SummerSounds, a free outdoor concert series at Greensburg’s St. Clair Park, will feature several tribute bands and Sudanese pop-funk rock fusion in its lineup this year.
The concert series amassed a combined attendance of 28,500 people and drew more than $1 million in economic impact to Greensburg last season, co-founder Gene James said.
“On behalf of all the people who work hard to make it happen, I’m very gratified,” James said. “I think our first concert was 600 people, and now we are averaging over 2,000.”
But with acts like Elton Rohn — an Elton John tribute that will return this year — packing nearly 10,000 people into the mid-sized Robertshaw Amphitheater, SummerSounds has focused on best methods to manage the crowds.
A free shuttle from the city’s Lynch Field will run from 6 p.m. through the end of the concert to provide an additional parking option, said Anna McClain, events manager for the Greensburg Community Development Corporation.
The concert series’ original managers merged with the corporation last year to ensure SummerSounds continues for years to come.
SummerSounds also reduced its advertising last year, James said, following a combined 2023 attendance of 41,000 people.
James has no intention of moving the concert series out of Greensburg to accommodate growing crowds.
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“SummerSounds was created by three people with the intention of making Greensburg — and I should say central Westmoreland County — a more attractive place to live and to build the economy,” he said. “I’m thrilled to say that we’ve done exactly that.”
In an attempt to attract a younger audience to the concert series, SummerSounds has added more modern music to its lineup, McClain said.
“We’re still maintaining the high quality of music at the concert series,” she said. “We’re also introducing some new styles this year — a little more pop, a little more current music into the lineup this year.”
The move was based on a survey taken by 900 SummerSounds attendees, where concertgoers noted a strong interest in hearing pop music, McClain said.
This year’s lineup includes tribute bands for Fleetwood Mac, Jimmy Buffet and Billy Joel; Sudanese pop, reggae, funk and rock musician Sinkane; and a variety of rock, country, Americana, boogie, soul, blues, jazz and R&B artists.
In her first year helping to organize the concert series, McClain has seen firsthand how big a role SummerSounds now plays in Greensburg’s culture.
“It’s incredible what Gene has created,” she said.
