Final Four: Charles, Shinedown, Allmans, Skynyrd battle for Jacksonville's best music act

Things are about to get interesting in the search for Jacksonville's favorite hometown musical act. After two rounds of voting, the field is down to just four acts, and three of them are Rock and Roll Hall of Famers.

The semifinal round will pit Ray Charles against Shinedown and, in perhaps the most intriguing pairing so far, the Allman Brothers Band against Lynyrd Skynyrd.

Charles, the No. 1 overall seed in the tournament, advanced by easily outpolling No. 8 Molly Hatchet, collecting 72 percent of the votes cast. No. 5 seed Shinedown, which has a concert at VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena in April, defeated the No. 4 Tedeschi Trucks Band, which has a concert at Daily's Place in June.

But what about?40 that missed the cut for Jacksonville's best music act

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Elite 8: Vote now to pick Jacksonville's best musical act

The second-seeded Allman Brothers Band took out No. 7 Limp Bizkit with about 74 percent of the vote. Lynyrd Skynyrd, which lost founding guitar player Gary Rossington earlier this month, won big over sixth-seeded .38 Special, collecting 87 percent of the votes.

Voting in the semi-final round is open until 2 p.m. Thursday.

1: Ray Charles

Jacksonville connection: Charles moved to Jacksonville as a teen after spending time at Florida School for the Deaf and the Blind in St. Augustine, living on Church Street where the LaVilla School of the Arts now stands. He sat in with bands at Jacksonville’s Genovar Hall and Two Spot club and was a regular at St. Pius Catholic Church. But he evidently didn’t love Jacksonville; a 1998 biography describes an incident where Charles reportedly asked a friend to find him the farthest place in the U.S. from Florida and subsequently moved to Seattle.

Accolades: 5 gold albums, 3 platinum albums, 37 Grammy nominations (17 wins), Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award, star on Hollywood Walk of Fame, Georgia Music Hall of Fame, Kennedy Center Honors, Rhythm & Blues Music Hall of Fame, Country Music Hall of Fame, pictured on 2013 U.S. Postal Service stamp.

Songs you know: “Hit the Road Jack,” “Georgia on My Mind,” “I Can’t Stop Loving You,” “What’d I Say”

5: Shinedown

Jacksonville connection: Formed in Jacksonville in 2001 around singer Brent Smith. The band has a headlining show scheduled at VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena in April.

Accolades: 3 gold albums, 3 platinum albums, 7 iHeart Music nominations, 29 Top 5 songs on U.S. Mainstream Rock charts.

Songs you know: “Second Chance,” “45” “Bully,” “Monsters”

Using the app? Click here to cast your vote.

2: The Allman Brothers Band

Jacksonville connection: The band formed in a Riverside house -- where you can still stop by and read the historical marker – and included drummer Butch Trucks, who was born and raised in Jacksonville. The band’s first shows were in Willowbranch Park and at the Jacksonville Armory.

Accolades: 2 gold albums, 1 platinum album, Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, 8 Grammy nominations (1 win), Grammy

Lifetime Achievement Award,

Songs you know: “Jessica,” “Midnight Rider,” “Whipping Post,” “Ramblin’ Man”

3: Lynyrd Skynyrd

Jacksonville connection: Formed in Jacksonville, came up playing clubs and dances in ‘60s and early ‘70s. Named for Leonard Skinner, former Lee High teacher who bothered band members about their haircuts. Two DVD packages, “Pronounced Leh-Nerd Skin-Nerd & Second Helping Live” and “Last of the Street Survivors Tour Lyve,” were recorded in Jacksonville.

Accolades: 7 gold albums, 13 platinum albums, Rock and Roll Hall of Fame

Songs you know: “Free Bird,” “Sweet Home Alabama,” “Gimme Three Steps,” “That Smell”

Using the app? Click here to cast your vote.

This article originally appeared on Florida Times-Union: Jacksonville's best music act challenge bracket down to final four