appreciate more intimate venues, like at the Port Gardner Landing, with an audience that’s community-oriented.

“It’s super engaging,” Huels said. “We have a lot of back and forth with the audience.”

Evan Thompson: ethompson@heraldnet.com.

If you go

Music at the Marina is at 6:30 p.m. Thursdays and Saturdays from June 28 to Aug. 30 at Port Gardner Landing, 1700 W. Marine View Drive, Everett. All concerts are free.

Visit www.everettwa.gov or call 425-257-7107 for more information.

Thursday

June 28: Clinton Fearon, Jamaican roots reggae

July 5: Eldridge Gravy & the Court Supreme, psychedelic funk

July 12: Dusty 45s, honky tonk, jump blues, swing

July 19: Nick Drummond & Friends, upbeat alt-folk

July 26: LeRoy Bell and His Only Friends, rock ‘n’ soul

Aug. 2: Chance McKinney, country

Aug. 9: Shaggy Sweet, pop, rock and blues

Aug. 16: Bochinche, tropical salsa

Aug. 23: Stacy Jones Band, rockin’ blues

Aug. 30: Randy Oxford Band featuring Aury Moore, powerhouse trombone blues