Shag the night away Friday with the Castaways in Lancaster

Embrace summertime heat as a trigger evoking seaside settings cool enough to dance the night away with The Castaways Band live Friday, at Pecan Park in downtown Lancaster.

Part of the “Finally Friday” Summer Concert Series presented by the Red Rose City, the July installment touts music, food and fun under the shady pecan trees with the chance to “shag” to the beach and soul sounds of The Castaways.

For the uninitiated, the shag is the official state dance of the Carolinas, but even so there are two basic philosophies regarding the appropriate style of beach music. There are the classic shaggers, who strictly prefer only the oldies of ’50s and ’60s pop, heavily driven by the R&B/soul hits. Then, there’s the newbie beach wave set who mix up those original oldies with current popular hits driven by a shag-tastic shuffle beat.

Happily, The Castaways cater to both, throwing out a wide enough net to capture all the right tunes and tempos. Their song list runs from classics and oldies to more recent hits and favorites.

Winning over fans – who they call “Castanuts” – for over a half century since their original 1961 start in Durham, N.C., the lineup has changed over the years, but their intent is the same – citing excitement and energy as paramount. The band currently features: Karen Clayton, lead vocals; Guy Brooks, bass/vocals; John Arthurs, guitar/vocals, Randy Smith, keys/vocals; Jeff Weidhaas, trumpet/vocals; Jason Pulley, saxophone/vocals and Jason Johnson, drums.

The Castaways are members of The Carolina Beach Music Awards Hall of Fame and have picked up a few Carolina Beach Music Awards along the way, thanks to what they say is their “unique flavor of beach, soul, and rock ‘n’ roll’ even a little country too, which is all geared to please multiple generations.

“Summer’s here and the time is right” to let musical memories of sand, sun and seaside set you to swinging, swaying and shagging Friday at Pecan Park behind City Hall, 216 S. Catawba St. Free parking. Bring chairs or blankets for this family friendly event. For more information call 803-289-1498 or visit lancastercitysc.com. For more on the music, go to castawaysband.com.

NightBEAT

It’s that time of year for NightBEAT 2016, sponsored by Carolina Crown Drum and Bugle Corps based in York County. The 2016 Tour of Champions will be Sunday at BB&T Field at Wake Forest University in Winston Salem, N.C. Starting 6:30 pm, NightBEAT brings together eight top DCI drum corps, including the Blue Devils, Concord, Calif.; the Bluecoats, Canton, Ohio; The Cadets, Allentown, Pa; Santa Clara Vanguard, Santa Clara, Calif; The Cavaliers, Rosemont, Ill.; Phantom Regiment, Rockford, Ill.; Madison Scouts, Madison, Wis.; and our very own Carolina Crown, from Fort Mill. For more information on NightBEAT 2016, visit carolinacrown.org/nightbeat.

Elsewhere

Friday: Khaos Kings at Luke’s Sports Bar & Grill, Rock Hill; Soul Therapy at Empire Pizza II, Newport; PJ Brunson on the Patio at The White Horse, Rock Hill; Catawba River Monster at The Handle Bar Tavern, Catawba; Acoustic Saints (DZ, Rusty & Sandra of Shotgun Saints) at Madison’s On The Corner, Fort Mill; Mike Faulkenberry & The Whiskey Prophets at T-Bones on the Lake, Lake Wylie; Coconut Groove Band for Rockin’ & Reelin’ Summer Concert Series, Pineville.

Saturday: Haldenvang at Luke’s Sports Bar & Grill, Rock Hill; The Smilin’ Dogs Revolutions at the Galleria, Rock Hill; Jason Atkins Duo at McHale’s On Main, Rock Hill; Chris Payne and Jim Garrett at Original Empire Pizza, Rock Hill; Banana Puddin’ with Stella & Fella at T-Bones on the Lake, Lake Wylie; The Rockaholics at John’s Place Neighborhood Bar, Fort Mill; Mutha Load Band at Pineville Tavern, Pineville.

Sunday: PeacePipe for Biker Sunday at The Handle Bar Tavern, Catawba; Stepside Deluxe, Remedy Hollow for Grant Family Benefit at Madison’s On The Corner, Fort Mill; Zawbonz, Shotgun Saints, Mutha Load Band for John Laney Benefit at Pineville Tavern, Pineville.

This story was originally published July 28, 2016 at 4:09 PM with the headline "Shag the night away Friday with the Castaways in Lancaster."