October 21, 2003
Hello again everyone. I've finally gotten off the ship a couple of times, so here's what I've been up to. Yesterday was finally payday, so everyone has money now. Most of the people in the band had borrowed money from the musical director because payday had been pushed back. Plus they had to have money to buy beer.
Right now I'm at an Internet Cafe in Nassau, which is the capitol of the Bahamas. Here's a map of the area: http://www.lib.utexas.edu/maps/americas/bahamas.gif (we go from Canaveral to Freeport to Nassau)
The area just off of the docks has lots of toursist places--mostly shops selling beer, t-shirts, and jewelery. Once you get out of the first couple blocks, though, things start to get kind of delapidated. Earlier today a bunch of people in the band went to a beach, and it was pretty nice. The water is really clear, and there wasn't really anyone around where we went. I think I got a little sunburned on my face and shoulders, though. It was nice to get out in the open where it's peaceful after being in a closed environment for so long.
I haven't really been much around much in Nassau, but I've heard there's some good restaurants and a mall with a movie theatre. I'm here half the day Fridays and all day Tuesdays, so I'm sure I'll have plenty of time to see what's here.
Since I have some time, here's some more information on the music we do. There are two cruises a week, so we do everything at least twice a week. We do two different Las Vegas-style shows, with two singers and a bunch of dancers and whatnot. We also do 3 Captain's Cocktails a week, where we play dance/jazz tunes. We also do a welcome aboard show, where the officers are introduced and there's a comedian, and a couple of variety shows with jugglers/comedians/singers/etc. Overall it's a pretty good mix of music. One of the shows we do is called Broadway, and has a bunch of songs from the most popular musicals. That show is hard because of all the instrument changes from flute to sax to clarinet, often with only a measure or two to switch instruments. The other show is a little harder on the chops, but only has a couple of flute parts. It's called Nightclub Express, and is kind of like a journey through the country's top nightclubs in history. It starts at the Cotton Club with some jazz, goes to the Tropicana, some rock tunes, disco (YMCA etc), country, and some modern swing. It ends with Copa Cabana. The shows are fairly enjoyable to do because the music is so varied, but we'll see what I think after playing 8 shows a week for a couple months. Both of the shows are played with a click track and a recording that we play along with, so our presence can feel a little moot at times, but we just do what we can do.
Well, that's about all I have for now. If you're interested in mailing me anything (not that I really need anything...), here's my address. Also, I still have cell phone service for now on Thursday and Sunday mornings until about noon your time, so if you want to call me my number is still (509)879-9677.
M/S Fantasy
Brian Lassiter, ID# 277807
Show Band
P.O. Box 1635
Port Canaveral, FL 32920