Improvisations on Reality

Now that I’m kind of, sort of recovered from the tropical contact high… (okay, cut the Beach Boys reference, but c’mon, that was just too appropriate…) I have a lot of catchin’ up to do.

I heard about this by route of a friend: Warren Hill, the original mastermind behind jazz cruising, was putting together a destination event in…Montego Bay, Jamaica. Now, those three words are effectively magic for me; I wanted to go to Montego Bay for years and chasing music was something that I got hooked on when I went on my first jazz cruise in January. I was sold, and thanks to Donna at Destination Concerts (whom I love very much!) I was sold for real.

The flight was via American Airlines and I will recommend them to the last. Awesome service, good luggage handling, smooth and short layovers – you cannot ask for anything more out of an airline, I’m certain. Flying in, I was sitting at wingside both times and the first time, hapless me was sitting next to the jet engine. Since I learned the hard way that airplanes make me sleepy…well, let’s just say I had no sleep for the NY-Miami leg. For the Miami-Jamaica leg, I was wingside at the window and got a hell of a view when the plane went through a storm cloud. A little scary, quite exciting and all the while, it sealed that chasing music, especially to destinations like Montego Bay, is the best hobby ever. (debatable, of course, but for me…no other)

Stellar sunset in Montego Bay

The resort, the top-of-the-line Ritz Carlton at Rose Hall, was amazing. Vaulted ceilings, wood accents and a ready smile from the staff set the most amazing of scenes. The adjustment to ‘island time’ was a little odd; I’m the quintessential New Yorker who juices up on coffee

and walks at a clip that can mow down a tourist. To adjust to suddenly taking time, relaxing and having everything readily available without a rush was a little strange at first, but oh, how quickly one learns.

I was immediately amazed at the views, even before the music kicked off. The sunsets are what “romantic” scenery is made of (and I honestly thought I squashed my inner romantic years ago, but I do admit – there is a little bit of that still remaining when I’m in a scenery like that) and the food is astounding.

The very first dinner, after some amazing barbecued ribs, I received a surprise when Warren Hill made the rounds of all the booked guests and welcomed us to this event – a truly gracious host, to say the least. Me being a booking agent as well as an author, I played the shameless opportunist (Sorry, Warren!!!) and got to chatting.

The first show, featuring Euge Groove, was phenomenal. As you may have gathered in my review of Marion Meadows, I’m highly picky with my saxophones, so when Euge took the stage, I was skeptical. After about the first ten minutes of high-energy, dance-ready music, the skeptic had been readily tossed overboard.

Euge surprised us that night by introducing Sunday Morning – title track of his new CD – and describing it as Gospel-infused jazz. A first? Quite. Enjoyable? Oh. Yes. A second surprise came in the form of the piano powerhouse Bobby Lyle on the keys. Now that is how I like my piano.

That night, when I came home (or the hotel room, but sure felt like home), I discovered two surprises: Jonathan Butler’s CD Brand New Day on one bed…and a couple of chocolates on the other. Ritz provides dark chocolate. I’m sold, for whichever time.

Unfortunately, that was also where I was exhausted to no end. I was awake at 3:00am to fly out to Montego Bay and it was about 1:00am the next day by the time Euge told us all good night. I knew there was an after-party in there somewhere, but trust me: when your eyelids feel like lead, you are 10,000 words away from winning NaNoWriMo for the fourth year in a row…you want to go to bed. A lot.

And you know, it was a hell of a sleep that night. Considering I’m an insomniac and don’t rest as often as most people, that was a great night’s sleep.

Tomorrow: The panel, the sea, Jeff Golub and the after-party jam.

K.G.

ETA: Nov. 2009: Jammin’ in Jamaica, Day 1, Day 2, Day 3, Day 4 writeups.