Smooth Jazz for Scholars 2026 dates/lineup December 18, 2025
Posted by Mike C. in Personal, smooth jazz, Travel.add a comment
On December 5, Jay Rowe announced the lineups and dates for the 23rd anniversary of Smooth Jazz for Scholars. This annual two-night benefit in Jay’s hometown of Milford, Connecticut, benefits the Milford Public Schools music department. Each night opens with a performance by one of the schools’ jazz ensembles, followed by Jay and the headliners. There will be five headliners on Friday, May 1, and four on Saturday, May 2. Doors to the Veterans Memorial Auditorium open at 7PM, and the shows begin at 8PM.
Here was Jay’s Facebook announcement:
This will be the sixth year in a row for Marion Meadows. Timmy Maia is headlining for the third consecutive year. Althea René is making her second appearance, twice in three years. Alex Bugnon, Steve Cole, and Steve Oliver also return for the second time in three years. Alex and Jessy J are appearing for fourth time overall, Steve Cole for the fifth time. It’s Brian Simpson and Steve Oliver’s third time overall. Chieli Minucci is as much of a Smooth Jazz for Scholars mainstay as Marion and Timmy, appearing too many times to count. It will be a treat to see all of them.
Repeating the information in Jay’s announcement:
Friday, May 1
Marion Meadows
Brian Simpson
Jessy J
Steve Oliver
Timmy Maia
Saturday, May 2
Alex Bugnon
Chieli Minucci
Althea René
Steve Cole
Location:
Veterans Memorial Auditorium in the Parsons Government Center
70 W. River St.
Milford, CT 06460
Tickets: $55 for one night, $95 for both nights
General admission tickets can be bought through Eventbrite.
Reserved seating must be ordered by sending funds to Jay via apps or a check.
Venmo: John-Rowe-43
PayPal: funhouse63@aol.com
Zelle: 203-415-8878
Otherwise, send your check to:
Jay Rowe
P.O. Box 3723
Milford, CT 06460
I’ll end this promotional post with recaps of last year’s first night and second night.
My photos from day 1 of the 2025 Ryder Cup at Bethpage Black September 29, 2025
Posted by Mike C. in Aviation, Food, Golf, Internet, Media, News, Personal, Photography, Politics, Sports, Travel, TV, Weather.add a comment
Six years ago, I said this at the end of my 2019 PGA Championship recap:
Bethpage Black’s next big event will be the 2024 Ryder Cup. [All Ryder Cups and Presidents Cups were pushed back a year due to COVID-19.] The last thing I’d like to hear that Sunday, whether in person or on TV, is the “Olé” song, indicating Europe won again.
Not only did I hear that song endlessly in person on Friday, September 26, but it was sung as Europe defeated the U.S. 15 points to 13. The U.S. teams lost too many foursome and four-ball matches Friday and Saturday to make a complete comeback Sunday. (10/2 UPDATE: Europe clinched when Shane Lowry, who you’ll see front and center in a few photos, halved his singles match with Russell Henley with a birdie at the 18th hole. That gave a Europe a 14-11 lead over the U.S., rendering all other matches inconsequential.)
Even though my dad Bill and I were deferential to visiting European fans and respectful of Team Europe golfers, vice captains, and captain Luke Donald, the loss still hurts. So, this won’t be an in-depth recap, at least not verbally, and I won’t link to any media articles. The extensive gallery below will speak a thousand words per photo. That includes photos of players, caddies, vice captains, and captains of both teams. (St. John’s University alumnus Keegan Bradley was Team U.S.A. captain.)
First, the backstory.
The 2025 Ryder Cup was held at Bethpage Black Course within Bethpage State Park. Despite the name, the park is in Old Bethpage, not regular Bethpage, and uses a Farmingdale ZIP Code. Portions of the park cross out of Nassau County and into Suffolk.
Having played the Black many years ago, my dad can attest it is the most difficult of the four color-coded courses – Red, Green, and Blue are the others. That makes it perfect for major golf championships. Bethpage Black previously hosted the 2002 and 2009 U.S. Open and the aforementioned 2019 PGA Championship. It also hosted The Barclays, a now-defunct first leg of the FedExCup playoffs, in 2012 and 2016.
The four men’s golf majors are won by individuals. This Ryder Cup was the first time Bethpage Black hosted a team championship with bragging rights on the line for one country – the United States – or one continent – Europe.
Perhaps it was foreshadowing when my dad purchased Friday tickets shortly after Rory McIlroy won The Masters on the evening of April 13. Either way, we were going. Good thing, too, because I’d purchased a hat and short-sleeve polo from the Ryder Cup online shop in March. I proudly wore those at Bethpage Black, per these selfies with and without my dad:
We were prepared for enhanced security checkpoints due to President Trump’s presence. However, we were nowhere near him and only passed one checkpoint at the entrance without needing to empty our pockets. I brought along a portable phone battery charger that I’d bought on Amazon in advance of our trip, and it really came in handy. Three charging sessions – two on-site, one on the shuttle bus ride back to Jones Beach State Park – ensured I wouldn’t miss much photographically.
To that end, let’s get two other key photos out of the way before I let the rest of them speak a thousand words each.
Fans cheered and chanted “U.S.A.!” as Air Force One flew by on its approach to nearby Republic Airport. President Trump sat in a designated area in the grandstands by the 1st tee for the start of afternoon four-ball matches. The U.S. only got 1 1/2 points from the four matches, winning one match 6&5 and tying another. The score through Friday: Europe 5 1/2, U.S. 2 1/2.
(This parenthetical was written Sunday at 11:53 AM. The fighter jets just made one last Bethpage Black flyby, whizzing over my house seconds later.)
Food and non-alcoholic drinks were free! Dad and I ate lunch before going to the 2nd fairway and then I had dessert before we waited between the 15th green and 16th tee. I washed down each meal (cheeseburger, two two-packs of Grandma’s chewy chocolate chip cookies) with a can of Bubly cherry seltzer sparkling water, otherwise having two bottles of Aquafina pure water.
I bought one thing from The Ryder Cup Shop on the way back to the Jones Beach general parking shuttle bus: a screenprint pin flag. I’ve gotten one for each major event at Bethpage Black and hung it on my wall. Even in defeat, I’m keeping it up.
I said my dad and I were deferential to any European fans we encountered and were respectful of Team Europe. (My dad’s friend Mike even worked as an attendant in Team Europe’s locker room.) If only every fan was the same. The arrogant harangues by some U.S. fans, not all of them drunk, made me wince. Team member Sepp Straka moved from Vienna, Austria, to Valdosta, Georgia, when he was 14, played for the University of Georgia, and talks like a native southerner. Didn’t matter to those fans. I feel the harangues played a karmic role in Team Europe’s win. I’ll keep what/whom I feel also played a karmic role to myself. Inside the ropes, however, Team Europe was just better. Full stop. (“Period” is a U.S. thing.)
Side note: Other Europeans who are U.S. college golf alumni include Sweden’s Ludvig Åberg (“O-berg”) (Texas Tech University) and Jon Rahm of Spain (Arizona State University). I won’t fault any fans who gave Jon flack for defecting from the PGA Tour to LIV Golf. My mind blocked out any criticism toward fellow LIV defector Bryson DeChambeau of the U.S. (University of Texas), but he probably got it, too. Honestly, I’m detached enough to be a LIV Golf agnostic, even with the matter of who funds it. To date, I’ve only seen parts of two tournaments, including highlights of one in Miami.
Okay, enough digressions. Now, the rest of the photos.
Bethpage Black’s next major is a women’s major: The 2028 KPMG Women’s PGA Championship.
The men’s PGA Championship returns in 2033.
The next Ryder Cup will the centennial, in 2027, at Adare Manor in Limerick, Ireland. (I’m sure you saw the promotional tent.)
And the next major here on Long Island will be the 2026 U.S. Open at Shinnecock Hills Golf Club. My dad and I already have third round tickets. I should have better stamina than in ’18 and not want to leave after 2 1/2 hours.
It’s been a long 18 days, what with Homecoming Weekend at LIU Post (and WCWP), the Ryder Cup, and all the post-production (no pun intended). Now, I can decompress until the next big event on my social calendar.
Thank you for reading all the way to the end, and thank you to my dad for another great experience together at a New York area golf tournament.
2025 LIU Post & WCWP Homecoming Weekend September 21, 2025
Posted by Mike C. in Airchecks, Audio, Education, Football, History, Internet, Interviews, Jazz, Media, Music, Personal, Photography, Pop, Radio, Rock, Sports, Technology, Travel, Video, Weather.add a comment
NOTE: Two of the alumni hosts, Alana and Tom, do not use their last names on the air. So, I have omitted their last names from this post.
This year, Homecoming Weekend on WCWP (simulcast on WXBA) and at LIU Post was the earliest it’s ever been: September 12 to 14. The date was made public during the WCWP-FM 60th anniversary broadcast on March 16. (Read about that celebratory weekend here.) Homecoming Weekend coordinator Ted David assembled quite the lineup, which began with me at noon (well, noon-ish) on Friday, September 12, and ended at midnight on the 14th/15th as Grandfather Rock Chris MacIntosh closed Rock ‘N’ Soul Gospel with “Red Hot and Cooking” by Garth Hewitt.
The centerpiece of the weekend was the LIU Sharks football team‘s Homecoming game (and home opener) against the Sacred Heart Pioneers. (That was the LIU Post team name before the Post and Brooklyn athletic programs merged and moved from NCAA Division II to Division I.)
Once again, as unofficial station historian, I documented as much as I could of the entire weekend – on campus Friday and Saturday, and from home on Sunday.
I airchecked off the FM web stream on PCs in my bedroom and guest room via Audacity, where I would export as individual files, and then edit in Adobe Audition. Unfortunately, my internet betrayed me on Saturday. I recorded nearly nine hours of silence. I’m grateful to WCWP station manager Dan Cox for filling the gaps with his official airchecks and to Bernie Bernard via her show files.
FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 12
I arrived at the Abrams Communications Center at 11:30 AM. While Project Independence and You (one week shy of its 14th anniversary) finished up in studio 3, I prepped for my live Instrumental Invasion. It was the first time I led off Homecoming Weekend since 2017.
I made a separate recap of that show here, but I’ll at least share Pat Kroll’s photo of me during one of my sets…
…and the aircheck video (with an edited open):
Pat and Jeff Kroll had the next show at 2PM. Since their show and Strictly Jazz at 4PM would be rerun from 2AM to 7AM, Jeff had to be prompt, fading out my last song with 1:40 remaining.
Herb Alpert fans that we are, we both began our shows with Tijuana Brass tracks. My lead was “Spanish Flea” while Jeff used “Don’t Go Breaking My Heart” (covered on S.R.O.) as the intro bed.
Jeff ran the board during his show and Strictly Jazz. 
Neil Marks joined in the second hour to preview the LIU Sharks’ Homecoming football game against the Sacred Heart Pioneers. 
Neil Marks 
Neil Marks and Pat Kroll
Out in the lobby, Neil Marks talked to Strictly Jazz hosts John LiBretto and Hank Neimark about his long trip to LIU Post earlier Friday.
Hank had the honor of signing on WCWP-FM on March 16, 1965.
The Krolls with fellow alumni (and fiancés) Sami Jo Negron and Pete Sacoulas:
A partial video of Jeff and Pat’s show:
…and a full scoped aircheck:
John LiBretto and Hank Neimark hosted Strictly Jazz, the third show of the weekend, Friday at 4PM.
John LiBretto 
Hank Neimark 
Despite the title, Strictly Jazz deviated to pop in hour 2 by playing “Wooly Bully” by Sam the Sham and the Pharaohs. Pat Kroll returned to read the song’s quirky lyrics. 
Jeff Kroll had additional “Wooly Bully” tidbits.
A partial video of Strictly Jazz:
…and the full scoped aircheck:
From jazz to rock, John Zoni was next at 7PM:
We went from rock to dance just after 9PM with Jay Mirabile and a special edition of The DFK Show.
If you’re wondering, I took a rideshare home around 6:30 PM.
SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 13
We jump ahead to 7AM and a prerecorded show hosted by John Commins:
David Friedland was live in studio 2 at 9AM, leading into the Sharks’ Homecoming game:
After editing what I’d airchecked so far, my mom drove me up to LIU Post half an hour later than Friday. We had to clear a security checkpoint before reaching the parking lot by WCWP. I unpacked and walked toward Shark Stadium (no naming rights this year) for photos around and above the field.
The bulk of my Shark Stadium photos were taken on the roof where Travis Demers, Neil Marks, and Jeff Kroll called the LIU Sharks Homecoming football game. Pat Kroll was the coordinating producer.
It was the 2nd quarter when I reached the roof. Travis Demers handled play-by-play for the middle quarters with Jeff Kroll leading the first and last. 
Travis Demers’s field view 
Remote equipment 
Pat Kroll’s notes 
You can’t call a sporting event without spotter charts. 
Just for fun, I took a short video on my iPhone that I later synced to the relevant portion of Dan Cox’s game aircheck:
Travis and my fellow alumni were impressed when I posted that video to the WCWP Alumni Association Facebook group.
Before we return to WCWP, let’s look at photos on the field, sidelines, and bleachers.
I made it back to WCWP just before halftime where co-hosts John Zoni and Jeannie Moon narrated highlights and analyzed the first half. At the board was Andrew Scarpaci.
John Zoni 
Jeannie Moon 
Highlights, lowlights, and other elements were run in Zetta by Andrew, as seen at halftime.
The studio portion of the halftime report:
You saw how Zetta looked at halftime. This image after the game tells a different, but predictable story:
For the second year in a row, the Sharks squandered a lead. They gave up 17 unanswered points to the SHU Pioneers, losing 24-21 on a field goal as time expired.
In spite of another down ending, it was another exciting game for Jeff Kroll, Neil Marks, and Travis Demers to call on Long Island’s 88.1 FM.
I kept my camcorders and tripods in studio 3 to cover John Zoni and Jeannie Moon’s portion of the postgame show.
This YouTube video compiles the studio 3 halftime and postgame reports:
I’ll spare you the details of what happened in the Sharks’ next game.
On a happier note, programming moved back to studio 2 after the Sharks postgame show. At 3:30 PM, Homecoming Weekend coordinator Ted David hosted the 2025 WCWP Hall of Fame inductee announcement special.
Ted getting in touch with Bernie Bernard to call in and announce the 2025 WCWP Hall of Fame inductees
The lucky quartet of 2025 inductees was Cande Roth, Ellyn Solis-Maurer, Tony Traguardo, and Chris Maffei.
(Full disclosure: This was my fourth year on the Hall of Fame Committee.)
Below is the announcement, featuring a cameo from me, here:
…and listen here (without the video’s cutaways):
Bernie Bernard’s prerecorded show ran at 4PM:
As Bernie’s show ran in automation, I joined my fellow alumni outside for the Homecoming barbecue. We’ll use this time for a photographic interlude.
First, Ted’s selfie with me:
Bobby Guthenberg (Bobby G.), Neil Marks, Lew Scharfberg 
Neil Marks, Laurie White, Jeannie Moon, Lew Scharfberg 
Ted David, Rich Lacourciere, new HOF inductee Tony Traguardo, John Zoni, John Mullen, Frank Iemitti, WCWP station manager Dan Cox 
Mike Chimeri, Rich Lacourciere, Tony Traguardo, John Zoni, John Mullen, Frank Iemitti, Dan Cox 
Mike Chimeri and Travis Demers 
Mike Chimeri and Alana 
Mike Chimeri and John Zoni 
Alana next to the WCWP-FM 60th anniversary banner
Live programming returned to studio 2 at 6PM with Bobby G. and Mike Riccio. The dynamic duo counted down most of the 50 songs in the “First Annual WCWP Beatle Spectacular Hit-List.” Published in December 1969, the list represented the most popular Beatles songs as voted by WCWP listeners.
Bobby G. 
Mike Riccio 
With candid photos of Bobby G. and Mike Riccio out of the way, I had them pose for this photo. 
I took this selfie early in the second of two talk breaks.
You can watch those first three talk breaks here:
…and here is the full scoped aircheck:
Incidentally, this is my scan of a copy of the First Annual WCWP Beatle Spectacular Hit-List:
Vincent Randazzo and a host of others were on hand for a special edition of The Alternative Jukebox at 9PM:
Vince’s show was three hours, but half the time was spent chatting with current and recently-graduated staff. It was quite informative. (Shoutout to Post-Party Depression.)
SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 14
The prerecorded Instrumental Invasion ran at midnight. Click here for a full recap, then come back for the rest of this recap.
I will again share the aircheck scope, though:
9/23 UPDATE: And why not include a 65x speed montage of the two Twitch streams that served as recording sessions?
All other info is in the show recap. If you’re returning from that post, welcome back.
Tom was up bright and early at 6AM for the Homecoming Weekend edition of The Dad Rock Show:
Jay LaPrise followed at 8AM with a playlist featuring songs by artists he saw live in concert:
Alana’s The Rockin’ Sunday Show normally airs at noon, but aired in its original 10AM slot on Homecoming Weekend.
Jumping ahead to 1PM, Ted David and Jeff Kroll co-hosted The Joe Show, a remembrance of the late Joseph P. “Joe” Honerkamp.
Joe was a fixture at WCWP for over 50 years, and had a long professional career which included radio stints at WYNY and WHN, and TV production on the weekend Today show.
Among those to reflect on the life and times of Joseph P. were his widow Kathy Honerkamp and their daughters Melanie and Diana. Kathy and Melanie are seen here in studio 2. Diana spoke by phone.
Bruce Leonard and Joel Feltman were also among those to call in.
The scoped aircheck (there were a few songs played) can be heard here:
Ted David shifted to the board at 2PM, playing a wide variety of music over the next hours:
Billy the Kid (Billy Houst) and Joey C. (Joe Conte) had the last two-hour show at 4PM: Masters of Metal.
The penultimate show of Homecoming Weekend began at 6PM: The Ladies of Prison Break Radio, Jamie Mazzo and Sara Dorchak.
And putting a bow on the weekend, my children, was Grandfather Rock Chris MacIntosh and Rock ‘N’ Soul Gospel. Check it out.
Post-production, no pun intended, began as Homecoming Weekend was in progress on September 13 and concluded on the evening of the 21st with publication of this post and the Instrumental Invasion posts.
Thank you very much for reading all the way to the end. It bears repeating: documenting events like this is a labor of love. The next time I step on the campus of LIU Post will be March 25, 2026, for a twice-in-a-lifetime experience thanks to Bobby Guthenberg. My mom and I will get to see Herb Alpert and the Tijuana Brass and Other Delights again for their Tilles Center set. (Read about their April 1 Jazz at the Lincoln Center show here.)
This post is not only dedicated to the memory of Joe Honerkamp, but also Jett Lightning. Jett (Julio) fell ill in the days leading up to Homecoming Weekend and passed away on the morning of September 13. He will be sorely missed at WCWP. I’ll leave you with a photo of Jett taken last year…
…and a scope of his 2022 Homecoming Weekend show featuring Jay Elzweig, who is also no longer with us.
Instrumental Invasion, 9/12/25, 12PM (Homecoming Weekend) (Live!) September 21, 2025
Posted by Mike C. in Airchecks, Audio, Football, Internet, Jazz, Jazz Fusion, Media, Music, Personal, Photography, Radio, smooth jazz, Sports, Travel, Video.add a comment
Other posts: 9/14 12AM prerecorded show recap, comprehensive Homecoming Weekend recap
The live edition of Instrumental Invasion kicked off the 2025 edition of WCWP‘s alumni-run Homecoming Weekend programming block aired at 12PM Friday. (More like 12:03, but I dwell on that enough in the aircheck below.) Whereas last year’s live show was immediately followed by Strictly Jazz, Jeff and Pat Kroll bridged the gap to 4PM with their 2PM show. This was my introduction to new station branding, thanks to a merger with WXBA in Brentwood: “Long Island’s 88.1 FM, WCWP Brookville and WXBA Brentwood, LIU Public Radio.”
Before I get into how this Instrumental Invasion show was made and share photos taken during the show, let’s get the scoped aircheck out of the way…
…along with video synced to the scope.
You’ll notice I edited the opening talk break and that it lacks video. I was so ashamed of what happened behind the scenes before playing “InsInvShowOpen” in Zetta that I deleted the raw video file six days after exporting it from the SD card. The important thing is I passed the figurative trial by fire and will know what to do next time. I’ll also try my hardest to follow the advice I forgot in the moment: don’t acknowledge (or dwell on) a mistake. Carry on like nothing happened and handle any issues off-mic.
The playlist for the live Instrumental Invasion was created July 28. This year, I knew would have a second prerecorded show and started working on that playlist the next day. The live playlist was tweaked on August 1 and 17. Annotations were drafted on July 30; August 1, 2, 4, 5, and 17; and once more on September 10. For the sake of spontaneity, I do not make scripts for live shows. I read the annotations cold after each set and otherwise ad-libbed.
Again, the live theme was a 60-year musical journey, coincidentally tying in with WCWP-FM’s 60th anniversary. The August 17 playlist tweak was for the 2025 portion. I found about T-Square‘s new Turn the Page! album (post-announcement Reddit thread), and replaced a different 2025 song (I won’t name the artist) with “Front Runner.”
All programming not involving the LIU Sharks’ Homecoming football game against the Sacred Heart Pioneers emanated from studio 2 at the Abrams Communications Center. Sharks football pre- and postgame shows, and the halftime report, were based in studio 3.
Here are photos I took in studio 2 during hour 2:
My playlist and annotation pages 
Zetta, which I quickly acclimated to
Thanks to Pat Kroll for this photo of me at the board:
Read about this year’s prerecorded two-hour Instrumental Invasion here.
2025 Long Island Retro Gaming expo recap: touring the expo August 21, 2025
Posted by Mike C. in Aviation, Computer, History, Internet, Personal, Photography, Radio, Sports, Travel, TV, VHS, Video, Video Games, Weather, Wrestling.add a comment
If you haven’t viewed part one yet, click here. Skip ahead to part three here.
Settle in for a comprehensive photographic tour of as much as I could see at the Cradle of Aviation Museum in Uniondale during the 10th annual Long Island Retro Gaming Expo.
FIRST FLOOR
Vendor Marketplace:
The marketplace as seen from the second floor:
Sponsors:
Ticket prices:
Hangar Arcade:
NES Indie Game Exhibit:
VGNYsoft Physical Indie Games:
Homebrew/Indie Showcase:
PokéLab:
PCs:
(NOTE: This gallery is a mix of photos from PC Freeplay, PC Museum, and regional exclusive computers that were part of the Retro Gaming Museum exhibit.)
Console Freeplay:
Art Gallery:
Gaming hardware displays:
40 Years of the Nintendo Entertainment System:
“Thank you to this year’s museum donors!”
Vintage ad for the Batman Forever video game:
An episode of The Super Mario Bros. Super Show!:
NES Challenges outside the Main Theatre (at least on the middle two):
SECOND FLOOR
LIU Sharks Game Showcase:
This was another table I was too shy to approach. I really should have, being an alumnus of LIU Post and WCWP. It is fitting, though, that in a year where Benjamin Abrams was inducted into the WCWP Hall of Fame, the LIU Sharks Game Showcase table included a TV/DVD player made by Emerson.
Retroware games:
Time Crisis on a modern TV!
Console History Exhibit:
The Arcade Age Exhibit
Other second floor attractions:
THIRD FLOOR
The Floor of Oddities:
And a bonus from the Cradle of Aviation Museum’s Pan Am exhibit:
The Boeing 707: A Fast Story:
That’s the end of the tour. All that remains is part three of my recap with a conclusion and pickups photos.
2025 Long Island Retro Gaming Expo: introduction, guests, staff, fellow attendees, panels August 21, 2025
Posted by Mike C. in Audio, Aviation, Books, Computer, Education, History, Internet, Magazine, Media, Personal, Photography, Podcast, Radio, Sports, Technology, Travel, Video, Video Games.add a comment
Feel free to skip ahead to part two (touring the expo) or part three (conclusion and pickups).
INTRODUCTION
2025 marked the 10th anniversary Long Island Retro Gaming Expo, held annually (except during COVID) in the Cradle of Aviation Museum, on the right end of Museum Row in Uniondale*. For the 10th anniversary, LI Retro celebrated the 40th anniversary of the Nintendo Entertainment System‘s New York area launch, introduced to the world in places such as Green Acres Mall in Valley Stream.
*I had no idea that LI Retro’s first year was the same year that East Garden City (a.k.a. Nassau Hub) was absorbed into Uniondale and is no longer a census-designated place. Keep that in mind when you read my earlier recaps.
I have attended seven of LI Retro’s nine years. I started small in 2017, only spending two hours there on Sunday afternoon. I was there the entire weekend in 2018 and ’19, and have used my weekend pass on two of the three days since 2022. By 2023, I had to spread my recaps out into three parts because I took so many pictures, mostly of the exhibits (as seen in 2024). That’s what I’m doing again this year.
Tickets went on sale in February and guests were announced in July. Some of those guests will be chronicled below.
You’ll be happy to know there weren’t any mishaps this year. None of my equipment was wrecked and no cups of coffee were spilled.
ARRIVING AT THE MUSEUM
My mom pulled into the Cradle of Aviation Museum parking lot at 9:38 AM on Saturday.
I exited the car with badge QR code printout in hand. I had the lanyard for my badge wrapped around my neck, along with my Canon EOS R7 with RF-S 18-150mm lens and Speedlite 430EX II attached. (I only used the latter on for flash photos, and never during panels.)
Inside, I was ushered to the box office where my QR code was scanned and I was handed my weekend badge. I attached to my lanyard and made my way to the first of four panels I had in mind. We’ll see photos from those later in this post.
The LI Retro staff is great and I’m honored to know them. Sunday morning, I met up with staff member Ryan Shapiro and he took this selfie of us:
Thank you, as always, Ryan.
PHOTOS WITH GUESTS AND CANDID PHOTOS OF THEIR TABLES
John Lester (Gamester81)
John is among the first on YouTube with a channel devoted to video games and collecting. Beyond that, he started Game On Expo in Phoenix, Arizona, which celebrated its 10th anniversary in April. He is the co-owner of CollectorVision Games and developed their Sydney Hunter series. Sydney Hunter and the Curse of the Mayan is the first in that series available on modern consoles.
I got a photo with John after his The Evolution of Retro Collecting panel.
Check out his LI Retro vlog:
Pat Contri and Ian Ferguson
Pat and Ian have been a fixture at Long Island Retro Gaming Expo since 2019, and I never miss their panel, recorded live for their Completely Unnecessary Podcast (a.k.a. CU Podcast). Like John Lester, Pat Contri’s YouTube journey began in 2008 with his Pat the NES Punk series, a fictionalized take on his life as a video game fan and collector. Pat’s YouTube channel also includes Flea Market Madness (sometimes featuring Frank, a fellow New Jersey transplant in San Diego), The Video Game Years retrospective, the aforementioned CU Podcast in video form, and the Not So Common Podcast with Alex Faciane.
Alongside the many Charlie Brown/Peanuts Christmas TV specials, it’s an annual tradition of mine to watch Pat the NES Punk Christmas episodes every December. It’s hard to pick a favorite, but the first two are the most sentimental. Incidentally, I can’t look at R.O.B., the original face of the NES, without hearing the Punch-Out!! opponent “voice.”
A big component of this year’s LI Retro was print media’s role in video game preservation. Pat’s Ultimate Nintendo series does its part. I have been a loyal reader since the Guide to the NES Library, which I bought from Pat (along with Pat the NES Punk DVD sets) in 2019. I helped fund Guide to the SNES Library later that year and last year, the latest book (as seen behind Ian, me, and Pat): Guide to the N64 Library. Pat, Ian, and an all-star lineup of reviewers break down every release for Nintendo’s first three home consoles. I used the Ultimate Nintendo app after each day of LI Retro to add any NES pickups to my collection. (Buy Ultimate Nintendo books here.)
Thank you to Kristen for taking this photo:
I returned the favor by having Kristen pose with Pat and Ian:
Adam Koralik
Sunday afternoon, “Mike Camera” and Adam Koralik met a third time. (That’s my server name on his Discord.) Adam’s trusty Sega Pluto prototype was part of the Retro Gaming Museum exhibit and he was more than happy to discuss it with attendees and have them try out its few playable games.
And of course, I had to get a selfie:
More exhibit photos can be found in part two of this year’s recap.
Matthew Sussman
While I did not meet actor Matthew Sussman, the original English language voice of Meowth in the Pokémon anime, he was a big draw, as seen in this Saturday photo.
I learned from an attendee in line outside the museum Sunday morning that Matthew is a fellow photographer, also in the Canon ecosystem. His camera of choice is the EOS R6 Mark II.
Ryan Burger
Ryan is the publisher of Old School Gamer Magazine, a literal mom-and-pop operation, at least at conventions. On staff at LI Retro were his wife Becky (who took the photo below), and their daughters Paige (the manager) and Rachel.
Ryan graciously gifted me with Old School Gamer Magazine Issue 46, which I held in our Sunday morning photo. You’ll see it again among the pickups in part three. Ryan was part of the third Saturday panel I attended: The Role Print Media Plays in Video Game Preservation. One of Ryan’s fellow panelists was…
Leonard Herman
I remain grateful to The Immortal John Hancock for introducing me to Leonard Herman at their joint 2018 panel. It inspired me to buy Phoenix IV and many other books. I have become good friends with Lenny and his table manager Patrick Wong, and a fixture at any panel Lenny is part of. (If I got the title wrong, either of you can let me know and I’ll edit post haste.)
Lenny is putting the finishing touches on Phoenix 5, to be released in two volumes in 2026 via Jeremy Parish’s Press Run, a division of Limited Run Games. (Jeremy and two rotating Retronauts co-hosts rounded out Saturday’s print media panel.)
Lenny with Patrick Wong on Saturday:
Patrick took our photo on Sunday:
One of the books I bought two years ago was ABC to the VCS, and I think Lenny would be proud that I bought five Atari VCS/2600 games this year. I was inspired to do so because I sought out any games programmed by the quartet of…
Dan and Garry Kitchen, David Crane, John Van Ryzin
Regrettably, I was too shy to approach Dan, Garry, David, or John, but I bought Ghostbusters (designed by David, programmed for 2600 by Dan), Donkey Kong (programmed for 2600 by Garry), and Pitfall! (by David). I couldn’t find H.E.R.O., designed by John. And because of my shyness, I didn’t buy any of their new games made for the 2600.
The new games, by Audacity Games, included:
- Circus Convoy (by David Crane and Garry Kitchen)
- Casey’s Gold (by Dan Kitchen; in second photo above)
- Alien Abduction (by John Van Ryzin)
Dan and Garry Kitchen, and David Crane are seated from left to right. John Van Ryzin is standing in the right corner of the photo. 
I forget if Dan Kitchen or Ryan Burger was playing Casey’s Gold in this candid photo Sunday morning.
That takes care of the guest photos. Photos with fellow attendees are coming up after a look at the quartet of panels I saw.
PANELS
Saturday Panel 1, 10:30-11:30 AM
Panel Room 2 (now upstairs in The Sperry Classroom)
John Lester (Gamester81)
The Evolution of Retro Collecting: From Hobby to Industry
Saturday Panel 2, 12-1PM
Main Theatre
Pat Contri and Ian Ferguson
CU Podcast Live!
The main topic for this edition of The CU Podcast was this video by Phil1Up Collects:
Next on the agenda, NES trivia:
I got the first question right: Which game was released for the NES licensed, unlicensed, and licensed again? I raised my hand and answered “Pac-Man.” I was right, and earned a sticker. As a supporter of The Gaming Historian (and yes, I read a quote in a video), I chose a GH Patreon supporter sticker to go with the one I have from my days as a supporter.
Alex and Daniel Greenberg in the audience:
Q&A:
As usual, I had a question: playing off the Gaming Historian sticker, I asked if Pat or Ian had been in touch with Norman Caruso since he announced last April that he was giving up pursuing the YouTube channel full time. Great news: Norm is still creating. He co-hosts An Old Timey Podcast with his wife Kristin.
Pat was surprised that we went the entire Q&A session without invoking the ill-fated vaporware known as the Intellivision Amico.
As of publication on August 21, the full episode is up, with the Phil1Up Collects video discussion heard starting at 1:15:30. NES trivia and the Q&A are not included. I will update with video clips when posted.
9/29 UPDATE: Sorry for the delay. There is one video and here it is:
Saturday Panel 3, 2:30-3:30 PM
Panel Room 2
The Role Print Media Plays in Video Game Preservation, moderated by Luis Aguasvivas (NPR, Debug Magazine, member of New York Videogame Critics Circle)
Panelists: Leonard Herman, Ryan Burger (Old School Gamer Magazine); Retronauts podcast host Jeremy Parish (Limited Run Games’ Press Run division, Video Works YouTube series and corresponding books [NES Works, SNES Works, Virtual Boy Works, SG-1000 Works]), rotating co-hosts Kevin Bunch (independent researcher, Atari Archive website and YouTube channel, author of Atari Archive Volume 1: 1977-78) and Brian Clark (translator, author of Gameplay Harmonies)
One other tidbit from this panel is Jeremy Parish lamenting that his early 2000s articles for now-defunct websites cannot be accessed because they weren’t archived.
I devoted most of my Sunday to photographing the exhibits and freeplay areas, buying any games I didn’t buy on Saturday, mingling further with guests, and actually playing freeplay games for the first time in years. (Oh, and I bought fried ravioli from a food truck; another first for me.)
So, the one panel I saw that day had to be Lenny’s.
Sunday Panel, 3-4PM
Panel Room 2
Leonard Herman
The History of the History of Videogames
9/29 UPDATE: Leonard posted video of his panel. (Of course, you see me front and center snapping away.)
PHOTOS WITH/OF FELLOW ATTENDEES
My friend Timothy (a.k.a. Sho):
Timothy and C.J. (I forget which vendor she was with):
Daniel Greenberg (Winterion Game Studios):
Daniel and his wife Alex:
Anthony and two of his friends:
I can’t say no to a photo op if someone asks, and I was more than happy to honor Anthony’s requests.
That is the end of post one. Head to part two for a tour of the marketplace and exhibits. Part three features a conclusion, and pickups photos.
I’ll leave you with photos taken before I left for home on Saturday and before I walked back into the museum on Sunday.
SJFS 2025 Night 2 recap May 15, 2025
Posted by Mike C. in Education, Food, Health, Internet, Jazz, Jazz Fusion, Livestream, Media, Music, Personal, Photography, smooth jazz, Technology, Travel, Wrestling.add a comment
Jay Rowe‘s 22nd annual Smooth Jazz for Scholars continued on Saturday, May 3, with five headliners, including Jay himself.
It bears repeating that Scholars benefits the Milford, Connecticut, Public Schools music department.
I edited 112 of Friday’s 304 photos on my laptop Saturday morning and afternoon. Some of that editing was during an impromptu livestream on my Twitch channel. A bandwidth test in OBS proved streaming was possible without dropped frames and major interference. At last, hotel premium Wi-Fi is strong enough to stream from your room, my room being at the Milford Hampton Inn on Plains Road. I streamed for an hour before raiding out, and would continue editing on and off stream in my first six days back home. Then, I picked 179 photos to use in the Friday recap, and 198 for this Saturday recap.
My parents and I ate dinner at Chili’s on Boston Post Road (U.S. 1), which is where we ate the first time I attended SJFS in 2007.
Again, we returned to the hotel for an hour before leaving at 7PM for Veterans Memorial Auditorium at the Parsons Complex with all my equipment.
Reiterating what I said in Friday’s post, my photographer fellowship down in the orchestra pit were Katherine Gilraine, Kenny Combs, Andrew James, and Ron Hancox.
My equipment was as follows:
- Canon EOS R7 with RF-S 18-150mm lens, plus a Speedlite 430 EX II flash attachment (only used for photos of the audience)
- Dual Panasonic HC-X1500 camcorders
- “A” camcorder has a VW-HU1 and Rode VideoMic GO II attached, and is connected to a Magnus VT-300 tripod
- “B” camcorder was used for a static wide view and had nothing attached except for an Amazon Basics tripod
- EOS R7 has two 128GB SanDisk Extreme PRO UHS-I SDXC cards (I only ever need one of them) while the two HC-X1500 camcorders have one 256GB equivalent each
With hellos out of the way and 8:00 upon us, we shouted “good evening!” to Kevin McCabe:
Leading off on Saturday was the Joseph A. Foran High School Jazz Ensemble, directed by Jessica Turner. (I couldn’t catch the names of the songs, but the second was by Earth, Wind & Fire.)
Jay Rowe‘s opening remarks were in two parts. First, he complimented the Foran Jazz Ensemble for their EWF cover. Then, he came back out after the chairs were removed and Kevin McCabe introduced the house band and headliners.
To paraphrase the late HairClub founder Sy Sperling, Jay Rowe isn’t just a smooth jazz sideman; he’s also a fan. And he was even a headliner on Saturday!
The first of Jay’s fellow headliners was Lindsey Webster:
Lindsey’s collaborator Keith Slattery was on keyboards for her songs:
The remaining headliners were Jeff Kashiwa on tenor sax:
…and flute:
Marion Meadows on soprano sax:
…and two for one, Four80East. Rob DeBoer was on keyboards:
…with percussion by Tony Grace:
Jay’s house band was made up of Trever Somerville on drums:
Andy Abel on guitar:
…and Dave Anderson on bass:
SET LIST (updated with videos on 6/20/25)
1. That’s What I Know (Jay Rowe) (tribute to Rohn [“ron”] Lawrence; expression Rohn inherited from his father and used on his son)
2024 single
Featured musician: Jay Rowe (keyboards)
If you don’t take out the garbage and mow the lawn, you’re not gonna borrow the car this weekend. That’s what I know.
-Jay Rowe, channeling Rohn Lawrence’s father
2. Every Woman, Every Man (Jay Rowe)
Originally heard on: Smooth Ride (2016)
Featured musician: Jay Rowe (keyboards)
3. Starlight Kisses (Jay Rowe)
Originally heard on: Groove Reflections (2021)
Featured musicians: Jay Rowe (keyboards), Jeff Kashiwa (tenor sax)
4. Let It Ride (Jeff Kashiwa)
Originally heard on: Let It Ride (2012)
Featured musicians: Jeff Kashiwa (tenor sax); Four80East: Rob DeBoer (keyboards), Tony Grace (percussion)
5. Upa Neguinho (Keep Up Little One) (Jeff Kashiwa; cover of Edu e Bethânia song)
Originally heard on: Luminoso (2024)
Featured musicians: Jeff Kashiwa (tenor sax); Four80East: Rob DeBoer (keyboards), Tony Grace (percussion)
6. Noodle Soup (Four80East)
Originally heard on: En Route (2007); Barn Sessions, Volume 1 (2025)
Featured musicians: Four80East: Rob DeBoer (keyboards), Tony Grace (percussion); Jeff Kashiwa (flute)
7. Cinco Cinco Seis (Four80East)
Originally heard on: Four on the Floor (2018)
Featured musician: Four80East: Rob DeBoer (keyboards, with voice sample [“uno, dos, tres, quatro, cinco, cinco, seis”]), Tony Grace (percussion); Jeff Kashiwa (flute)
8. I’m OK (Lindsey Webster)
Originally heard on: Reasons (2022)
Featured musicians: Lindsey Webster (vocals), Keith Slattery (keyboards)
Keith played keyboards in place of Jay Rowe on Lindsey’s songs.
9. I Got You (I Feel Good) (Lindsey Webster) (James Brown cover)
Featured musicians: Lindsey Webster (vocals), Keith Slattery (keyboards)
50/50 RAFFLE ($1,350 pot) (won by Denise)
10. The Lift (Marion Meadows)
Originally heard on: Body Rhythm (1995)
Featured musician: Marion Meadows (soprano sax) (started in audience)
11. South Beach (Marion Meadows)
Originally heard on: Body Rhythm (1995)
Featured musician: Marion Meadows (soprano sax)
12. Romantica (Marion Meadows)
Originally heard on: Player’s Club (2004)
Featured musicians: Marion Meadows (soprano sax) (walked off stage at the end), Tony Grace (percussion)
13. 3-Day Weekend (Jeff Kashiwa)
Originally heard on: Simple Truth (2002)
Featured musicians: Jeff Kashiwa (tenor sax), Tony Grace (percussion)
14. The Walker (Four80East)
Originally heard on: Off Duty (2012)
Featured musicians: Four80East: Rob DeBoer (keyboards, with voice samples [“funking nasty,” “to the east side, to the west side”]), Tony Grace (percussion); Jeff Kashiwa (flute)
Included audience participation (right side shouted “to the east side,” left side shouted “to the west side”), “flute battle” between Rob’s synth flute and Jeff’s real flute
15. Over the Rainbow (Lindsey Webster) (sung by Judy Garland as Dorothy Gale in The Wizard of Oz)
Originally heard on: A Woman Like Me (2020)
Featured musicians: Lindsey Webster (vocals, with comedic pause before last note), Keith Slattery (keyboards)
Jay Rowe did not play on “The Walker” or “Over the Rainbow.”
Before the finale, Lindsey sang a snippet of the title track to her upcoming album.
16 (Finale). Ain’t Nobody (Lindsey Webster) (Rufus and Chaka Khan cover)
Featured musicians: Everyone; Lindsey Webster (vocals)
Photo galleries of each musician begin with Jay Rowe‘s “South Beach” solo:
“Jay Rowe, y’all!”
I appreciated the “Mas que nada” phrasing at the end, calling back to Lani Hall‘s Sergio Mendes & Brasil ’66 medley I saw during Herb Alpert & the Tijuana Brass & Other Delights on April 1.
Jeff Kashiwa on tenor sax:
Jeff on flute:
Marion Meadows started “The Lift” in the audience:
Marion on stage:
Marion’s exit at the end of “Romantica”:
Four80East:
Rob DeBoer:
Tony Grace:
Trever Somerville:
Andy Abel:
…and Dave Anderson:
Lindsey and Dave are in this first of my medium shots:
Marion, Trever and Dave:
Marion, Tony and Andy:
Tony and Trever’s “3-Day Weekend” duet (with Andy and Jeff in the middle):
Jeff and Rob’s “The Walker” flute battle:
Wide shots start with two from “Let It Ride“:
The end of “I Got You (I Feel Good)“:
“South Beach“:
Marion watching Jay’s solo 
“Romantica“:
“The Walker“:
The end of “Over the Rainbow“:
The audience has their turn now, seen first dancing to “Noodle Soup” (Dolly Moye and Jay Dobbins are to the right of Norma):
“The Walker”:
Rob’s instructions to the audience 
Their cue 
“To the east side!” 
“To the west side!”
The 50/50 raffle (won by Denise):
Another kiss for Jay and Deborah 
The winning number 
Denise received her prize
The finale: “Ain’t Nobody” (Rufus and Chaka Khan song):
The end:
“Thank you all! See you again real soon.”
-Jay Rowe
I’ll admit things got overwhelming in the lobby afterward. (It comes with being on the autism spectrum.) There was a large crowd meeting and greeting and I was too bashful to go ahead of anyone. When the wait seemed interminable, I sat down at an elevated round table and started to cry. A woman noticed me and asked if I was okay (of all things to ask after a show featuring “I’m OK”), and then Jay Rowe noticed me and brought Lindsey Webster over to sign my copy of Reasons. Marion Meadows soon followed. (A man named Sal told me afterward it was his idea to invite Marion to where I was seated.) Marion signed my copying of Just Doing Me. Then, as my tears subsided, Jay took our photo.
Simply writing that paragraph made me cry a little.
Jay then took a photo of me and Rob DeBoer with my signed copy of Barn Sessions, Volume 1:
And Michelle from the merchandise table took a photo of me and Jeff Kashiwa with my newly purchased and signed copy of Luminoso:
I said my goodbyes to everyone – including Mia DiStasi (Jay’s mom), Kevin McCabe, and Steve Lewis – and walked out to the parking lot for the ride back to Hampton Inn. Yet again, I unloaded the contents off all the SD cards to my laptop.
Unfortunately, the last 11 minutes of Saturday’s show are missing from my “A” camcorder. When reaching for the handle unit light switch after panning to the audience’s post-“Over the Rainbow” standing ovation, the middle of my thumb grazed the record button. Gotta remember to lock that next time. That’s why the freeze frame at the end of the finale is from the “B” camcorder. The on-board audio from that camcorder was disappointingly distant. So, I’m taking my Takstar SGC-598 out of retirement for use with the “B” going forward.
That was the only wrinkle to what was otherwise a great weekend, both at the Parsons Complex and Hampton Inn. I caught up with musicians and fellow fans that I hadn’t seen since last year or longer, and met others for the first time, including Joe Green, Rick Pascal, Bill McLaughlin, and Chip Paris.
I spent hours in the hotel lobby with my laptop, mingling while editing and eating breakfast.
Here I am on Saturday with Hap Carpenter:
And I got a selfie with Estella Taylor-Greene and Norma Rohadfox before we all checked out:
My parents and I left Hampton Inn at 10:35 AM on Sunday, May 4. The ride back to Wantagh was 20 minutes shorter than the ride from there on Friday! We were home by 12:08 PM.
Along the way, I took a photo of the current WWE headquarters off southbound I-95 in Stamford:
Thank you to everyone for a memorable weekend in Milford. See you all again next year!
I’ll conclude this post with a 100x speed montage of the nine photo editing livestreams on my Twitch channel, from May 3 in my hotel room to May 11 (Mother’s Day) at home. (WARNING: There will be flashing effects at times from going back and forth between apps.)
P.S. Wednesday was my 350th Twitch stream, and marked a return to video games, my channel’s main focus.
Herb Alpert & the Tijuana Brass & Other Delights at Lincoln Center: April 1 show April 5, 2025
Posted by Mike C. in Baseball, Film, Food, Game Shows, Internet, Japanese, Jazz, Media, Music, Personal, Photography, Pop, Radio, Trains, Travel, TV, Video.add a comment
NOTE: This recap will lead with photos at the venue; before, during, and after the concert. That will be followed by photos on the way to and from there: at Rockville Centre‘s LIRR (Long Island Rail Road) station, aboard the train to Grand Central Terminal, inside GCT itself, the long walk through Manhattan to Columbus Circle (including stops at Rockefeller Center and Serafina restaurant, entering 59th Street-Columbus Circle Station to take the 1 train to 34th Street-Penn Station, and watching the Babylon-bound train arrive on track 20 of Penn Station’s LIRR terminal.
Tuesday night, thanks to my friend Lori Downing, I finally got the opportunity to see Herb Alpert live in concert. Herb Alpert & the Tijuana Brass & Other Delights played two sold out shows in Jazz at Lincoln Center’s Frederick P. Rose Hall. The show I attended – along with Lori, Lori’s son Zach, and my mother Lisa (a mutual friend of Lori) – was the second of the two, one day after Herb’s 90th birthday.
I have been a fan of Herb Alpert since CD 101.9 played “Rise” and “Rotation” on a regular basis in the 1990s. I inherited my fandom from my mom and her dad (my grandpa) Artie. In the summer of 1999, I bought a compilation CD called Classics Volume 20 with some of my high school graduation money. It only covered 1979 to ’87, meaning no Tijuana Brass. I wouldn’t discover that portion of Herb’s catalog until getting another compilation called Definitive Hits. (Yes, I’d heard TJB songs in episodes of The Simpsons and on The Dating Game. I just didn’t have them in my collection.) In 2010, I began buying CD remasters of whole albums, from The Lonely Bull (1962) to North on South St (1991). Outside of Second Wind (1996) and Colors (1999), there’s a 22-year gap in my collection that ends with Steppin’ Out (2013). From there, I’m only missing The Christmas Wish (2017).
When Lori Downing and I attended Dave Koz’s 20th Anniversary Christmas Tour at Tilles Center in December 2017, I quipped that we were in the Bob Uecker seats since we were so high up (but not in the last row). It’s a nod to the infamous 1984 Lite Beer from Miller ad where Bob is at a baseball game and settles into a field level seat. An usher intervenes, telling him he’s in the wrong seat, and Bob says, “Oh, I must be in the front row.” After the ad’s tag, we transition to Ueck in the upper deck (of Dodger Stadium). He shouts to his friend, “Good seats, eh, buddy?,” and to an umpire, “He missed the tag! He missed the tag!”
Life somewhat imitated art on Tuesday. When we presented our tickets to an usher, she escorted us to seats at stage level, a handful of rows from the stage. Seconds after I settled into what I thought was my seat, the usher realized her mistake and referred us to another usher. When I got up, I acknowledged the similarity to the ad and repeated the “front row” line. The second usher had us go up two floors in an elevator to our true location. We were in the last row of the center balcony. Unlike with Dave Koz, we really were in the Bob Uecker seats. However, there wasn’t a bad seat in the house. The rows are arranged in a way that your view won’t be blocked by the person in front of you.
Before we see photos from the show itself, along with the complete set list and background info, let’s backtrack.
Lori, Zach, my mom Lisa, and I reached Jazz at Lincoln Center, one of many portions of the vast Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts, just after 7PM.
Using the clear backpack my dad bought for when we went to a Mets game in June 2022, a security guard cleared me in mere seconds. After riding an elevator to the 5th floor, we waited in the lobby until the Rose Hall doors were to open at 7:30.
Zach invited me to look at the view of Columbus Circle from a window at the lobby’s edge.
Then, I took a selfie with my mom.
There was even a WCWP connection to all this. (FM 60th anniversary/2024 Hall of Fame Ceremony recap) Jeff Kroll is an equally big Herb Alpert fan, and he and his wife Pat attended Monday’s 90th birthday performance. Jeff and Pat’s seats were at stage level.
On Tuesday, fellow alumnus Bobby Guthenberg, a.k.a. Bobby G., was among the attendees! Here he is talking to Lisa and Lori:
Zach took a photo of Bobby G. and me:
Bobby treated me to the David Benoit concert at My Father’s Place on December 4.
On the way to the Rose Hall entrance, I saw this poster for an upcoming Bobby McFerrin concert series (with Wynton Marsalis and the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra):
Jazz legends photo exhibit:
That brings us back to my last row balcony seat. I can’t show every photo I took, and would rather keep videos to myself (and to some the Discord chat servers I’m part of). What I will show are the photos where my phone could make out faces with its AI enhancement.
The lights went down at 8:05 and the monitor showed Herb Alpert and the Tijuana Brass as the Mystery Guests on a circa 1965 episode of What’s My Line?
The stage lights came up, the new Tijuana Brass assembled, and Herb made his entrance.
The band was made up of:
- Herb Alpert – lead trumpet
- Kris Bergh – trumpet and percussion
- Ryan Dragon – trombone and percussion
- Bill Cantos – piano, synthesizer, marimba
- Kerry Marx – acoustic and electric guitars
- Hussain Jiffry – bass
- Ray Brinker – drums
It was nice to finally put faces to the names (Bill, Hussain) I’d seen in the credits to Herb’s solo albums since 2013. I’m connected with Ray Brinker on Facebook, and knew of him through his work with Gordon Goodwin’s Big Phat Band. So, he was the only Tijuana Brass member I knew by name until Herb’s introduction toward the end of the first encore (spoiler).
Bill, Hussain, Ryan, and Kris provided background vocals on songs that called for them.
Here is the full set list (original album and release year in parentheses):
- The Lonely Bull (El Solo Toro) (The Lonely Bull, 1962) – Original composition by Sol Lake
- The Work Song (S.R.O., 1966) – While writing this post, I finally learned “Work Song” was by Nat Adderley, not Cannonball
- Memories of Madrid (What Now My Love, 1966) – Another original TJB composition by Sol Lake
- Whipped Cream (Whipped Cream & Other Delights, 1965) – One of two music cues used on The Dating Game
- Spanish Flea (!!Going Places!!, 1965) – The other Dating Game cue – Original composition by TJB member Julius Wechter (also leader of the Baja Marimba Band) – Wechter’s original title was “Spanish Fly,” which wouldn’t fly in 1965
- Ladyfingers (audience member request) (Whipped Cream & Other Delights, 1965)
- Lollipops and Roses (Whipped Cream & Other Delights, 1965)
- Bittersweet Samba (Whipped Cream & Other Delights, 1965) – Still another Sol Lake composition for TJB – Serves as the theme to All Night Nippon, a Japanese radio show
- Mexican Shuffle (South of the Border, 1964) – If you’re keeping score, that’s four Sol Lake compositions in the set – I had no idea this was used in TV ads for Clark’s Teaberry gum (one such ad shown on the monitor), or that it was referred to as “The Teaberry Shuffle”
- Tangerine (Whipped Cream & Other Delights, 1965) – See notes below set list for more info
- I’m Getting Sentimental Over You (!!Going Places!!, 1965) – Preceded by Ray Brinker drum solo
- Love Potion No. 9 (Whipped Cream & Other Delights, 1965) – The album’s requisite striptease song
- Sergio Mendes & Brasil ’66 (hits medley sung by the group’s lead vocalist Lani Hall (Herb’s wife; he considers Sergio “Cupid” for bring them together): Tim Dom Dom (Chim Dome Dome), One Note Samba, The Fool on the Hill, Mas que nada – Songs 1, 2, and 4 are from Herb Alpert Presents Sergio Mendes & Brasil ’66, 1966; “The Fool on the Hill” was a 1968 title track, minus the “the”
- Rise (Rise, 1979) (solo album) – Rap fans may recognize one part from its sampling in “Hypnotize” by The Notorious B.I.G.
- A Taste of Honey (Whipped Cream & Other Delights, 1965) – Ray Brinker perfectly matched The Wrecking Crew player Hal Blaine‘s drumming from the original, right down to the bass drum taps to note the 4/4 time signature
- Zorba the Greek (Zorba’s Dance) (!!Going Places!!, 1965) – A clip of the titular film‘s dance scene (with Anthony Quinn as Zorba) was shown during the slow middle
- Encore 1-1: This Guy’s in Love with You (The Beat of the Brass, 1968) – Herb’s lone vocal song of the set – Contrary to popular belief, the song was later reworked as “This Girl’s in Love with You” for Dionne Warwick and other female singers, not the other way around for Herb
- Encore 1-2: Smile (Midnight Sun, 1992; Catch the Wind, 2021) (solo albums) – Requiem for departed friends, including Sergio Mendes, Karen Carpenter, Burt Bacharach (co-writer of “This Guy’s in Love with You”), and A&M Records co-founder Jerry Moss – “Smile” by Charlie Chaplin is not to be confused with “Sweet, Sweet Smile,” which was introduced/popularized by The Carpenters
- Encore 1-3: What Now My Love (What Now My Love, 1966)
- Encore 1-4: A Banda (Herb Alpert’s Ninth, 1967) – Fittingly preceded by band introduction (“a banda” literally means “the band”)
- Encore 2-1: Tijuana Taxi (!!Going Places!!, 1965) – original composition by TJB guitarist Ervan “Bud” Coleman
- Encore 2-2 (True Finale): On the Sunny Side of the Street (Come Fly with Me, 2015; Sunny Side of the Street, 2022) (solo albums)
I knew the title of most songs the instant they began. There were a few exceptions. I had to ask my mom about “Smile,” Zach confirmed “Tangerine” on the train ride back to Rockville Centre (via a set list for one of the Buffalo shows), and I confirmed “Tim Dom Dom (Chim Dome Dome)” on Wednesday morning via the Herb Alpert Presents… Wikipedia entry.
It’s understandable that I wouldn’t recognize “Tangerine.” I gravitated toward the more popular tracks on Whipped Cream & Other Delights. I didn’t really develop awareness and appreciate of the song until hearing it on She Was Too Good to Me, trumpeter/vocalist Chet Baker‘s 1974 comeback album.
Throughout the set, relevant video clips or still photos were shown on a monitor above the stage.
The best of the photos:
“Memories of Madrid” 
“Whipped Cream,” with …& Other Delights cover model Dolores Erickson shown on the monitor 
As Herb and the Brass played “Lollipops and Roses,” a promo for The Brass Are Comin’ (1969) ran on the monitor. Among those to recite the album title was Johnny Carson. 
“Tangerine” 
Ray Brinker’s drum solo before “I’m Getting Sentimental Over You” 
Herb acknowledging his marriage to Brasil ’66 lead vocalist Lani Hall, thanks to Sergio “Cupid” Mendes 
Lani’s entrance 
Lani singing “Tim Dom Dom (Chim Dome Dome)” 
A kiss after the medley 
“Rise” 
“A Taste of Honey” 
“Zorba the Greek (Zorba’s Dance),” accelerando and all 
The false ending 
Encore 1 began with “This Guy’s in Love with You” 
“What Now My Love” 
“On the Sunny Side of the Street” 
The end! 
Herb Alpert has left the stage; you can literally see him exiting stage left 
The rest of the band departs
In conclusion, there were 22 songs, 6 of the encores (4 in the first encore, 2 in the second). It was a night I’ll never forget, and I owe it all to Lori Downing. Crying happy tears, I hugged her and thanked her as we got up from our seats and walked back to the lobby.
There were no accessible stairs. So, we had to take an escalator from the lobby to a set of elevators. We and several other attendees boarded the first elevator to open and rode it down to ground level. From there, we exited back out to Columbus Circle.
The experience wasn’t all “Lollipops and Roses,” so to speak. I neglected to disable my iPhone camera’s flash and the flash light was on as I recorded “Memories of Madrid.” An usher had to come to our row and tell me to turn it off. I did as he instructed, and I deleted the video from my phone, but was quite embarrassed and miffed. I gathered my wits within a minute or two. I made sure the flash was off in photo and video mode the rest of the night, and there was no further trouble. I recorded 12 more videos (on top of “The Lonely Bull” before the intervention). Again, I’m opting to withhold them from this post.
Now, let’s turn our attention to the other photos, taken going to and from Jazz at Lincoln Center.
This train was an M9.
By this time, my iPhone’s battery state of charge was down 10%. So, I didn’t take anymore photos, but I had taken 154 photos and 13 videos on my phone, in addition to the two photos provided to me by Zach, which I cropped and upscaled for this post.
I don’t know what more I can say. Thank you again to Lori Downing for inviting me and my mom to see Herb Alpert & the Tijuana Brass & Other Delights on Tuesday night. And thank you for reading this recap. Check back in mid-May for recaps of this year’s Smooth Jazz for Scholars. Bye until then.
Smooth Jazz for Scholars 2025 dates/lineup January 28, 2025
Posted by Mike C. in Personal, smooth jazz, Travel.add a comment
4/19 UPDATE: Marion Meadows has been added to the Saturday lineup. The post has been revised accordingly.
Pardon the delayed promotion once again, but the 21st annual Smooth Jazz for Scholars is fast approaching. Jay Rowe made the official announcement in a December 4 Facebook post. Held two nights a year since 2013, Smooth Jazz for Scholars takes place in Jay’s hometown of Milford, Connecticut, and benefits the Milford Public Schools‘ music department.
Here is that official announcement:
Saturday, May 3, now includes Marion Meadows! Watch the promotional video below.
Timmy Maia is headlining for the second year in a row, it’s the fifth year in a row for Marion Meadows (2018-19, 2022-25), with Peter White, Nelson Rangell, Jeff Kashiwa, and Jackiem Joyner also making return appearances. This is Jackiem’s second time, having debuted on the second night in 2015, but I was back on Long Island to cover that year’s WCWP Hall of Fame Ceremony.
Vocalist Lindsey Webster and the duo of Four80East finally make their debuts, five years after their intended debut appearances were canceled by COVID.
Repeating the information in Jay’s original announcement, my addendum, and the promotional video:
Friday, May 2
Peter White
Jackiem Joyner
Nelson Rangell
Timmy Maia
Saturday, May 3
Lindsey Webster
Jeff Kashiwa
Four80East
Marion Meadows
Jay Rowe
Location:
Veterans Memorial Auditorium in the Parsons Government Center
70 W. River St.
Milford, CT 06460
Tickets: $50 for one night, $85 for both nights
General admission tickets can be bought through Eventbrite.
Reserved seating must be ordered by sending funds to Jay via apps or a check.
PayPal: funhouse63@aol.com
Venmo: John-Rowe-43
Cashapp: $Jayrowe
Otherwise, send your check to:
Jay Rowe
P.O. Box 3723
Milford, CT 06460
**PLEASE SPECIFY WHICH NIGHT FOR SINGLE NIGHT PURCHASES.** (per Jay’s website)
I’ll end this promotional post with recaps of last year’s first night and second night.
5/15 UPDATE: Recaps are now up for this year’s first night and second night.
David Benoit at My Father’s Place: A Tribute to A Charlie Brown Christmas December 7, 2024
Posted by Mike C. in Animation, Broadway, Christmas, Comedy, DVD, Education, Football, History, Jazz, Media, Music, Personal, Photography, Radio, smooth jazz, Theatre, Travel, TV, VHS, Weather.2 comments
3/25/25 NOTE: Scroll down for an update to this post via an email from Steve Stoliar.
Wednesday evening, thanks to the generosity of my fellow WCWP/LIU Post alumnus Bobby Guthenberg, I was at My Father’s Place at the Roslyn Hotel to see David Benoit‘s annual tribute to A Charlie Brown Christmas.
It was the first time I’d seen a live show outside of Smooth Jazz for Scholars since before COVID. That last pre-COVID show was Mike Stern and Jeff Lorber Fusion at The Iridium in December 2019. Wednesday also marked the first time I’d seen David and his trio since June 2019, also at My Father’s Place, three months after I saw The Rippingtons there.
Bobby G., longtime friend of My Father’s Place promoter Michael “Eppy” Epstein, first invited me to David’s show one morning in late August. I didn’t hesitate in accepting the invitation. We would meet at WCWP’s Abrams Communications Center by 5:45 PM and drive to Roslyn from there.
Since it was Christmastime, I anticipated David’s set would be similar to the one from his 2008 concert at IMAC (Inter-Media Art Center) in Huntington. (Little did I know that would be the last show I’d ever see there as the venue closed in June 2009, eventually replaced by The Paramount.)
My parents drove me up to LIU Post at 5:00 and we arrived in the parking lot adjacent to WCWP (and Hillwood Commons) within 20 minutes. In contrast to the flurry of activity during Homecoming Weekend, the Abrams Communications Center was as dark as the night sky, with most of the light coming from studio 1 and 3 where live shows were in progress. Thomas, the Wednesday host of The Rock Show, invited me in before retreating to Hillwood for dinner. I paced quietly in the lobby until Bobby G. arrived shortly after 5:45.
Bobby and I conversed on the entire drive to My Father’s Place, listening to David Benoit’s Fuzzy Logic (2002) CD along the way.
It was about 6PM when parked in the Roslyn Hotel lot. We walked up the stairs to the hotel lobby and down the stairs to the My Father’s Place section. (MFP was originally its own venue before relocating to the hotel.) Eppy Epstein was seated outside the entrance and Bobby introduced us. Then, we confirmed our ticketed reservation with the attendant in the entryway and were ushered to a front row center table.
My conversation with Bobby continued as 8PM approached. (He and Billy Joel were classmates at Hicksville High School!) We both ordered separate dinners, each choosing a seltzer with lime as our soft drink, drinking water in the meantime. None of the entrees interested me, so I ordered fried calamari and a “side” of mac and cheese. Our waitress told me the side dish, with shell pasta, was as big as an entree, meaning I only needed to order one bowl. It was all quite good.
I checked the stage for a set list so I’d know what I was in for. I found one on the stage floor by the drum kit. I didn’t think to write the list to my stenographer pad until the show had begun and the waitress took our dessert orders. I chose chocolate lava cake, which was a bit rich for me, even with the vanilla ice cream mixed in, but still good.
Okay, the preamble is over. Let’s talk about the show itself!
As you see, there was a fourth member of the band: vocalist Courtney Fortune.
David Benoit was on a Yamaha piano:
New York City native Roberto Vally played bass:
Merrick native Dan Schnelle was on drums:
And the aforementioned Courtney Fortune on vocals:
The front stage featured replicas of Schroeder‘s toy piano and the sapling Charlie Brown chose over fully-grown trees in A Charlie Brown Christmas.
Before more photos, let’s look at…
THE SET LIST
- It’s the Most Wonderful Time of the Year
- Believe
- Medley: My Favorite Things/The Christmas Waltz
- Santa Claus is Coming to Town
- Originals medley: Drive Time/Café Rio/Kei’s Song
- Schroeder/The Doctor is In
- Vince Guaraldi medley: Great Pumpkin Waltz/Thanksgiving Theme/You’re in Love, Charlie Brown/Christmas is Coming/Skating/What Child is This?/O Tannenbaum
- Christmas Time is Here
- Just Like Me
- Linus and Lucy
- (encore) Cabin Fever
Set List Background Info
Vince Guaraldi’s A Charlie Brown Christmas compositions (except where noted) in the set were “Christmas is Coming,” “Skating,” “What Child is This?” (only on the soundtrack album; arrangement of traditional song), “O Tannenbaum” (arrangement of traditional song), “Linus and Lucy,” and “Christmas Time is Here.” That last song was heard instrumentally throughout A Charlie Brown Christmas, but a separate version added lyrics by Lee Mendelson, the special’s producer and co-writer (with Peanuts creator Charles M. “Sparky” Schulz). David first covered “Linus and Lucy” on This Side Up (1985), which led to an updated arrangement for “The Great Inventors” episode of This is America, Charlie Brown. David scored that entire episode, and many Peanuts TV specials (plus some Garfield specials) through 2006. The specials that stand out in my mind are:
- It’s Christmastime Again, Charlie Brown – Features hilarious scenes where Peppermint Patty and Sally Brown botch their lines in the Christmas play – Similar scenes were played out in the series finale of The Charlie Brown and Snoopy Show, where a young Stacy Ferguson (Fergie) voiced Sally
- You’re in the Super Bowl, Charlie Brown – Relegated to VHS, as of this writing – Features
improvisedplay-by-play by Steve Stoliar, a comedy writer, film historian, assistant to Groucho Marx, and impressionist (naturally, his Groucho impression is immaculate [no, he didn’t do it in the special]) *See 3/25/25 UPDATE below this list* - I Want a Dog for Christmas, Charlie Brown – Focuses heavily on Rerun, Linus and Lucy‘s younger brother, and his desire for a dog, be it Snoopy or Snoopy’s brother Spike (partially recycled from episode 15 of The Charlie Brown and Snoopy Show) – This special marked the debut of David’s original composition, “Rerun’s Theme,” later recorded for David’s Jazz for Peanuts (2008)
3/25/25 UPDATE: Steve Stoliar emailed me this evening to clear things up about his involvement in You’re in the Super Bowl, Charlie Brown.
It was much more of a challenge than mere improvisation. Here – whether you want it or not – is the complete story: I had a friend who worked at Bill Melendez Prods. in a variety of capacities. She called me up one day and said, “Can you help us? We produced this Super Bowl show that Sparky wrote and there are football games with no dialogue that just go on and on and they’re repetitious and confusing.”
She gave me a VHS of the rough-cut and I sat on my living room floor starting, pausing, rewinding my VHS player and trying to time (without a stopwatch) how long each football sequence ran. Then I scribbled down some suggested narration, making use of a lot of alliterations and metaphors, such as you get from color commentators on sporting events. After that, I read it and tried to edit the copy so it fit snugly in the blank spaces. Then I went to Melendez Prods. in Hollywood and we recorded it – with Bill M. directing me – and me doing a sort of Vin Scully-inspired classic sportscaster voice.
It’s fairly miraculous that it worked out. “Variety” actually reviewed it and pointed out the sports narration as a high spot. Unfortunately, my pleasure in having met the challenge was greatly impacted by my late wife and me having been literally thrown out of our apartment by the Northridge Earthquake, which hit between the time I recorded the narration and when the show aired.
I was later rewarded with a lovely production cel (and original background) from one of the birdie football games, inscribed, “For Steve – In friendship – Bill Melendez” in black Sharpie. Sadly, even though it wasn’t in direct sunlight, the inscription faded. But – like Big Julie in “Guys ‘n’ Dolls” talking about the blank dice – “I remembers where da spots previously were.”
It remains the only Charlie Brown special that has any sort of shared writing credit.
End of story – except to thank you for the compliment on my Groucho impression!
Thank you, Steve, for correcting the record, and allowing me to post what you wrote. I don’t know where I got in my head that he improvised the dialogue. I must have misinterpreted the Facebook comment he left a few years ago when I said that I’d watched my digitizing of the VHS tape. On that note, Steve wrote in a follow-up reply…
Oh – also – that particular show was produced as a tie-in with Shell Oil and the VHS tape was either a giveaway or for sale at a low, low price at Shell Stations when you filled up your tank. So even though it aired on TV, I suspect it’s missing from DVD release because of the initial deal with Shell. Not sure. I also did voices for Melendez (what a great guy) on “Snoopy’s Reunion” and “It’s The Girl In The Red Truck, Charlie Brown.”
I’m inclined to agree with Steve about the Shell tie-in keeping You’re in the Super Bowl, Charlie Brown off DVD and other modern home media releases. It’s the Girl in the Red Truck, Charlie Brown is another special that has yet to go beyond VHS, but Snoopy’s Reunion has a dedicated DVD.
Thanks again to Steve Stoliar. Now, back to what I wrote in December.
Speaking of David’s originals, “Kei’s Song” is from Freedom at Midnight (1987), “Cabin Fever” (the encore) was on Waiting for Spring (1989), “Drive Time” originated on The Best of David Benoit: 1987-1995 (one of two new tracks), and “Café Rio” is from Full Circle (2006). “Drive Time” and “Café Rio” get the big band treatment on David’s latest album, Timeless, recorded in the UK with Spice Fusion Big Band.
David composed “Just Like Me” for 40 Years: A Charlie Brown Christmas (2005), with Lee Mendelson lyrics that honor the feel of “Christmas Time is Here.” Vanessa Williams sang on the original, and David recorded a solo piano version at Steinway Hall in 2017, one of 17 tracks from his The Steinway Sessions…session that were saved for It’s a David Benoit Christmas! (2020).
“Great Pumpkin Waltz,” “You’re in Love, Charlie Brown,” and “Thanksgiving Theme” were Vince Guaraldi compositions for It’s the Great Pumpkin Charlie Brown, You’re in Love, Charlie Brown (yes, more redundancy), and A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving.
“Believe” was a Josh Groban song for the film The Polar Express, which served as the title track to David’s 2015 trio album that featured Jane Monheit and The All-American Boys Chorus.
“Schroeder” (set to Beethoven’s “Moonlight Sonata”) and “The Doctor is In” were from the Broadway musical You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown.
That brings us back to the photos. For that You’re a Good Man medley, David portrayed Schroeder and Courtney channeled Lucy.
I’m not ashamed to admit “Just Like Me” drove me to happy tears. It’s such a pretty song.
When Courtney wasn’t on stage, the trio of David, Roberto, and Dan played instrumentally.
The finale: “Linus and Lucy”:
For the encore, a man at a front row table held up his LP copy of Waiting for Spring (I have it on CD) and requested a track from there. David chose “Cabin Fever,” one of my favorites.
I only got to meet and greet half the band. Roberto and Dan were deep in separate conversations and I didn’t want to rudely interrupt.
However, I did get to catch up with David, who signed my copy of Timeless:
I then introduced David to Bobby Guthenberg (who took the above photo). Bobby bought a copy of Timeless, and David signed that.
Bobby G. and I weren’t the only WCWP alumni at My Father’s Place that night. Voice actor David Kaplan was there, too. It was great to see him. He was talking to vocalist Courtney Fortune, who I then spoke to. I complimented Courtney’s performance and told her how moving her rendition of “Just Like Me” was. Then, Bobby took a photo of us:
My one regret is not getting a photo with My Father’s Place promoter Eppy Epstein before Bobby and I exited The Roslyn. Upon exiting, I noticed it was snowing!
Before meeting and greeting, Bobby offered to drive me back to Wantagh so my parents wouldn’t have to drive back up to WCWP for me. I accepted and called my mom to let her know. Bobby cautiously drove home in the rain/snow mix, once again conversing the entire way while finishing up his Fuzzy Logic CD. He switched to Timeless while waiting at a red light on Jerusalem Avenue.
Bobby dropped me off at the curb at about 10:30. I wished him good night and thanked him yet again for treating me to a memorable night at My Father’s Place. (He messaged me on Facebook upon his safe return home to Bayside.) I may return to MFP some time in 2025 if Eppy can book drummer Billy Cobham. Until then, Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays!
Thank you again to David Benoit, Roberto Vally, Dan Schnelle, and Courtney Fortune. You were all wonderful.
MikeChimeri.com 