First it was the kiwifruit, now it's the oysters; you could begin to wonder whether someone's got it in for New Zealand.

It hasn't, by any objective reckoning, been the happiest of years (if you ignore the blip of positivity caused by those large men in black).

Shaken not stirred.

Christchurch, the Pike River inquiry, Rena's grounding, the knackered kiwifruit, the infected oysters, John Banks back in parliament, we seem engulfed by natural disasters.

But we're tough here in the Bay. Life goes on, Christmas approaches, and the only thing to do is look forward to all the fun coming up over summer. And there's a lot of it.

Over the next few months we have the Summer Fest, Gin Wigmore and the Muttonbirds at the Domain, the Acoustic Music Festival, the Marchwood Blues Picnic, the Flavours of the Bay Festival, and, of course, the big Exodus reggae festival on New Year's Eve in Papamoa. And that's just scratching the surface.

Meanwhile, Mills Reef Winery has revealed the line-up for its Summer Series, taking place over the New Year holiday period.

The winery has already announced the acts for the big anniversary weekend concert, formerly known as Stars Under the Stars, but now rechristened The Summer Day Out.

Headline act this year is Credence Clearwater Revisited, still featuring the original rhythm section from Credence Clearwater Revival, but with a couple of new guys fronting.

Supporting them will be an amalgam of Kiwis calling themselves Made In NZ, led by Jackie Clarke and Rikki Morris. They will play covers of Kiwi hits.

Still, they will be a couple of huge concerts and only the sad story of how Credence's original singer/songwriter John Fogerty was screwed out of the royalties and rights of his songs (in one of the ugliest and most commercially obscene moves the music business has ever witnesse) might temper the pleasure of hearing all those great tunes.

The Summer Series happens a little sooner; there are three shows this year.

First up, on December 28, is Auckland's Crawfish Mambo, a rare (for Tauranga) chance to enjoy the rhythms of New Orleans.

The band's music resonates with the humid rhythms of the Big Easy and the joyful sounds of the Caribbean.

This is their first trip to Tauranga and they bring a mix of Mento and Ska, a dash of swampy second-line funk, plus the odd Mambo and Cuban tune.

Perfect for anyone who has discovered Treme on television.
Crawfish Mambo is a four-piece featuring a couple of guys from the very highly regarded Beyondsemble and a couple from French band Club Manouche.

Promising songs from Harry Belafonte, the Meters, Desmond Dekker and others, it should be a great excuse to ‘Laisser les bon temps rouler!'

Next up is Kokomo, on January 3. The band has recently returned from gigs around the country to mark the release of It All Comes Round, their new album of blues and ragtime.

Kokomo hasn't been playing much around the Bay for a while now and this will be a chance to catch up on some new songs and luxuriate in an evening of blues, from the earthy sounds of the Mississippi Delta to the contemporary Kiwi variety.

There are currently video clips of the band all over YouTube.
Harmonica player Grant Bullot has been making videos for songs on the new album and an enterprising filmer in Wellington posted a handful after the band's recent trip there.

Some of them are at www.youtube.com/KokomoNewZealand, the rest are all over the place.

And, finally, January 11 sees the return of ace swing cats Shaken Not Stirred.

Based in Wellington the six-piece are fronted by singer Penelope Kibby and include a host of top players from the capital including ex-Blerta bassist Patrick Bleakley, mean sax-man Andre Paris and two once-local boys-made-good, Damian Forlong (trombone) and Deanne Hunter (guitar).

Mixing swinging jazz favourites with punchy rhythm ‘n' blues, the band create a unique blend of blues, jazz, soul, and sensual dark lounge grooves.

And they have a lot of fun.