Seafood Festival to Feature Two Concerts

Excitement is building for the 45^th annual Florida Seafood Festival, which will offer twice the entertainment options this year than in the past.

Instead of one evening concert on Saturday, Nov. 1, the festival board has opted for two main stage shows, an afternoon performance at 4 p.m. by Daryle Singletary and an evening show at 8 p.m. by Little Texas.

"We have added a second headliner to give festival goers even more nationally recognized entertainment.  Now instead of having to wait for the headliner, you get two chances to hear a national act," said John Solomon, president of the festival's board of directors. "And of course as always, we will be having some of our great local bands before each headliner.  We encourage you to come out and listen to all of these outstanding entertainers."

The Oct. 31 to Nov. 1 festival, which will be reigned over by 2008 Miss Florida Seafood Sara Ward, and her father, Tommy Ward, as King Retsyo, has also reintroduced a cooking contest.

"It had been a number of years since we had a cooking contest and we felt that as a tribute to our locals who cook some of the best seafood dishes imaginable that we would give them a chance to show off what they can do," said Solomon. "The Florida Seafood Festival is all about promoting our local seafood and the seafood industry and we could think of no better way to do this than to give local citizens a chance to show how they prepare our local seafood."

Singletary, 37, was born and raised in Cairo, GA, where he grew up singing gospel alongside his cousins and brother, and while attending high school enrolled in a variety of vocal classes. After graduation, he worked at a tractor dealership before relocating to Nashville to pursue a career in music.

            There he frequently shared open-mic stages and amateur showcases alongside fellow up-and-comers like Tracy Lawrence and Tim McGraw; he eventually found work as a demo singer, recording the track "Old Pair of Shoes" for an independent label. The song made its way to Randy Travis, who decided to record it himself while recommending Singletary to his management team.

Singletary debuted in 1995 with an album on Giant Records, which earned him critical acclaim for his traditionalist country stylings. The album produced four hits on the Billboard country charts, including the #2 "I Let Her Lie" and #4 "Too Much Fun."

His second album "All Because of You" came out in 1996 and produced another #2 hit in "Amen Kind of Love." Singletary's third album "Ain't It the Truth," was released in 1998, his last on Giant's roster.

            In 2000, Singletary switched to Audium Entertainment, where he released the albums "Now and Again" in 2000, and "That's Why I Sing This Way," in 2002. Both were largely composed of cover songs. A third album of covers, 2007's "Straight from the Heart," was issued on the independent Shanachie label.

            Little Texas was conceived in 1998 in Nashville by a handful of guys in their early twenties willing to do just about anything to bring their brand of rockin' county to the forefront of the music industry. Before hitting the big time, the band crisscrossed America for three long years, playing every bar and honky tonk from Myrtle Beach, SC, to Los Angeles, CA, all the while writing songs destined to change the sound of modern country, and perfecting a stage show critically acclaimed worldwide.

            Signed to Warner Bros. Records in 1991, Little Texas released its debut album "First Time For Everything" that year. The album's lead off single, "Some Guys Have All the Love", reached a peak of #8 on the Billboard Hot Country Singles & Tracks charts.

            The band continued to produce hit singles throughout the mid-1990s, including the Number One single "My Love", and Top Ten hits in "You and Forever and Me" (1992), "What Might Have Been" (1993), "God Blessed Texas" (1993), "Kick a Little" (1994), "Amy's Back in Austin" (1995) and "Life Goes On" (1995).

            The band went through several changes, but now the band's four original members: Porter Howell (lead vocals & lead guitar), Dwayne O'Brien (vocals and rhythm guitars), Duane Propes (bass & vocals) and Del Gray (drums), have rebuilt the franchise with a completely new sound, and with the release of a brand new album on their new label, Montage Records, they are bringing fans what they do best.

            They have returned to the airwaves with a new album titled "Missing Years," and a new live album, released in spring 2007.