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Hartsville, SC — South Carolina jazz legend Skipp Pearson is headlining the 10th annual Jazz! Carolina Downtown Block Party on Saturday, October 6 from 7 p.m. to midnight on East Carolina Avenue in Hartsville. The block party features live jazz, food, refreshments and fun for the whole family. The street is closed to traffic and admission is free.
A native of Orangeburg, S.C., Thales Thomas “Skipp” Pearson has been playing jazz since the age of 14. Over the years, his professional career has allowed him to share the stage with a number of renowned musicians, including as Sam Cooke, Patti LaBelle, Chris Potter, Otis Redding, Drink Smalls, Sonny Thronton, Fred Wesley, David Haynes, and Wynton Marsalis.
Pearson has performed throughout Europe and across the United States. He received the state’s highest artistic honor, the Elizabeth O’Neill Verner Award for individual artistic excellence, in 2003. In 2002, the South Carolina State House of Representative presented Pearson with a commendation in honor of his extraordinary contributions to the world of jazz music. In 1998, Pearson was inducted into the South Carolina State University Jazz Band Hall of Fame.
The Jazz! Carolina Downtown Block Party is held on East Carolina Avenue
between Fourth and Fifth streets in Hartsville. Visitors can bring their
own chair or reserve a table that seats up to eight adults. To reserve
or sponsor a table for $50, contact Judi Elvington of the Hartsville
Downtown Development Association at 332.1600.
The Jazz! Carolina Block Party is hosted by Bizzell's Food & Spirits,
the Midnight Rooster Coffee Shop & Courtyard Eatery, Hannibal’s
Seafood, Southern Candy Kitchen, the Hartsville Downtown Development
Association, and Coker College. In 2001, Jazz! Carolina was selected
the Most Outstanding Festival of the Year by the South Carolina Department
of Parks, Recreation and Tourism.
For more information, visit www.coker.edu/jazz2007 or call the Hartsville Downtown Development Association at 332.1600.
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September 27, 2007