This weekend, the St. Petersburg Museum of History holds a fundraiser in conjunction with its current exhibition, Florida's Got the Blues. The venerable local act Wendy & the Soul Shakers performs, soul food's on the menu and attendees can view the exhibit while the show goes on. Wendy Rich is a classic blues-belter who moonlights as the late Janis Joplin's stand-in on Big Brother & the Holding Company tours. She and her band play a roof-raising style of straight-ahead blues and hard-hitting R&B. While the blues is always better in a roadhouse bar, why not give it a shot in a museum? And don't expect the august surroundings to inhibit this band; the event is a joint fundraiser for the museum and the Al Downing Tampa Bay Jazz Association. Sun., March 26, 2-5 p.m., 335 Second. Ave. N.E., St. Petersburg, $25 (includes food), 727-894-1052.
This article appears in Mar 22-28, 2006.