Things to Do in Florence Tonight

Florence anchors the Shoals, the stretch of northwest Alabama that changed American music — FAME Studios and Muscle Shoals Sound sit just across the Tennessee River, and the session-player spirit still hangs over the whole area. The W.C. Handy Music Festival each July honors the Florence-born father of the blues with a week of performances in clubs, restaurants, and parks across town. The University of North Alabama keeps a steady run of concerts and theater going during the school year, and downtown's Court Street bars host local players most weekends. It's a small city where the musical history feels close enough to touch.