Yachtley Crew, one of the hottest singing groups on this summer’s concert tours, sails into the Providence Performing Arts Center for one performance only on Saturday, July 27 at 8:00 p.m.

Guitarist and singer Tommy Gardner, aka Tommy Buoy, an original member of the seven-piece group, grew up in Warwick.

“I lived in Warwick until I was 27, attended Pilgrim High School and graduated from URI. I actually have an MBA, which I’ve never used,” Tommy told me as his tour bus was leaving Las Vegas (115 degrees) on its way to Texas on the group’s national cross-country tour.

“I’m excited to be coming home to Rhode Island,” the 41-year-old said. “Many of my friends and family will be at the show.”

Tommy paid his dues, playing and starting a few bands from here to California, where he moved in 2010.

“We started Yachtley Crew in 2016 and had our first show in January of 2017. Yacht music was just catching on, as people longed for the great nostalgic tunes of the ‘70s and ‘80s,” Gardner said.

“Our audiences range from people who grew up with that music, older folks and kids. It’s fun to watch kids come to the show dressed in sailor suits.”

I googled a few of their songs and enjoyed the modern twist they gave to them. Their renditions of the Bee Gees blew me away.

Also known as the “Titans of Soft Rock,” the group, dressed in yachting clothes, has been selling out venues and starting a nationwide Yacht Rock craze. They recently released their debut EP “Seas the Day” on Mailboat Records.

“Our goal is to honor the great songs of the ‘70s and ‘80s,” Tommy said. “We may play some of them a little louder and with higher energy.”

“Yacht music has really caught on,” Tommy said. “We have our own groupies who follow us around like they do for the Grateful Dead. We have one guy who has seen our show 100 times.”

“We have gone from traveling from show to show by car, pulling a trailer behind us to having our own tour bus.”

The show is always changing, and Tommy feels that some of the greatest music of all time was created in the seventies and the eighties.

“We expect to be around for a long time!”

Catch Yachtley Crew at the Providence Performing Arts Center on Saturday, July 27 at 8:00 p.m. Tickets range from $10.00 to $45.00.