Instrumental Invasion, 5/18/22 May 19, 2022
Posted by Mike C. in Airchecks, Audio, Internet, Jazz, Media, Music, Personal, Radio, Travel, TV.add a comment
The May 18 Instrumental Invasion on WCWP was the third consecutive show recorded over three days. Two segments were recorded on March 28, three on the 29th, and one on the 30th. Pickups were recorded from March 29 to 31, and on April 2 and 22.
The playlist was created on March 27 with annotations and the script draft on the 28th.
I first played “Five6Oh83” by Steve Cole on July 1, 2020. I noted that 56083 was the ZIP Code for Sanborn, Minnesota, but missed the connection to David Sanborn. Instead, I wondered if Steve lived there and advised against looking into that. I played “Slam” by David so I could play Steve’s tribute later. It’s also why I included “Slings and Arrows” by Michael Brecker after playing “Starburst” by Spyro Gyra, which he ended with his solo. “Slam” and “Starburst” were chock-full of alumni of Paul Shaffer and The World’s Most Dangerous Band. If I wasn’t short on time in the first segment, I would have noted when they were in the band and who replaced them.
I swapped out the second instance of Ted David‘s segment open liner with a liner by Travis Demers.
Click here to download the aircheck MP3 or listen below:
Travel photos to and from Milford May 13, 2022
Posted by Mike C. in Photography, Travel.add a comment
As previously noted, I took many photos while traveling with my dad Bill to and from Milford, Connecticut, for this year’s Smooth Jazz Scholars (recaps here and here), enough to get their own post. I was dissatisfied with the quality of the photos I took with my DSLR camera the week before while Kelly and I drove back from St. James. So, I decided to use my phone’s camera this time. Its image stabilization handles driving motion better than the vibration reduction on the DSLR lens.
Let’s hit the road.
Friday, April 29
Southern State Parkway west:
Cross Island Parkway north:
UBS Arena, home of the New York Islanders 
I-678 north, starting on the Bronx-Whitestone Bridge:
Hutchinson River Parkway north:
I-95 north in New York:
New Rochelle 
…and Connecticut:
Northbound Metro-North train 
A southbound train 
Titan Towers, WWE Headquarters 
Bass Pro Shops in Bridgeport 
Our exit
Hampton Inn Milford, as seen from the Plains Road intersection and parking lot:
I photographed judiciously on the way to Milford, but compulsively on the way back.
Sunday, May 1
Plains Road:
I-95 south in Connecticut, where I finally realized my phone had 2x optical zoom:
Heavy traffic due to an accident 
No further delays on I-95 
Titan Towers outside my dad’s mirror 
A quick look back north at the Stamford Marriott that I stayed at once, when I was a kid, while visiting nearby relatives with my parents and sister 
UBS Stamford Branch 
…and New York:
Hutchinson River Parkway south:
Bruckner Interchange
I-678 south into Queens:
Cross Island Parkway south:
The only other pocket of heavy traffic Dad and I encountered was as we approached Exit 30E.
Long Island Expressway (I-495) east:
…and last but not least, the Seaford-Oyster Bay Expressway (NY 135):
For nearly a decade, my aunt Robin lived on Broadway in Bethpage, a block west of this exit. 
A blemish on the windshield obstructed the exit sign on the left. 
Last exit before home!
The loose ends from my trip are now all tied up. Thanks for reading any or all of my three posts from that three-day period.
Instrumental Invasion, 5/11/22 May 12, 2022
Posted by Mike C. in Airchecks, Animation, Audio, Comedy, Internet, Jazz, Media, Music, Personal, Radio, Travel, TV, Video.add a comment
The May 11 Instrumental Invasion on WCWP was recorded over three days: the first hour on March 21, the first segment of the second hour on the 22nd, and the last two on the 23rd. Pickups were recorded on April 22 and May 2, the latter of which incorporated a new liner by WCWP/LIU Post alumnus Travis Demers.
The playlist was created on March 20 with annotations and the talk break script draft on the 21st.
For the second time in three weeks, speed compression was involved. The last talk break was sped up to 98% (except for the pickup) to keep the segment as close to 18 minutes as possible. This was after removing extemporaneous tidbits, which I also had to do for the last talk break of the first hour.
One tidbit I removed was about the music video for “Mornin’” by Al Jarreau, billed only as Jarreau:
In the show’s last talk break, while back-selling “Shandling” by Ken Navarro, I referenced “This is the Theme to Garry’s Show,” the theme song for It’s Garry Shandling’s Show:
My talk-up for the short “Funky Song (SC-55)” by Anders Enger Jensen ended in rhyme: “This is Anders Enger Jensen with ‘Funky Song.’ It isn’t very long.” That was a reference to this moment on Drew Carey’s Improv-A-Ganza:
I swapped out the 1984 and earlier segment for an extra 2017 to present, something I haven’t done since December 29, as four new albums came my way before working on this show.
Guitarist Wayne Bruce’s appearance on “95 North” by Kim Waters allowed me to make up for my oversight last June 23. Coincidentally, tomorrow’s blog post has photos taken on I-95 north in New York and Connecticut. (5/26 UPDATE: Here’s the post.) Kim had the Maryland portion of the interstate highway in mind for “95 North.”
I didn’t mention on-air that May 11 marked 28 years since my first “radio show” with my cousin Chris. He held a Talkboy cassette voice recorder and I held a Panasonic microcassette voice recorder. 11 years after that – May 11, 2005 – The Mike Chimeri Show returned to WebRadio WCWP, six days after ending the original The Instrumental Invasion on WGBB. He’ll be introducing me at the 2020-21 WCWP Hall of Fame Ceremony exactly one month from last night, on June 11.
Click here to download the May 11, 2022, aircheck MP3 or listen below:
SJFS 2022 Night 2 recap May 6, 2022
Posted by Mike C. in Baseball, Internet, Jazz, Music, Personal, Photography, Radio, Sports, Technology, Travel, Video, Weather.add a comment
Updated with videos on 5/15.
Keyboardist Jay Rowe‘s 18th annual Smooth Jazz for Scholars (benefiting the Milford Public Schools music department) continued Saturday night with the second of two shows. Saturday’s headliners were Jeff Kashiwa (who made a surprise appearance late Friday), Alex Bugnon, and in his debut, Marcus Anderson. Alex appeared in place of Brian Simpson, who had to back out at some point after my promotional blog post in February. SJFS attendees last saw Alex on the first night in 2013.
Photos and the set list are on the way, but we start with the preamble.
I found it hard to sleep in my Hampton Inn hotel room on Friday night. Not only did I have photo editing on my mind, but intermittent trucks and motorcycles (or muscle cars) on I-95 made it hard to relax and drift into sleep. I didn’t mention this in the Friday recap, but I brought two pairs of foam ear plugs to wear on both nights. I got in the habit of wearing them or safety earmuffs at home to drown out loud or unsettling noises, like fireworks (sadly, not just on the Fourth of July) or high wind gusts that slam rain into my south and east-facing windows during coastal storms. I figured I should start wearing them at concerts; if only I had thought of that sooner. When I wore ear plugs at bedtime, I would lie on my back with a sleep mask on, attempting to sleep, or at least relax. That’s what I did Friday night into Saturday morning. There comes a point on sleepless nights where I give up and start my day. That point came around 5AM.
I’m a Mets fan, so I checked the MLB app on my phone (via Hilton Honors Wi-Fi) to see how they did while I was pre-occupied with SJFS. What?! A no-hitter against the Phillies?! That’s only the second one in team history! And a combined no-hitter, at that! Click here to read all about it (and watch videos).
I lifted weights in the fitness center, then went back in my room to do push-ups and whittle down the amount of photos from Friday night. I showered, got dressed, and brought my laptop and phone to the lobby for breakfast and potential mingling with fans or musicians. I didn’t see any musicians, but John and Theresa Monteverde were there, followed later by Mark and Phyllis Abrams, and Billy and Sandy Okumu. Diane and Richard were there, but we had forgotten about each other and didn’t reacquaint ourselves until Sunday morning.
For breakfast, I had two plates of French toast sticks with syrup, and two cups of apple juice to wash them down, followed later by two cups of hot chocolate. I mainly edited the road sign photos, but was able to start on photos from the show.
I went back to my room around 11AM and spent the next four hours editing the rest of Friday night’s photos and picking which ones to publicize. All the while, I listened to a few 2021 episodes of Gilbert Gottfried’s Amazing Colossal Podcast. (Sadly, Gilbert died last month.)
I’m also a fan (and Patreon supporter) of the YouTube channel Technology Connections. Alec, the creator, recently posted the third of three (and a half) videos on heat pumps. Part three included a segment on the PTAC (packaged terminal air conditioner) and their use in hotels. This was the PTAC in my room:
It was set to cool when I checked in on Friday, but I switched to heat. I switched back to cool Saturday afternoon as the unfiltered sun warmed up the room. That’s when I realized the thin curtain in front of the light-blocking thick one is supposed to filter the sun rays.
My girlfriend Kelly, dad Bill, and I had dinner at Gusto Trattoria, half a block from the hotel. It was there that self-doubt and performance anxiety set in. I worried that I wouldn’t be able to function at the auditorium because of my lack of sleep and that I’d compulsively end up taking as many photos as Friday night (around 400 before whittling). Somewhere in between, I managed to eat a piece of bread and bowl of Rigatoni Bolognese. Upon returning to my room after dinner, I lied down and took deep breaths. By 7PM (about an hour after dinner), I felt calm enough to get out of bed and go with Kelly to the Veterans Memorial Auditorium at Parsons Complex. Obviously, the sound check was over before we arrived because we saw attendees filing in.
I took an establishing shot of the auditorium with my phone before going in:
The second of my 2020 tickets was honored upon entrance and I went back to the same spot in the orchestra pit as Friday night to set up. I comprised with fellow photographers Katherine Gilraine and Ron Hancox to situate my camcorder (which recorded flawlessly on this night) (5/15 UPDATE: four videos are posted below) in a spot further back so the two of them had more room to maneuver during the show. I only had to move it out during a solo on the penultimate song of the night (one of the videos below). Fun fact (as Alec would say): this month marks ten years since I entered the world of DSLR cameras after Katherine recommended I switch to one.
While waiting, Jay Dobbins introduced me to someone I had met on Facebook through Jay Rowe’s weekly Tito Tuesday livestreams on Facebook (here’s one of the last streams to date). It was Robin Morin Stewart. After a pleasant conversation, Jay D. took our picture:
I also recognized Judy Raphael and spoke to her, but forgot to get a picture.
And of course, I saw the rest of my friends that I had seen Friday night and/or Saturday morning in the hotel dining area.
At some point before showtime, I got my second wind. I didn’t feel the least bit overtired or overwhelmed.
Saturday’s set began at 8PM with another enthusiastic introduction by Kevin McCabe of Jumpstart Jazz Productions:
Music director Jay Rowe led the house band on keyboards:
Andy Abel on guitar:
Dave Livolsi on bass:
Trever Somerville on drums:
…and percussion by Tony Cintron:
The headliners were Jeff Kashiwa on tenor sax and NuRAD (seen on tenor):
Alex Bugnon on keyboards:
…and Marcus Anderson on alto sax and flute (seen on alto):
SET LIST
1. I’ll Love You Later (Jay Rowe)
Originally heard on: Groove Reflections (2021)
Featured musician: Jay Rowe (keyboards)
2. There She Goes (Jay Rowe)
Originally heard on: Groove Reflections (2021)
Featured musicians: Jay Rowe (keyboards), Andy Abel (guitar)
3. Starlight Kisses (Jay Rowe)
Originally heard on: Groove Reflections (2021)
Featured musicians: Jay Rowe (keyboards), Jeff Kashiwa (tenor sax)
4. Slow Turn (Jeff Kashiwa)
Originally heard on: Sunrise (2021)
Featured musicians: Jeff Kashiwa (NuRAD/tenor sax), Andy Abel (guitar)
The NuRAD is an EWI (electronic wind instrument) that can be paired with a phone or tablet. Jeff paired his with his phone. 5/9 UPDATE: Jeff said in a Facebook post sharing one of my photos that it was “triggering [his] iPhone with the Korg iMono/Poly Patchman library.”
5. The Night is Young (Jeff Kashiwa)
Originally heard on: Sunrise (2021)
Featured musician: Jeff Kashiwa (tenor sax)
6. The Pecan Tree (Joe Sample cover) (Alex Bugnon)
Featured musician: Alex Bugnon (keyboards)
Jay didn’t play on any of Alex’s songs. Coincidentally, I played the original Joe Sample version of “The Pecan Tree” on last Wednesday’s Instrumental Invasion.
7. Harlem on My Mind (Alex Bugnon)
Originally heard on: Tales from the Bright Side (1995)
Featured musician: Alex Bugnon (keyboards)
8. Will Power (Marcus Anderson)
Originally heard on: Limited Edition (2017)
Featured musician: Marcus Anderson (alto sax/flute at the end)
9. Soul Ties (Marcus Anderson)
Originally heard on: Reverse (2022)
Featured musician: Marcus Anderson (alto sax)
10. Jay Rowe/Alex Bugnon duet: Poinciana/107 Degrees in the Shade
Originally heard on: 107 Degrees in the Shade (1991) (second song only)
Jay and Alex played the same medley in their 2013 duet. “Poinciana” is a jazz standard popularized by Ahmad Jamal on his album of the same name.
11. Night Groove (Alex Bugnon)
Originally heard on: Soul Purpose (2001)
Featured musician: Alex Bugnon (keyboards)
12. Understanding (Marcus Anderson)
Originally heard on: Limited Edition (2017)
Featured musicians: Marcus Anderson (alto sax), Jay Rowe (keyboards), Andy Abel (guitar)
13. Let It Ride (Jeff Kashiwa)
Originally heard on: Let It Ride (2012)
Featured musicians: Jeff Kashiwa (tenor sax), Dave Livolsi (bass), Tony Cintron (percussion), Jay Rowe (keyboards)
Jeff noted that Let It Ride was inspired by 1960s and ’70s music, and the performance of the title track here exemplified the ’70s part. Dave’s solo was based (no pun intended) on “For the Love of Money” by The O’Jays (1973), while Jay based his on “People Make the World Go Round” by The Stylistics (1972) and “Riders on the Storm” by The Doors (1971). The ’70s influence carried into the finale.
14 (Finale). Love and Happiness (Al Green cover)
Featured musicians: Everyone but Alex Bugnon
Trever Somerville and Tony Cintron traded places on drums and percussion midway through, and Trever even sang vocals! He left the percussion kit behind at the end (I neglected to take photos) and just sang next to Tony. These were the only surprises of the show, which went quicker than Friday night.
Here are groups of pictures by artist, starting with Jeff Kashiwa on tenor sax:
Jeff on NuRAD for “Slow Turn”:
Alex Bugnon:
Pitch wheel fun… 
Marcus Anderson on alto sax:
Marcus on flute at the end of “Will Power”:
Jay Rowe:
Andy Abel:
More photos of Andy and Tony await us in the finale section.
Dave Livolsi:
Trever Somerville:
Tony Cintron:
Marcus and Andy:
Marcus and Dave:
Marcus and Jay:
Jeff and Jay:
The last note of “Let It Ride”:
Jay and Alex’s duet:
The finale: “Love and Happiness”:
The last note 
The end! 
Jay named all performers… 
“I’m Jay Rowe! Thank you all so much! It was a pleasure to do this this weekend…” 
“…and stay tuned for next year when Smooth Jazz for Scholars turns 20 ’cause it’s gonna be big! So, tell all your friends who missed it tonight they missed a great show. We’ll see you next year, and wherever else we’re playin’. …” 
“I’m gonna be tourin’ with Acoustic Alchemy this summer, so I hope to see you out with them. Thank you.” 
“Jay Rowe!”
All that remained was meeting and greeting, starting with me and Alex Bugnon:
Me and Marcus Anderson:
Jeff Kashiwa with my photography buddies Katherine Gilraine and Ron Hancox:
Just the three of us:
Back in the lobby, Marcus Anderson with Steve Lewis:
Johnnie “Butch” Brooks and Dolly Moye, whose birthday was on Sunday:
…and finally, me and Dolly:
Thanks to Jay Dobbins and Steve Lewis for taking photos of me. Jay also took this selfie with me:
Friday night, Kelly and I left for the hotel at 11:30, but Saturday, the departure time was 10:45. After transferring the photos and video to my laptop via a handy USB 3.0 SD card reader, I took melatonin and went to sleep. After five hours of successful sleep early Sunday morning, I noticed daylight peaking through the edge of the curtains and opted to wake up for the day. (The Mets lost Saturday’s game, but won on Sunday night while I was getting ten hours of sleep.)
I didn’t lift weights until I got home, but I did do push-ups in my room Sunday morning before going to the lobby for breakfast. All my rowdy friends, to paraphrase Hank Williams Jr., were there, including Jay Rowe. French toast sticks weren’t available, so I ate four sausages and two blueberry muffins with two lemon-lime seltzer cans that I brought and stored in my room’s mini fridge. Before returning to the room to pack up and leave, I got a selfie with the Monteverde, Abrams, and Okumu couples:
I saved photo editing for Monday and Tuesday, followed by drafting this post and the one before it on Tuesday and Wednesday.
Dad and I checked out around 10:30 and got home by 12:25. I took tons of photos on the road to and from Milford, but those will get their own post next week. Until then, thank you for reading the recaps of both nights of the 18th annual Smooth Jazz for Scholars. As Jay Rowe noted, next year will be the 20th anniversary, but 19th annual. I hope to be there. Thank you to Jay and everyone involved in putting SJFS together each year.
SJFS 2022 Night 1 recap May 6, 2022
Posted by Mike C. in Baseball, Health, Internet, Jazz, Music, Personal, Photography, Radio, Sports, Travel.add a comment
Updated with videos on 5/15.
After a two-year absence due to COVID-19, keyboardist Jay Rowe‘s 18th annual Smooth Jazz for Scholars (benefiting the Milford Public Schools music department) finally happened!
It’s a good thing I didn’t throw away my 2020 tickets because they were honored on both nights.
As noted in my promotion back in February, this was the first SJFS without Rohn Lawrence on guitar in the house band and Nick Colionne as a potential headliner. We lost Rohn to COVID on December 30 and Nick on January 1. This year’s SJFS was dedicated to their memory.
The first night’s headliners were Peter White, Nelson Rangell, and Marion Meadows, plus three surprise guests! More on them later in the recap. Now, the preamble:
I had been in the habit of going to sleep early and waking up early, but last week, I tried to train my body to stay up and wake up later so I could not only chronicle both nights of SJFS, but attend the WCWP station dinner on Thursday night.
I awoke Friday morning after only six hours of sleep and carried out my typical morning activities: exercise, cereal for breakfast, and treadmill running (and showering after, of course). Nowadays, I watch streaming content on my phone while I run rather than listen to music or audiobooks. With this run, I totaled 180 miles in a month for only the third time (July 2018, April 2020)!
Next on the agenda, packing up for the trip to Milford, Connecticut (“a small city with a big heart“), with my dad Bill. I had an hour or so left until our 12:30 departure, so I edited the photos from the station dinner and posted them to Facebook. I finished just in time, then checked to make sure I packed everything I wanted to.
It took about two hours to reach Milford’s Hampton Inn, the official hotel of this year’s Smooth Jazz for Scholars, as it has been most of the time. I photographed road signs on the way, but I’m saving those photos and the ones from the return trip for a later post.
Upon arrival, Dad and I went back out to Big Y World Class Market a block southeast of the hotel to replace expired shampoo and mouthwash, and buy snacks to make up for the ones I forgot to pack at home. We were briefly back at Hampton Inn before going to dinner (and dessert for me) at Applebee’s up Boston Post Road in neighboring Orange. Marion Meadows was checking in as I walked through the lobby, so we spoke briefly. I returned one more time before the show to relax and wait for my girlfriend Kelly to pick me up at 6:30. On the way out this time, I saw members of the LIU Sharks baseball team! I’ve been at the hotel with college athletic teams before, but not a team from my alma mater! They were in town for a three-game series against the Sacred Heart Pioneers (ironically, LIU Post’s team name before the One LIU unification). Sacred Heart won the first two games, but LIU avoided the sweep Sunday. I would see players in the lobby again on Saturday and Sunday mornings, letting some know on Saturday that I was an alum and had a weekly radio show.
Okay, we’re almost up to the first night of SJFS.
Kelly and I waited in her SUV until we saw the line of attendees file in to the Veterans Memorial Auditorium at the Parsons Complex. The line began to move at 7:15, so in we went.
After having my ticket checked, I set up my equipment in the orchestra pit and mingled with my fellow photographers Katherine Gilraine and Ron Hancox, Jay Dobbins, Dolly Moye, Estella Greene, Billy and Sandy Okumu, Ron’s wife Nydia, and Jay Rowe’s mother Mia DiStasi. I was elated to see all of them in person after so long. I only wish photographer KT Jones was still with us. (He succumbed to cancer in late February.)
The auditorium interior underwent an upgrade between 2019 and 2022. Monitors were set up throughout the lobby. Most cycled through a slideshow of images from past Smooth Jazz for Scholars, including pictures with Rohn Lawrence, Nick Colionne, or both of them. Two monitors had an overhead view of the stage. The sound system, lighting, and seating were all improved.
Friday night’s set began at 8:15, an hour after the auditorium doors opened. Kevin McCabe of Jumpstart Jazz Productions enthusiastically welcomed us back:
I simultaneously recorded the show (mostly for private use) (5/15 UPDATE: exceptions below) with my recently-acquired professional 4K camcorder (and detachable handle unit). Four minutes into Kevin’s spiel, a system error occurred and I had to turn the camcorder off and back on. After that, no problems. It recorded two hours and 32 minutes continuously; no starting a new file every 20 minutes like my previous camcorder.
As for the photos, I have the same DSLR camera but with a superzoom lens I bought last year. No more switching between 18-140 mm (18-55 before that) and 55-300 mm. I have one lens to rule them all.
Here are the photos! The house band was led by Jay Rowe on keyboards:
Andy Abel on electric and acoustic guitar (seen on electric):
Dave Livolsi on bass:
Trever Somerville on drums:
…and percussion by Tony Cintron:
(If you’re wondering, Steve Scales is alive and well.)
The headliners were Peter White on acoustic guitar and harmonica (seen on guitar):
Marion Meadows on soprano sax:
…and Nelson Rangell on alto sax, flute, piccolo, whistling, and vocal percussion (seen on alto):
SET LIST
1. East Coast West Coast (Jay Rowe)
Originally heard on: Red Hot & Smooth (2006)
Featured musician: Jay Rowe (keyboards)
2. Smooth Ride (Jay Rowe)
Originally heard on: Smooth Ride (2016)
Featured musicians: Jay Rowe (keyboards), Peter White (guitar)
3. Promenade/Could It Be I’m Falling in Love (The Spinners cover) (Peter White)
Originally heard on: Promenade (1993)/Reflections (1994)
Featured musicians: Peter White (guitar), surprise guest Vincent Ingala! (tenor sax) (watch him surprise the audience)
Peter introduced “Promenade” with the “-naid” pronunciation, not “-nahd,” as I’ve been saying all these years.
4. Here We Go (Peter White)
Originally heard on: Here We Go (2012)
Featured musicians: Peter White (guitar), Nelson Rangell (alto sax)
I’d been dreaming about this collaboration ever since I heard David Sanborn on the original.
5. Vonetta (Earl Klugh cover) (Nelson Rangell)
Originally heard on: Soul to Souls (2006)
Featured musicians: Nelson Rangell (flute), Andy Abel (guitar)
6. Body Rhythm (Marion Meadows)
Originally heard on: Body Rhythm (1995)
Featured musician: Marion Meadows (soprano sax)
As usual, Marion began this song in the audience, working his way to the stage.
7. Treasures (Marion Meadows)
Originally heard on: In Deep (2002)
Featured musicians: Marion Meadows (soprano sax), Andy Abel (guitar), Jay Rowe (keyboards)
Andy channeled the spirit of Rohn Lawrence on his solo.
8. Caravan of Dreams (Peter White)
Originally heard on: Caravan of Dreams (1996)
Featured musicians: Peter White (guitar), Vincent Ingala (tenor sax)
9. Peaceful (Peter White)
Originally heard on: Music for STARLUX Airlines (2019)
Featured musicians: Peter White (guitar/harmonica), Vincent Ingala (tenor sax)
10. Marcosinho (Dave Grusin composition for flautist Dave Valentin) (Marion Meadows)
Originally heard on: Whisper (2013)
Featured musician: Marion Meadows (soprano sax)
A harmonica-like filter was applied to Marion’s sax for his solo intro.
11. Suede (Marion Meadows)
Originally heard on: Player’s Club (2004)
Featured musicians: Marion Meadows (soprano sax), Andy Abel (guitar)
12. Geopolitics (Nelson Rangell)
Featured musician: Nelson Rangell (alto sax)
13. Sonora (Hampton Hawes cover) (Nelson Rangell)
Originally heard on: Destiny (1995) (alto sax), My American Songbook, Vol. 1 (2005)
Featured musicians: Nelson Rangell (whistling/piccolo/vocal percussion), Peter White (guitar)
14. Muff (John Tropea cover) (Nelson Rangell)
Featured musicians: Nelson Rangell (alto sax), surprise guest Jeff Kashiwa! (tenor sax)
Jeff headlined Saturday’s set, but he played on “Muff” and the finale.
15 (Finale). I Wish (Stevie Wonder cover)
Featured musicians: Everyone
Arti Dixson sat in for Trever Somerville on drums.
Here are groups of pictures by artist, starting with Peter White:
The last three are of Peter on harmonica. 
Marion Meadows:
Nelson Rangell on alto sax (during “Geopolitics”):
Nelson on flute for “Vonetta”:
…and “Sonora”: whistling, piccolo, whistling with the piccolo in his hand, vocal percussion:
Nelson watches Peter’s “Sonora” solo 
Vocal percussion (“schick-schicka”) 
The end of the song 
A standing ovation! (contrast-corrected camcorder vidcap)
Surprise guest Vincent Ingala:
Surprise guest Jeff Kashiwa:
Jay Rowe (during “Treasures”):
Andy Abel:
Andy played acoustic on “Marcosinho.” 
Dave Livolsi:
Trever Somerville:
Tony Cintron:
Peter and Jay:
Peter and Nelson on “Here We Go”:
Peter and Vincent:
A wide shot during “Geopolitics”:
…and “Vonetta”:
Nelson and Jeff:
The finale: “I Wish”:
Arti Dixson took over on drums for the finale. 
The last note… 
The end! 
After naming all the musicians on the stage: “I’m Jay Rowe! Thanks so much for comin’! For those of you who are comin’ tomorrow night, see you tomorrow night! Thank you, thank you, thank you so much for a great night!” 
It was a great night, but it wasn’t over yet. There was meeting and greeting to do; photos with musicians, friends, and musician friends.
First, a photo with Peter White, who I hadn’t seen since the Dave Koz 20th Anniversary Christmas show at Tilles Center in December 2017:
Next, me with Nelson and Jay Rowe:
Jay Dobbins introduced me to Andy Abel and Tony Cintron. I complimented both of them on their work that night. Andy complimented me on noticing a flaw at the end of the title track on Jay Rowe’s Groove Reflections album and I told him I liked his guitar work on Jessy J‘s new album, Blue. He had plenty of insight on the recording process for the tracks with him, Jay, Trever, and Dave Anderson. (Dave couldn’t make it this year because he was performing with Chieli Minucci at the Tarrytown Jazz Forum on both nights, an engagement booked before SJFS was announced in February. That’s also why Chieli couldn’t make it.)
I took a photo of Jay Dobbins, Marion, Andy, and Tony:
Then, I had Jay take one of me and Marion:
I said my goodbyes and Kelly drove me back to the Hampton Inn. Click here to read about what happened before, during, and after Saturday’s show. I’ll leave you with a photo of Billy and Sandy Okumu, and Mark and Phyllis Abrams:
April 22 parkway photos April 26, 2022
Posted by Mike C. in Aviation, Personal, Photography, Travel.add a comment
This post contains photos taken along Veterans Memorial Highway (Vets Highway) and four New York State Parkways while returning from a trip to St. James last Friday.
First, a photo of Breeze Airways flight MXY427 seconds after takeoff from Long Island MacArthur Airport (ISP) bound for Norfolk International Airport (ORF) in Virginia:
Now for the photos on the road, starting on NY 347 just before its concurrence with Vets Highway (NY 454):
…which quickly transitioned to the Sagtikos State Parkway:
And finally, the Southern State Parkway from exit 41S to 30S:
I’ll have a longer trip to and from Milford, Connecticut, Friday and Sunday as Smooth Jazz for Scholars returns Friday and Saturday nights. The next blog post will be the weekly Instrumental Invasion recap and the posts after that will recap SJFS.
Instrumental Invasion, 4/20/22 April 21, 2022
Posted by Mike C. in Airchecks, Audio, Comedy, Internet, Jazz, Media, Music, Personal, Photography, Radio, Travel, TV, Video.add a comment
The April 20 Instrumental Invasion on WCWP was recorded on March 1 (four segments) and 2 (two segments), the latter occurring before my guest reading stint. Pickups were recorded on the 4th, 8th, and 24th.
The playlist was created on February 26, but not annotated until the 28th, after which the talk break script was drafted.
I forgot to plug the video of “Angela” by the Bob James Trio that was recorded as they recorded:
The session was recorded as video and the Dolby Atmos audio from it was extracted for MQA-CD players. The version of “Angela” you heard on the show was ripped from the CD with regular audio, which is good enough for me.
Coincidentally, the day I started recording this show, Ken Levine (“la-vyne”) wrote a remembrance of Taxi, the series for which Bob wrote the theme. Ken and his writing partner David Isaacs went on to work with some of the Taxi staff – such as the Charles Brothers and Jim Burrows – on Cheers and its spin-off Frasier.
The Shilts anecdote after playing “All Grown Up” referred to his May 2012 show at Houndstooth Pub. Last night was the first time I mentioned the prank.
A few days before the show aired, I finally learned how to properly say Maynard Ferguson‘s first name: “may-nard,” not “-nerd” like for football players Brad and Don. Unfortunately, it was too late to correct the mistake, but rest assured it won’t happen again.
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Instrumental Invasion, 4/6/22 April 7, 2022
Posted by Mike C. in Airchecks, Audio, Baseball, Internet, Jazz, Media, Music, News, Personal, Radio, Sports, Technology, Travel, TV, Video, Weather.add a comment
The April 6 Instrumental Invasion on WCWP was recorded over three days in mid-February: the first hour on the 14th (Valentine’s Day), one second hour segment on the 15th, and the last two on the 16th when a pickup was also recorded.
The playlist was created on February 12 and annotated on the 13th. The talk break script was drafted before recording on the 14th.
A few days before work on this show began, I finally took the plunge and bought the Kaotica Eyeball microphone isolation shield. Since my remote location has minimal room echo, the Eyeball is for home recordings. It only took two days to ship from Calgary, Alberta, Canada. Here’s how it looks from my chair:
It’s as big as my head, a challenge for Zoom meetings and for reading text on the right side of my monitor, but it works! Room echo was practically gone from any talk breaks I recorded at home. You will have to lower the pot (potentiometer) on your mixer. The Eyeball isolates background audio so well that more of the mic is picked up.
Thank you to actor and impressionist Jim Meskimen (son of Marion Ross) for recommending the Kaotica Eyeball in one of Mark Evanier‘s 2020 voice-over panel livestreams (cued to the relevant portion) and then jogging my memory about it in an Instagram post a few days before my purchase.
This wasn’t the first show with talk breaks recorded through the Eyeball, due to pickups I recorded for March 16.
After acquiring new music releases in the weeks leading up to this show, and the Friday after, I re-instituted two 2017 to present segments for the second hour. I included “Feet First” by Rick Braun unaware that it was the first single off his eponymous album. I did know that “Sun Princess” by the Jeff Lorber Fusion and “Out to Lunch” by Oli Silk were on the smooth jazz radio charts. So, I worked them in. Due to time constraints in the last segment, I couldn’t remind listeners about the accelerando at the end of the Bob James Trio arrangement of “Westchester Lady.” That same arrangement was part of their Blue Note set in November 2018, a month after Feel Like Making LIVE! was recorded. I said of the Blue Note performance:
This song had a call and response between the trio and ended with an accelerando that led me to polka dance [in my seat].
“The Big Windy Cat” by Nick Colionne was played 52 weeks after the previous cut from No Limits, “Headin’ Wes Before Dawn.” “Rippin’ n Runnin'” by Gordon Goodwin’s Big Phat Band, from That’s How We Roll, was played exactly six months after “Howdiz Songo?” We also went exactly six months between tracks from the Jeff Lorber Fusion’s Space-Time – “Louisiana” and “Sun Princess” – and between the last track to date from the previous Bob James Trio album, Espresso, and the first off Feel Like Making LIVE! The Espresso track was “Mister Magic,” which was also recorded for the new album.
Little did I know my inclusion of “Swingin’ for the Fence” by Nelson Rangell, and addressing personnel as “heavy hitters,” would coincide with the delayed start to the 2022 Major League Baseball Season, and appear in a show preceded by the baseball edition of The Rock Show. And it slipped my mind that an unusually late blizzard affected the New York metro area 40 years ago: April 6, 1982. You can watch WABC-TV‘s Eyewitness News coverage of that storm here.
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Instrumental Invasion, 1/19/22 January 20, 2022
Posted by Mike C. in Airchecks, Audio, Internet, Jazz, Media, Music, Personal, Photography, Radio, Travel.2 comments
The January 19 Instrumental Invasion on WCWP was recorded from November 30 to December 2, 2021: the first segment at home on November 30, the next three at my remote location on December 1, and the last two back at home on December 2. Pickups were recorded on the 3rd and 14th, the latter date for shortening three segments.
The playlist was created on November 28 with annotations and the script draft on the 29th.
The John Favicchia liner played after his song “Horizons” was one of a handful of Instrumental Invasion liners repurposed from my Mike Chimeri Show days. “The,” “show,” and “WebRadio” were edited out of those liners. Here are recaps of John’s Dharma All Stars gigs that I attended since starting this blog:
September 7, 2008 (preceded by Alan Bates)
June 24, 2016 (Dharma 2.0)
As for Wednesday’s show, I finally got to play Will Donato‘s cover of “Play That Funky Music.” I didn’t have the CD to reference for musician credits when working on the October 27 show, but I bought it, and a few other CDs, days before working on this one. I bought many more CDs in the last two weeks, and you’ll start hearing tracks from them in mid-March.
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Instrumental Invasion, 12/29/21 December 30, 2021
Posted by Mike C. in Airchecks, Audio, Golf, History, Internet, Jazz, Media, Music, New Year, Personal, Radio, Travel, TV.add a comment
The December 29 Instrumental Invasion on WCWP was recorded in two days: the first segment at home on November 9 and the other five at my remote location on the 10th. The denoise filter was applied to all talk breaks but the first. Pickups were recorded on December 14, without the filter, for three shortened segments.
The playlist was created on November 7 and annotated on the 8th with the script draft carrying into the 9th. I forgot to include the New Year’s Eve host succession included in the annotation for “Auld Lang Syne,” but it’s fine. It was better to focus on Guy Lombardo and my Freeport beginnings. The use of Fourplay‘s “Auld Lang Syne” makes this the second week in a row where the show begins with a song from their Snowbound album. It’s also the second regular show in a row with an extra 2017 to present segment in place of 1984 and earlier.
Michael Brecker‘s rendition of “Song for Bilbao,” which followed “Auld Lang Syne,” was first played last June 24. This time, listeners got to hear the correct information as my segment redo the last time didn’t air. I played “Groove Reflections” by Jay Rowe to make up for the end getting cut off on November 3.
The last time I visited my grandparents’ condo, in March 2011, I photographed grandpa Carmen’s hole in one trophy from two angles:
As I said coming out of “Hole in One” by the Delvon Lamarr Organ Trio, Carmen shot a hole in one on the eighth hole of Tarpon Springs Golf Course on August 11, 1995.
The show had its share of running gags, including “plural” and a flat “yes” response to musical questions.
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See you in 2022!
MikeChimeri.com 