Sunset Symphony adds KC and the Sunshine Band to crowd favorites

Harry Wayne Casey is the mastermind behind 100 million-selling disco-funk act KC & the Sunshine Band.

We don't get to say it often enough, but are you ready to shake your booty with the Memphis Symphony Orchestra?

It's what you can expect when you pair the 37-year-old KC and the Sunshine Band with the symphony at Memphis in May's 34-year-old AutoZone Sunset Symphony at Tom Lee Park.

The annual event scheduled for Saturday is a panoramic variety show tailored for a river and a park. The popular attractions are returning, meaning tunes from local musicians, an air show by the Commemorative Air Force, symphony pops numbers, Tchaikovsky's 1812 Overture and a blowout fireworks display.

Harry Wayne Casey is the mastermind behind 100 million-selling disco-funk act KC & the Sunshine Band.

For guest attraction KC and the Sunshine Band, it will be a first: it will be the first time the funky rockers have played with a symphony orchestra, says Diane M. Hampton, MIM executive vice president.

"My agent thought it would be a good idea to do something different," said KC (aka Harry Wayne Casey). "With us having lots of horns it seemed like a good thing, and we hope to do more of it. I can't wait to get to Memphis."

The band performs more than 100 shows annually. The reason is those irresistible chart-friendly tunes they've churned out over the decades: "Get Down Tonight," "That's The Way I Like It," "Keep It Coming Love," "Shake Your Booty," and "I'm Your Boogie Man." Those songs have earned the group sales of 100 million records, three Grammys (and nine nominations) and an American Music Award.

But there's a lot more on the Sunset Symphony menu Saturday. It gets going mid-afternoon with local musical groups while people start filtering in to the park to lay claim to the best spots for picnicking and viewing the stage. Pop duo Ken & Robyn Greene start it off followed by big band jazz group the Memphis Knights.

Then comes the Commemorative Air Force Air Show with its vintage and concept planes. Only about once year do you get to see flying beauties such as the Corsair, Hawker, Stearman and Russian Yak rolling and looping over the Mississippi River.

Around 7:30, the symphony kicks off led by guest conductor Rudi Schlegel, who led a pops show last year featuring John Pizzarelli. The orchestra will thunder with marches, a John Williams film tune and various light fare before KC and gang come on stage to get the shakin' going.

The concert ends traditionally, with the familiar 1812 Overture and a fireworks display.

Autozone Sunset Symphony

2 to 9 p.m. Saturday at Tom Lee Park. Performers include Ken & Robyn Greene at 3 p.m.; Memphis Knights at 4:30 p.m.; Commemorative Air Force Air Show at 6 p.m.; Memphis Symphony Orchestra with KC & the Sunshine Band at 7:30 p.m. and fireworks at 9 p.m.

Tickets are $7 online (ticketmaster.com or memphisinmay.org) or $8 at the gate. Age 6 and under free. VIP tables $475. Those with tickets can enter at the River Walk at the north bluff stairs or south bluff stairs. Tickets available at Riverside Drive at Beale Street and Riverside Drive at Georgia Avenue. Bring picnics, but no glass, no pets, no pop-up tents. Food concessions are available. For more information: memphisinmay.org/sunsetsymphony.

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