Anyone who knows me knows I’m a room service and arctic air conditioning kind of guy, but your regular On The Road correspondent Shannon Hicks loves her annual outdoor camping experience. So she is off in some bug-infested campground somewhere with her pop-up camper, grilling marshmallows over an open fire and leaving me to keep you up to speed on the entertainment scene during this sparse holiday week.

Speaking of camping out, here’s one that’s even tempting spoiled old Johnny V; The Gathering of the Vibes is coming back to Bridgeport in just a few weeks. And thanks to the popularity of this multistage, multiday jam band extravaganza — and all you well-behaved fans — the City of Bridgeport wants the Vibes to keep reverberating through the Park City for many years to come!

The City of Bridgeport and Gathering of the Vibes have finalized an agreement to hold the annual music, camping, and arts festival at Seaside Park for the next five years, through summer 2012. This year’s 13th annual event, scheduled for July 31–August 3, features New Orleans legends The Neville Brothers, southern rockers The Black Crowes, Grateful Dead bassist Phil Lesh and Friends, and Bridgeport’s own Deep Banana Blackout.

Bridgeport Mayor Bill Finch commented, “The Vibes is an exceptional addition to Bridgeport’s blossoming arts and entertainment scene, as well as a tremendous opportunity to showcase the Park City to thousands of out-of-town guests from throughout the country. We look forward to growing together over the next five years.”

Gathering of the Vibes Executive Director Ken Hays added, “The Vibes at Seaside Park is a true team effort and I couldn’t be more pleased about today’s announcement. As a lifelong Connecticut resident, it’s a privilege to call Seaside Park home for the next five years.”

The four-day festival offers entertainment options for the entire family. In addition to showcasing 40 bands on three stages, this year’s event launches the bold Green Vibes environmental initiative, aimed at educating attendees on issues related to global climate change.

Local organizations committed to developing sustainable energy alternatives will be highlighted, while a “Solar Stage,” featuring up-and-coming artists from the Bridgeport area and beyond, will be powered by on-site solar panels. A wide variety of custom arts and crafts vendors will be on hand, while designated kids areas provide diversions for even the youngest of attendees (kids 12 and under are admitted to the event free of charge). Convenient shuttle service to satellite lots, local hotels, the Bridgeport Metro North station, and Port Jefferson Ferry makes the event an easily accessible day trip from anywhere in the northeast.

Gathering of the Vibes 2008 marks the festival’s fourth appearance at Seaside Park. The 1999 and 2000 concerts were unprecedented ventures for the park, with thousands of campers taking up residence for extended weekends of music and revelry, which propelled the event to national prominence.

Following a sweeping restoration and renovation project at Seaside Park, Gathering of the Vibes returned to the Long Island Sound waterside haven in August 2007. Approximately 20,000 attendees per day enjoyed musical performances by acclaimed artists such as Buddy Guy, George Clinton and Parliament Funkadelic, and the Grateful Dead’s Bob Weir.

This year’s event will again showcase musical legends and emerging artists at the park’s 370 pristine acres. Gathering of the Vibes advance tickets are available online at www.GatheringoftheVibes.com or by calling 203-908-3030.

Advance Weekend Camping Pass (limited availability): $185; Weekend Non Camping Pass: $165; Single Day Admission: $70; VIP Camping Pass: Sold Out. To encourage carpooling, Thursday entrance is free for weekend ticket holders who arrive with three or more adults in their vehicle; otherwise, Thursday entrance is $20 per vehicle.

If you’re looking for some more local jam band fun, head out to the Ives Concert Park at the WestConn Westside Campus Sunday, July 6, for a headline set from moe. In a remarkable career that has touched three decades and produced 17 albums, the quintet of Al Schnier and Chuck Garvey on guitars and vocals, Rob Derhak on bass and vocals, Jim Loughlin on percussion and vibes, and Vinnie Amico on drums continues to push the standard for performance art.

Their much-anticipated album Sticks and Stones was released in January, coming a year after the critically acclaimed The Conch, and only months after the release of Warts and All Volume 5. Get your tix for the Ives show now at Ticketmaster.com; their extra-long show starts at 7:30 pm.

July ends with another jam-packed show from Warren Haynes and Gov’t Mule, Saturday, July 26 — Rose Hill Drive is opening. This show kicks off at 5:30 pm, and all the shows are brought to you by our friends at Premier Concerts of Waterbury.

Just a reminder: there’s a new No Alcohol policy at the Ives venue, which means you can’t roll in with your own libations, you have to get an ID bracelet to purchase beer or wine inside the park.

Rob and company over at Mocha in Sandy Hook are taking a much-deserved break July 4, but will reopen July 5 with live music from singer and songwriter Jon Slow.

We just got a reminder from the folks at the Mark Twain House and Museum in Hartford that their Twain at Twilight Free Concert Series will feature the Riverboat Stompers on July 17, and the River City Slim & The Zydeco Hogs on July 31.

The Riverboat Stompers are easily the most exciting proponents of New Orleans Jazz north of the Mason-Dixon line. They play the familiar Dixieland oeuvre, with a sprinkling of tongue-in-cheek tender love songs, hand-clapping gospel and stirring patriotic warhorses.

River City Slim & The Zydeco Hogs cook up a spicy musical gumbo that combines the traditional sounds of the button accordion and washboard with a driving, syncopated beat to produce zydeco.

Both concerts are held on the lower lawn of The Mark Twain House & Museum at 6 pm. In event of rain performance will be held in the Lincoln Financial Auditorium at The Mark Twain Museum Center 351 Farmington Avenue. Parking is free, and great food is available from Tallulah’s at The Mark Twain Cafe — or bring a picnic dinner. Museum store open until 6 pm. Go to www.Marktwainhouse.org or call 860-247-0998 for details.

Regular readers may remember a great interview we had with folk singer Richie Havens promoting his Ridgefield Playhouse set a few months ago. During that chat, Richie promised his new project was near completion.

Well, wait no more. His latest effort, Nobody Left to Crown, will be released to the US on Verve Records on July 29. According to the advance, Havens has never been more relevant, necessary even, than he is today.

Gifted with one of the most recognizable voices in popular music, Richie Havens has a soulful singing style that remains as unique and ageless as when he first emerged from the Greenwich Village folk scene in the early 1960s. You can check him out for yourself when he pulls into Mohegan Sun Casino in Uncasville, August 25–26.

UPCOMING SHOWS

JULY 5 — Jon Slow at Mocha Coffee House, Sandy Hook; The Nields at the Levitt Pavilion, Westport; The Breakfast, Toad’s Place, New Haven; Comedian Lisa Lampanelli, Foxwood’s MGM Grand, Mashantucket.

JULY 6 — David Bromberg, The Little Theater, New Haven; Shelby Lynne, FTC Stage One, Fairfield; Andy Statman, Warner Theater, Torrington.

JULY 9 — Dope, with Kittie, Webster Theater, Hartford.

JULY 10 — Indigo Girls, Ridgefield Playhouse, Ridgefield; Jim Bianco, Two Boots Roadhouse, Bridgeport.

JULY 11 — Los Lobos, Meadowbrook Park, Hamden; Trisha Yearwood, Foxwood’s MGM Grand, Mashantucket.