
It’s time for what some of us wait all year for – the 29th annual Beaches International Jazz Festival – and there are plenty of events planned leading up to the celebrated StreetFest at the end of July.
Festivities start east this year, with the month-long music fest – the largest free jazz festival in the world – kicking off with Sounds of Leslieville and Riverside at Jimmie Simpson Park from July 7 to 9. Music runs from 4 to 11 p.m. on Friday, noon to 11 p.m. on Saturday, and noon to 6 p.m. on Sunday.
The following weekend, Woodbine Park comes alive with the Beaches Jazz Latin Carnival, July 14 to 16. Melodies of salsa, merengue, and cumbia will be showcased from 5 to 11 p.m. on Friday, noon to 11 p.m. on Saturday, and noon to 8 p.m. on Sunday. The Kew Gardens Series hosts artists July 15 and 16, the first of two weekends of jazz festival programming.
For more on the artists and this year’s festivities, visit www.beachesjazz.com.

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Zed Head’s Neil Chapman, left, and the Fogman rock it out in front of Gabby’s at the 2013 Beaches International Jazz Festival.
Is this anything but a mixed metaphor gone horribly wrong? A Jazz festival described by a rock band? Are you kidding?
A more suitable name for the festival would be The Beach Music Festival