Fair season is fast upon us, which is both good news and bad news. Good because who doesn’t love a fair? But bad because their arrival is a reminder that summer is quickly coming to an end.

One of the first fairs of the season is the Heath Fair, which will take place this weekend, Aug. 18 through 20. In addition to cows and fried dough and everything else we associate with a small agricultural fairs, the Heath Fair is known for its music. Acts like The Whiskey Treaty Roadshow, the Lonesome Brothers and The Boxcar Lilies are just some of the performers who have played the fair in the past.

Bob Bourke, who books talent for the fair, said they are going for “a big sound” on Saturday. The day begins with the harmony-filled sounds of the Trouble Sisters, who will perform at 11 a.m. Then it’s time to start dancing with local band Wild Bill and the Flying Sparks, who will offer up a set of their country roots music at 1 p.m.

Then at 3 p.m, the big sound arrives when The Eddie Forman Orchestra takes the stage. That’s right — polka music is coming to the Heath Fair.

Eddie Forman of Hadley started the band in 1968 while still in high school. The Eddie Forman Orchestra has become one of the much-loved polka bands working today. In addition to having a huge following in New England, they have performed all over the country and on cruises, and have released 18 records.

Western Massachusetts has long been home to a thriving polka music scene, but sadly it’s not what it once was, as younger generations aren’t as interested in the music. If you are of a certain age, then you will remember the Polish picnic grounds in Greenfield and their Sunday afternoon polka dances. It was one of the many opportunities people had to go out and enjoy polka music. Bourke is tapping into this history and returning polka music to the fair.

“When I approached Eddie about playing, he mentioned he had played here before, but it must have been a long while ago,” Bourke said. “I lived in Whately for 20 years before moving to Heath and was exposed to music living in an area with many Polish families. And I would listen to Billy Belina playing polkas on WMUA. I figured this is another form of local music that many have never been exposed to in a live setting.” Kudos to that.

There will be another big sound when the dance band Fever headlines Saturday at 7 p.m. This western Massachusetts-based band features two female lead vocalists, a male lead vocalist/guitarist, a keyboardist, a bassist, a drummer, a saxophonist, and a trombone player (who also plays guitar, keyboard, synth and vocoder). They cover everything from the classic rock sounds of the Beatles and the Rolling Stones to the more contemporary music of the Weeknd and Taylor Swift. Fever has a vast catalog to draw from so there will be something for everyone. This is one band that knows how to get a crowd moving.

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Don’t they have square dancing at the fair? Yes, they do! And that will take place on Friday at 7:30 p.m. with the Falltown String Band with Doug Wilkins as caller. Before the square dance, there will be a set of the eclectic music from the trio of established hilltown musicians known The Uncles at 5:30 p.m, followed by Ward Hayden & the Outliers, a country and western group from the Boston area, at 7 p.m.

Sunday will feature more local talent, starting early in the morning with the roots group Slide Grinders at 10:30 a.m., and Heath Fair favorites Rosie Porter and the Neon Moons at noon, treating the crowd to their versions of country classics and some original tunes. Folk musicians The Klines wrap things up at 2 p.m. The couple from Sunderland spent years living in West Virginia, where they studied and performed Appalachian folk music.

You’ll be glad to know that all this music is included in the price of admission and all the music is performed under cover, so this is one event where you don’t have to worry about the chance of rain.

For more information and tickets, visit Theheathfair.org.

Indie rock/pop band The Lucky Shots formed around 2018 but didn’t release their first album, “Count to Nothing,” until March of this year. You can hear them play songs from the album and more when the band plays at the Ashfield Lake House on Friday, Aug. 18 at 8 p.m.

The band’s leader, multi-instrumentalist/vocalist/songwriter, Noam Schatz has been involved on the local music scene since the early 2000s. He is best known for his work with the Möbius Band, an electro pop group for which he was the drummer. The Möbius Band had a good run and enjoyed some national success. The band released their last album in 2009 and Schatz went onto to drum for bands like Sun Parade, The Conjure Beat and others. His musical direction shifted in the years that followed.

“In 2016, I switched gears and began playing a songwriting game with some friends, writing a new song every two weeks based on prompts that we took turns suggesting,” said Schatz in a recent email. “I was pleasantly surprised to find it wasn’t too painful to squeeze music from my brain, and in fact, the regular deadlines, the impulse carried from the prompts, and kind and incisive feedback from friends all fertilized a garden of thoughts and rhythm in my mind.”

The songwriting game led to him singing the songs he wrote, which led to playing his songs with some of the other members of the songwriting group .

“Eventually, we started playing out as Two Week Notice, and then I formed my own band as the front-person/singer-songwriter called The Lucky Shots,” he said. “My bandmates are all Valley all-stars, who have played in countless great bands over the years.” The band includes Anand Nayak on guitar, Jim Bliss on bass and Mike Benoit on drums.

During the pandemic, Schatz took some of his favorite songs from the songwriting game, polished them up and recorded them at his home in Hatfield. The resulting debut album, “Count to Nothing,” is an addictive hazy blend of pop, classic rock, electro and even country that Schatz delivers with ease. From the irresistibly catchy “Been Young Before” to the hypnotic beauty of “We Were Ghosts All Along,” this varied collection is deserving of your attention.

Visit The Lucky Shots website (luckyshotsmusic.com) to read about the prompts involved in the writing of these songs and others. The songwriting game continues and Schatz is close to writing his 200th song.

There is a suggested donation of $10 for the Lake House show.

Last week, Hawks & Reed Performing Arts Center announced that the annual Charlemont Reggae Festival will not take place this year. Hawks & Reed, which is run by the Goldsher family, took over the running of the festival in 2019. They stepped in to keep the long running festival going after Ras Jahn Bullock, who had organized the event for many years, passed away in 2017. The announcement cited that the reason behind this cancelation was a family health emergency. Hawks & Reed hope to return the festival next year stronger than ever.

The venue continues their commitment to bringing world class reggae music to the area and have booked Jamaican reggae artist Anthony B for a September 2 show.

Guitarist John Kadlecik’s career has a solid link to Grateful Dead icon Jerry Garcia, who passed away 28 years ago this August.

Kadlecik was the lead guitarist for the biggest Grateful Dead tribute in the world, Dark Star Orchestra, from its formation until 2009. He left that band when Bob Weir and Phil Lesh of the Grateful Dead invited him to form a new band called Further. He toured with Further until 2014. He later went on to tour with Phil Lesh and Friends, start his own band, and work with the band Golden Gate Wingmen, featuring members of Ratdog and Further. For the last few years, he has been the lead guitarist and vocalist for Melvin Seals and Jerry Garcia Band.

Kadlecik will take the stage at the Shea Theater Arts Center in Turners Falls on Friday at 8 p.m. He’ll be playing a solo show described as Acousti’lectric.

Tickets are $18 in advance and $25 day of show. Tickets and more information available at sheatheater.org.

Sheryl Hunter is a freelance writer who resides in Easthampton. Her work has appeared in various regional and national publications. She can be reached at soundslocal@yahoo.com.