Key Largo's Best Kept Secret: The Stingrays

An hours' drive south of Miami, you'll encounter the first of a long chain of islands (keys) that stretch out over a hundred miles across the Gulf of Mexico and the Atlantic ocean. The first is Key Largo, the best-known key besides Key West. Here, thousands of people stop and stay for the outstanding fishing, snorkeling and scuba diving to be had in the upper Keys. Of all the ones who stay here, though, only a small percentage ever get to hear the reclusive trio of musicians known as the Stingrays. Of all the live bands that perform in the area, the Stingrays are the hardest to locate; there are never ads in the local paper or marquees advertising their performances. The Stingrays prefer to keep a low profile; consequently, the only people who get to hear them perform are those who stay at the Mariner's Club condos next door to their regular gig every Saturday. Those who do hear them usually end up staying until they finish at 10 P.M. What makes the Stingrays so different from the other local bands, besides their intentional lack of promotion? Their style of music. The music they play is like no other style to be found in the area.

The Florida Keys; the sentence conjures up a vision of sandy beaches, sparkling blue ocean, great fishing and scuba diving, tropical sunsets, frozen drinks--and Jimmy Buffett. I'm still amazed after 10 years of living here, at how many people still think they have a chance of running into the man at some local watering hole. To set the record straight: Jimmy Buffett does not live here. He has not lived here for decades. When he comes to visit, he stays with friends..not at his Margaritaville bar in Key West.

It's easy to see just why people still believe this, though. You can't set foot into 2 out of 3 places with live entertainment down here without hearing Jimmy Buffett songs being played over and over and over again. Too much of a good thing? Move on to another place..more Jimmy Buffett songs. Yes, whether they're being played by a single artist with a guitar, a full band, or somebody with a MIDI setup trying to sound like a full band, almost every musical act here plays Buffett. Goes with the territory, I guess.

Once in awhile you can catch an island musician, too. Jamaican or Trinidadian artists who bring steel drums and background music and play all the island standards, like "Jamaica Farewell", "Shame and Scandal", "Yellow Bird", "St. Johns", etc. etc. Oh yes--and many times the "Electric Slide" is in there too. Very nice to hear on a breezy veranda while sipping a tall cool drink. Always a good entertainment factor, too, if you've got a group of tourists from Dayton trying to master the electric slide after two or three "Rumrunner" drinks in the blazing afternoon heat. Island music with steel drums is very pleasant, but again: too much of a good thing. It all starts sounding the same after awhile, doesn't it? I mean, if a steel-drum band or a Jimmy Buffett cover band suddenly swung into a version of, say, a Beatles' or Red Hot Chili Peppers' tune you probably wouldn't even realize it.

The other alternative you can get down here is the Classic Rock band. Yes, I know..many many people love classic rock, can't hear "Hotel California" too many thousands of times in their life. I bet I could make up a set list right now and every single classic rock band you've ever heard plays every single tune on the list. Many Eagles' tunes in there.. "Desperado", "Take it Easy", "Hotel California". Santana's "Evil Ways" and "Oye como va" and "Black Magic Woman". Allman Brothers, if they say they're a rock/blues band. Rolling Stones. Beatles.Tom Petty. Eric Clapton. Steve Miller Band. If there's a lady singer they'll do Janis Joplin and Jefferson Airplane songs. Getting the pattern here? Sound familiar?

Now, I'm not knocking any of these styles of music. I love filet mignon, but if I were fed a steady diet of it day in and day out, I'd get pretty tired of it . Everyone who comes to the Keys to visit wants to hear Keys-type music. But! If you've heard one too many versions of "Margaritaville", "Yellow Bird", and "Honky Tonk Women" and need a change of pace, then you should make your way to a little tiki bar on the ocean side in Key Largo called the Mandalay. Most Saturday nights there you can hear the house band, who are known as the Stingrays. They're a surf/rockabilly/spy trio who plays the kind of music you recognize but don't know by name. You'll hear a few of the tunes from the movie "Pulp Fiction"..Miserlou (Dick Dale and the Del-tones), Rumble (Link Wray and his Raymen), and Surfrider (The Ventures). You'll hear Johnny Cash's "Folsom Prison Blues", and the Stray Cats' "Rock this town" and "Stray Cat strut". Some old, lesser-known Elvis tunes. You'll hear music you swear you know from somewhere (like "Espionage" by Los Straitjackets, which is a play on the theme song from the old "Get Smart" T.V. show) even if you've never heard it before. It's familiar-sounding and fun-to-listen-to music that appeals to a wide range of ages. People in their 60s like the music because they heard it as kids. People in middle age like it because it's universally danceable. Younger people like it because they've heard snatches of most of the material either in movies or commercials for years.

The Stingrays are Key Largo's best-kept secret because they never advertise. They play in the Mandalay every Saturday, they play in Key West, Islamorada, Miami and Marathon, but they never promote their appearances or give out publicity packages or photos. They show up, play, and disappear into the night--on purpose. Only those who have stayed in the Mariner's club next to the Mandalay or have heard by word of mouth know they can hear the Stingrays regularly on Saturdays in Key Largo..but since the Mandalay isn't visible from the road and the band themselves don't want publicity, they remain ...Key Largo's best-kept secret.