Ocean Reef Resorts is proud to announce that we are sponsors of The Mattie Kelly Arts Foundation Concert Series and will be headlining the Gimme Abbey concert on April 24th. This exciting event will kick off the summer season of live music concerts and will be held on stage at the Mattie Kelly Cultural Arts Village in Destin. This outdoor locale has a large soaring pavilion nestled beside the Kelly Plantation at 4323 Commons Drive, West. Two nationally acclaimed Tribute Bands have joined forces for this concert which will be dedicated to classic hit songs by The Beatles and The Rolling Stones from the late 1960s. It will be a true stroll down a musical Memory Lane for nostalgic Baby Boomers with popular tunes that are even known to their children and grandchildren. The two bands that are performing this concert, The Return and Satisfaction, are known nationwide for their outstanding renditions of songs from the original bands. The Return embraces Beatlemania and Satisfaction naturally embraces the Beatle's old arch-rival, The Rolling Stones.

The Return got its start in 1995 and they have earned international acclaim for their stunningly accurate performances. They have played at Abbey Road Studios in London as well as The Cavern in Liverpool. Recently they performed in Tokyo commemorating The Beatle's first visit there forty years ago. The Return also served as the official band for the thirtieth anniversary of the iconic Hard Rock Café. The Gimme Abbey concert here in Destin is celebrating the fiftieth-year anniversary date of the Beatle's famous television debut on the classic Ed Sullivan Show.

Satisfaction is equally well-known both nationally and internationally. They have performed in hundreds of concerts around the world and have received acclaim for being by far the best band to honor The Rolling Stones today. The cast creates an amazingly authentic production of the original band in sound, costume, appearance, and style. The New York Examiner reviewed one of their recent performances and heralded it as "the best show of its kind…ever!"

The Destin concert will begin at 7:00 and run until 9:00 pm. The price is $18 for Adults, $15 for Mattie Kelly Arts Foundation members, and children under the age of 12 are free. Tickets are available for purchase at the door.  Call 850.650.2226 for additional details.

The Mattie Kelly Arts Foundation, (MKAF), was established in 1995 as a not-for-profit charitable organization to promote art, culture, and education in honor of the Destin matriarch for which it is named. Mattie Kelly's family was among the founding families of Destin securing forested land for a giant turpentine plantation on much of the vast acreage between the gulf and Choctawhatchee Bay back in the 1930s. She later became known as a generous local philanthropist and her family honored her wishes to continue supporting cultural arts after her death.

The MKAF annual spring/summer concert series was voted one of the Top Ten Things to Do in Northwest Florida by The Florida Travel & Tourism Guide. Concerts feature a wide array of music including modern rock, golden oldies, rhythm & blues, country, reggae, blues, and jazz. Concertgoers usually bring their own lawn chairs and picnic baskets for these events but beverages and food are sold on-site. The MKAF also has special picnic tables available for reservation that seat six to eight people.

All concerts are held between 7:00 and 9:00 pm and the Mattie Kelly 2014 Concert Series is as follows: May 1st Déjà Vu plays classic dance music from the 1970s thru the 1990s; May 8th The Molly Ringwald's features greatest hits from the 1980s; May 15th Downbeat Classic Brass performs a rock n roll horn revue of songs by Blood Sweat & Tears, Chicago, and others; May 22nd The Mike Veal Band plays Stump the Band requests from the audience for over 200 various artists in their repertoire; May 29th Ike Bartley provides Soul, Blues, Jazz and funky dance music; June 5th Lisa and the E-Lusion plays Motown and 80s dance music; June 12th LavaLamp features the best of 1970s Disco Dance Music along with Soul and Funk; June 19th The Alter Eagles perform tribute songs from The Eagles including classic songs with everything from 'Hotel California' to 'Desperado'; June 26th Twelve Against Nature performs the final concert of the series which features a Nashville version of the Steely Dan experience.

Ocean Reef Resorts is proud to be sponsoring part the concert series and invite all of our visiting guests to come down to enjoy these wonderful musical events. You may dance "like a rock star" by having a fun, warm, memorable time with family and friends. We have many fine distinctive vacation rentals to offer nearby in Destin, Miramar Beach, and down along Scenic Gulf Drive. These include luxurious beachfront condominium towers as well as big beach homes and charming cottages. Pick the favorite concert(s) of your choice and plan to attend. Rock on!