City of Roses Music Festival on its way

Before long, the streets of downtown Cape Girardeau will boom with the sound of live music coming from stages everywhere.

The area has begun to anticipate and embrace the annual City of Roses Music Festival.

It is slated for Sept. 26 -27 this year, and the headliner is 1970s and 1980s hit maker Christopher Cross, who released "Sailing," "Think of Laura," "Ride Like the Wind" and "Arthur's Theme."

The best thing about the event, however, is the diversity of offerings and the participation from downtown nightclubs. There are different bands with different styles on stages in the street and in the clubs.

Local bands have the opportunity to showcase their talents particularly on the first night, when four of them will be on the main stage -- a barge moored in Riverfront Park. There will be a tent for Metalfest, where the region's headbangers can get loud on Friday night.

The tickets are within just about everyone's price range and available at Schnucks.