The inaugural voyage of the Jam Cruise is set for January 6-10, 2004. The chartered cruise ship will port from Ft. Lauderdale, FL with over ten bands and 800 music fans and head south to rock the high seas for four days and four nights. The event will mark the first-ever jam
band music festival at sea.
Jam Cruise ditches the typical background boat entertainment, opting instead to make music the focus. Jam Cruise 2004 has confirmed some of today’s favorite modern pioneers of improvisational music to perform on
three different stages: an outdoor stage on the boat’s top deck, an indoor theater, and an intimate nightclub. Jam Cruise passengers can choose to enjoy any or all of over 22 concerts, plus all-night jam sessions between
the stars on board. The show admission is included in the cabin price.
There will be over 22 concerts plus all-night jam sessions. Musical acts confirmed thus far include: Galactic, Keller Williams, Dirty Dozen Brass Band, Peter Rowan's Reggaeabilly, Billy Nershi (of The String
Cheese Incident) and Liza, Karl Denson's Tiny Universe, Jerry Joseph, The Disco Biscuits, Mofro, Particle, Umphrey's McGee, Supreme Beings of Leisure (DJ set), and DJ Z-Trip. Additional acts will be announced soon. The show admission is included in the cabin price.
Music-travel experts Madison House Travel will be coordinating cruise accommodations for the event, as well as any flight and lodging needs passengers’ may have. Madison House Travel, owned in part by The String Cheese Incident, was started four years ago in anticipation of precisely this kind of music-travel trend.
Jam Cruise will offer all the typical sea-vacation attractions: all-you-can-eat fine dining, casinos and other fun activities, spa facilities and pampering service, and opportunities to explore new places (this cruise will dock at some of the most beautiful beaches in the Bahamas
and Key West).
Jam Cruise is a modern offspring of a long tradition of camping music festivals, a tradition that began during the 60’s with bands like the Grateful Dead and events like Woodstock. The concept was to spend time with friends and build community through music. Over the past decade, this
underground movement has enjoyed a revival, amassing a broad variety of musical talent and a loyal following of adventurous music lovers. Such qualities have allowed the scene’s bands and promoters to be increasingly innovative in the events that they organize.
“Jam Cruise is a concept that we have been nurturing for quite some time and we couldn’t be more excited to finally execute our ideas, “ says promoter Josh Moore of Athens-based Jomo Entertainment, who is organizing the event
with partner Mark Brown of Brown Coffee Productions in Delray Beach, Florida. To make sure that the inaugural Jam Cruise is a premium experience for everyone involved, Moore and Brown have also brought Roger Naber to consult. Naber is the producer and mastermind behind the highly successful
Legendary Blues Cruises, a similarly music oriented cruise catered to a different clientele. “In many ways, the jamband scene has mastered the art of organizing a festival,” Moore continues. “So what’s next? The bands and
fans are waiting to be even more inspired than their last adventure. They want the ultimate musical experience in a magical location. That’s what Jam Cruise offers.”
Jam Cruise 2004 will accommodate just under 800 passengers. Cabin prices range from $500.00 to $1,025.00 per person, plus port charges, service fees and gratuities.
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On the web: Jam Cruise Website
Mariah Carey Sets World Tour
Mariah Carey has set dates for her Charmbracelet World Tour, the superstar's first in over three years. It kicks-off in Seoul, Korea on June 21 before hitting the U.S. on July 18 with special guest Ashanti. Carey's tour will span the globe including visits to Asia, Europe and the UK before culminating in November.
Mariah Carey's Charmbracelet World Tour itinerary:
June 21 Seoul, South Korea 88 Green Grass
June 24 Osaka, Japan Jo Hall
June 26 Osaka, Japan Jo Hall
June 29 Fukuoka, Japan Marine Messe
July 1 Fukuoka, Japan Marine Messe
July 3 Hiroshima, Japan Sun Plaza
July 6 Tokyo, Japan Budakan
July 8 Tokyo, Japan Budakan
July 10 Tokyo, Japan Budakan
July 13 Nagoya, Japan Rainbow Hall
July 15 Nagoya, Japan Rainbow Hall
July 18 Anchorage, AK Sullivan Arena
July 26 St. Paul, MN XCEL Center
July 29 Chicago, IL United Center
August 1 Auburn Hills, MI Palace at Auburn Hills
August 4 Washington, DC MCI Center
August 7 Toronto, ONT Air Canada Centre
August 10 Atlantic City, NJ Boardwalk Hall
August 13 Cleveland, OH CSU Convocation Center
August 16 Dallas, TX American Airlines Arena
August 19 Phoenix, AZ America West Arena
August 22 Sacramento, CA Arco Arena
August 24 San Jose, CA HP Center
August 27 Los Angeles, CA Staples Center
August 30 Las Vegas, NV Mandalay Bay
September 03 Ft. Lauderdale, FL Office Depot
September 06 Tampa, FL Ice Palace
September 09 Atlanta, GA Gwinette Arena
September 14 Philadelphia, PA First Union Center
September 17 New York, NY Madison Square Garden
September 20 Uniondale, NY Nassau Coliseum
September 23 Manchester, NH Verizon Wireless Arena
October 22 Zurich, Switzerland Hallenstadion
November 4 Paris, France Bercy
OCESA Stages Soldout Alternative Music Fest
OCESA Presents and OCESA Entretenimiento staged a sold out alternative Latin music festival, Festival Vive Latino 2003, "De Sol A Sol" on May 11 at Foro Sol Stadium in
Mexico City that drew 57,485 concertgoers and grossed USD $1,200,063.64. This was their fourth such festival.
With two main stages on opposite ends of the venue, performers included Molotov, Café Tacuba, Enanitos, Verdes, Aterciopelados, Vicentico, Kinky, El Gran Silencio, Panteon Rococo, Natalia LaFourcade, Los Tetas, Las Ultrasonicas, Pito Perez, Los de
Abajo, Resorte, Babasonicos, Genitalica, Panda. The two secondary stages featured
alternative electronic musicians, Hip-Hop artists and DJs, including Nortec, Noiselab Los
Fancy-Free, Alerick ISB, Digi+Gabo, Sweet Elektra, D-Boys, Martín Parra, David Durts y
Arturo and Bostich, Plastilina Mosh, Cartel de Santa, Fermin IV, Sociedad Café.
“The Vive Latino Festivals have been very successful, both artistically and businesswise,
says Bruce Moran , CEO, OCESA Presents Inc. “We have established, extremely
well-received and well attended events, which address a need in the Mexican market.”
“It was great to see the crowds and the performers, and the wonderful atmosphere that
was created,” says Jordi Puig, OCESA Presents Inc., director of International Talent. “It
was another great weekend for Mexican music fans, and another great weekend for us, as
well.”
Rounding out the festival were extreme sports exhibitions, which included daredevil
mountain bikers and skateboarders displaying their latest tricks; 20 professional graffiti artists
demonstrating their talents on two approximately 8 x 100 foot walls; and a flea market inside
venue perimeters, where artisans and vendors sold their wares.
Harry Belafonte Cancels Canadian Tour Due to Health
Poor health has forced Harry Belafonte to cancel his 15-date Canadian tour with Nana Mouskouri, which has been planned for two years."He's ill and is undergoing tests," said Ed Kasses, president of New Jersey-based Princeton Entertainment, reports the Victoria Times Colonist. Partial and full refunds will be honored.
"We have been planning this tour for two years and Harry begged me not to disappoint our fans further by canceling the tour, said Mouskouri. Canadian tenor John McDermott will replace Belafonte, and other artists may be added to the tour, which runs May 11 to June 1, with stops in Victoria, Vancouver, Kelowna, Calgary, Regina, Winnipeg, Hamilton, London, Ottawa, Toronto, Quebec City and Montreal.
Woodstock to Host Ben & Jerry's Festival
SOUTH BURLINGTON, Vt. (AP) — A summer festival marking the 25th anniversary of Ben & Jerry's ice cream is set for Aug. 23-24 at the site of the historic Woodstock gathering in Bethel, N.Y.
Ben & Jerry's Homemade Inc. plans to feature live music and opportunities for social activism at its "One World, One Heart" festival, which has taken place in Vermont since 1991.
"This year is Ben & Jerry's 25th anniversary," said Lee Holden, a spokesman for the company. "We wanted a larger venue that's more accessible to fans along the East Coast."
Holden said the lineup of performers is being finalized.
The 40-acre Bethel site, two hours north of New York in the Catskills region, is owned by the Gerry Foundation.
Communications director Glenn Pontier said the foundation has promised local authorities that "One World, One Heart" audiences won't exceed 30,000 a day.
"Ben & Jerry's is a good fit for this place that used to be a dairy farm," Pontier said. "They put on a wonderful, family-oriented festival with no drugs, no dogs, no bottles, but terrific entertainment, a social conscience and great ice cream."
Ben Cohen and Jerry Greenfield founded Ben & Jerry's Homemade Inc. in 1978 in Burlington. In 2000, international conglomerate Unilever bought the ice cream company.
On the Net:
Ben & Jerry's Homemade Inc. Web site
Arkansas Promoter, Butch Stone, Moves Bob Dylan Concert
LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) — Bob Dylan's concert set for Sunday has been moved from the 18,000-seat Alltel Arena in North Little Rock to a nightclub on the south side of the river.
Promoter Butch Stone said slow ticket sales prompted the move to the private club Nitelife Rocks in Little Rock, a venue that holds 2,400 people.
Stone said about 1,300 tickets had been sold for the folk singer's show, and said the club will honor tickets for the arena concert. Ticketmaster's Web site on Tuesday showed the concert would be at the nightclub, with all tickets costing $35. Seating will be general admission.
Dylan, 61, played in 2001 at Little Rock's Riverfest Amphitheatre to a full house, and played twice in the 1990s at Robinson Auditorium downtown. The latter venue wasn't available for Sunday's show because the Arkansas Symphony Orchestra had booked the hall for an afternoon concert.
Alltel Arena lost a show in March that Elton John and Billy Joel were to have played, where the top ticket price was $187. Promoters sold only 4,000 tickets before that show was called off.
"This is not like Dallas and Houston. We're not an infinite market. There's too many shows costing too much money," Stone said. "Those of us in the business need to be responsible and remember the market."
