Jazz Cruises?

[mullr]

It is a 10 day cruise on the Maasdam sailing on 01/10/08.

[hattack]

not showing anything on my normal internet jazz websites..is this a full charter or is it a large group..any idea on which jazz artist are on the ship ?

[AZ Greg]

Wow, it’s been a while since I’ve posted, but it’s great to see this thread still going strong and the number of people excited about jazz cruising.

On the Maasdam cruise, the entire ship was chartered for 1/5-15/08 by a group called JazzSea. They have a website by the same name, just add a dot com and you will find the line up and information on the 2 cruises they offer each year. Looks like a Dixieland line up. More jazz cruising choices for us and I think that’s a good thing.

Hattack, I like the sound of that jazz club at the Hard Rock. Sounds like a great place for pre-cruise dinner, drinks and music. Keep us informed on who is performing, the wife and I are interested in checking it out. I took a look and its only 4 miles from the hotel we normally stay in. By the way, we have always booked our pre-cruise stay through the Smooth Jazz Cruise folks and we have always been in the same hotel with the performers. I have to admit in ’06 on our first jazz cruise, I was hooked the night before the cruise when the wife and I spent 2-3 hours in the hotel lounge having drinks and talking about everything from the NFL playoffs to the future of jazz music with Jeff Kashiwa, Kim Waters, Warren Hill and others. We did the same thing this year, but a trip to the jazz club in ’08 sounds like fun.

Harve, thanks for that link to the North Sea info. I enjoyed reading the reports. I hope that gentleman Baldassari is on the Jan. cruise. I’d like to buy him a drink and hear some of his stories. Sounds like they had their hands full and pulled it off without the cruisers noticing. As far as the Smooth Jazz Cruise in Jan., it’s definitely laid back and less formal, and you don’t have to worry about the entertainment being good. Since it is a full charter the chartering company sets the standards. Instead of the traditional 2 formal nights on a 7 day cruise, we only had 1 formal night in the dining room, all other nights were casual. In ’06 one of our tablemates came to dinner in camp shirt or polo and a nice pair of shorts. I think it was the second or third night before I noticed he was wearing shorts. Just like with the other passengers, we had an instant bond with the music and it didn’t matter what you were wearing. As fare as the age spread on our cruises there were very few kids, I know Euge Groove had his kids and so did Peter White, but not very many passengers with kids. The adults ranged from 20’s to 80’s, and everybody had a great time.

I see you guys have heard about Culbertson not hosting his All Star Cruise in ’08. The PC explanation on the street is the BC had to pull out due to a scheduling conflict. Not sure how as the host of your own cruise, you would allow a scheduling conflict to come up. I feel for the new promoters that have to book performers for a cruise that is about 6 months away, and also the people that are booked with final payments coming due and no real line up of performers. It sounds like a real mess. I went to BC’s website and a lot of his fans that know about him pulling out are canceling their booking. I hope that the new promoters can pull this cruise together by signing some solid performers and by reviewing their pricing. I thought the prices they were quoting for a 5 day cruise, on an older Carnival ship, that only stopped in Cabo were ridicules. I also wish they weren’t competing with the Smooth Jazz Cruise in January.

Well folks I have some honey-do’s that I need to take care of. To those of you on the Smooth Jazz Cruise in Jan. I’m looking forward to sharing a week of jazz, drink, food and fun with you all.

182 and counting down.

[hattack]

Greg..thanks for the additional information about the Maasdam,..I'll keep you posted about the pre cruise jazz club..it looks like with Brian pulling out of his cruise, I will finalize plans for Wayman's cruise around my birthday in early august (hopefully they will have an inside cabin left)my cruise partner who happens to live in San Diego and loves Brian, has a theory that he will wind up as co-host with Wayman to help ease the load since Wayman is recovering from cancer...I understand the change of promoters for the All Star cruise might wind up being a good thing and I suspect they will lower their prices significantly depending upon the line up they can muster..as far as the North Sea cruise was concern, usually when it's the first year there are kinks to be worked out so I suspect if they do it next year it will be much better..I thought it was strange that the seas were rough in the summer in that part of the world...if I had the time and the funds I would really do the back to back charters in November with Dave Koz and friends and then the Jazz Cruise

 

hopefully, see you in January on the Westerdam..I love that line up and I love Aruba and HMC..doesn't get much better then that

[dark_eyez]

Wayman is recovering from cancer and his cruise will be his first public appearance"

 

Actually, Wayman's 1st public appearance was at the Tulsa International Mayfest on Saturday, May 19th, 2007. Here's one of the write-ups. Click on this link and do a FIND on the word "Mayfest":

http://www.fontanadistribution.com/breakingnews.htm

 

My husband and I were on the Warren Hill Smooth Jazz Cruise 2004, 2005, 2006 and the Smooth Jazz Cruise hosted by Wayman Tisdale in Jan. 2007. To me... the Smooth Jazz Cruise of the century was the one in 2006 (Brian Culbertson was one of the performers). It was simply incredible from the service to the food to the entertainment to the cruise itinerary. It was just awesome. The 2007 cruise was in a word: disappointing. Compared to the other 3, this last one left much to be desired which was why we decided not to go on the next one in 2008. I made a list of the things we observed where the quality/management was sub-par but didn't send it to Jazz Cruises, LLC because it wouldn't make a difference. To those who are going on the next Smooth Jazz Cruise, I hope you have a wonderful time. But if it's run like this last one was, we won't miss it.

[hattack]

dark eyez..thanks for the" heads up" about Wayman..glad he's back performing...I have not been to Tulsa since 1996 and miss the city and the Music Festival (that year I believed they had Dr John and Spiro Gyra)..just curious..why do you think there was such a change in last year's cruise after so many successful prior cruises ? Wasn't last year the first with Wayman as host instead of Warren Hill ?

 

it appears to be very close to another sell out this year ? Have you looked into doing another smooth jazz cruise (Dave Koz or Capital ) ?

[dark_eyez]

I had a conversation for a couple of hours at the Ft. Lauderdale airport with a gentleman who works with and travels with Wayman Tisdale. I was going on about how disappointed I was when he introduced himself. I was telling him about some of the things my husband and I noticed this year... that there was a definite change between this year and previous years. He told me that Jazz Cruises bought Warren out and that Jazz Cruises "wants to take things in a different direction". I heard a similar statement from the president of Peter White's fan club who told us she's heard that the cruises are going to be more gospel & RnB with a touch of jazz. Because of that... she is not going on the next cruise either. I like gospel and I like RnB. But if I go on a jazz cruise, doggone it, I want jazz!! I thought Jazz Cruises was pretty lousy, by the way, in relegating Warren to performing by the pool and not on stage when he came on board for one day as a "Special Guest". It was a bit of a slap in the face, in my opinion, after all he's done. He handled the affront with class, however, but it hurt to see him treated like that. Here are a few other things I noticed: 1) there were NEVER lounge chairs set out by the indoor pool this year. Not once. Who ever heard of a pool with no lounge chairs? They were there, stacked in a corner the whole time. This was Jazz Cruises LLC's doing. They determine the number of crew members and how the ship will be run as far as service to the passengers. I guess they took those people and made them waiters instead. It was pretty annoying to be in the Gospel Hour on Sunday morning and be constantly harrassed by waiters wanting you to buy alcohol at 10 in the morning!!! I was tempted to make myself a little sign and pin it to my shirt that said "NO! I don't want a drink.. quit asking me!" 2) in the past, when you first boarded the ship, there was a room by the piano bar where you could check your carry on luggage so you wouldn't have to lug it around the ship while you waited for your cabin to be ready. They didn't offer that this year. Consequently, there was luggage sitting in chairs and in the aisles on the Lido deck as people gathered to have lunch. This was not only an incovenience, as there were few places for people to sit and eat because chairs and tables were covered with luggage... but it was a huge safety hazard as well. 3) There were no jam sessions this year after the concerts 4) The dance band by the pool was not most people's cup of tea (Sound Connection). There were never more than about 50 ppl listening the whole week. The last 3 yrs, they had DW3-- an absolutely fantastic and popular band from Los Angeles. People partied when they performed. On DW3's website, it says they'll be onboard in 2008 but there is no mention of them on the jazz cruise website, so I don't know that for certain. 5) I can understand no photography during the performances (they allowed it in the previous 3 years and I have some great photos), but no photography allowed at the autograph sessions either? There seemed to be a real effort to squelch spontaneity. There was less of it on this last cruise in other aspects as well, i.e., walking by a little area on the ship and discovering an artist had just sat down to play something impromptu because they felt like it and fewer surprise guest performances during the shows. 6) The 2008 cruise is really a Southern Caribbean cruise; which normally leave out of San Juan. If the ship departs from Fr. Lauderdale, it's usually a 9-10 day cruise, not 7. It's a long haul to make it there and back in 7 days. If there's bad weather and they have to slow the ship like they did last year.... not sure how they'll handle that. Figure it up and you'll see that they'll be at sea 4 days out of the 7. Yuk. 7) Wayman is a good performer and I'm sure a fun person but as the cruise host... he was mostly in absentia. There wasn't the warmth, polish, and quick-wittedness that a host should probably possess. I know Warren and Wayman are different people, but the role of a host demands certain qualities. Just because you grin a lot doesn't make you a model host. Not everybody is cut out for it.

 

I have more reasons, but that's enough.

 

We've been on 4 SJC's (we stayed in the same cabin with a balcony for the past 3). The first 3 yrs... we had a FABULOUS time. This last one... we didn't have an awful time, but it wasn't great either. For the money it cost, we fully expect great... not OK. It was the first jazz cruise we've been on that when the last day came, we were ready to go home. Previous years, when the last day came, we didn't want to leave. I think Warren Hill had more to do with how things went than any of us knew. My husband and I tried pay atttention this year so that we could see if there were changes, if any, since Warren is no longer involved. We saw plenty and we documented them and have had many discussions together about it. We have spoken to many others from the 2007 cruise who noticed the same things and feel as we do so it's not just me.

 

After weighing it all, we decided to skip going on a jazz cruise in 2008. We'll see how we feel in a year or so. We know people who are going on the next one and will speak to them about their experience when they get back. If the reviews are bad, it is doubtful we will go on another Jazz Cruises LLC cruise again.

[hattack]

thanks for sharing..I would suspect that LLC may be moving away from total smooth jazz cruises because there are now so many of them...due to the success of the Tom Joyner Fantastic Voyage cruises on Royal Caribbean (this year on the FOS), the direction of more of a combination of Gospel and R/B and a touch of smooth jazz probably makes good business sense in the long run..case in point the Capital Jazz Cruise out of Baltimore on the Grandeur of the Seas October 14th-19th

 

I have been chatting with my friends that book the All Star cruise that Brian will not be co-hosting this year, out of San Diego on the Elation and they have given me encouragement that the new management promotion company (Haven Entertainment- I google them and could not find) that in spite of the short notice they will be announcing their revised line up shortly including the pre cruise weekend activities and it should be a stonger line up then what was originally announced...my friends and I had such a great time on the first one in November of 2005 in spite of the challenges of changing ships due to Katrina..so you might want to keep an eye out on their website or on this thread and when it is announced I'll let you know...thank you for sharing your comments..you are right in that when you pay a premium you have higher expectations...I have become so enamored with the total smooth jazz cruise concept that going on a regular cruise no longer does it for me and because of the expense I have to now plan my smooth jazz cruise every other year instead of my normal once a year cruise...regular cruises are now so boring to me (smile)...I'll wait as long as I can for the All Star lilne up announcement (ports of call don't factor into my decision and I have been on the Elation before and is one of my favorite Carnival ships)

[jazzlover]

Hey HATTACK....We'll be on the next Smooth Jazz Cruise(2008) with Wayman. My hubby and I were on the last one(our first jazz cruise) and had the time of our life. (It was our first vacation alone in 15 years and had a blast) Our friends got so tired of hearing how much fun we had that we finally had to break down and invite them this time. So there will be 8 of us from Gulfport heading to Ft. Lauderdale in January. I sure hope you are right about B.C. co-hosting with Wayman. One of my girlfriends will fall over dead if she hears he'll be there!! Please post if you get the inside scoop.

 

Till then.........

[burlingtoncruiser]

not showing anything on my normal internet jazz websites..is this a full charter or is it a large group..any idea on which jazz artist are on the ship ?

 

 

The Jazzsea (dot) com cruise on the Maasdam is actually 01/05/08 - a 25th anniversary jazz cruise - a 10 day Southern Carribean Cruise. The artists are listed below. There is a roll call started but only a couple of us signed up. Maybe not many CC on that particular one. Apparently if you play an instrument they will let you jam with them - I have an 800 number if you wish it e-mail me

helen@mangle.ca

 

groups appearing are the following so far (copied from website) - BUCK CREEK JAZZ BAND, CLIMAX JAZZ BAND, GRAND DOMINION JAZZ BAND, BOB SCHULZ FRISCO JAZZ BAND, AN KITTRELL & THE ST. LOUIS RIVERMEN, TEX WYNDHAM, DICK WILLIAMS' JAZZSEA JAM, TIM ALLAN'S BANJOS AWEIGH, Just Added! South Florida's TAMIAMI TAILGATORS JAZZ BAND

[cruiser_cheryl]

I know there is one leaving out of New Orleans on Feb. 17 through the 24th. It is on the Norwegian Spirit. I have been on this jazz cruise before and had a great time. It is one Jazz artist, by the name of Darren Motamedy, He is really great. Not world known, but the music is fantastic and it cost less than some of the other jazz cruises with the heavy weights, but just as much fun if not better.

[Darren Motamedy]

Hey, my band is doing a smooth jazz cruise the 17th thru the 28th on the Norwegian Spirit, leaving out of New Orleans.....

 

You can find more information by searching Darren Motamedy, Smooth Jazz Saxophonist!

 

Happy Sailing!

dmo

[SunDapple]

Thank you so much for listing the artisits. They literally put the jazz in the cruise. It's also interesting to know what kind of talent goes on these cruises. Sounds like a nice line up. :-)

[hattack]

:) Wow !!!! :) the AllStar Smooth Jazz Cruise just announced it's revised line up to replace Brian Culbertson and much to my surprise and delight, it combines some great 60-s Motown Acts along with some great smooth jazz talent

 

Motown - Kool and the Gang, Four Tops, The Spinners

 

Smooth Jazz - Norman Brown and Nick Colione (host and jam session host), Boney James, Warren Hill, Larry Carlton, Alcoustic Alchemy, Shilts (from DTTB), Marion Meadows, Paul Taylor, Steve Oliver, Chieli Munici (sp), Althena Rene, Alan Hewitt

 

awesome line up:) send me a private note if you want to get a group together to go..it's a full charter on the Elation out of San Diego with two days of pre concerts and parties

[Froufie]

Hey Hattack - that sounds like my kind of cruise - I LOVE MOTOWN music (and my dh is a fan of jazz) - can you provide more details such as sailing date and where we can find further information?

 

Thanks,

 

Froufie

[hattack]

since we are not allowed to publish links..I think we are allowed to state you can goggle the name of the cruise which is in my first line:D

 

let me know if you and your spouse are interested..I am trying to get a large group together

[hattack]

Kenny G., Patti Austin and FourPlay have just been added to the AllStar Smooth Jazz Cruise..just keeps getting better and better

[dark_eyez]

Read the line-up information carefully and know for certain who's performing on the ship and who is not before you get too excited.

 

Nowhere does Haven Entertainment say that Kenny G., Patii Austin, Fourplay will be performing on the cruise. What the website says is that they've been added to the "All Star Smooth Cruise Land and Sea Entertainment Line Up". "The Entertainment Line Up, remember, includes the pre-cruise music festival as well as the onboard cruise entertainment. Is it not important to know which is which? It would be to me.

 

I read an Aug. 22, 2007 post on the Smoothvibes website that states that Kenny G. has been added to the pre-cruise entertainment, not the cruise entertainment. That may also be true of Patti Austin and Fourplay as well, I don't know. But for certain, Haven Entertainment does NOT say that any of them will be performing on the ship. They worded this carefully because ... well, they're not exactly lying by saying they've been added to the Entertainment lineup. But they're not being forthcoming either in not saying which part... land or sea.

 

The promoters of the All-Star Cruise have been vague in their promotion details of this cruise ever since the 1st one was launched 2 yrs ago. They never make it crystal clear how much the cabins are, what cabins and categories are remaining, exactly what the cruise line-up is, and what the land line-up is. They don't even tell tell you if it's a Charter Cruise or not! Ever stop to think why not? It's all about marketing...

 

I'm just saying... make sure you've got accurate and clear information about what you're getting. And if what you have is good enough for you, then go for it... and have a great time.

[dark_eyez]

In my experience, every time someone is featured as a "Guest, Special Guest, or Special Invited Guest"... the performer is not on the cruise for the entire 7 days. They usually come on board for a day, perform, and then get off at the next stop... or... the passengers all get off the ship and go to some venue on land to see the entertainer perform.

 

Dave Koz, Al Jarreau and Warren Hill came aboard separately on The Smooth Jazz Cruise as "guests". Passengers disembarked from the Dave Koz cruise to see "Special Guests" Euge Groove and Jeff Golub at two separate stops in Mexico.

 

Just something else to keep in mind.

[hattack]

thanks for the heads-up, I was on the first All Star Cruise right after Katrina on the Conquest, so I am aware of the pre cruise concerts and as it is being laid out on the updates they have added a 3rd night to their pre cruise concert which would include the Motown Acts and Patti Austin and Kenny G..which if you stop and think about it makes sense because it's advertise as a smooth jazz cruise..but also I suspect we will begin to see a trend that lends itself to major pre cruise concerts (a way to build interest in local smooth jazz cities to take the cruise the following year)with cross over and Motown/ Funk Groups would be logical because a great number of smooth jazz musicians had their start in horn sections of the great 70's Motown/Funk Bands (Tower of Power etc)..also I check the musicians website to see their upcoming tour dates and that will often tell you if it's a performance on the ship or on an island..

Since it is a change of promoters and host in mid stream, I expect to try to remain fluid and give the new promoters the benefit of the doubt since I enjoyed the first cruise sooo much and it was held under very challenging circumstances (post Katrina chaos)

 

My experience with Cruise International that is handling the bookings have been first rate and very professional, so I'll roll with the punches

 

fyi..I just purchased the newest CD's with FourPlay (X) and Acoustic Alchemy (This Way) and love them so I'm looking forward to seeing them perform either on land or sea...the ports of call on this one don't excite me so I'm hoping that there will be a land concert in Ensenada, if not I won't get off the ship

 

I was in a serious debate whether to go on Wayman Tisdale's cruise on the Westerdam (I love the line up, the islands, the ship) or the All Star cruise since it was on the same week time frame and then "ran the numbers" including air out of New Orleans ..what tipped the scales to the All Star cruise was the person that I usually cruise with just moved to San Diego

 

As long as the music is great, I don't care where I cruise too and my experience is most smooth jazz cruisers are like that

 

fyi..I see Brian Culbertson has just been added to the Capital Jazz Fest cruise to Bermuda on Royal Caribbean in mid October..too many choices, not enough money or time off from work..what a nice "pickle to be in"

 

I'm also curious to see if the promoters are planning to do another North Sea Jazz Cruise in July tied into the North Sea Festival since there seem to be a lot of logistical challenges in it's first year (which should be expected, much like when a new car model is introduced, you wait for them to work out the first year kinks)

[Sansouci]

Hey there, Jazz Cruisers:)

 

Is anybody else on board for the Jazz Party at Sea on the Norwegian Sun, Nov. 3-11? This will be my first one and I wondered if you could tell me what to expect.

 

Thanks!

[AZ Greg]

I wanted to stop by and wish those of you on the Capital Jazz Cruise this Sunday a bon voyage. With your line up it should be a great cruise. Hopefully one of you will stop by and fill us in on your experience when you return. Wish I could go to Bermuda with you.

 

Down to double digits until Wayman's SJC in Jan.

[chamomile]

The promoters of the All-Star Cruise have been vague in their promotion details of this cruise ever since the 1st one was launched 2 yrs ago. They never make it crystal clear how much the cabins are, what cabins and categories are remaining, exactly what the cruise line-up is, and what the land line-up is. They don't even tell tell you if it's a Charter Cruise or not! Ever stop to think why not? It's all about marketing...

 

I'm just saying... make sure you've got accurate and clear information about what you're getting. And if what you have is good enough for you, then go for it... and have a great time.

Their latest info says:

 

Kicking off the cruise will be a three-night festival in sunny San Diego with music designed to groove, move and get the party started. Fans can relax to the cool sounds of favorite artists like Kenny G, Fourplay, Patti Austin, Kool & the Gang, The Spinners, Four Tops, Warren Hill and more.

Hosting this year’s cruise will beguitarist Norman Brown. This Grammy winner is known for his soulful vibes and delicious vocals. If that wasn’t enough, fans will be treated to the ultimate musical cruise experience when funky favorite Boney James in the house as well.

Red hot guitarist/vocalist Nick Colionne will tear up the stage with nightly jam sessions. Anyone that has experienced an All Star Cruise jam knows just how unpredictable and exciting these concerts can be. Just imagine seeing famous artists like Patti Austin, Acoustic Alchemy, Marion Meadows, Larry Carlton, Shilts from Down to the Bone, Paul Taylor, Alan Hewitt, Larry Gittens (Kool & the Gang), Steve Oliver, Chieli Minucci, and Althea Rene play together in the personal atmosphere of the All Star Smooth Cruise! As an added bonus, multi-platinum pianist/vibist Alan Hewitt will be giving guests an insider's sneak peek into the backstage life of these artists with informal and fun interviews that will be aired onboard the ship.

[VAMAMA]

Hi darkeyez,

My DH and I are going on the 2008 SJC. It will be our fourth SJC. I felt exactly the same way about most of the things you said. I even e-mailed the executive officer of the SJC to express my disappointment in the sound connection band and the loss of spontaneity it seemed with a lot of the artists. With that said though, I don't know if we can ever recapture the way it was when Warren Hill was there other than having him back again as host. I'll let you know how it goes. It may also be our last as well.

 

VAMAMA

[pemo]

Hey you guys! just found this site looking for info on smooth jazz cruises....I have been on both of the All Star Cruises and have enjoyed them both....I am disappointed that BC will not be hosting, but I hung out with Norman on the last cruise and he is a great guy. Not to mention performer......the ports of call are not the greatest, but I'm there for the music anyway...I could really care less about that. In the previous cruises, it has been great from the pre-concerts to the last show. Last year, the combination of artists on the stage at any one time was unimaginable...not to mention magical.. The three "house" bands that performed with the artist were "off the chain" too!! .......I heard people on both cruises complaining about different things because they had been on the other SJC's, but I also heard more great things from people who where there for the music....remember, it is a Carnival Ship and their motto is the "FunShip" and with it being a 50-50 cruise, of course there would be times when you come in contact with the "regular" cruisers.... I am looking forward to this years cruise....I have procrastinated booking because I was seriously considering Wayman's cruise mostly because I am a big Regina Belle's fan, but the line-up on the All Star is out weighing it.....Boney James...Paul Taylor!!! they are worth by themselves!!

Hattack, since you already know how great it is, I hope to see you there!!

 

PEMO