Beverly and Marty Paris with Stacey Young. PHOTO BY JOSHUA KODIS

When Rusty Young, founder of MusicWorks and LIVE! From Vero Beach, passed away in February, audiences wondered whether that would be the end of the concert series. But Stacey Young says she feels that the greatest way to honor her husband is by continuing to bring great music to Vero Beach.

“I’m excited for the tremendous support I’ve gotten from the community and from my team, which has been phenomenal. I think it’s going to be a banner year for us,” Young says.

“There was a little bit of a learning curve, but I’m happy to be taking it over and trying to fill his very, very big shoes. I want to make sure that I keep his legacy alive and his reputation intact.”

Rusty Young presented his first Vero Beach concert 12 years ago, bringing in Judy Collins for the first of numerous concerts at the Emerson Center. Beverly and Marty Paris of Paris Productions have handled the marketing since that first concert and are continuing the relationship with Stacey.

Additionally, Marty Paris is assisting on the production side, working with her to find those bands they feel will best resonate with their audiences.

Paris explains that to expand their demographic, they are changing the lineup a bit. While prior concerts featured classic folk and rock singers from the ’60s and the ’70s, their current lineup showcases artists from the ’70s and ’80s.

With so many of the original artists no longer performing, or pricing themselves out if they are, all concerts this year feature tribute bands, often highlighted by musicians who were session players in the original groups.

“Our audience is really excited about the tribute shows that we do. In fact, we had better attendance at our tribute shows last year than we did at the real artist shows,” says Young.
“You would not believe how amazing they are,” adds Paris.

Young notes that most of the performers are new to Vero and one, a Canadian group called the Traveling Milburys, is performing in the U.S. for the first time. The name is a play on the Traveling Wilburys, a ‘supergroup’ consisting of Bob Dylan, George Harrison, Jeff Lynne, Roy Orbison and Tom Petty.

“The five of them put out two albums that were fantastic. They didn’t really travel, even though they were called the Traveling Wilburys, and they never did any concerts, but their albums were very popular,” Paris explains. Like the original artists, each Traveling Milburys musician also has his own group based on their character artist.

Also new, a Neil Diamond Legacy Concert featuring longtime Diamond impersonator Jay White.

“The Neil Diamond concert is actually the day before Valentine’s Day. We thought that would be a nice date night. Take your sweetheart to see Neil Diamond, and he’ll sing some nice songs to you,” says Paris.

The New York Bee Gees, a Bruce Springsteen tribute band, and Forever Motown are also new to the Emerson stage and, while they have had other Fleetwood Mac tribute bands in the past, the group coming this year is new.

This will also be the first time that this World’s Best ELO Tribute has played at Emerson, although they did present an Electric Light Orchestra tribute at the Vero Beach High School PAC years ago.

Due to its overwhelming popularity with audiences, the Music of Chicago is being brought back for the third time.

“Everybody loves the horns and so forth. They come out in the audience with their horns, they go out on the balcony, and they just sound exactly like Chicago,” says Paris.

“There’s a lot of other Chicago tribute bands, but the lead singer in this group sounds just like Peter Cetera. It really makes it a fantastic group.”

Max Weinberg’s Jukebox, which performed here in 2019, was recently added to the lineup and will kick off the season. A Rock and Roll Hall of Famer, Weinberg was a longtime drummer for Bruce Springsteen and his E Street Band. A “Meet & Greet with Max” following the show (ticketed separately for an additional $115) includes a photo op and autographs.

“What I love is the community is just so thankful for us having these shows here. They don’t have to drive a long distance for great music. It’s very rewarding to hear them really appreciate what we’re doing,” says Paris.

“We’ve also gotten a lot of great feedback about our lineup this year, which is so nice to hear,” Young adds.

MusicWorks will also present concerts this season at the Boca Black Box, the Peabody Auditorium in Daytona Beach and at Fort Pierce’s Sunrise Theatre, but Young says much of their energy goes into the LIVE! from Vero Beach concerts at the Emerson Center.

They like that there is more community involvement in the Vero concerts, which have local sponsors and nonprofits partners.

“This goes along with Rusty’s initial desire to have music benefit the community,” says Paris. This year’s nonprofit partners are Big Brothers Big Sisters, Grand Harbor Community Outreach, the Emerson Center and St. Francis Manor.

All concerts begin at 7 p.m. at the Emerson Center, 1590 27th Avenue in Vero Beach. Doors open at 6 p.m. and seating begins at 6:30 p.m. Ticket prices range from $45 to $105. To purchase tickets, visit MusicWorksConcerts.com, call 800-595-4849 or call Stacey Young at 772-777-9321.

Photos by Joshua Kodis