Photo by Laura Carbone

Heading out of JFK International with Hurricane Sandy barreling towards the East Coast, my brother Mike and I embarked on a journey to San Juan, Puerto Rico to be passengers aboard the 19th Southeastern Caribbean, Legendary Rhythm & Blues Cruise.

Making our way on board we immediately went to the pool deck where we were surprised to see that there were very few people. Then we realized this was because the first performance was about to begin, so we made our way straight to the on-board venue, appropriately named the Revelation Lounge.

There we waited eagerly as Trampled Underfoot took the stage with our carry-on bags in one hand and complimentary champagne in the other. With the powerfully smoky and soul driven voice of lead singer/bass player, Danielle Schnebelen, the band opened the first set of the week with a swingin’ blues joint that cuased the crowd to erupt, making drinks run dry, and starting the ship’s week long dance marathon in all the right ways. Trampled Underfoot’s style through the week varied from swingin’ blues to jump blues to slow and smoky blues- all done with charisma and welcoming warmth from the incredibly talented family band out of Kansas City, MO.

Three times throughout the week, in the ship’s 900 capacity, red velvet Celebrity Theatre; a man whose name is synonymous with Rhythm and Blues, Taj Mahal, put on a blues clinic. The Taj Mahal Trio treated the theatre each evening to everything, including standout versions of “Sitting on Top of the World,” “Fishing Blues,” “Queen Bee,” “Leavin Trunk” and “Spike Driver Blues.” The trio’s performances were incredibly heartfelt and true to the essence of blues. The 70 year old guitar/vocalist led bass player Bill Rich and drummer Kester Smith with ease, swagger, and charm. The magical Taj Mahal Trio was able to transform the largest theatre on the ship into an intimate, invite only blues club for all who attended.

Drawing the largest crowds throughout the week, The Tedeschi Trucks Band, mesmerized even the most hardened blues fan with every song off of Revelator, soothed the soul with a tease from Bill Withers “Kissing My Love,” shook the R&B fans with a tight cover of Stevie Wonder’s “Uptight,” and managed to please the crowds funk bone by ending their last set of the week with a jumpin’ Sly and the Family Stone medley.
The dynamics and “stop on a dime” playing by the versatile 11 piece band turned the swaying crowd into putty. Featuring a jovial three piece horn section, heavy-hitting backup singers, tight-knit dual drummers, a world class organ/flute player, and an in-the-pocket bass player, Susan and Derek had a well raised platform to display their inspiring talent. Trucks performed in full force and was certainly the “Captain of the Cruise.” While his effortless playing hypnotized the packed crowds, Susan’s powerful vocals and tasteful guitar solos pleased all ears in her wake.

The North Mississippi Allstars were a favorite amongst the cruisers. Due to Luther Dickinson missing his flight (and in result missing the departure of the cruise), the group’s ambitious drummer, Cody Dickinson, got creative and asked for a little help from his friends. Calling upon keyboardist/singer-songwriter Victor Wainright, guitarist Lightnin’ Malcolm, and Susan Tedeschi he created a temporary All-Star band which had a blast jamming on impromptu old blues covers. “This is the best night of my life,” Cody shared from the stage.

The North Mississippi Allstars later took the ship by storm on Halloween night when Luther met the cruise in Barbados. The heavier, southern, blues rose zombies from their rooms, brought a chain smoking Hunter S Thompson out of his ether trip, made a man in a motorized scooter break out in hysterical dancing and even turned Derek Trucks into a fu-manchu- sporting 70’s mullet cop and his wife Susan Tedeschi into a retro 70’s style “pavement princess.” It was a night where Robert Johnson would have sold his soul at the crossroads. Under a giant full moon The North Mississippi Allstars were the puppet masters and we were all their dancing puppets for the evening (LRBC rule # 5: “What Happens on the Ship You Can’t Explain” ).

The Nighthawks brought the pool deck, daily, to a blues feeding frenzy with their fiery and gritty style of D.C. blues. Wailing harmonica and vocals from band leader Mark Wenner, complemented by Paul Bells’ colorful guitar lines, took the tight and powerful rhythm section made up of bass player Johnny Castle and drummer Mark Stutso through sets of high energy blues and dangerously deep slow blues jams. They were also great people who loved to have a drink with their fans and talk into the late hours about the blues scene.

Photo by Laura Carbone

The twelve-piece ‘folk funk’ band fronted by 72-year-old Bobby Rush was the tightest and most amusing group on the cruise. They went from song to song seamlessly with never a second of dead stage time. When there wasn’t a funky blues tune being performed, Bobby would like to say outrageously hilarious things, execute jaw dropping gestures, and flaunt his three ‘thick bottomed’ dancers to the amusement of the crowd. Rush is a rare breed of performers hard to find these days and is bad to the bone!

An artist who took the ship by pleasant surprise was Ana Popovic. The 36 year old Serbian native played heavy hitting slide guitar and lightning fast licks, drawing the crowd closer each and every song. Popovic and her four-piece act helped push their contemporary blues style into the heart of all the veteran cruisers.

The multi-talented trio, The Carolina Chocolate Drops, added a different shade of blues to the cruise with their rootsy, backroad Mississippi style tunes. With songs tied together by three part harmonies and instruments ranging from banjos, mandolins, cello and bones (just to name a few), this young band of talented players creatively put the “Blue” in Bluegrass.

The message that the Blues encompass is a very powerful feeling which was not created overnight. The Blues were fashioned by decades of hardship, trials, and tribulations which produced colorful and one of a kind characters. These people were able to turn daily experiences into a beauty of form, harmony and expression of emotion that others could relate to.

The Legendary Rhythm and Blues Cruise is a must for all live music fans. Whether it’s swingin’ blues to help dance the night away or slow blues to remind you of lost love, good music will always make you feel as if the performance was tailored specifically for you and your situation. We were incredibly fortunate to be a part of the Legendary Rhythm and Blues Cruise family for cruise #19 – witnessing incredible performances, spending time with genuine people, and learning how to stay humble from such legends. It’s truly a one of a kind atmosphere and experience. Let the Blues Live On!

To help raise money for the Blues Music Hall of Fame please go to www.Blues.org.