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The Jazz Club of Sarasota's 2014 Joy of Jazz concert series will continue "with the high-en- ergy sounds of local favorites" The Venturas on Feb. 9 at 2 p.m., in Centennial Park in downtown Venice, the club has announced. The concert is free but donations will be accepted in support of the Jazz Club's schol- arship fund, a news release says. Guests are encouraged to bring lawn chairs and blankets. For more information, call 366- 1552 or visit www.jazzclubsarasota.org. The Venturas was formed in 2000 by John Paul "J.P." Coley and Greg Poulos, who have been performing together since 1996, the release says. Named for the instrumental rock band The Ventures, "the first incarnation of The Venturas played a novel mix of jazz, blues and surf music," the release points out. The band added vocalist Ally Couch and keyboardist Eddie Tobin in 2004. Since then, it "has honed a strikingly vast and diverse repertoire," cov- ering favorite tunes from the 1930s right on up to the present, the release continues. The Venturas features Couch on vocals, Coley on bass and vocals, Poulos on guitar and vocals, Tobin on keyboards and vocals and Tracey Alexander on drums. The group's Joy of Jazz program will feature an assortment of stan- dards and jump blues hits, the release adds. The Joy of Jazz series will conclude on March 9 with Tom Ellison and Hip Pocket, the release says. VENTURAS TO PERFORM IN FEB. 9 JOY OF JAZZ CONCERT The Venturas will be featured in a Feb. 9 jazz concert in Venice. Photo contributed by the group Sarasota News Leader January 31, 2014 Page 111