When Sail Rock docks on the banks of the Fox River at Aurora’s new RiverEdge Park on Saturday, Aug. 10, seven great music artists will share the stage with a set list that plays like a soundtrack to the summers of the 70’s and early 80’s.      

Sail Rock stars Grammy Winner Christopher Cross, best known for his Top Ten hits Sailing, Ride Like the Wind and Arthur’s Theme (Best That You Can Do). 

This first-ever, feel-good music tour also features rockers Firefall with top 40 hits Just Remember I Love You, You Are the Woman and Strange Way. Dance with your sweetheart to Orleans and their Top 10 hits Dance with Me and Still The One. 

Gary Wright, whose Dream Weaver and Love Is Alive spent time at the #2 spot on Billboard’s Hot 100 in 1976, joins the lineup along with Grammy nominated John Ford Coley, whose triple-platinum and gold records include I’d Really Love to See You Tonight and Love is the Answer. 

Rounding out the bill are Robbie DuPree, remembered for his 1980 Top 10 hit Steal Away, and Player with their No. 1 hit Baby Come Back.   

RiverEdge Park, Chicagoland’s newest outdoor concert venue, is located at 360 North Broadway in downtown Aurora. Gates open for Sail Rock at 6 p.m.  

The concert begins at 8 p.m. Tickets are $30 general admission, $60 Skydeck.  

Skydeck tickets include food and drink (beer, wine, soda and water), private restrooms, and a view of the stage. 

Tickets are on sale online at RiverEdgeAurora.com, via phone at (630) 896-6666, or on-site at RiverEdge on all concert and event days, starting at 10 a.m. Or, stop by the nearby Paramount Theatre, the satellite box office for RiverEdge, at 23 E. Galena Boulevard, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., Monday through Saturday.   

Other than Sky Deck, there is no reserved or preferred seating to this show. General admission ticket holders are advised to bring low back bag chairs or a small blanket. Children ages two years of age and under are admitted free.

Cross was by far the biggest new star of 1980, virtually defining adult contemporary radio with a series of smoothly sophisticated ballads including the No. 1 hit, Sailing. 

His 1980 self-titled debut album with the lead single Ride Like the Wind rocketed to the #2 spot; the massive success of the second single Sailing made Cross a superstar, and in the wake of two more Top 20 hits, Never Be the Same and Say You’ll Be Mine, he walked off with a record-setting five Grammys in 1981, including Best New Artist and Song of the Year for Sailing. 

He soon scored a second No. 1, as well as an Academy Award, with Arthur’s Theme (Best That You Can Do), which he co-wrote with Burt Bacharach, Carole Bayer Sager, and Peter Allen for the smash Dudley Moore film comedy Arthur. 

For more information, visit ChristopherCross.com.

Firefall formed in Boulder, Colo. in 1974. It was founded by Rick Roberts, who had been in the Flying Burrito Brothers, and Jock Bartley, who had been Tommy Bolin’s replacement in Zephyr. 

The band’s biggest hit single, You Are the Woman, peaked at No. 9 on the Billboard charts in 1976. Other hits included Just Remember I Love You (No. 11 in 1977), Strange Way (No. 11 in 1978), Cinderella (No. 34 in 1977), Headed for a Fall (No. 35 in 1980), and Staying with It (No. 37 in 1981). 

For more information, visit Firefall.com.

Orleans is best known as the 70’s pop/rock band that delivered classic hits Still The One, Dance With Me and Love Takes Time. 

Now in its 40th year, Orleans has produced a body of work spanning 16 albums and several DVDs. In 2012, Orleans experienced a tragedy in the sudden passing of co-founder Larry Hoppen. 

While there is no replacing Hoppen, current members Lane Hoppen, Fly Amero and Charlie Morgan are now rejoined by co-founder John Hall. 

 –News Bulletin news sources