"Tourists don't know where they've been, travellers don't know where they're going." ~ Paul Theroux
Friday, July 16, 2010
Apollo Theatre Amateur Night Winners
Amateur Night at the Apollo Theatre

The Amateur Night at the Apollo winners circle reads like a Who’s Who of the best African-American talent you could hope for. It includes Billie Holiday, Sarah Vaughan, Ben E. King, Jackie Wilson, Gladys Knight & the Pips, The Ink Spots and many others. Ella Fitzgerald, one of the first Amateur Night winners was just 15 when she stepped onto the Apollo Theater stage.
As I entered the great gilded theater, a pre-show “jam fest” with DJ Jess was in full swing. Apollo audiences come ready to party, and as the audience slowly filled the theater, no-one worked harder than DJ Jess to get the party started! The comedian Capone is Master of Ceremonies and host of the evening. He explained the ‘rules’ of the evening and spelt out what was expected of the audience, while keeping the mood light, upbeat, and things running smoothly.
The excellent house band was headed by the evening’s musical director, Ray Chew along with three fellow musicians, called his Crew – hence their stage name, Ray Chew and his Crew. While some of the contestants performed to prerecorded backing tracks, Ray and his Crew were kept busy throughout the night playing live for most of the acts.
The last member of the on-stage team was C.P. Lacey, who, as the Apollo's Executioner, had the task of clearing the ‘bad’ talent off the stage. CP bills himself as a comedian and celebrity impersonator, and opened up the second half of the evening with a very good impression of James Brown. Apparently he also does an impersonation of Tina Turner. Now that would be something to see!
Having watched a few Amateur Night contestants via YouTube, I must say I was a little apprehensive about attending this event. Let me explain why. As a singer-songwriter and occasional performer myself, I know just how hard it is to walk onto a stage and perform before an audience. A whole multitude of doubts and insecurities must be overcome before you can brave the stage lights and sing and play competently for anything up to a couple of hours. And remember, I’m talking about performing before an audience who – for the most part – are on your side even before they walk in the door. As a rule, these audiences do not come primed to boo you off the stage if you are not quite up to scratch, or fall short of their expectations!
The night kicks of with the “Child Star of Tomorrow” segment. Reserved for children between the ages 5 and 15, our host, Capone was quite clear about the rules governing this section of the event. No booing was allowed, but as much cheering and support as the audience was willing to give was encouraged.
Of the three acts who took part in the ‘Child Star’ segment on the night I attended (
Short clips of the winning performances are can be seen on this blog via my next entry...
...
And just because I can embed it here, take a look at Veronica singing an unaccompanied version of the song, Beautiful...
I’m sure Veronica has the potential to turn into a great entertainer if that is what she chooses to pursue as she gets older and continues to mature.
Every week, during the break between the Child Star of Tomorrow segment, and the main event, audiences are treated to a big screen tribute to a former star of the Apollo. On this night the homage was for the Hispanic percussionist, Tito Puente.
Tito Puente was a Latin Jazz and Mambo musician. The son of native Puerto Ricans Ernest and Ercilia Puente, of Spanish Harlem in
And now to the main event. At the completion of the 2010 Amateur Night season, the overall winner takes home a cash prize of $10,000 – the first time the Theater has offered such a substantial cash reward. So a lot is at stake for each of the performers appearing throughout the year in the lead up to the finals.
Just for the record, here is a list of all the contestants who appeared on July 14: Haron Miller, Donnic Shade, Briana Jackson, Jocelyn Jenkins, Dance Dimensions, Junious Sampson, Kid Dot, Avery Segers, Cat Stratakis, Full Effect, Jaime Sommers and Veronica Oreliana.
I’m not going to give a blow by blow account of every act that appeared during the night, but I will offer my overall impressions and observations.
Firstly, Amateur Night audiences can be brutal, and contestants literally have seconds to get the audience onside. Hit a bum note, or come across as a poser or ‘pretender’, and the crowd will put you in your place immediately. Some performers were able to persist through the booing to win back some audience approval at least long enough to complete their song.
Secondly, choosing songs with ‘me’ lyrics go down much worse than songs with ‘you’ lyrics, and any song which includes the line “I love you” tends to get a very good response, if only because it allows the performer to point to the audience as they sing those lines. It makes it much harder for an audience to boo you if you are telling them how much you love them!
Thirdly, given a competent performance, overwhelming numbers will win over solo performers every time. This was demonstrated clearly when the eleven member dance group, Dance Demensions won the July 14 Amateur Night contest. Assuming each member of the group was represented in the audience by 20 people (immediate family, extended family and friends, etc), then it is clear they already had a sizeable section of the audience on their side before they even took to the stage.
I’m not suggesting they did not deserve to win. Their routine was energetic throughout, and every dancer gave 110 per cent. I’m just pointing out the math involved. Effectively, the two runners up, Cat Stratakis and Jocelyn Jenkins were each outnumbered 11-1, and winning against those sorts of odds is always going to be very difficult. Come to think of it, since the two women were competing against each other as well, that then makes the odds of winning, 12-1.
WINNING BY POPULAR ACCLAIM
Winners are chosen by the audience by popular acclaim. That is, at the end of the night (and at the end of the Child Star of Tomorrow segment), all performers are brought back onto the stage and the audience chooses the winner by making as much noise as possible for their preferred act. Again, the no booing rule applies during this process, although not everyone abides by it. Like I said, it's a brutal process, but then the music industry can be even more brutal on its stars and wannabes, so they might as well get used to it.
The
The tree was eventually cut down when
To conclude, Amateur Night at the Apollo Theatre was great fun and a real blast. Getting the chance to see some real ‘stars of tomorrow’ just added to the occasion. Although Amateur Night has become a tourist attraction in its own right, for the performers and their families, the competition – with its $10,000 cash prize – is no game. Their participation in the event is a very serious affair.
The Apollo has three levels of seating: Orchestra ($27.00); Mezzanine ($22.00); and Balcony ($17.00). You can book in person at the Apollo Theater Box Office on
You can see a comprehensive list of performers and previous Amateur Night winners here…
Thursday, July 15, 2010
Brooklyn Hidden Harbor Tour

However, to this day my interest in ships, boating, and a life on the ocean waves has never completely gone away, hence my nine hour outing up the Hudson River to Bear Mountain, and my participation on the Brooklyn Hidden Harbor tour organized by the New York based Working Harbor Committee.
Billed as a tour examining “
Ongoing commentary was provided by Captain John Doswell (Working Harbor Committee), Venetia Lannon (Sr, Vice President, Maritime, of the New York City Economic Development Corporation), and several other people who had an extensive working knowledge of the waterways surrounding
Venetia Lannon in particular, spoke often about the competing interests fighting over the development of vast swathes of

Image: The tall ship
Our journey began at Pier 16 at the
After boarding the Zephyr, we headed out into

Image: The start of something big – high rise apartments on the
In short order, here are just some of the tour highlights: Brooklyn Port Authority Piers (soon to become part of the new Brooklyn Bridge Park); the Fulton Ferry Landing, where Robert Fulton began the first ferry service in 1642; American Stevedoring (Brooklyn's only container port); Atlantic Basin (along with Howland Hook in Staten Island), one of only two cargo-handling docks left in the New York City; PortSide NewYork (a waterfront hub in Atlantic Basin with visiting historic vessels, charter and excursion boats, and a rest area for workboats); Erie Basin, so named as it was the southern terminus of the barge trade traffic that extended up the Hudson River through the Erie canal and west to the Great Lakes.
On we cruised to

Image: Ships and barges at anchorage in
We passed Robbins Reef Lighthouse, whose most famous Keeper was widow Kate Walker. From 1886 to 1919, she kept the light burning and raised two children, rowing them to school on
I’ve already booked for the Working Harbor of New York and New Jersey tour, featuring the giant container ports in
A repeat of the
- The tour vessel is the Zephyr, a large, luxurious excursion vessel
- The Zephyr is wheelchair accessible on the first deck, including heads (bathrooms)
- Tour price ($29.00, concessions available) includes 1 free domestic beer, wine or soft drink
- Hot dogs, pretzels, chips and nachos available for purchase
- Parking lots and metered parking is available at the Seaport
- Narration is generally by Capt. John Doswell and guests from the maritime industry
Since the Zephyr has at least two decks that are entirely enclosed and safe from the elements, it is my understanding that tours take place, rain, hail or shine!

LINKS:
Tuesday, July 13, 2010
Strolling Central Park

Caught a bus into the city and got off near
Gratuitous advice to visitors: If you want to see it – make sure you book it, or don’t be surprised if the event you want to see is sold out. It is
So what to do? Wanting to salvage something from a potentially wasted Saturday night, I headed off to
…
Image:
After watching the dancers for a little while I walked down towards Bethesda Fountain. Before reaching the fountain I saw another group of dancers. These were gyrating around a trio of percussionists who pounded out a steady rhythm of primal beats that kept the mood lively and the dancers sweaty.
At Bethesda Fountain, numerous visitors and locals where being entertained by a couple of buskers who were creating giant soap bubbles, and eliciting excited ooh’s and ah’s from an appreciative audience, especially when some of the bubbles where reaching lengths of two or three metres.
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Image: Giant soap bubbles in
Later, as I retraced my steps back past the dancers to
Thursday, July 8, 2010
Livingstone's New York Postcard #1

Livingstone is already well travelled, having come from beyond the Pavo constellation. Unfortunately, he did get caught up in some recent sun spot activity which has caused major malfunctions to his internal guidance systems.
The other side effect of this incident is that it has left him with a body mass that has become extremely soft and pliable, giving him the appearance of a soft toy made from heavy ply wool with black beads for eyes. However, this transformation from an inter-galactic, state of the art, robotic alien has its benefits since it means he is now incredibly light and can fit into almost any space, which makes it east to tote him around with me wherever I go.
Written by Livingstone himself, here in his own words is a report of his first exciting taste of international travel.
…
Hello, mommy Shummy_Shum. It too hot in

Image: Livingstone waiting at Adelaide Airport for flight to Los Angeles
Me waiting in pack back for intergalactic to Los Anglees. Uncle JimJim make big ha_ha. He say intergalactic take 20 hours or more! BigJoke Uncle JimJim. In 20 hours Me fly to Moon Station 0030. You no fool Me, SillyBilly.

Uncle JimJim no make BigJoke! Travel on sky plane take 20 hours and more! Earth people dummy_dums. Why they have no teleport stations? Travel well faster than sky plane with teleport stations. Now he say big bed for he only. Me say big bed for Me too. Me want no more sleep_asleep in pack back!
Uncle JimJim say Me a big woosh. He say Me be a SillyBilly. Me no big woosh! Uncle JimJim be a big woosh becos he be jet blagged. He should be travelled 13 light years - then he be jet blagged for real!

Me see intergalactic USO Sky Ship Bob Hope, waiting to launch at Los Anglees, LAX. Me want to catch sky ship home. Uncle JimJim say Bob Hope is no sky ship but people house. He say we stay in Los Anglees. He still grumpy_grump from jet blagging. Big woosh!

Me be meet with Steven Speelberg! He be Me big and bigger hero. In Pavo Constellation Mr. Speelberg top earth director for all space comedies. Always. Me favorite comedy be E.T. and Close Encounter. Me laugh fit to get busted! Good jokes, Mr. Speelberg.
Pleese, scuse Me poor inglish. Livingstone inglish is get better but not best yet.
Livingstone
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I bet you can’t wait.
Wednesday, July 7, 2010
Up A Lazy River to Bear Mountain

Image:
I saw it advertised one day
“Come along ’n’ take a trip
We’ll bring you up there on a ship
Bring the wife and kids
Bring the whole family”
Yippee!*
Through another eight verses Dylan describes a picnic cruise that goes from bad, to worse, to disastrous.
The open breakfast buffet included fresh bagels and pastries, fruit, a waffle maker, fresh quiche and sausage, and coffee, juice and tea. Quite frankly, it was more than enough food for the passengers on board, and there was no need to ‘top up’ with other food purchases at the concession stands or café within the park when we got there. In fact, we were encouraged to take breakfast ‘leftovers’ like fruit and pastries ashore with us.
Image: Mucking around in boats on the Hudson River
After docking at
Image: I love the smell of BBQ in the morning!
At

Image: The
The
Caveats
1. The company website and brochures advertise a three hour break at
2. Even assuming a full three hours at
3. Boat cruising isn’t for everyone. If you bore easily, sitting on a boat for six hours – no matter how luxurious the vessel – can seem interminably long. From time to time on our cruise, some folks read books and newspapers, dozed off, or distracted themselves from the cruise in different ways.
Others, myself included, were interested in watching the changing landscape and looking out for the unexpected – like birds of prey soaring high over cliffs and escarpments; or trying to work out which of the numerous fortress-like buildings we passed was the notorious Sing Sing, maximum security prison. That sort of thing.
Image: High cliffs and escarpments; a small section of the
The Palisades, also called the New Jersey Palisades or the Hudson Palisades are a line of steep cliffs along the west side of the lower Hudson River in northeastern New Jersey and southern New York ... The cliffs stretch north from Jersey City (where their emergence is called Bergen Hill) approximately 20 mi (32 km) to near Nyack, New York. They rise nearly vertically from near the edge of the river and are among the most dramatic geologic features in the vicinity of
As we cruised past the Palisades, described above, I couldn’t help thinking that it probably hadn’t changed much since Henry Hudson and his crew sailed up the river for the first time 400 years ago. It was sobering to imagine the Native Americans who must have been watching from the safety of the dense undergrowth or cliff tops, trying to work out who or what these people and their strange vessel represented.
What Is Not Included?
Apart from the complimentary drinks at the start of the cruise and on the return trip, any additional mixed drinks could be purchased from the open bar. Gratuities (tips) are also not included in the overall cruise price, but are greatly appreciated by crew members.
Special Thanks
A special shout-out to Omar from
And an extra special shout-out to fellow passenger, Marlyn, who also took the time to say ‘hello’ to a complete stranger on the long trip to and from Bear Mountain. It was lovely having someone to share the ride with, and it certainly made the day more memorable for me, and hopefully for her as well.
Finally
The next cruise to
* Copyright © 1962, 1965 by Duchess Music Corporation; renewed 1990, 1993 by MCA
LINKS:
Talkin’
Sunday, July 4, 2010
New York Promenade
Image: The Cloisters commanding the best views, high over the Hudson River
~ Went out in the early evening for a walk up
By the time I reached the park the building itself was closed, but the park was alive with activity. I quickly realised I was walking into a typical
A large children’s playground is located at the corner of
I sat for a while enjoying a $1 cup of ice cream, before deciding to walk to the end of
That iconic thoroughfare, Broadway, runs from the southern end of
...
Anyway, since it was close, I set off to walk to the end of
At the corner of
Continuing along Broadway, I soon came to that narrow body of water which separates
Image: Iconic New York street scene, still encountered today
...
Somewhere up a side street in Inwood, I encountered another image I associate with New York: someone had turned on a fire hydrant just enough to send a curtain of water cascading across the road so that local children could play in the shower of ‘rain’ it created.
It would have made a lovely picture. Just the same, it was a great way to end my evening promenade through the top end of