No more BB King's on Zuiderdam?

[zgscl]

4 hours ago, rkacruiser said:

 

Reading this is another indictment of the entertainment department's leadership and decisions that have been made, now for more than a decade, that have resulted in substandard entertainment that many expect.  

 

Excellent entertainment has been provided for a venue.  Only to be substituted with either no entertainment for a venue or disappointment after disappointment.  

 

 

It really is. I have also been advised that Step One is the lowest rated item across the board on all of their surveys and has been for a long time. I guess that whoever controls the entertainment is convinced we are all wrong and does not care. 

 

I can understand their issue with BB Kings group. This was our 5th cruise since the restart. Their performances have gotten shorter and shorter (even when none of the members were sick). My hope is they do not drastically change the music in there. It is always packed and has been on every cruise. I will be following the live threads from the ships with the new concept closely. 

[rkacruiser]

18 hours ago, zgscl said:

I guess that whoever controls the entertainment is convinced we are all wrong and does not care. 

 

If the same man who has been in charge of this department for years has survived all of these years of corporate changes, it is he.  

[fatcat04]

I hope they resolve whatever issue they are having as BB Kings was our fav venue last 2 cruises pre-Covid. Loved the music (Jazz, Blues, Motown) and the excellent quality musicians. This is something HAL should seek to retain, period. 

[Tucson Traveler]

We were on the Niew Amsterdam last October (2021) and the ship had BB King's.  It was great the first time we went, bopped around in our seats and sang along to a lot of songs.  Yes, there was a great deal of Motown, but who doesn't love a good Motown song for getting you going.

Here was the problem - the room is not that big and the band had their amps up SO HIGH it was distracting from the music itself.  Loud can be fun until it's painful.  If they had turned the amps down a notch or two, we would have been back a lot more often.  Yes, it got a crowd and it's the ONLY place on the ship that people can dance. 

Hopefully when we're on the Oosterdam in December for the SA/Antarctica 22-day cruise Rolling Stone's Lounge will be running smoothly.  Agree, no Top 40 - just good classic choices that most people know the words to.

PS - Neither venue is showing on the ship information pages for the Oosterdam.  Made me come looking here to see if they're doing away with both.

[CruiserBruce]

@Tucson Traveler, they aren't doing away with both. Sounds like you will have the Rolling Stones lounge.

[Tucson Traveler]

@cruisebruce  That is the hope! Just think it is odd that the ship info page had put up Rolling Stone and now it's gone.  Hopefully a web content error. My brother-in-law who is traveling with us for a  change and is a huge music fan.  We adore Lincoln Center and will go to every show - and even repeat.  But having some fun dance music is a must on a long cruise.

[Wakepatrol]

On 6/17/2022 at 8:39 PM, rkacruiser said:

 

I cannot say that there was only I BB King number in their repertoire on any ship where I enjoyed their performance.  But, I can say that their repertoire was sufficiently expansive that it included much of what one would expect to hear in the Rolling Stone Rock Room.  

 

I find it curious that this change is coming to the Zuiderdam since she is scheduled for the 2023 World Cruise.  Does the demographics of the guests on this cruise indicate to the entertainment gurus in Seattle that Rolling Stone Rock Room would be preferable to BB King?  

More like Mitch Miller on a loop

[rkacruiser]

2 minutes ago, Wakepatrol said:

More like Mitch Miller on a loop

 

Really?  I think those who will be sailing on a world cruise will prefer a non-Mitch Miller type of loop.

 

What is needed is to hire musicians that can sight read and are not bound by a corporate play list!  (Sight reading is not easy.  One of my two music major Nephews preferred not to have to try to sight read new music.)  

[dockman]

On 6/18/2022 at 8:08 AM, Cybercsp said:

So disappointed to hear this.  On our Noordam cruises, the earlier BBKing sets were often standing room only.  

yep every bb king room i have seen on several ships packed every show...so by all means if u are an exec for HAL eliminate one of the most popular venues on your ships.....and  maybe fire whoever came up with initial idea....how dare you provide such a popular venue to liven up a HAL cruise....

[CruiserBruce]

16 minutes ago, dockman said:

yep every bb king room i have seen on several ships packed every show...so by all means if u are an exec for HAL eliminate one of the most popular venues on your ships.....and  maybe fire whoever came up with initial idea....how dare you provide such a popular venue to liven up a HAL cruise....

Yep...Rolling Stone lounge isn't popular at all. You know this how? It's been jammed on our cruises. Of course, BB King has been as well. But the Vistonly have room for one, but not both.

 

As mentioned,  there seems to be a supply issue with BB King.

[rodndonna]

we've only 3 HAL cruises, all post Covid. One had just BB and 2 had both Rolling Stones and BB.

 

The music in BB's varied across the 3 cruises was quite a bit, where one was just quite bad. It was Alaska and there was a lot of Covid that cruise, so hopefully that explains them doing "Sweet Caroline"?

 

I think for Rolling Stones venue it is easier to get a more consistent quality in the bands, and there is more opportunity for crossover of music. A rock band can do a good job of "Mustang Sally", but as much as I like "Sweet Caroline" I just don't want to hear it in the BB lounge.

 

[Oceanwench]

I wish people would read better!

The Rolling Stone Rock Room has nothing to do with the Rolling Stones!
It's sponsored by Rolling Stone magazine.

That said, it's a venue playing classic rock. Many songs are from the '60s and '70s.
Songs I grew up with -- and I am old! LOL (Do the math!)
On Rotterdam, the Rock Room was always busy -- and we were sailing at half capacity.
The musicians were extremely talented. One of our group was a professional musician, and he appreciated the band's skills.

They played a variety of music from the Beatles, Rolling Stones, Aerosmith, Tom Petty, etc.

We booked another cruise on Rotterdam, because we enjoyed the Rock Room so much.

The ship has a separate venue for BB King Club, and that was popular as well.

HAL could eliminate the piano duo -- our ears bled at their bleating! 
 

[Mary229]

1 hour ago, Oceanwench said:

That said, it's a venue playing classic rock. Many songs are from the '60s and '70s.

You are right about the affiliation but the Rolling Stone Magazine has marched on and covers modern rock as it did classic rock in its heyday.  Maybe it’s time to realize if you want younger cruisers you need to offer a playlist they enjoy.  

[robotpony]

I was impressed by the quality of the BB King band on the Koningsdam this summer, though the music directer ended up sitting in on keyboards (he was fantastic, too). I chatted with him at one of the bars, and we shared our love of keyboards over the years. The band itself was tight, full of energy, and we watched every performance that week.

 

I was also impressed by the duelling pianos music; a huge range of songs, taking requests, and just a nice place to hang out with lower overall business and volume levels. Unfortunately there was only one pianist due to a staffing issue, who duelled themselves quite effectively 😆. The highlight for us at the piano bar was the music trivia set against classic Disney music. Some great nostalgia to hear those old (and newer) songs in a lounge environment. I also noticed that the pianist sounded a lot like Ben Folds when singing, which itself was a special treat for a piano nerd who likes crossover piano/pop/rock artists.

 

The rock band at the Rolling Stone was good; great at times, but couldn't really pull off the Pink Floyd numbers quite as well. There was a wide selection of music from the 70s to the 90s (and maybe beyond, we missed a few sets).

 

We were especially impressed by the quartet. Their rendition of pop music in classical styles was a special treat, and their other performances were worth the time for us.

 

Overall, the music selection worked well for me (m50) and my partner (f45). We listen to many different genres and time periods of music, and found something at all venues to enjoy. I also found the venues intimate compared to many of the shows we've seen over the years. The music is something that will keep us coming back to HA for the next few years at least.

[DrTee]

On 6/17/2022 at 12:52 PM, VMax1700 said:

I am starting to think there is a difference between Rolling Stone Lounge and Rolling Stone Rock Room. Although the HAL website still lists BBK for Oosterdam, Noordam, etc etc.

 

Just got off Noordam and RS has replaced BBK.

[Wakepatrol]

I will never forget New Years Eve on the Noordam years ago. The BB King band played in the main theater with Dave Mason a beast on the drums. What a New Years Eve

[dockman]

22 hours ago, CruiserBruce said:

Yep...Rolling Stone lounge isn't popular at all. You know this how? It's been jammed on our cruises. Of course, BB King has been as well. But the Vistonly have room for one, but not both.

 

As mentioned,  there seems to be a supply issue with BB King.

never even mentioned rolling stone so no idea what u are going on about....

[rkacruiser]

On 10/6/2022 at 7:41 PM, Wakepatrol said:

I will never forget New Years Eve on the Noordam years ago. The BB King band played in the main theater with Dave Mason a beast on the drums. What a New Years Eve

 

Regardless of the music artists provided, HAL does one heck of a great job on New Year's Eve!  

[Nymich]

Currently on Z just listened to part of a set.  It was all Top 40 songs like Moves like Jagger, Footloose, Brandy etc....

I personally liked the BB King band way better but people were liking this music to be fair.  It is also not anything like the Rolling Stone Rock Room band on the Pinnacle ships.  This is a Top 40 pop band.

[*Miss G*]

On 10/6/2022 at 8:45 PM, robotpony said:

I was impressed by the quality of the BB King band on the Koningsdam this summer, though the music directer ended up sitting in on keyboards (he was fantastic, too). I chatted with him at one of the bars, and we shared our love of keyboards over the years. The band itself was tight, full of energy, and we watched every performance that week.

 

We were on the Koningsdam in August, right after the original BB King keyboardist went overboard.  I was impressed with their ability to put on a great show, despite the terrible loss of one of their band mates.

[*Miss G*]

3 hours ago, *Miss G* said:

 

We were on the Koningsdam in August, right after the original BB King keyboardist went overboard.  I was impressed with their ability to put on a great show, despite the terrible loss of one of their band mates.

 

Sorry, I meant September, not August.

[lyndyr]

We were on Noordam in November-December 2022 for a 35-day cruise.

The Rolling Stone lounge started out well enough, and we tried to enjoy it, but the audience fell away after the second week. We found the weekly set menu of music boring. It was like roast on Sunday, stew on Wednesday, fish and chips on Friday, and repeat.

Although brilliant musicians, there was absolutely zero interaction with the audience by the band, no repartee or background story to the songs, and a predictable guitar solo at a set point in every song. Mustang Sally went from being a favourite song now. If I hear it again, I'll scream.

Sweet Caroline is the defib for a dead audience, but it shouldn't get that bad.

The volume for the venue was ear bleedingly loud, also between sets when the recorded music was playing. Loud doesn't = Good.

We booked on Zuiderdam for another 35-day cruise in May 2023, and at the time of booking, it said BB King room was on the Zuiderdam.

I stumbled across this thread, and I'm disappointed, to say the least. 

[zelker]

13 hours ago, lyndyr said:

We booked on Zuiderdam for another 35-day cruise in May 2023, and at the time of booking, it said BB King room was on the Zuiderdam.  I stumbled across this thread, and I'm disappointed, to say the least. 

Not sure I understand WHICH you're disappointed in but Zuiderdam has converted BB King to Rolling Stone.

 

Edited March 14, 2023 by zelker