MINDI ABAIR Archives - Signature Cruise Experiences https://dev.scecruises.com/tag/mindi-abair/ The Gold Standard for Charter Theme Cruises Since 2001 Tue, 10 Dec 2024 16:18:17 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.9.4 https://dev.scecruises.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/cropped-web-app-manifest-512x512-1-32x32.png MINDI ABAIR Archives - Signature Cruise Experiences https://dev.scecruises.com/tag/mindi-abair/ 32 32 OUR TAKE: The Weekend Before Thanksgiving https://dev.scecruises.com/2024/11/23/our-take-the-weekend-before-thanksgiving/ Sat, 23 Nov 2024 11:35:00 +0000 https://jazzcruisesllc.com/?p=7645 For those who follow this column, you may remember that I love Thanksgiving. The menu is simple, known by all, but flexible enough to highlight individual and family heritage recipes. No gifts. No Thanksgiving Eve. Lots of amazing leftovers. Who could ask for more? Thanksgiving is late this year, but it seems like Christmas is being celebrated earlier than […]

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]]> For those who follow this column, you may remember that I love Thanksgiving. The menu is simple, known by all, but flexible enough to highlight individual and family heritage recipes. No gifts. No Thanksgiving Eve. Lots of amazing leftovers.

Who could ask for more?

Thanksgiving is late this year, but it seems like Christmas is being celebrated earlier than ever. I am old enough to remember the beginning of Black Friday sales, which was named as such because retailers usually went into the “black” on the Friday after Thanksgiving. As with most things today, the concept has been tortured, compromised and beaten to death.

Thank goodness for our music. Amid an everchanging, overintense world we can rely upon a great recording, or, even better, a great live show, to settle our nerves, restore our optimism and touch our humanity.

Last night, I had the pleasure of attending an Emmet Cohen concert. Emmet was in town with his trio (Reuben Rogers and Joe Farnsworth). For countless reasons, I cannot say his name or listen to his music without smiling. First, performing on The Jazz Cruise was one of his inaugural professional gigs. Second, the development of his career has mirrored, almost in lockstep, with that program. Third, his growth, maturity and career path are very admirable and, to whatever extent The Jazz Cruise and our company had in that development means a great deal to us.

Before delving further into the personal traits that make Emmet special, let’s agree on one very important aspect of his career. The man can play! Serious chops. Warm and engaging stage presence and nearly perfect song selection for the event at hand. In a world where moments of bliss are thrown around like manhole covers, Emmet continues, night after night, to bring unbridled joy to his audience.

Watching Emmet navigate the jazz world, his baseline (and his bass line for that matter) has always been “respect.” He respects, even worships, the jazz musicians who have paved the way for him, the audience and, most of all, the music. I have watched other stars, such as David Sanborn, Marcus Miller, Chris Botti, Christian McBride and Gregory Porter show a similar reverence. None of them, including Emmet, would do anything to cause embarrassment or lack of gratitude for the music or their time on the bandstand.

There are many other musicians with the same dedication and staunch reverence for the bandstand and the music. Confining my comments only to those musicians who have performed multiple times with us on our cruises, certainly John Clayton, John Pizzarelli, Wycliffe Gordon, Boney James, Brian Culbertson, Dee Dee Bridgewater and Catherine Russell are graduates of the School of Jazz respect as well.

There are many more who certainly qualify, but I have had the privilege and honor of working with those musicians for several years and each of them, regardless of where they are in the spectrum of jazz when it comes to their musical choices, present themselves with dignity, authenticity, and a deep respect for their craft.

Finding folks whose first goal is to provide a product or a service to others, rather than concentrate on what is best for them personally is harder than ever. Of course, all great musicians take pride in their work. They should. That type of motivation is healthy and nearly a requirement for excellence.

But what matters is which metric they use to measure their success. The great ones know that audience satisfaction is the only metric that matters. If that is achieved, then the other “goodies” will follow naturally and without further effort.

When Emmet performs, he will constantly be looking at the crowd, measuring their reactions, determining if he is connecting and making decisions about how to move forward with the next music. Guess what, for Emmet, checking out the audience is also like taking a victory lap or basking in the sun. 

The ever present smile on his face reflects his realization that he is making a whole bunch of people very happy.

By Michael Lazaroff, Executive Director of The Jazz Cruise, The Smooth Jazz Cruise, Chris Botti at Sea, Christian McBride’s World at Sea and Journey of Jazz. Feel free to express your views or pose questions to him at michael@scecruises.com

Signature Cruise Experiences Thanksgiving Break

SIGNATURE CRUISE EXPERIENCES

Our offices will be open for questions during normal business hours on Monday and Tuesday and until 2 PM ET on Wednesday. The office will be closed on Thursday (Thanksgiving) – Sunday and will reopen on Monday, December 2 at 10 AM ET.

The staff of Signature Cruise Experiences wishes you and your loved ones a Happy Thanksgiving!

Holiday Tours

The Thanksgiving holiday is coming up and we all know what that means: Family reunions, turkey dinners, sleepy football watching and perhaps some uncomfortable conversations. True, but musically, it means the onset of holiday music here, there and everywhere – in stores, restaurants and eventually in your head, and not all, or even much of it, good.
 
But several of our favorite artists will be out there on tour bringing you the good holiday music. ‘Tis the season. Here’s a rundown on just a few of the special tours happening during the coming weeks.

SAMARA JOY

Samara Joy

Samara Joy, the great young vocalist who was a sensation not only on our sailings but all over the world, will perform holiday music with her family in a show called “A Joyful Holiday Featuring The McLendon Family” at theaters and performing arts centers across the country December 3-23.

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Mindi Abair

On November 30, Mindi Abair kicks off her aptly named “I Can’t Wait for Christmas” tour that travels all over the country ending on December 23, just in time to open one of her vintage bottles of wine on Christmas Eve. Then, like Gregory, she’ll host some New Year’s shows, in her case in Coronado, CA, December 29-31.

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MINDI ABAIR
GREGORY PORTER

Gregory Porter

The co-host of Journey of Jazz ’25 and a longtime favorite of Signature Jazz Cruises’ audiences, Gregory Porter will be touring in the U.S. to support his GRAMMY®-nominated album Christmas Wish December 8-18. He also performs New Year’s shows at the Paramount Theater in Seattle (December 30) and the Dolby Theater in Los Angeles (December 31).

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Rick Braun

Another favorite of The Smooth Jazz Cruise, Rick Braun recently released his first holiday music album, It’s Christmas, and he’ll be doing shows in Seal Beach, California with his friends Peter White, Richard Elliot and Keiko Matsui. Rick will be hosting Rick Braun’s River Cruise at Christmas from Budapest on December 9 and will host Braun’s New Year’s Eve 2024 on December 30 in Orlando, FL.

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RICK BRAUN

Signature Jazz Cruises’ Programs

THE JAZZ CRUISE SIGNATURE JAZZ CRUISES

The Jazz Cruise ’26 Full Announcement on 11.26.24!

The Jazz Cruise ’25 is fully reserved and cancellations will be filled directly from the Waitlist. Reservation details for The Jazz Cruise ’26 will be available soon! Sailing from January 27 – February 3, 2026, The Jazz Cruise ’26 will depart from and return to Ft. Lauderdale with calls on the private island of CocoCay and San Juan. Keep an eye out for the cruise lineup and website – coming November 26! 

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THE SMOOTH JAZZ CRUISE SIGNATURE JAZZ CRUISES

The Smooth Jazz Cruise ‘26.1 & 26.2 – Reserve Your Stateroom Today!  

Both sailings for The Smooth Jazz Cruise ’25 are fully reserved and the Waitlist has more than 4,000 entrants. The Smooth Jazz Cruise ‘26.1 & ‘26.2 are in Open Booking (anyone may reserve any available stateroom) and are over 80% reserved. Reserve your stateroom today!

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THE SMOOTH JAZZ CRUISE SIGNATURE JAZZ CRUISES

The Smooth Jazz Cruise ‘26.3 is Here – New West Coast Sailing! 

For the first time in many years, The Smooth Jazz Cruise will sail on the West Coast, embarking in Vancouver, sailing to Victoria and San Francisco before disembarking in Los Angeles. Exciting land excursions will be available in the ports-of-call! The Smooth Jazz Cruise ‘26.3 is in Open Booking! Anyone may now reserve any available stateroom. 

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BOTTI AT SEA SIGNATURE JAZZ CRUISES

Botti at Sea ’25 FULLY RESERVED! Botti at Sea ’26 JUST ANNOUNCED!

Sailing from Los Angeles to Vancouver, with calls on San Francisco and Victoria, BC, Botti at Sea III (’26) is moving to the West Coast in September ’26! The website for the cruise will be available later this year and the amazing lineup will be announced just before Botti at Sea II (’25) sails next February! Join the Pre-Sail today! 

JOIN PRE-SAIL

CHRISTIAN MCBRIDE'S WORLD AT SEA SIGNATURE CRUISE EXPERIENCES

Christian McBride’s World at Sea – Sailing January 20-27, 2026!

Christian McBride will be hosting a new Signature Jazz Cruises’ program, Christian McBride’s World at Sea! 

The cruise will set sail from Fort Lauderdale in early ’26 with stops in Jamaica and Grand Cayman. The full lineup and website will be announced on November 26, but you can establish your priority for reserving a stateroom NOW by joining the Pre-Sail. 

JOIN PRE-SAIL

JOURNEY OF JAZZ SIGNATURE CRUISE EXPERIENCES

Journey of Jazz ’25 – Excursions Available to Book Now!

Hosts Marcus Miller & Gregory Porter will take you on an incredible musical journey onboard Journey of Jazz. The cruise also features a special show from Diana Krall while the ship is in-port in Victoria! 

Land-based excursions are now available to book! Check out Signature Jazz Cruises’ curated trips to Wine Country, Special Land Based Concerts and more HERE.

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Mug Shots of the Week

SIGNATURE CRUISE EXPERIENCES MUG SHOTS

Yolanda B. and Sharon S.
California

Guests on the ’24 jazz cruises received The Weekender mug, which we hope you will use with your Saturday morning coffee while you read the latest edition. Please share a picture of yourself & your mug with us so that we can include it for the 100,000+ folks who receive The Weekender each Saturday.

Tag us @thejazzcruise, @bottiatsea, @thesmoothjazzcruise, #jazzcruises and #theweekender. Email your photo to MugShot@scecruises.com.

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]]> OUR TAKE: Jazz is a Good Bet…Actually, it is a “Sure Thing” https://dev.scecruises.com/2024/04/27/our-take-jazz-is-a-good-betactually-it-is-a-sure-thing/ Sat, 27 Apr 2024 21:56:13 +0000 https://www.jazzcruisesllc.com/?p=5728 The old joke was “I went to a fight and a hockey game broke out.” The new joke is “I went to a casino and a professional sporting event broke out.” In the blink of an eye, not only is betting on professional sports being freely advertised, but past stars, even superstars, are the ones doing the promos. Betting and gambling are long-standing vices. To pretend they are not part of sports is foolish, but do we have to have that activity be presented as part of the sport? At times, it seems like betting is the sport and the game is no more than opening an envelope to reveal the winner.

The post OUR TAKE: Jazz is a Good Bet…Actually, it is a “Sure Thing” appeared first on Signature Cruise Experiences.

]]> The old joke was “I went to a fight and a hockey game broke out.” The new joke is “I went to a casino and a professional sporting event broke out.” In the blink of an eye, not only is betting on professional sports being freely advertised, but past stars, even superstars, are the ones doing the promos. Betting and gambling are long-standing vices. To pretend they are not part of sports is foolish, but do we have to have that activity be presented as part of the sport? At times, it seems like betting is the sport and the game is no more than opening an envelope to reveal the winner.

I long for the days when betting was relegated to back alleys, smoke-filled bars, underground locations, and late-night haunts. Get where I am going with this?

Those same “venues,” the kindest word I could conjure, were the homes of jazz from the very moment that our music made it to the big cities. Such locales were part of the lure and became part of the lore as jazz spread through the country. My bet is that the business model for the music mandated the choice of locations. Everything about jazz in those days reflected a genre on a budget. The sale of alcohol was the primary source of income. Most of the business was at night, late at night, so the locales needed to be distanced from residential areas. And, of course, the perception of nefarious activity associated with jazz was a barrier to entry into the more gentrified areas.

The revenue stream from a jazz club, at least the legitimate portion, was tight, hand-to-mouth, or worse. Yes, there were some swanky clubs that featured big bands, offered lavish meals, and high-end glassware, dishware, fine linens, and cutlery. But those places were geared for dancing. A night on the town. Few survived the post-World War II era when folks began to dance to music other than “swing” performed by the great big bands of the era.

Today’s jazz clubs are in the 120 – 200 capacity, urban locales, and feature either a strong food component or a significant cover charge. Many are ticketed events plus the cover charge. The clubs present each act in multiple sets, each with their own admission and some have a late-night show where a lesser group performs for a small charge with the hope that the patrons will drink the night away. The clubs are crowded, your experience is rushed, and the seating violates all posture perfect protocols.

Would you want your jazz clubs any other way? Seriously, just as I wish that betting was less prominent in baseball, as an example, and starting pitchers went 6 or 7 innings or completed a game, I want our jazz clubs to have that feel of intimacy and energy. Certain aspects of the old days needed to be modified, and the clubs today are clean, safe, and present the music with proper sound and lighting. Food choices seem to improve all the time and other modern conveniences are being added daily. What more would you want? (Note to baseball fans: In his career, Bob Gibson had 255 complete games. Modern stars Justin Verlander and Max Scherzer have combined for just 38.)

As the producer of jazz cruises for nearly 25 years, with tongue firmly planted against my cheek, I could offer a suggestion for what would be “more.” From the start of our jazz cruise programs, our goal has been to capture all that is great about a jazz club and surround that experience with the luxury of a cruise ship. When a guest walks into The Theatre, Rendezvous Lounge, or the Sky Lounge, for the time they are there, their jazz experience is defined by that venue just like being in Birdland, Blue Note, Jazz Alley, Dizzy’s Club or any of the other top jazz venues in the world. 

But, when you step out of those venues, you are on a luxury cruise ship that has restaurants, spas, fitness facilities, pools, etc. It is up to you how long you may wish to be “in the club” and how long you may wish to be “on vacation.”

Again, humbly, and respectfully, that is the magic of a jazz cruise program. You can visit a jazz club when you want, without concern about parking, traffic, or reservations, and, similarly, you can return to your vacation home under the same terms.

Once upon a time, we would tell guests that the best part of being on a jazz cruise program is that all you must do each night is to find your way back to a stateroom…doesn’t have to be your stateroom, just a stateroom! That joke is probably out of bounds these days. It may have been in the hazard earlier. But you get the point. All the greatness of a jazz club with none of the hassle.

Do you wonder if the spate of gambling opportunities is a sign that the underlying game is not worthwhile unless you have a bet on the outcome? Maybe we should experiment with adding betting to jazz! There could be an over/under bet on the length of a drum solo. Will the leader say the word “cat” more than 10 times during show? Will any tune go longer than 10 minutes? Will the guy at the other table who was dragged to the show fall asleep after 30 minutes? The number of wagers would be endless.

Thankfully, jazz does not need gambling to be exciting. Jazz is a good bet all by itself. In fact, jazz is the one thing that makes any gambler sit up and take notice. Jazz is a “sure thing.”

By Michael Lazaroff, Executive Director of The Jazz Cruise, The Smooth Jazz Cruise, Chris Botti at Sea, and Journey of Jazz. Feel free to express your views or pose questions to him at michael@scecruises.com.

Mary Lou Williams Jazz Festival

Hosted by Jazz Cruises regular Dee Dee Bridgewater, the Mary Lou Williams Jazz Festival will be held May 10-11 at the Kennedy Center in Washington, DC. The two-day event honors the legacy of the gifted pianist, as well as the contributions of jazz women of today. Among the headliners are two artists who have sailed on The Jazz Cruise numerous times—Eliane Elias and Ingrid Jensen—as well as two emerging artists: Bassist Endea Owens and vocalist Julia Keefe who leads her Indigenous Big Band.

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MARY LOU WILLIAMS JAZZ FESTIVAL

Charles McPherson’s Reverance

We’re excited to welcome Charles McPherson back to The Jazz Cruise in 2025. The legendary saxophonist has just released an album Reverence that was recorded live at Smoke Jazz Club in NYC. The album is dedicated to the late pianist and educator Barry Harris, a longtime mentor and teacher of Charles. “I owe a lot to him,” Charles explained. “He always told me that there was more to this music than just playing the horn – you actually have to know how to think to be able to do this well.” Performing with Charles is a usual stellar band of Terell Stafford, Jeb Patton, David Wong and Billy Drummond

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CHARLES MCPHERSON

Jazz Cruises’ Conversation Podcast

In the last few weeks, we’ve posted two new episodes of the Jazz Cruises Conversations podcast, which features interviews, panels and talks from sailings of our cruises. The first one was recorded during the initial sailing of The Smooth Jazz Cruise and features an interview with the dynamic saxophonist (and wine curator) Mindi Abair. Amongst other topics, Mindi shares with our host Talaya how she broke into the music business in LA with a big assist from keyboardist Bobby Lyle. The second episode came from Botti at Sea during which I hosted a Jazz on Film series. For the session featuring clips from Nat King Cole’s spectacular but short-lived network TV show, we asked Gregory Porter to talk about Nat’s legacy. After all, Gregory’s affinity for Nat King Cole is both personal and professional, as you can hear in our conversation. Gregory even sings two tunes to prove it.

You can listen to these interviews on the Jazz Cruises Conversations pages on Spotify or iTunes or wherever you access your podcasts. Subscribe to the podcast or check out any of the more than 80 previous episodes featuring interviews from our sailings over the years.

JAZZ CRUISES CONVERSATION PODCAST LEE MERGNER

STL Jazz Fest Two-Day Tickets Available! Individual Tickets On Sale 5.31!

STL JAZZ FEST SIGNATURE CRUISE EXPERIENCES

2-Day Tickets are now available on Ticketmaster for STL JAZZ FEST. 1-Day Tickets will go on sale Friday, May 31. For details about the festival and how to purchase tickets, see below:

STL JAZZ FEST
Produced by Jazz Cruises
The Factory – Chesterfield (St. Louis) Missouri


FRIDAY AUGUST 23, 2024
Eric Marienthal Quintet, featuring Niki Haris
The Comedy of Alonzo Bodden
GREGORY PORTER

SATURDAY AUGUST 24, 2024
Mindi Abair with Eric Marienthal & Friends
The Comedy of Alonzo Bodden
BRIAN CULBERTSON

  Doors 6 pm / Showtime 7 pm

TICKETS AVAILABLE NOW

Jazz Cruises’ ’25 Programs

THE JAZZ CRUISE SIGNATURE CRUISE EXPERIENCES

The Jazz Cruise ’25
Celebrating its 25th Anniversary

The Jazz Cruise ’25 is 82% reserved and is currently in “Open Booking,” where anyone may reserve any available stateroom. You may view current stateroom availability and start your reservation on the website now.

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THE SMOOTH JAZZ CRUISE SIGNATURE CRUISE EXPERIENCES

The Smooth Jazz Cruise ‘25.1 & ‘25.2
Starting its 3rd Decade

With both sailings being fully reserved, guests wishing to sail on a ’25 sailing of The Smooth Jazz Cruise should JOIN WAITLIST now. Cancellations will be filled exclusively from the WAITLIST.

JOIN WAITLIST
CHRIS BOTTI AT SEA SIGNATURE CRUISE EXPERIENCES

Botti at Sea ’25
Every Night is a Night on the Town

Botti at Sea ’25 is in the Open Booking stage and is over 60% reserved. Anyone may reserve any available stateroom either by calling the office during regular business hours or doing so online. It was this time last year that there was a “run” on staterooms, so act now! 

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JOURNEY OF JAZZ SIGNATURE CRUISE EXPERIENCES

Journey of Jazz ’25
Jazz Life at Sea & On Land 

Jazz Cruises’ newest program, Journey of Jazz ’25, hosted by Marcus Miller & Gregory Porter, has completed the Pre-Sale process and began Open Booking on April 30, 2024. Like a race care, this program as gone from 0 – 60(%) sold in the blink of an eye. 

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Mug Shots of the Week

MUG SHOTS THE WEEKENDER SIGNATURE CRUISE EXPERIENCES
Sharon – Toronto
MUG SHOTS THE WEEKENDER SIGNATURE CRUISE EXPERIENCES
Monica and Charles – New York City

Guests on the ’24 jazz cruises received The Weekender mug, which we hope you will use with your Saturday morning coffee while you read the latest edition. Please share a picture of yourself & your mug with us so that we can include it for the 100,000+ folks who receive The Weekender each Saturday.

Tag us @thejazzcruise @bottiatsea @thesmoothjazzcruise #jazzcruises and #theweekender. Email your photo to MugShot@scecruises.com.

The post OUR TAKE: Jazz is a Good Bet…Actually, it is a “Sure Thing” appeared first on Signature Cruise Experiences.

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