This Saturday · August 15

Suns of Beaches Band Brings the Island Party to Newport Avenue Beach

Steel pans, Buffett classics, and a band with more than 100 years of combined experience — all on the sand, and all free.

There may not be a better place to hear Buffett’s music than barefoot beside the Atlantic.

There may not be a better place to hear Jimmy Buffett’s music than barefoot beside the Atlantic Ocean. This Saturday, Ventnor is putting that theory to the test.

Ventnor’s Summer Beach Jam heads straight for the islands on Saturday, August 15, when Pittsburgh-based Suns of Beaches Band brings its full Jimmy Buffett tribute show to the Newport Avenue Beach stage. Food and craft vendors begin at 5:30 p.m., with the band taking over at 6:30 p.m. Admission is free.

And this isn’t simply a group that learned a few Buffett songs and bought matching tropical shirts. Suns of Beaches comes to Ventnor with a surprisingly deep connection to the music and a lineup with decades of experience playing it.

Suns of Beaches Band · Live Saturday at 6:30 PM

Suns of Beaches Band Six-Piece Jimmy Buffett Tribute · Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

These Guys Have Been Living the Buffett Life for Decades

The story behind Suns of Beaches makes Saturday’s show considerably more interesting than the typical tribute-band concert.

The current band formed in late 2022, but most of its members had already spent nearly two decades performing together as the backing band for a nationally known Jimmy Buffett impersonator. Along the way, they played shows around the country and even took their island sound to the Caribbean.

Collectively, the six musicians bring more than 100 years of live performance experience to the stage. Their Buffett connection goes deeper still — the musicians have shared the stage with Peter Mayer, Jimmy Buffett’s longtime lead guitarist, and have also opened for the nationally known band Pablo Cruise.

The Steel Pan Changes Everything

One reason Suns of Beaches can sound considerably closer to the real Buffett experience than a standard cover band is sitting right at the front of the stage: the steel pan.

Steel pan player and vocalist Adam Warble joins drummer Ben Sakmar, percussionist Dave Withrow, bassist and vocalist Keith Lisk, keyboardist Dan Prokop, and guitarist and vocalist Jeremy McCall in the six-piece lineup.

That combination of steel pan, percussion, keys and guitars gives the band the tropical sound that made Buffett’s concerts feel less like traditional shows and more like giant traveling beach parties.

So What Are They Going to Play?

The band’s repertoire goes well beyond one trip to “Margaritaville.” Suns of Beaches publishes an extensive song list that mixes the essential Buffett catalog with tropical rock, country and familiar sing-along favorites.

They also mix in their own original music and tropical takes on songs outside the Buffett catalog. In other words, you don’t need to know every word to “Margaritaville” — although by the end of the night, you probably will.

A Buffett Concert on an Actual Beach

There’s something almost too perfect about the pairing. Jimmy Buffett built an entire musical world around beaches, boats, warm weather, cold drinks and the idea that sometimes the best possible plan is having no plan at all. On Saturday night, none of that requires much imagination — the stage is literally beside the beach.

Instead of an arena backdrop, there’s the Atlantic. Instead of paying for a concert ticket, you can walk onto Newport Avenue Beach with a chair or blanket, grab something to eat from the vendors and settle in for the evening. That’s what has made Ventnor’s Summer Beach Jam one of the city’s signature summer traditions: the concert isn’t separated from a day at the shore. It’s part of it.

Come Early — The Party Starts Before the Music

The band begins at 6:30 p.m., but there’s a good reason to get to Newport Avenue earlier. Food and craft vendors open at 5:30 p.m., creating an hour-long pre-show along the beach and boardwalk. Grab dinner, browse the vendors, find your spot on the sand, and watch Newport Avenue begin to fill before the first steel-pan notes hit.

And Yes, Parrotheads Should Feel Right at Home

Buffett’s fans famously turned his concerts into events of their own, arriving in tropical shirts, parrot hats and increasingly elaborate island-themed outfits long before the music started.

There’s no dress code Saturday night, of course. But if there were ever a Ventnor concert where the Hawaiian shirt in the back of the closet deserved another appearance, this would probably be it. And don’t be surprised if sitting quietly doesn’t last long — Suns of Beaches has built its reputation around audience participation, dancing and the kind of shows that have a tendency to turn into very large conga lines.

Summer Beach Jam Isn’t Finished Yet

Saturday’s island party also begins the final stretch of the 2026 Summer Beach Jam season at Newport Avenue.

After Suns of Beaches, the Time Travelers Decades Show arrives August 22 with music and dance from the ’60s, ’70s and ’80s. Then Plaid Salmon closes the regular Saturday beach-concert schedule on August 29.

For this weekend, though, the itinerary is much simpler: Newport Avenue, 5:30 for the vendors, 6:30 for the music.

Ventnor City notes that concert lineups and times are subject to change and follows a zero-risk policy for equipment during inclement weather. Check official City of Ventnor Special Events updates on the day of the show if weather is questionable.

Saturday night, Newport Avenue becomes Ventnor’s own little slice of Margaritaville. We’ll see you on the sand.

Follow Visit Ventnor for local events, business news, concert updates and everything happening around Ventnor this summer.

Summer Beach Jam · Saturday, August 15 · 6:30 p.m. · Free

Newport Avenue Beach, S. Newport Avenue Band Stage