Merced fair lines up Sheila E., Selena tribute and more for concert series

The Merced County Fair announced its summer line-up of performers for its five nights of live concerts in June.

The annual fair is June 6-10 at the Merced County Fairgrounds, 900 Martin Luther King Jr. Way. The shows include cover bands of popular acts, as well as performers like drummer Sheila E. and local favorite Moonshine Bandits.

June 6 -- The opening night concert is from Uptown Funk – Bruno Mars Tribute, a cover band that takes its name from one of the pop star's hits. The Los Angeles-based cover band plays "Locked out of Heaven," "Just the Way You Are" and other radio hits from the Hawaii-born musician.

June 7 -- Mark Chesnutt may be familiar to Merced audiences because the country singer played the Merced Theatre in the summer of 2015. He’s also toured consistently while putting out albums every few years since his debut in the late 1980s.

June 8 -- Perhaps the biggest name of the concert series, Sheila E. brings pop, R&B, Latin jazz and funk sensibilities to her shows. Music from the "Queen of Percussion" may be familiar to audiences in songs like "The Belle of St. Mark" or "Sister Fate," or her time performing with Prince.

June 9 -- The Los Banos-grown Moonshine Bandits get top billing for the Saturday show for the second year in a row. With a sound known as outlaw country, Dusty “Tex” Dahlgren and Brett “Bird” Brooks have created a following, especially in the Central San Joaquin Valley.

June 10 -- The late "Queen of Tejano Music" gets her own cover band in Selena – The Ultimate Tribute. The group's lead singer, Karla Perez, won a Selena singing competition at 18 and has been singing the pop star's music, like "Bidi Bidi Bom Bom" and "Como la Flor," ever since, according to a news release.

For more on the fair, go to www.MercedCountyFair.com.

This story was originally published January 26, 2018 at 9:10 AM with the headline "Merced fair lines up Sheila E., Selena tribute and more for concert series."