CMT.com has more information on the July 1st Gulf Coast concert with Jimmy Buffett, Kenny Chesney, Zac Brown Band, and others:

Tickets will be available from Ticketmaster beginning Wednesday (June 23) at 10 a.m. CT. There is a four-ticket limit, and tickets are required for entry. Organizers expect to accommodate up to 35,000 people at the event on the beach.

The concert is being organized to demonstrate support for and solidarity with residents, businesses and the culture of the Gulf Coast. Gates will open at 3 p.m., and the concert will start at 5 p.m.

A portion of the show will air live on CMT from 8 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. ET/PT. Performances will be simulcast live on Sirius Satellite Radio and XM Satellite Radio and streamed live on CMT.com.

“There are always welcome breaks in every storm, but the unfortunate reality is that this disaster is not going away for a while,” Buffett said. “But a few hours of fun, void of the constant reminders of the situation, is a good thing, and that is basically what I do.”

“I thank Jimmy Buffett and these other great artists for coming to perform on Alabama’s coast,” said Alabama Gov. Bob Riley. “Their music will lift up spirits and help encourage visitors to come here and enjoy our world famous Southern hospitality.”

“Music has healing powers, and who better than Jimmy and friends to summon them up?” said CMT president Brian Philips. “It is CMT’s privilege to present this special. We send a message to the people of the Gulf Coast that our audience — and the world — stands beside them.”

CMT Presents Jimmy Buffett & Friends Live From the Gulf Coast is produced by the State of Alabama, the City of Gulf Shores, CMT, Live Nation and Land Shark Lager. Local promotional services are provided by Mobile-based Huka Entertainment.

CMT Presents Jimmy Buffett & Friends Live From The Gulf Coast will encore July 2 at 7 p.m., July 3 at 9:30 a.m., July 4 at 2 p.m. and July 5 at 11:30 a.m. Excerpts and artist interviews will be available at CMT.com.

According to Ticketmaster, the concert will be held at the Gulf Shores Public Beach, 101 E. Beach Blvd., Gulf Shores, AL 36542.

On Saturday Jimmy Buffett announced a free show in Gulf Shores, Alabama:

To demonstrate support for the people, businesses and culture of the Gulf Coast, CMT will telecast a free musical celebration live from the beach at Gulf Shores, Ala. CMT Presents Jimmy Buffett & Friends Live from the Gulf Coast will air on CMT on Thursday, July 1, from 8-9:30 p.m. ET/PT. Buffett and his Coral Reefer Band will be joined in the concert by his friends Sonny Landreth, Zac Brown Band, Kenny Chesney, Jesse Winchester and Allen Toussaint. A special souvenir tee shirt will also be designed for the concert and sold onlne and at the show. More info coming soon!

We’ll post more info as we get it.

We reported a couple weeks ago that Jimmy Buffett was helping a Vero Beach boat builder in the oil relief effort, and now the first of four Shallow Water Attention Terminal (S.W.A.T.) boats is on its way to the University of Southern Mississippi’s Gulf Coast Research Laboratory:

The first of four specially designed Shallow Water Attention Terminal (S.W.A.T.) boats built and designed by Florida-based Dragonfly Boatworks, and funded by Margaritaville Holdings and Landshark Lager heads to the Gulf Coast Research Laboratory in Southern Mississippi this week to begin a massive rescue effort.

Prompted by images of an ever-widening oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico which threatens Mississippi, Alabama and Florida’s coast, Vero Beach boat-builder, Mark Castlow, Jimbo Meador and Meador’s longtime friend, musician Jimmy Buffett, “had to do something.” All three men have long histories in, on, and around water earning their livings and loving the lifestyle. All three are concerned with short and long-term effects the spill will have on the Gulf and Atlantic Ocean, on visible marine life and the less-visible eggs and microorganisms that support the system.

“Instead of pointing fingers, we wanted to lend a hand,” Meador said. That led to the design of the S.W.A.T. boat. Using multiple resources, Buffett, Castlow and Meador designed the “life” boat for oil-injured wildlife. Unique features set the rescue boat apart: shallow draft with a bow-mounted trolling motor to avoid unnecessary noise, a worktable mounted mid-deck coated with a sanitary gel and a coarse surface to help animals grip without slippage, solar fans, a misting system to cool researchers and wildlife, plus a folding, collapsible canopy shading the entire boat. The Evinrude Company, showed it’s concern about the cleanup effort in the Gulf by promptly donating four low-maintenance 40-HP ETE outboards, which exceed all Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) regulations. SWAT boats will also be equipped with a camera system so that researchers and the public can view the activities on the Internet.

View more photos of the boats at Margaritaville.com

Last week Jimmy Buffett visited the University of Southern Mississippi’s Gulf Coast Research Laboratory to see how their work is going as their Oil Response Team tries to combat the oil spill in the gulf:

The singer and songwriter met with the University’s President, Dr. Martha Saunders and her team of researchers on June sixth.

Buffett visited USM’s Gulf Coast Research Laboratory in Ocean Springs to talk about their needs regarding the examination of this spill. To help out, Buffett partnered with a boat company from Florida called Dragonfly Boats. Designer, Mark Castlow is creating specialized boats for the lab.

Buffett is donating those vessels to the University. Dr. Saunders said Buffett e-mailed her about two weeks ago saying he wanted to see the lab’s work.

“So he came and met with our scientists and got a briefing on the kind of work we are doing. And Mark Castlow came and we talked about the progress of the boats and so it was a great day. We got to see a great alum and talk about what we can do together toward maybe improving the prospects with this oil spill,” said Saunders.

Jimmy graduated from USM in 1969 with a bachelor’s degree in history.

You can donate to the Southern Miss Oil Spill Response fund visit at www.usmfoundation.com/oilspill and read about the Spill Response Team here.

Read more about Buffett and the Dragonfly boats here.

Last week we reported on Briggs & Stratton’s effort to get 240 generators to earthquake-stricken Haiti and how Buffett was trying to help move them through customs (read the story). Laura Timm, director of corporate communications for Briggs, left a comment today on our article letting everyone know they got through:

This is Laura Timm with Briggs & Stratton. Our generators cleared customs today (6-10-10). Thanks to Jimmy and everyone who helped us get the generators in the hands of those that need them most.