The Lemonade Weekend – Making Special Friends & Music – Stories, Videos, Pictures, & Reviews
My name is Ken Levinson, and I’m the Founder of Smooth Jazz Spot, the largest Smooth Jazz group on Facebook. I am not an awesome blogger such as Lynn Olson, Jonathan Widran, Lory Gardner, and Katherine Gilraine to name a few, but I’ve done my best to try to capture The Lemonade Weekend, without this blog post being ridiculously long. I easily could have written twice as much as I did.
On the plane ride home from San Diego on Saturday, I had some time to reflect on what I was fortunate enough to experience the past few days.
When I got the email on Monday 3/7/11 that the Oasis Contemporary Jazz Awards was cancelling their events, two days before we were to leave for San Diego, I was in total shock. I was so looking forward to spending time with my buddies, listening to great music, sponsoring both the awards and In Concert for Cancer, and enjoying San Diego.
As an Award Presenter, I was going to rent my Tux on Saturday, but I got busy, and decided to wait until Monday to do so. I got the email about the cancellation about 30 minutes before I was going to leave to get fitted. At least that was some money saved.
I told my wife Robin, whose initial reaction was to cancel the trip. I really wanted to wait until I was able to gather more information about what events were still going to be held, before making any final decisions. However, Robin wanted to cancel before it was too late to do so, so I reluctantly agreed, and she did so.
The next thing I did was call the charming Michele Abrams, who created In Concert for Cancer, and tell her that I was not coming. I did not feel at all good about this. Michele was nothing short of amazing. She even offered to refund the sponsorship money, which I declined without hesitation.
As the night went on, I spoke to Bruce Nazarian, who told me that he was working on moving his Artist Showcase for Vincent Ingala and Jaared to Saturday, and to a different venue. Maybe Anthology!
Lao Tizer also had a concert scheduled for Saturday night at Anthology at 9:30 PM.
I then spoke with Steve Butler who told me that the Thursday night tribute to Wayman Tisdale and Grover Washington Jr. was cancelled, as well as Kirk Whalum’s Sunday Brunch. However there would still be a Sunday Brunch at Humphrey’s Backstage with Will Donoto, and there would still be a show with Jackiem Joyner.
So now there was In Concert for Cancer on Friday night, Bruce felt he’d get his Artist Showcase moved to Saturday Afternoon, Lao’s Concert was Saturday night, and Will Donato and Jackiem Joyner had concerts on Sunday.
I said to myself that it still had the potential to be a very special weekend. I told Robin later in the evening that I was not at all happy that she cancelled the trip, as I still wanted to go. She said she didn’t any more, but if I still wanted to go, then go book it. She didn’t have to tell me twice. I was up until almost 4 AM Tuesday morning making arrangements for myself to attend.
When I got up after a few hours of sleep, I knew that I knew a lot more about what was going on than many others, and that we needed a way to communicate with those people who were still coming to San Diego, and with those people who were like me, and might reconsider. So what does the Founder of Smooth Jazz Spot, the largest Smooth Jazz Group on Facebook do? He starts a new Facebook group, of course! The Oasis Alternative – Turning Lemons into Lemonade was born. The group grew in less than 24 hours to over 125 members, and was a major way that we communicated with people about what was taking in place in San Diego.
The name of the group was then changed to The Lemonade Weekend – Making Special Friends & Music. It stuck! Everyone started referring to the weekend as The Lemonade Weekend.
By Wednesday, Bruce Nazarian had successfully moved his Artist Showcase to Anthology on Saturday afternoon, and expanded the event significantly.
Off I flew to San Diego on Wednesday night, arriving at 1 AM PT.
On Thursday, aside from doing some work for my company, I went to work on creating a blog post of events, so attendees had the info they needed to attend all events.
Then I took a beautiful drive with Marissa Caliquire to Saddleback College, home of KSBR, and The Blake Aaron Radio Show. We sat in with Blake, his Co-Host, Tina Anderson, Producer, Laurie Ocean, Moses Boquiren (from Chill FX), Rob Tardik, and Tony Exum, Jr. To say that we all had a blast was the understatement of the century. Aside from having fun, we let listeners know the new schedule for the weekend, which was most helpful.
After we drove back to San Diego, a bunch of us including Jaared, Vincent Ingala, and Tony Exum, Jr. went out for dinner at a restaurant across from the Hard Rock Hotel, and had a fabulous time.
On Thursday, efforts were made, which culminated in finding a venue for a talented group of high school students from Texas, called Strings of Color, to play later on Saturday afternoon. I added them to the blog of events, and then went by myself to a nice little French Restaurant for a late Breakfast. When I got back to my room, I got hit with two fabulous surprises.
Dave Koz had emailed me, and said that he would be attending In Concert For Cancer. I was absolutely thrilled.
Then Peter White messaged me, and asked me to call him. I did so immediately, and he told me that if we could work him in, that he wanted to come play a private show for Oasis VIP Passport holders, and that all he needed was a time and a venue. A well regarded Magazine Publisher had told Peter that there was no way that it could be put together that fast. Well no one told me that, and I didn’t know better. I immediately contacted the Hard Rock, and in 30 minutes, a venue was tentatively selected. I then told Peter, and contacted Bruce Nazarian who has expertise that I don’t in making sure that the room would meet Peter’s needs, and that everything that Peter would need to perform could be secured. Bruce was amazing! He went to work, and within 45 minutes, a contract for the room was signed, sponsored by Smooth Jazz Spot. We then let Peter know that it was a go, and it was decided that anyone attending the Artist Showcase on Saturday, would be on the list to attend Peter White’s Private Show.
I left for In Concert For Cancer in time to attend the artist meet and greet on the first floor of the USS Midway, and it was great. The Sax Pack, Greg Karukas, Richard Smith, Mindi Abair, and Dave Koz were all in attendance. We then went up on the main deck to sit at the Smooth Jazz Spot sponsor table, which included Marissa Calliguire, Rhonda Lane, Lory Garner, Bettie Talley-Belcher, Moses Boquiren, Tony Exum Jr., Roy Handelman, his fiancé Carmen, Big Rich Edwards, and myself. The show was phenomenal, and the company was even better. Such a good time! Here are some video highlights:
In Concert for Cancer 2011 Highlights
Wonderful commentary by:
Artists Michele Abrams – Founder Dr. Stanton of Scripps Health
On Saturday, Bruce Nararian’s Artist Showcase ran from Noon to 4 PM at Anthology. Rather than me tell you about it, I’ll let Lynn Olson, who did a fabulous review: http://lynnjazz.com/2011/?w=10, and watch the videos below. I was honored to appear on KSBR Radio, as Gary Bergeson and Kelly Bennett were broadcasting live from Anthology, and interviewed me. Lots of fun.
Bruce Nazarian Lemonade Event Jam Session
Bruce Nazarian’s Lemonade DGF CD Release Party and artist showcase, Vincent Ingala
I had to miss Strings of Color, as I was a part of the Peter White set up crew, but I heard their show was excellent.
Peter White played with Jaared, Vincent Ingala, and Ramon Yslas, and gave an awesome 2 hour show. Many people said it was the highlight of the weekend, and I was so pleased to have been able to help to make it happen. Here’s a sample:
Peter White - Good Day - The Edge Ballroom, Hard Rock Hotel, San Diego, CA
Peter White – Are You Mine – Lemonade Concert
Pete White – The Closer I Get To You – Lemonade Concert
I was going to go back to Anthology to see Lao Tizer at 9:30 PM, but the Detroit Jazz Road Dogs (Marissa, Moses, and Betty) were hungry, so we opted to go to The Spaghetti Factory instead. We had a lovely time, and that was essentially the end of my trip.
Roy Handelman was nice enough to give me a ride to the airport on Sunday morning, and here I am. I’m sorry I didn’t stay on Sunday to see Will Donato at Humphrey’s Backstage on Sunday morning, and Jackiem Joyner on Sunday night at the same venue, but I heard that both shows were excellent.
So there you have it. Was it worth it to go to San Diego? The best answer is the question I heard most often after the trip:
“When can we do this again?”
I have a feeling that this will not be the last Lemonade Weekend in San Diego.
Special thanks to Bruce Nazarian, Steve Butler, every artist that performed, everyone that contributed behind the scenes, and the Hard Rock Hotel, who did their best to take great care of us. It was truly a very special weekend where the power of people, turned Lemons into Lemonade.
We have created compilation picture albums for each event. Links to them are below. At the time that this was blog post was created, we are still adding pictures. Enjoy!
The Lemonade Weekend – Beautiful People & Places
The Lemonade Weekend – The Blake Aaron Radio Show
The Lemonade Weekend – In Concert For Cancer
The Lemonade Weekend – Bruce Nazarian Artist Showcase & Jam
The Lemonade Weekend – Strings of Color
The Lemonade Weekend – Peter White
The Lemonade Weekend – Lao Tizer
The Lemonade Weekend – Will Donato Sunday Brunch
The Lemonade Weekend – Jackiem Joyner
In addition to my blog post, Lory Gardner has written an excellent 3 part blog, as part of her Adventures of a Passionate Fan blog, which captures her time in San Diego, and also provides more of a review than mine, about the various concerts she attented. It’s excellent! You can link to it below:
Review by Jonathan Widran - Wine and Jazz Magazine
Reviews by Denis Poole – Smooth Jazz Therapy
Start Your Own Local Smooth Jazz Radio Station – No Major Investment or Radio Experience Necessary
So many of Smooth Jazz Spot’s members have voiced outrage about the disappearance of their local Smooth Jazz radio station, due to change of format.
Let’s not just complain that local Smooth Jazz Radio has gone away. Let’s find lots of people that desire to make local Smooth Jazz Radio stronger than ever.
To learn more, go here:
http://www.facebook.com/topic.php?uid=497886055511&topic=17328
MusicUnited.org Works To Stop Music Piracy
Smooth Jazz Spot supports musicians by educating our members about music piracy.
Please check out: http://www.musicunited.org/
Smooth Jazz Radio – The Present & The Future
Members are often very upset that their local Terrestrial Smooth Jazz Radio Station has switched formats, and wonder why it happened, and what they can do about it. Here’s a great discussion thread that discusses this, so you can better understand what happened. We welcome your further commentary in the thread:
http://www.facebook.com/topic.php?uid=497886055511&topic=15899
What alternatives do you have? We have compiled a fantastic directory of options. Check it out here:
http://smoothjazzspot.wordpress.com/2010/09/19/smooth-jazz-radio-options/
What is the future of Smooth Jazz Radio? Here’s a great discussion thread that discusses this. I posted this thread on 10/2/10, so the discussion is just getting started. We welcome your further commentary in the thread:
http://www.facebook.com/topic.php?topic=17270&uid=497886055511
Careers In The Music Industry For Non-Musicians
Check out this thread in our discussion section on this topic of interest to many of our members:
http://www.facebook.com/topic.php?uid=497886055511&topic=17034
Music Industry Resource Directories
After doing some research to see if there was a Booking Agent Directory, we’ve come up with 2 great music industry resources that we want to make you aware of:
1. Free Resource: http://www.galaris.com/
2. Paid Resource referred by Carolyn Beverly:
I wanted to share some news with you about the new 2011 International Talent & Touring Guide.
This year’s edition contains detailed contact info for over 30,000 artists, managers, promoters and agents from 70 countries worldwide. Plus, the International Talent & Touring Guide provides information on every venue, merchandise provider and touring service that you’ll ever need.
http://nielsencomm.net/r/?ZXU=1276015&ZXD=423893327
In addition, you’ll get access to the International Talent & Touring Guide Online. Our editors closely monitor the music scene to provide you with the most up-to-date listings in the music industry, including personal email addresses, which you can access 24/7. Our online tool allows you to navigate through thousands of listings in seconds and download the contact information directly to your desktop.
The International Talent & Touring Guide, in both Print and Online, is the ideal resource for anybody who books, promotes or manages talent. Order yours today!
http://nielsencomm.net/r/?ZXU=1276016&ZXD=423893327
Best Regards,
Neil Eisenberg
Circulation Marketing Director
Billboard Directories
Smooth Jazz Spot Wall
To visit the Smooth Jazz Spot Facebook Wall, go to http://www.smoothjazzspot.com
Smooth Jazz Spot Events Section – Cruises & Events That We Sponsor
By going to our event section at http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=497886055511&v=app_2344061033, we list the various Smooth Jazz Cruises that we are aware of, as well as events that Smooth Jazz Spot sponsors, including American Smooth Jazz Awards, Oasis Contemporary Jazz Awards, and In Concert for Cancer.
Smooth Jazz Spot Discussions
Check out and participate in the many wonderful discussions by visiting http://www.facebook.com/board.php?uid=497886055511
Smooth Jazz Spot Photos
We have a fabulous library of pictures. To see them, go to http://www.facebook.com/groups/smoothmail/photos/
