Rock and Romance, 80s Cruise, and my other 2024 music adventures

[Honolulu Blue]

I was checking out the 2022 newsletters for a 2024 cruise that I'm considering - a transpacific cruise from Honolulu to Sydney on the Ovation of the Seas.  Oh my goodness.  😲  I found it incredible how much music trivia there was - they had at least 20 sessions throughout the 19 days, not counting the eras and segments I didn't know well or didn't care about.  They also had some lectures about music history and some music performers that included a Freddie Mercury tribute, a general R&B tribute band, an 80s tribute band, and DSB - the same band I saw on Princess a few months ago.  I know that past newsletters are, at best, a limited guide to what will happen in the future, but I'm excited about what they did, and if they provide half of this on the cruise that I'm currently looking at, then I'll be in good hands.  

[George C]

Peter Asher and others were just added to Rick and romance, he was on in the past.

[Honolulu Blue]

28 minutes ago, George C said:

Peter Asher and others were just added to Rick and romance, he was on in the past.

Noted.  Thanks.  I got the e-mail, saw the Web site, and saw your other post.  I'll try not to repeat too much of what I said there.

 

This is good stuff.  I'm especially intrigued by all the tribute bands - one of whom is a tribute to the Dobbie Brothers, which might serve as a warm-up to my McDonald LaBelle Cruise, which will be a couple of weeks after this one.

 

It doesn't look like there will be any shortage of musical action that I'll enjoy.  I just hope that they don't have too many scheduling conflicts. 🙏

[George C]

1 minute ago, Honolulu Blue said:

Noted.  Thanks.  I got the e-mail, saw the Web site, and saw your other post.  I'll try not to repeat too much of what I said there.

 

This is good stuff.  I'm especially intrigued by all the tribute bands - one of whom is a tribute to the Dobbie Brothers, which might serve as a warm-up to my McDonald LaBelle Cruise, which will be a couple of weeks after this one.

 

It doesn't look like there will be any shortage of musical action that I'll enjoy.  I just hope that they don't have too many scheduling conflicts. 🙏

The scheduling conflicts gets us every year , remember last March going from one show to another walking by the martini bar area while LSB was doing a fantastic version of “Like a rolling stone “ Cara Lee did some duets with Peter Asher also in the past. 

[lenquixote66]

On 4/20/2023 at 12:39 AM, Honolulu Blue said:

I got a notice that Flower Power has sold out, so I decided to check to see how my music charters are doing.

 

Rock & Romance is sold out except for basic interiors, basic ocean views, and basic balconies.  

The 80s Cruise is sold out except for interiors and balconies.

The McDonald LaBelle Cruise shows all cabin classes available.  

 

It seems to be just a matter of time before the first two sell out, and I wouldn't be surprised if Mikey and Patti also sell out in the near future.

One of my son in laws is very good friends with Debbie Gibson who was born in Brooklyn and grew up in Long Island .A bit of Debbie trivia:

When she was a kid she had the same piano teacher as Billy Joel.

[Honolulu Blue]

On my drive from work yesterday I heard, consecutively, Another One Bites the Dust from Queen and Dreams from Fleetwood Mac. It's a good bet that we'll hear these songs on the Rock and Romance cruise from their respective tribute bands.

[Honolulu Blue]

Quick update on my various music themed cruises for 2024:

 

• The 80s Cruise (TEC) just announced that they're completely sold out.  Good for them.
• TEC announced all but one of their theme nights - Back to the 80s, John Hughes Prom, Pop Icon, Punks vs. Preps, and Kickback and Glow.
• 70a Rock and Romance remains sold out
• The McDonald LaBelle Cruise is inching closer to sell-out status - a majority of their stateroom categories are sold out, but most of the big ones still have cabins available.  

[Honolulu Blue]

Another entry in the Always Something There to Remind Me department...

 

On the drive home from work yesterday, I heard "Heaven Is A Place On Earth" from Belinda Carlisle and "Listen to the Music" from the Doobie Brothers.  Belinda was on last year's 80s Cruise.  Since this was her biggest hit, she performed this one as her closer.

 

LTTM was the Doobies' first hit song, so there's a fair chance the Doobie Others will perform it on the Rock & Romance Cruise.  Mr. McDonald hadn't joined by then, so I'm not expecting to hear it on his cruise.

[Honolulu Blue]

I just found out that the Sandy Beaches Cruise has sold out, so that leaves only one StarVista Live cruise for 2023-24 that hasn't sold out yet - The Big Easy Cruise.  I'm hopeful that it will be successful, so I'll hold off on any more statements on the UDC.

[George C]

It appears that they removed Mellisa Manchester from the list of singers , was really looking forward to seeing her again on rock and romance cruise.

Edited August 21, 2023 by George C

[Honolulu Blue]

Yet another entry in the Always Something There to Remind Me department...

 

I'm watching the Little League World Series championship right now, and the two teams featured are from Willemstad, Curacao and El Segundo, California.  I'll be making three stops in Curacao over the next few months - including on The 80s Cruise and the 70s Rock and Romance Cruise.  El Segundo is near LAX and the Port of Los Angeles.  I embarked on this year's edition of TEC in San Pedro.

 

And now, back to our regularly scheduled activities.

[Honolulu Blue]

I found an interesting article about Foreigner and their upcoming residency in Las Vegas at https://ultimateclassicrock.com/foreigner-las-vegas-residency/ .

 

One of the most interesting things is they revealed their residency dates.  Their first date is March 22, 2024.  As @George C and I are well aware, the 70s Rock and Romance Cruise featuring Foreigner will be sailing March 14-21, 2024.  Assuming they don't cancel on us, it looks the band has two options to get to where they need to be on time - play their gigs EARLY in the cruise, depart from Aruba, and have a few days to rehearse and other stuff; or play their gigs LATE, get off in Port Canaveral, fly to LV and have a day and a half (at most) before their first concert at the Venetian.  The latter seems like an awfully tight schedule, so I'm going to assume they're going to play early and get off halfway through.

 

 

[George C]

Just listened to new cd from Generation Radio one of the band is Jason Scheff former lead singer from Chicago who has headlined a couple of times on Rock and Romance, also saw him in Dallas with Todd Rundgren and some others doing songs from Rubber Soul and Revolver , that was one of the best concerts we ever saw and had front row seats.

[Honolulu Blue]

The Summer of '99 Cruise has added a second sailing.  If you recall, the first SO99 sailing is April 18-22 on the Pearl sailing out of Miami.  This second sailing is April 27 - May 1, 2024 on the Norwegian Jade sailing out of Port Canaveral.  Most of the bands are the same, except Daughtry will replace 3 Doors Down as the special guest on sailing #2.  Pre-sale spots are available.  I think I'll pass, but I appreciate the attempt.  Maybe someday someone will put together the right mix of 90s artists that will tempt me to spend my $$$.

[Honolulu Blue]

The 80s Cruise announced its plans for allocating assigned seating on the 2024 cruise.  It's a little complex, so let me try to get this right...

 

We were assigned to seating selection windows based on when we booked and also which main show we picked - early or late.  Since I, wise person, booked this cruise totally on spec within an hour of it going on sale, it was not a surprise to me that I got the first window for the first main show.  This allows me to pick my seats on Tuesday, September 26, at 11 AM ET.  The other windows for the first show are on the following days - Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday.  Only 100 people in each group each day can book their seats.  

 

There's a special group seating program this year where people who would otherwise have an assigned seating window can sit together.  These seats will be in the upper orchestra or balcony and the attendees all have to tell ECP who they are and that they want to sit together.  It sounds like fun, but I don't have a group that's interested in me, so I'll let them all have their good times.  The first main show group seating is assigned starting October 3, and the second main show group seating is assigned starting October 10.

 

Speaking of the second main show, let's come back to them and their assigned seats.  Those are assigned October 3-6 in the same fashion as I described two paragraphs above.

 

That's it.  Clear as mud, huh? 🙃  Actually, I think I'm following along quite well.  I'm in the very first group to pick, so I have to concentrate on being in a position to be ready to pick my seat.  Which seat do I want?  As a bit of a shutterbug, I'm inclined to go with something front and center - though there are few truly bad seats in the Mariner's main theater.  We'll see how it goes in a couple of weeks.

[Honolulu Blue]

Malt Shop Memories has updated their Web site for the 2024 edition of its cruise (the 2023 cruise is sailing in late October) and has also announced their initial lineup.  It's at https://maltshopcruise.com/ .

The Beach Boys, The Four Tops, and Chubby Checker are the obvious headliners, but there are a few others that are familiar to me.  Since I'm not on this cruise, I don't know when they get access to the new year's bookings, but I assume it will be soon.  Us peasants in the cheap seats have to wait a while until everything gets picked over.

 

Malt shops were mostly a memory when I was a kid, so I think I'll skip this one.  But don't let me stop anyone from signing up.  😃

[Honolulu Blue]

Jazz Cruises introduced a new monthly e-newsletter called Soul Mates Cruise Notes covering details about the McDonald LaBelle cruise that I'm booked on.  It was an extremely interesting read.  Here are the highlights:

• The ship is about 60% full.  That's a little disappointing, considering many other music cruises have sold out or are about to.  I expected them to sell out sooner or later, but that's much less likely now.  Oh well, more space for me!  😁
• The very short story of how the pieces came together for this cruise:  The NCL Pearl, Starvista's official music charter ship, had a gap in its schedule due to another charter dropping out.  NCL contacted Jazz Cruises to fill it.  Mr. McDonald came up as a headliner, and then Ms. LaBelle was suggested as a co-headliner.  Comedian Alonzo Bodden lobbied for his mentor, Patti's friend, and fellow comedian George Wallace to jon them.  
• Tentative programming highlights:
• Day 1 - embarkation day
• Comedians on the early show @ 5:30 (I'm scheduled for the early show all nights on this cruise), Michael McDonald with the late show @ 8
• Day 2
• Dock in Nassau about 3 PM
• Patti LaBelle does the main theater both nights; Mr. McDonald listed as her special guest
• Day 3
• Sail away from Nassau at about 5 PM
• Michael McDonald does the early show, the comedians do the late show
• Day 4 - Disembark at 7 AM

Edited September 14, 2023 by Honolulu Blue

[Honolulu Blue]

Here's some potential news about a 2025 music themed charter cruise... I heard on one of the FB pages I follow that the UDC is returning!  The dates are February 19-24 and StarVista Live is supposed to follow back with past passengers with a refundable deposit offer to put $$$ early.

 

What can I say?  Put this guy and these guys onboard, and you've got an excellent start, IMHO.

 

 

Interesting news.  I'll stay on top of it and report if there's something of substance to report.  🤑

[George C]

On 9/14/2023 at 6:06 AM, Honolulu Blue said:

Jazz Cruises introduced a new monthly e-newsletter called Soul Mates Cruise Notes covering details about the McDonald LaBelle cruise that I'm booked on.  It was an extremely interesting read.  Here are the highlights:

• The ship is about 60% full.  That's a little disappointing, considering many other music cruises have sold out or are about to.  I expected them to sell out sooner or later, but that's much less likely now.  Oh well, more space for me!  😁
• The very short story of how the pieces came together for this cruise:  The NCL Pearl, Starvista's official music charter ship, had a gap in its schedule due to another charter dropping out.  NCL contacted Jazz Cruises to fill it.  Mr. McDonald came up as a headliner, and then Ms. LaBelle was suggested as a co-headliner.  Comedian Alonzo Bodden lobbied for his mentor, Patti's friend, and fellow comedian George Wallace to jon them.  
• Tentative programming highlights:
• Day 1 - embarkation day
• Comedians on the early show @ 5:30 (I'm scheduled for the early show all nights on this cruise), Michael McDonald with the late show @ 8
• Day 2
• Dock in Nassau about 3 PM
• Patti LaBelle does the main theater both nights; Mr. McDonald listed as her special guest
• Day 3
• Sail away from Nassau at about 5 PM
• Michael McDonald does the early show, the comedians do the late show
• Day 4 - Disembark at 7 AM

I really dislike ncl but this cruise sounds great , we have seen Michael McDonald several times , he autographed one of my CDs , we saw George Wallace a couple of decades ago , he was hilarious, laughed all through his show . 

[Honolulu Blue]

44 minutes ago, George C said:

I really dislike ncl but this cruise sounds great , we have seen Michael McDonald several times , he autographed one of my CDs , we saw George Wallace a couple of decades ago , he was hilarious, laughed all through his show . 

Thanks for your perspective. It's always valuable to me. I hope to have such a good time that I'll make you and your wife green with envy. 👽

[Honolulu Blue]

I got another email from The 80s Cruise about my opportunity to pick out reserved seats next week.  The arrangements haven't changed - my window is still next Tuesday at 11 AM EDT, and I should be able to make that.  They linked a YouTube video from our cruise director JT who explained things a little more.  

 

It looks like rows 2 and 4 center lower orchestra will remain general admission and can't be reserved, so I guess I have to pick from rows 1, 3, and 5.  Any seats in those rows would demand a mega premium from Ticketmaster.  I'm tempted by front row center, and I've got a real chance at one if they're not hidden blocked by true VIPs.  But as much as I like many of the acts that I expect to be on the main stage, the only one I'm a true mega-fan of is Stephen Pearcy.  For the rest I'm happy to just stay in my seat and politely applaud.  Well, we'll see what I choose come Tuesday.

 

And I have two entries in the Always Something There to Remind Me department:  First on the drive home from work today, I heard "Heaven Is a Place On Earth" by Belinda Carlisle and "Enjoy the Silence" from Depeche Mode.  Both were on The 80s Cruise last year, sort of.  Belinda was there live and in person:

 

 

Depeche Mode was represented by a tribute group called Strangelove.  I wanted to see them, but their concerts were both too late and I was knocked out by other concerts I had seen during the day.

 

Earlier I happened to catch a random American Top 40 from 1986 on iHeart Radio.  The top two songs that week were "There'll Be Sad Songs (To Make You Cry)" by Billy Ocean and "On My Own" by Patti LaBelle and Michael McDonald.  I assume the latter will be played four times - once at each of Patti's and Michael's shows - on their upcoming cruise.  Mr. Ocean was scheduled to be on our Ultimate Disco Cruise earlier this year, but had to back out.  I'm pretty sure he would have played that song.

 

Speaking of the UDC, to close things out, I've heard rumors on the Internet that the best disco cruise in the universe is coming back in 2025!  The dates are February 19-24 and StarVista Live will be passing around the hat looking for (refundable) deposits to help confirm our interest.  Or so the rumors say.  I want to believe it, but I'm a skeptic at heart, so I'll believe it when I see it.  They have my e-mail.  They know where to find me. 🙃  I'll keep everyone posted on this.

Edited September 22, 2023 by Honolulu Blue

[Honolulu Blue]

StarVista Live on their main FB page posted some info about the next Sandy Beaches Cruise.  I guess I'll post the screenshot instead of typing since it has all the known info about it:

 

 

[Honolulu Blue]

On 9/22/2023 at 3:47 PM, Honolulu Blue said:

I got another email from The 80s Cruise about my opportunity to pick out reserved seats next week.  The arrangements haven't changed - my window is still next Tuesday at 11 AM EDT, and I should be able to make that.  They linked a YouTube video from our cruise director JT who explained things a little more.  

 

It looks like rows 2 and 4 center lower orchestra will remain general admission and can't be reserved, so I guess I have to pick from rows 1, 3, and 5.  Any seats in those rows would demand a mega premium from Ticketmaster.  I'm tempted by front row center, and I've got a real chance at one if they're not hidden blocked by true VIPs.  But as much as I like many of the acts that I expect to be on the main stage, the only one I'm a true mega-fan of is Stephen Pearcy.  For the rest I'm happy to just stay in my seat and politely applaud.  Well, we'll see what I choose come Tuesday.

I'll do an UPDATE since I went through the ticket reservation process.  I followed the instructions I was given and signed in right at 11.  All of row 1 center was blocked out, as were a few seats elsewhere.  I went through my options and selected a seat in row 3 center just off the aisle.  I hope the couple next to me are nice. 🙂

[Honolulu Blue]

My main theater seat for The 80s Cruise is marked with a star on this map:

Edited September 26, 2023 by Honolulu Blue

[Honolulu Blue]

One last thing for today (I think)... according to Internet sources, the return of UDC in 2025 will be announced by StarVista on Thursday.  This will make my loan shark happy. 🤑