Strider's Occasional Blog
April 11, 2010...Bill's Seafood Rte 1 in Westbrook...a new venue for us. It's a Sunday afternoon, sun is shining and we are about to play for the first time at Bill's Seafood. We set up, about 15 to 20 of our fans came, the room was about half full when the show started. Within 20 minutes, the place was full, the audience was singing, dancing and requesting songs. Absolutely fantastic. The next 3 hours were a whirlwind of fun, song and laughter. The audience was there with us for the entire show. It was way fun!. If you missed this show, you missed one of the great ones. But Mark, the owner, like it so much he has invited us back. So check the schedule regularly and get to the next show at Bill's Seafood. You will have a great time!
March 17, 2010...St. Patrick's Day...Smokin' with Chris...Wow!!!! The restaurant, bar and back room were mobbed. Chris and Laura did a phenominal job seating customers, waiting tables, and preparing food. It was absolute mayhem, and then you add Seabreeze in to the mix playing Irish music and you have one hell of a party! Everything click right from the start. A great audience filled with family, friends, fans and first timers and everyone loving the Irish songs. I'd like to give a shoutout to some special people there last night....Chris and Laura Conlon, my wife Kathy, Jan, Bob, Patti, John and Ann Marie, Dan Pastore of Unusual Suspects and his friends, Pam and Paul, Larry and Janice, Tom and Melinda, and their friends, and so very many others. All of you really brought SwC to life in a very special way. Thanks, we love you all and hope to see you at many more events.
January 2, 2010...Rosie's Cafe...the New Year is already bringing challenges for Seabreeze. Edd has injured his leg and is unable to appear. He tried to tough it out but was forced by pain to seek medical attention just 8 hours prior to the show. End result was...No, Edd cannot perform. The scramble was on because I am not a solo artist, I need friends to help me out and they did! Jeff Conlon, of the Highland Rovers Band and soloist extrordinaire, agreed to come to my rescue. As did Bob and Jan Glick (they are alway there for me), Dan Pastore of Unusual Suspects, Frank Lind, and Don Pierson. Thanks to these friends, Seabreeze minus Edd, did not let Rosie's down. This small circle of friends banded together and rocked Rosie's. The show took on a life of it's own, with a mix and match of performers reminiscent of the recent Rosie's All Star show. I must say that I had a great time, but it wasn't the same without Edd. We have played together for about 9 years, and I missed having him there with his great vocals and humor. It just wasn't the same. Anyway, Rosie's was hosting a birthday party for Drew and Caitlin and what a party it was. The food, beverage, and music flowed and the good times proceeded. Great fun people. I hope they enjoyed the night as much as we did, 'cause we had a blast. Thanks also go out to Jack, Helen and Andrea for their support of live, local music. We salute you. Hopefully from this point on, Seabreeze's year will improve and will Edd's leg. Get better quickly Edd, we've a lot of booze to drink, jokes to tell and songs to sing. As to the friends that helped me out, especially Jeff, you are the best friends a person could have, and I love you all. And before I forget, a special thanks to my wife Kathy for her love and support. She make all things possible.
December 31, 2009 Smokin' with Chris New Years Eve...The Hippie Fest, a 60's retro party. Wow! Chris and Laura out did themselves for the celebration. Many of the fans dressed up in their best 60's apparell. We had flower children, beatniks, Holly Golightly from Breakfast at Tiffany's, British mods and rockers, and people dressed for New Year's 2010. Frank Lind began the night musically and rocked the house. As the audience settled in for the evening, had dinner and began lubricating their palettes for the Seabreeze show, Frank took them through the 60's with a magical blend of classic rock and blues. The room was filled with fans, friends and family of both Frank and Seabreeze. And Frank set the tone for the night. Then came Seabreeze. We played a lot of standard Seabreeze tunes, with a substantial addition of songs we've never played together before. The requests flowed in for other songs, and we did our best to accomodate them. At various times we were joined on stage by our musician friends who opted to come to Smokin with Chris for the fun. Frank joined in with us, as did Howard, of Daddy Please, Bob and Jan, Patty, George, Vinnie and Bob (again) of #9 Beatle Tribute Band, Chris Conlon and the tunes just flowed. Thanks to all who came out for the show, it was a very special night. And a very big thanks to Chris and Laura Conlon who own Smokin' with Chris, for being such great friends and providing us with a venue with such class and style. Happy New Year 2010
December 26, 2009 Rosie's Cafe... the second annual Rosie's All Star Jam took place tonight. Last years jam was great and the verdict is in this year's jam exceeded all expectations and surpassed last years. Now thats an accomplishment. For those not familiar with this jam, it is a tribute by many of the musicians and friends who appear at Rosie's Cafe on a regular basis to Helen, Jack and Andrea for all they have done for us during the year, for their support of live, local music, and mainly for their friendship. The staff and management of Rosie's Cafe are great people and we love to play there. Out of respect for Rosie's all the entertainers donate their time on this night to make it special and this year was once again a resounding success. The pictures in the slide show section will give you a sense of what transpired. I am going to mention names here and hopefully I don't forget any one, but if I do, I apologize in advance. First off, I'd like to thank my wife Kathy for all she does for Seabreeze, the pictures, the time, the inconvience of it all. Bob and Jan Glick, two extrodinary people and friends for all their help with music, equipment and enthusiasm. My partner in Seabreeze,Edd Carney for being my friend and making us such a successful act. Now just names.....Howie and Kathy, Steve and Sue, Vince and Maureen, Sheila, Patty and Paul, Dan and Dona, Don and Sue, Kelley and Sean, Lori, Jeff and Sarah, Paul and Cindy, Ed (Dan's friend), the members of #9 Beatles Tribute band, and the numerous friends and fans of all the acts who play and Rosie's who came out last night to support Rosie's and the music played there. Happy New Year to all, and thanks for being there for us.
December 4, 2009 Rosie's Cafe....Howie Park, comedian, opened for Seabreeze tonight. Once again, he did a marvelous job. His humor and style have progressed greatly in recent times. It' alway a delight to have him appear on stage with us and tonight was no exception. He got the audience in just the proper frame of mind for a Seabreeze show....laughing and drinking! We opened the show with our theme song, co written by Howie and Edd, "The More You Drink, The Better We Sound". And from there, the party was on and spiraling upward. Special thanks goes out to Luz Gonzalez, Tommy Arroyo (whose birthday it was) and Jenny Cubano and their friends for helping make the evening more festive. Their rendition of Feliz Navidad had the crowd rocking. Our good friend Frank was also celebrating his birthday. The entire audience was in Christmas mode and party mode and wonderful combination. It was a great way to kick off the Holiday season.