2014 LIU Post & WCWP Homecoming, 2015 Hall of Fame Announcement October 21, 2014
Posted by Mike C. in Airchecks, Audio, Interviews, Jazz, Media, Music, Personal, Photography, Radio, Sports, Technology, Video, Weather.4 comments
Other recaps: 2008, 2009, WCWP 50th Anniversary (2011), 2012, 2013, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2021, 2022
Later in this recap, I share the aircheck from my Homecoming Weekend show and behind-the-scenes pictures from the pre-record. 2/26/18 UPDATE: I also combined the videos for this post into one YouTube video.
I was at LIU Post on Saturday for their annual Homecoming Day. Most of my time was spent at WCWP’s barbecue and the announcement of 2015 inductees to their Hall of Fame.
I arrived at WCWP at about 2:30 PM. After setting my equipment down in Studio 3, I walked to Bethpage Federal Credit Union Stadium to watch part of the 3rd quarter of the LIU Post Pioneers’ Homecoming game against the Saint Anselm Hawks.
Before taking pics by Bronko Pearsall Field, I grabbed a few shots of the carnival:
The press box:
WCWP alumni Jeff Kroll and Neil Marks called the game from the lower booth. Included to their right (screen left) were, from left to right, Joel Feltman, Zach Parker (facing away), and Phil Lebowitz.
Last year was going to be the press box’s last year, but it turned out not to be.
Unlike last year, I didn’t capture a Pioneers touchdown, but I did capture a kickoff return for Saint Anselm…
..
…and a run by Pioneers quarterback Steven Laurino:
The Pioneers went on to beat the Hawks by the score of 49-21.
I took the scenic route back to WCWP, which began at Post Hall:
It is home to ARP, or the Academic Resource Program, located on the lower level. It was the Academic Resource Center (ARC) while I was a student, from Fall 1999 to Fall 2003, and was one level higher.
My 35mm photo rescanning project recently included pictures from ARC events. And as I work my way through pics between the rest of 2000 and 2003, there will be many more. Without ARC/ARP, I would have had a tougher road to graduation.
The opposite side of Post Hall:
Riggs Hall:
Humanities Hall:
Humanities was home to many of my Media Arts classes. I also took English Composition, Philosophy, Political Science, Spanish, and Math for Elementary Education there.
The Winnick House:
The combined building of Life Science and Pell Hall:
I took Study Strategies on the Life Science side, and Human Geography and Earth Science on the Pell side.
Eventually, I made my way back to WCWP.
With the Homecoming game ending early, Maura “Bernie” Bernard had to start her show a half hour earlier than expected:
The same thing happened to me in 2008.
Let the show begin:
Steven Acevedo was one of many guests to drop in on Bernie’s show:
David Kaplan was another:
Moments before the 2015 WCWP Hall of Fame announcement, I video recorded the following aircheck from Bernie’s show, synced to my recording of the Internet stream:
As Ted David noted above, at 5PM, he announced the 2015 inductees to the WCWP Hall of Fame. Ted is himself an inductee, part of the 2014 HOF class.
The 2015 inductees are Jeff Kroll, Bruce Leonard, Bobby Guthenberg, and Mike Riccio. Yesterday was not only the 53rd anniversary of WCWP, but Bobby’s “53rd” birthday, as well. What better birthday present than induction into the WCWP Hall of Fame?
Here is the announcement:
After that, it was time to pose for pictures.
Here are Pete Bellotti, Dan Cox, Jeff Kroll, Bruce Leonard, Bobby Guthenberg, Mike Riccio, and Ted David:
Next is all the Hall of Famers that were present at Homecoming:
Frank D’Elia (2014), Ted (2014), Bobby G. (2015), Mike (2015), Bernie Bernard (2013), Jeff (2015), Bruce (2015):
One of two pictures of Ted and me:
Joel Feltman and Ted David:
The barbecue outside WCWP wouldn’t have been possible without Ryan Attard, Director of Alumni Relations and the LIU Post Alumni Association. After the HOF announcement, Ryan spoke with Bernie:
Here is how that looked and sounded:
Phil Lebowitz (center) with two current students: Deandre Wilson and Mike Nicosia:
After the above picture, I was Bernie’s next guest:
Two comments:
1) I probably shouldn’t have bitten the smooth jazz hand that could potentially feed me in the future.
2) I was nervously playing with one of the WCWP bracelets that Bernie’s sister Melissa made.
Steven Acevedo and Jett Lightning took turns reading the WCWP Rock Show concert calendar:
Here’s how that sounded:
Hearing Bernie play “Fire” by Arthur Brown in previous years made that song one of my favorites. When she played it this year, as heard above, after “I am the god of hellfire, and I bring you…!,” I jumped up and down excitedly for the first few bars before composing myself.
6PM marked the middle of WCWP’s Homecoming Weekend:
It began Friday at noon and ended Sunday night (yesterday morning) at midnight.
Thanks to Pat Kroll for bringing over this personalized Waldbaum’s sheet cake:
Pat cut the first slice:
The WCWP 53rd anniversary/birthday cake was acknowledged on the air:
John Zoni, Pat Kroll, Jeff Kroll, Zach Parker:
Bernie’s last aircheck of the night:
…looked and sounded like this:
Next up was Rev. John Commins:
It was his first Homecoming show in a decade.
Bruce and Jeff ran the board:
Steven Acevedo stuck around for John’s show:
Here are select talk breaks from John’s show:
Mike Phillips, Frank D’Elia, and Phil Lebowitz:
After becoming friends with Joe Honerkamp on Facebook, we finally met in person Saturday night:
Ted David took this picture of me:
Then, we posed for our second pic of the day:
I took one last shot before I left:
I had to take it from Studio 2 because it was too crowded in Studio 1 and at the door to Studio 1.
I had such a blast at Homecoming. It was great to catch up with alumni I’ve met before and with those I met in person for the first time.
2/26/18 UPDATE: I combined all the above videos into one YouTube video:
Hours later, at 2AM, it was time for my Homecoming show, CJazzPlus with Mike Chimeri. As I noted two weeks ago, I pre-recorded the show. Here are pictures from that session in Studio 2:
Direct from the Studio 2 console is the aircheck from that show:
And here is the playlist with a retroactive correction I added in Photoshop on Sunday night:
Some of the notes I wrote on the playlist didn’t make it to the final cut.
I loved Ted David’s liners so much that I made a compilation of how those liners sounded between songs:
The first transition was from the console while the rest were from the Internet stream.
My experience at Day 1 of 2014 New York Comic Con October 10, 2014
Posted by Mike C. in Animation, Art, Books, Comedy, Internet, Interviews, Media, Personal, Photography, Radio, Technology, Travel, TV, Video, Video Games, Weather.add a comment
Other New York Comic Con recap: 2012 Day 2, 2017 Day 1, 2018 Day 1, 2019 Day 1, 2021 Day 1
Yesterday marked my second trip to New York Comic Con, held annually at the Javits Center in the Midtown West portion of Manhattan. This time, I went with my girlfriend. We met each other at Penn Station, going our own ways to get there. I came from Wantagh, she came from Wallingford, Connecticut.
My way to her began at around 12:15 when I walked two blocks to a bus stop for the southbound NICE (Nassau Inter-County Express) n73. The bus arrived at 12:28, two minutes ahead of schedule. That ensured I would arrive at the Wantagh LIRR (Long Island Rail Road) station in time to board a 12:32 train, an earlier train than I had planned for. If I hadn’t bought my round trip ticket the day before, I’d have to wait for the 12:57. 50 minutes later, I was at Penn Station. I met up with my girlfriend and we began the half-hour walk to the Javits Center.
We entered at West 38th Street, tapping our badges before going inside. Conventioneers were greeted by giant inflated Teen Titans – and, by extension, Teen Titans Go! – characters.
Beast Boy and Starfire:
Cyborg and Robin:
Time to head inside…
My first plan was to meet voice actor Billy West, whom I interviewed back in 2005 at WCWP. Since autographing was involved, and not knowing offhand where Booth 1280 was, despite going to NYCC two years ago, I headed downstairs.
A fellow conventioneer informed me that Booth 1280 was on the show floor. So, my girlfriend and I headed there.
On the floor…
We searched the aisle numbers and headed for the 1200s. It was there that we found Billy West.
Billy and I had a brief conversation, he signed my copy of Futurama, Volume 7 – which has Zoidberg on the cover – and my girlfriend took our picture:
He signed the cover this way:
To Mike!
…Zoidberg could eat…
Billy West
It was the highlight of my afternoon. But there was more to do. My girlfriend and I walked the floor back to a downward escalator.
Along the way, this is what we saw:
We finally reached a downward escalator:
There were a few panels I was interested in attending, but the one we settled on was here in Room 1A21:
It was for the latest (and upcoming) Transformers TV series, Transformers: Robots in Disguise. The panel began at 4:00, but we got in line at 3:00.
The line was small when we arrived and we ended up near the front. It pays to show up early. After 50 minutes in line, the door was opened. We ended up sitting front row center. It was fantastic.
The panel was moderated by Mike Vogel, the Vice President of Development for Hasbro Studios:
From right to left on the dais, there was Jeff Kline, executive producer:
Adam Beecher, producer and writer:
And the voice talent:
Will Friedle (Bumblebee):
Khary Payton (Grimlock):
Constance Zimmer (Strongarm):
…and Mitchell Whitfield (Fixit):
Now that you know the stars, here are random panel wide shots:
Khary set up the clip about to be shown:
Q&A:
After 45 minutes, the panel came to an end:
Constance and Khary stuck around to sign autographs:
Transformers: Robots in Disguise premieres in early 2015 on Cartoon Network. I can’t wait. I’m so glad I chose this panel.
After a few fun hours at New York Comic Con, my girlfriend and I called it a day:
We didn’t go right home, though. We walked down 11th Avenue to West 35th Street, taking that to 8th. We stopped in Trattoria Bianca for an early dinner. An hour later, we boarded an express LIRR train back to Wantagh, which also took an hour.
As I did for my 2012 Day 2 recap, I’ll leave you with a picture of the ticket holder I wore and the badge it carried:
10/11 UPDATE: There is an in-depth recap of the Transformers: Robots in Disguise panel at Newsarama.
And unbeknownst to me, because I didn’t look at the NYCC schedule beyond Thursday, there was a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles panel yesterday. Bam! Smack! Pow! has a recap of that, while IGN’s Scott Collura interviewed Rob Paulsen (Donatello), Greg Cipes (Michelangelo), and executive producers Ciro Nieli and Brandon Auman.
If tickets for Friday, Saturday, and Sunday hadn’t sold out so fast, I would have gone either of those days. But I’m glad I went when I did. As I noted in the original recap, I got to meet Billy West in person and to whet my appetite for Transformers: Robots in Disguise, sitting front row center for their panel in the process.
Tunnel to Towers 5K Run & Walk September 29, 2014
Posted by Mike C. in Fire, Health, Internet, Military, News, Personal, Phone, Photography, Police, Travel, TV.add a comment
I was in New York City yesterday for the annual Stephen Siller Tunnel to Towers 5K Run and Walk. I signed up back in May after my dad recommended it to me. He was impressed by all the running I had done, and at such a fast pace. The fast pace back then occurred on the treadmill, but that has extended to the outdoors since I signed up. September alone was a landmark month for me, as I routinely ran 3.6 miles in about 38 minutes. Conditioning like that prepared me for yesterday.
The day began dark and early at 4:30 AM when my alarm clock woke me up. I tried to go to sleep early and get a decent amount of hours in, but I was only able to get about three hours of sleep. I spent about an hour getting ready and was out the door with my dad at 5:30.
We traveled to Point Lookout with eleven others from Dad’s firehouse, Freeport Excelsior Hook and Ladder Co. 1. There, we joined a bigger team from Point Lookout Lido Fire Department’s 2nd Battalion.
I didn’t bring my Nikon D5100, settling on my iPhone 5 for all pictures seen in this recap.
Three buses took us to Red Hook, Brooklyn. Our Freeport team boarded first of those three.
We arrived in Red Hook shortly before 9:00.
20 minutes later, we began the long stop-and-go walk to the starting line.
Along the way, we passed Visitation of the Blessed Virgin Mary Roman Catholic Church:
Their bell rang as we passed by.
Almost at the starting line:
And away we went!
I didn’t think I’d be able to run because of the amount of people participating. But once we crossed the starting line, I did run, though not for the entire 5K.
The Brooklyn-Battery Tunnel (aka Hugh L. Carey Tunnel):
As I ran and walked through the tunnel, music was pumped in through speakers and various runners yelled patriotic chants. It was surreal, but I enjoyed it.
The tunnel seemed to go on forever. While 1.73 miles is a mere two minutes by car, in light traffic, I was in there for 25 minutes on foot.
The light at the end of the tunnel:
When I was out, I was greeted by the sight of One World Trade Center in Lower Manhattan:
Freeport native Richie Muldowney was one of the 343 FDNY firefighters lost on 9/11:
A view of Jersey City across the Hudson River:
50 minutes after I started…
…I crossed the finish line:
My official time, listed here (search chimeri), was 0:50:36.
On my way back, there were two early buses and one late bus. The early buses were full, so I and most of the Freeport team had to wait for the late bus. While we waited, we had lunch at Greenwich Street Tavern in TriBeCa.
We were finished eating just in time to board the late bus back. It took nearly two hours to return to Point Lookout due to heavy traffic, and a half hour to return home to Wantagh.
The Tunnel to Towers 5K Run and Walk was an amazing and awesome (in the literal sense) experience. If you haven’t signed up for it before, I recommend you try it at least once.
9/30 UPDATE: The full text results can be seen here.
Scanning all over again September 20, 2014
Posted by Mike C. in Personal, Photography.1 comment so far
You may remember that I scanned pictures from multiple photo albums in December 2008 and January 2009. You may also remember that I filled the gaps last summer when I scanned albums I hadn’t scanned originally, in addition to pictures in a bin. I scanned with a higher quality scanner at a higher DPI (dots per inch) setting than the original scans. And last month, I completed the gap-filling when I scanned pictures that were in a drawer in the guest room.
Filling those gaps made me dissatisfied with the quality of those original scans – the result of selecting “auto contrast,” “auto levels,” and “auto color” in Photoshop for most of them. So, I’ve begun the long, arduous process of rescanning many of those pictures.
This could take a few months, but I feel it has to be done. So far, I’ve scanned 250 pictures over two days. I have about 2,900 left. I’m going to take it slow, only scanning 100 pictures max per day for a few days a week. Wish me luck.
Slow summer for web posts August 11, 2014
Posted by Mike C. in Personal, Photography.add a comment
Most of my posts this summer involve looking back at the past, whether ten or twenty years ago. There isn’t anything new to write about. Even scanning 35mm pictures is a look back. I did that last Thursday and Friday.
I promise there will be more to write about in the months ahead. In the meantime, thank you for your patience.
Planting Fields Arboretum pictures July 3, 2014
Posted by Mike C. in Jazz, Music, Personal, Photography, Travel.2 comments
I didn’t say anything about it here, but last August, a few days before the Spyro Gyra Smooth Cruise, my girlfriend and I went up to Planting Fields Arboretum State Historic Park in Oyster Bay. It was the first time either of us had been to the park in over a decade, years before we met. We only went there for concerts, not touring the sights. This time, we went solely to look around.
Here are select pictures from our sightseeing:
I hope this has inspired you to visit Planting Fields Arboretum. As long as the weather is dry when you go, you won’t be disappointed.
The Jeff Lorber Fusion at Blue Note June 14, 2014
Posted by Mike C. in Jazz, Music, Personal, Photography, Travel, Weather.add a comment
Monday evening marked my first trip to the famous Blue Note Jazz Club in the Greenwich Village section of Manhattan.
Blue Note is not far from Zinc Bar, which I was at in June 2011 for Lisa Hilton.
The band I saw at Blue Note on Monday was the Jeff Lorber Fusion, who were originally scheduled to appear on April 7. It’s a good thing the show was moved because I would have had to deal with moderate to heavy rain on the original night. The sky was equally overcast on this rescheduled night, but it didn’t rain, at least not while I was outside.
My girlfriend and I arrived nearly two hours before showtime, 15 minutes after doors opened. Our early arrival paid off as we were seated at a table right next to center stage! It was great.
The Jeff Lorber Fusion was made up of Jeff on keyboard:
…and piano (seen here playing both):
Eric Marienthal on soprano sax:
…and alto sax:
Jimmy Haslip on bass:
…and Lionel Cordew on drums:
There were two shows that night: 8PM and 10:30 PM. Kelly and I chose the early show. The set list was as follows:
8PM SET LIST
1. Chinese Medicinal Herbs
Originally heard on: “The Jeff Lorber Fusion,” 1977; “Now is the Time,” 2010
2. Hacienda
Originally heard on: “Hacienda,” 2013
3. He Had a Hat
Originally heard on: “He Had a Hat,” 2007
4. Singaraja
Originally heard on: “Galaxy,” 2012
5. Montserrat
Originally heard on: “Galaxy,” 2012
6. Horace
Originally heard on: “Galaxy,” 2012
7. Rain Dance
Originally heard on: “Water Sign,” 1979; “Now is the Time,” 2010
8. King Kong (Frank Zappa cover)
Originally heard on: “Hacienda,” 2013
9. Surreptitious
Originally heard on: “He Had a Hat,” 2007
NOTE: Eric Marienthal played soprano sax on #1, 4, and 7, but alto otherwise.
With flash photography disallowed, and fearing that my camera’s AF-Assist light would be mistaken for a flash, I didn’t take that many pictures. But it was an exhilarating show with wild solos by each member of the band. This was my first Jeff Lorber concert, and I doubt it will be my last. Thank you to Jeff, Eric, Jimmy, and Lionel.
I’ll leave you with pictures from two solos.
First, Lionel Cordew’s “Chinese Medicinal Herbs” solo:
And Jimmy Haslip’s “Hacienda” solo:
SJFS 2014 Night 2 recap April 24, 2014
Posted by Mike C. in Internet, Jazz, Media, Music, Personal, Photography, Travel.3 comments
Jay Rowe‘s twelfth annual Smooth Jazz for Scholars benefit concert resumed on Saturday night with a packed house. They were in for a wild night.
Kevin McCabe welcomed the house, or audience, at approximately 8PM:
The first song of the night was by select members of the West Shore Middle School Band. Twelve hours earlier on Facebook, the band’s teacher, Bob Nunno, let me know that some of his students would be opening the show. I told him that was great and I looked forward to seeing them. Pictures from their song can be found in the set list below.
The band for the rest of the night consisted of Jay Rowe on keyboards:
Trever Somerville on drums:
…and Steve Scales on percussion:
SET LIST
1. Clocks (Coldplay cover)
Musicians: Select members of the West Shore Middle School Band, under the direction of Mr. Bob Nunno (who also played keyboard)
Applause:
Like the previous night, Kevin returned to the stage to introduce Jay and his band. Jay welcomed the audience…:
…then played the first song of the main show, the second song overall:
2. Pleasure Island (Jay Rowe)
Originally heard on: “Laugh Out Loud,” 2001
Featured musician: Jay Rowe (keyboards)
3. George Can’t Dance (Chieli Minucci)
Originally heard on: “Catwalk,” 1994 (Special EFX album)
Featured musicians: Chieli Minucci (electric guitar), Nelson Rangell (alto sax)
4. Till the End of Time (Chieli Minucci)
Originally heard on: “Genesis,” 2013 (Chieli Minucci & Special EFX album)
Featured musicians: Chieli Minucci (electric guitar), Nelson Rangell (alto sax)
5. Point of Departure (Nelson Rangell)
Originally heard on: “Red” and “Blue” (upcoming albums) (1/30/15 UPDATE: “Red” and “Blue” are available for download this Sunday, February 1.)
Featured musician: Nelson Rangell (alto sax)
6. Speak Softly Love (Love Theme from The Godfather)*/Slammin’ (Nick Colionne)
Originally heard on: “Influences,” 2014
Featured musician: Nick Colionne (electric guitar)
*-Jay’s intro tune for Nick
7. Melting Into You (Nick Colionne)
Originally heard on: “No Limits,” 2008
Featured musicians: Nick Colionne (vocals/electric guitar), Marion Meadows (soprano sax) (walked on mid-song)
8. The Lift (Marion Meadows)
Originally heard on: “Body Rhythm,” 1995
Featured musician: Marion Meadows (soprano sax)
Marion and Jay co-wrote this song, the last track on “Body Rhythm,” which featured both them and Dave Anderson.
9. My Cherie Amour (Marion Meadows; Stevie Wonder cover)
Originally heard on: “Body Rhythm,” 1995
Featured musicians: Timmy Maia (vocals), Marion Meadows (soprano sax), Chieli Minucci (electric guitar)
10. Blue Lagoon (Chieli Minucci)
Originally heard on: “Genesis,” 2013 (Chieli Minucci & Special EFX album)
Featured musician: Chieli Minucci (electric guitar)
11. In Memory of Elizabeth Reed (The Allman Brothers Band cover)
Featured musicians: Caitlin Kalafus (drums), Chieli Minucci (electric guitar)
12. Children’s Games (Nelson Rangell; Antonio Carlos Jobim cover)
Originally heard on: “Red” and “Blue” (upcoming albums) (1/30/15 UPDATE: “Red” and “Blue” are available for download this Sunday, February 1.)
Featured musicians: Nelson Rangell (whistling/piccolo/vocals/claps), Musician (acoustic guitar)
When I spoke to Jay in February, I wondered what Nelson’s whistle song would be this year. This was a pleasant surprise, and the second year in a row where Nelson covered a Jobim tune.
13. Rainbow Seeker (Nelson Rangell; Joe Sample cover)
Originally heard on: “Far Away Day,” 2000
Featured musician: Nelson Rangell (flute)
14 (Finale). James Brown Tribute
Featured musicians: Everyone, led by Nick Colionne (vocals)
Now for various pictures of each musician, beginning with Jay Rowe:
Dave Anderson:
Trever Somerville:
Steve Scales:
Chieli Minucci:
Electric guitar:
Acoustic guitar on “Children’s Games”:
Nelson Rangell:
Alto sax:
Flute:
Piccolo:
Percussion via Steve’s chimes:
Vocals and claps:
“Nelson Rangell, ladies and gentlemen!”:
Nick Colionne:
Guitar:
Vocals:
Marion Meadows:
Timmy Maia:
Caitlin Kalafus:
This was Caitlin’s first appearance at SJFS in six years.
To be blunt, she rocked!
The audience agreed.
On to wide shots. First up, “George Can’t Dance”:
“Till the End of Time”:
During “Melting Into You”…:
…and after:
“The Lift”:
During “My Cherie Amour”…:
…and after:
“In Memory of Elizabeth Reed”:
“Children’s Games”:
Steve and Trever’s “Rainbow Seeker” duet:
The wild finale (isn’t it always?): Nick’s tribute to James Brown:
“Yeah!”:
“Ha-haaaa!”:
Nick: “Here we go! Can I count it off?!” Nelson: “Count it off!”
“1, 2, 3, ‘ey!”
Time to go into the audience:
(singing): “What about you?!”: (4/27 UPDATE: Or as it’s spelled on “Influences,” “Whatta ‘Bout You?”)
What about Jay’s mother-in-law?:
Meanwhile, back on stage:
Caitlin briefly returned to drums…:
…and Timmy took over percussion:
No tribute to James Brown would be complete without the cape routine:
Jay wrapped it up:
“See you all next year!”
Bob Nunno was sitting near where I set up. So, we spoke for a few minutes after the show. Then, I had my girlfriend take our picture:
Putting together these recaps is a labor of love. From capturing to editing to uploading to writing, it’s a long and trying process. When I left the Parsons Complex on Saturday night, I contemplated not going again. But that would be crazy. I love Smooth Jazz for Scholars. For two days out of the year, Milford is my home. I am grateful to Jay and everyone involved each year for putting on what I consider the Super Bowl of contemporary jazz.
I’ll be back, and I hope you, the reader (if you’re into this genre), make plans to come, too. Thank you for reading, and to quote Jay, see you all next year!
SJFS 2014 Night 1 recap April 23, 2014
Posted by Mike C. in Internet, Jazz, Media, Music, Personal, Photography, Travel.add a comment
For eight years, I’ve traveled to Milford, Connecticut, for Jay Rowe‘s Smooth Jazz for Scholars benefit concert. This is the first year that has taken place on Easter weekend. My original plan was to only come to this first night – Friday, April 18. But when I spoke to Jay between sets at Jeff Kashiwa’s Houndstooth Pub show in February, he convinced me to come to both nights. I’m glad I did. I’ll recap the second night in a separate post, but let’s focus on the first night.
The night began just after 8PM with an introduction from Kevin McCabe:
The first song of the night was by select members of the Foran High School Jazz Ensemble. Pictures from that song can be found in the set list below.
As for the main band, you had SJFS founder Jay Rowe on keyboards:
Dave Anderson on bass:
Trever Somerville on drums:
Steve Scales on percussion:
…and for nine songs, Rohn Lawrence on guitar:
SET LIST
1. Pick Up the Pieces (Average White Band cover)
Featured musicians: Foran “Average High School Ensemble,” as they called themselves
Applause:
After the ensemble performed, Kevin McCabe returned to the stage to resume his introduction, then he tossed to Jay Rowe:
2. Rosemary’s Tune (Jay Rowe)
Originally heard on: “Live at Daniel Street,” 2011
Featured musicians: Jay Rowe (keyboards), Rohn Lawrence (guitar)
3. Just a Natural Thang (Steve Cole)
Originally heard on: “True,” 2006
Featured musicians: Steve Cole (tenor sax), Rohn Lawrence (guitar)
4. Going in Circles (Steve Cole; The Friends of Distinction cover)
Originally heard on: “Pulse,” 2013
Featured musicians: Steve Cole (tenor sax), Rohn Lawrence (guitar)
5. The Music Inside (Chuck Loeb)
Originally heard on: “The Music Inside,” 1996
Featured musicians: Chuck Loeb (guitar)
6. Hacienda (Jeff Lorber)
Originally heard on: “Hacienda,” 2013 (Jeff Lorber Fusion album)
Featured musicians: Jeff Lorber (keyboard), Steve Cole (tenor sax), Chuck Loeb (guitar)
7. Tune 88 (Jeff Lorber)
Originally heard on: “Water Sign,” 1979 (Jeff Lorber Fusion album)
Featured musicians: Jeff Lorber (keyboard), Chuck Loeb (guitar), Rohn Lawrence (guitar), Kim Waters (alto sax)
8. Waterfall (Kim Waters)
Originally heard on: “Someone to Love You,” 2002
Featured musicians: Kim Waters (alto sax), Rohn Lawrence (guitar)
9. In the House (Kim Waters)
Originally heard on: “From the Heart,” 2001
Featured musicians: Kim Waters (alto sax), Chuck Loeb (guitar), Rohn Lawrence (guitar)
10. With You All the Way/All ‘n All (Steve Cole)
Originally heard on: “Pulse,” 2013
Featured musicians: Steve Cole (tenor sax), Rohn Lawrence (guitar)
11. Silver Lining (Chuck Loeb)
Originally heard on: “Silhouette,” 2013
Featured musicians: Chuck Loeb (guitar), Jeff Lorber (keyboard)
12. Silhouette (Chuck Loeb)
Originally heard on: “Silhouette,” 2013
Featured musicians: Chuck Loeb (guitar), Jeff Lorber (keyboard)
13. Red Wine and You (Kim Waters)
Originally heard on: “My Loves,” 2013
Featured musicians: Kim Waters (alto sax), Rohn Lawrence (guitar)
14. Confirmation (Charlie Parker cover)
Keyboard duet: Jay Rowe, Jeff Lorber
15 (Finale). Toad’s Place (Jeff Lorber)
Originally heard on: “Water Sign,” 1979 (Jeff Lorber Fusion album)
Featured musicians: Everyone
Let’s move on to various pictures of each musician.
We start with Jay Rowe:
A call and response with Chuck Loeb on “The Music Inside”:
Dave Anderson:
Trever Somerville:
Steve Scales:
Prompting the audience to clap during “Waterfall”:
Rohn Lawrence:
I love when he creeps up the fingerboard.
I love this, too:
Steve Cole:
Chuck Loeb:
Chuck worked scat into his “In the House” solo:
Kim Waters:
Kim briefly switched to keyboard – Jeff Lorber’s keyboard – during his “In the House” solo:
Jeff Lorber:
On to wide shots, beginning with “Rosemary’s Tune”:
“Going in Circles”:
“Hacienda”:
“Tune 88”:
“In the House”:
“Confirmation,” a duet by Jay and Jeff:
The finale – “Toad’s Place”:
The first night of Smooth Jazz for Scholars was in the books. Jay gave it up one more time for all performers.
Afterward, I had brief conversations with Steve Cole, Chuck Loeb, Kim Waters, and Jeff Lorber. I also got pictures with three of them, starting with Jeff:
Then Kim:
And Chuck:
There were more musical thrills on the second night. Click here to see.
2014 WCWP Hall of Fame Ceremony April 12, 2014
Posted by Mike C. in DVD, Interviews, Media, Music, News, Personal, Photography, Radio, Sports, Technology, TV, Video.add a comment
Other Hall of Fame ceremony recaps: 2012, 2013, 2015, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020-21, 2022, 2023
Last Saturday, the WCWP Hall of Fame welcomed four new inductees in a ceremony in the Goldsmith Atrium at Tilles Center for the Performing Arts. This year’s inductees were Rita Sands, Frank D’Elia, Ted David, and the late Bill Epperhart.
You can see videos of the ceremony at the end, but first, the pictures:
Pete Bellotti welcomed the audience shortly after 1PM:
Images from the intro video, voiced by Jim Cutler:
The ceremony was hosted by Jeff Kroll:
Bill Mozer assumed the co-host position:
Rita Sands could not make it to the ceremony, and instead pre-recorded an interview with Bernie Bernard:
Bernie and Jeff posed with Rita’s plaque:
The second inductee of the day was Frank D’Elia:
The view from my camcorder:
Frank receives his plaque:
Like Rita, Ted David was unable to attend the ceremony. But he did record an acceptance speech:
Dan Cox, WCWP station manager, spoke next:
Dan brought up ceremony audio engineer Zach Parker to share the news of a generous donation to WCWP by Zach’s father:
Then, reflections of Bill Epperhart began. Dan shared his memories first, then Frank, Bill Mozer, and Jeff joined in.
Dan Epperhart, Bill’s son, accepted his father’s plaque:
And gave an eloquent, emotional speech:
Then, Jeff Kroll and Bill Mozer tossed to other alumni in the audience to share their memories:
Phil Lebowitz was first:
Then, Mike Phillips:
Neil Marks:
Bruce Leonard:
Roberta Epperhart O’Neil, widow of Bill’s brother Mike:
The last stroll down memory was provided by Jay Elzweig:
The only thing left to do was pose for pictures:
7/9/23 UPDATE: I originally split the ceremony video into two parts, but posted a complete version today.
6/7/24 UPDATE: I don’t know how to embed the video in WordPress classic mode. So, click on the link below to watch.
2014 WCWP Hall of Fame Ceremony (2023 repost in full)
As you can see, this year’s WCWP Hall of Fame Ceremony ended up running for a little over two hours. Memories were shared and praise was heaped. It was a day I won’t soon forget. Congratulations to Rita Sands, Frank D’Elia, Ted David, and Bill Epperhart.
MikeChimeri.com 
