Decades of R&R Cruise
features fantastic show
Article & Photo by Kathy Rankin
Left to right: Steve Probst, David John Agostino, Scott Fronsoe, Patrick Bolin, George Dickinson
May 2020 Page 3
Continued on Page 5
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The 2020 Decades of Rock & Roll Cruise is all about being at sea for nine glorious days, pampered, eating fabulous food, hearing great rock and roll, and mingling with a lot of friendly and engaging people! The cruise was voted Most Outstanding Theme Cruise in 2019 by CV Maga- zine , and 2019 Best Of Lancaster Awards in the category of Event Plan- ner (three consecutive years in a row) and placing Penny Greenes busi- ness in the Business Hall Of Fame. If you have never been on a cruise before, this is the one to go on! You will be in for a great time. This cruise was powered by the talents of Phil Dirt & the Dozers, McGuffey Lane, Steve Probst Band, Hadden Sayers Band, John Schwab Party Band and Hotel California, A Salute to the Eagles. The cruise happened Feb. 15-23, 2020 on Royal Caribbeans Adventure of The Seas. The fun always starts with a pre-party, featuring members of the bands who will be performing on the ship. Pre-registration gets you tee shirts and the information pamphlet that gives all the details and times of the performances, so you dont miss anything! On the morning of the cruise, folks departed the hotel, toting luggage and making their way to the ship for embarkation. This writer was in a small group of about 300, mostly from Ohio, but some from other states, on a ship that holds over 3,000. Everyone shared the love of music which connects people no matter where they are from. Everyone embraced being at sea and hear- ing peoples stories about the bands and their previous DORR cruises. In each different venue on the ship, there was live music that covered the 50s, 60s, 70s and 80s, classic rock. There were disco nights, where people could get their boogie on in the promenade. Always a par- ty! There was ice skating, art, auctions, other concerts, shows and com- edy acts, as well as off-ship excursions to Labadee in Haiti and to Puerto Rico, St. Thomas and St. Maarten. This writer went on the Panoramic Drive in St. Thomas and discovered some beautiful beaches. The islands offer a glimpse of what life is like there; restful, clean and serene. Its al- most like a dream seeing how this part of the world lives, but for the time being, you can share a part of their paradise before you return to normal lives. Once you visit the Caribbean, you will want to return. Back on the ship, you can simply forget you are on a diet because the food is so fabulous. The Sapphire is the main dining room, where you are seated at an assigned table at the same time each night. Or, if you prefer, you can have dinner at the Windjammer Buffet, where you can sit anywhere and select from an even larger choice of food. There is also an Italian restaurant, a burger joint and several other dining options.The pizza joint stays open all night long, so if you want a slice at 3 am, you can have it. You can even skip the dining room and watch the sunset while you have dinner delivered to your balcony! Then, follow that up with a nice long soak in the jacuzzi. Its your time to do as you please. The ship also offers more strenuous activities, like classes in scuba diving or the FlowRider. There are so many things to do on the ship, you will never be bored! There are even bingo nights, so if you want a chance to win the jackpot you can do that too! Prom night is a special night with King and Queen crowned every year! There is so much to be enjoyed, including a romantic moment when a couple was engaged in front of everyone and she said yes! Other events included a chance where cruisers can get in on the per- formance end of things by participating in Rockoke. Rockoke is a play on the word Karaoke and is the one rare chance where anyone who wants to can get up and sing, either wowing the audience or making a fool or themselves! The judges, who were members of the bands, had everyone in stitches with their hilarious critiques. Karen Sproates was selected as the winner by audience applause and her prize was to sing with Hotel California, A Salute to the Eagles. You can watch the video online of that performance. https://youtu.be/Z52I5flanr8 All events are private for this relatively small group of cruisers, so there is always a seat for you. (This is a private cruise. If you want to go, you need to book through their website or phone). This writer couldnt wait to see the sunsets and sunrises and hear great groups such as Hotel California, A Salute to the Eagles. Each musician in this band is a multi-instrumentalist and plays every note as if the origi- nal Eagles were there watching them! The founding member of Hotel California is George Dickie Dickinson and plays electric and acoustic guitars, mandolin, keyboards, harmonica and sings. Steve Probst sings, plays electric and acoustic guitars and keyboards (and even cowbell). Israel David wows on saxophone and harmonica. Amazing vocalist Scott Fronsoe sings sweetly and doubles on acous- tic and electric bass and percussion instruments; and animated drum- mer John Agostino lights up the stage and sings. They all have a great sound and love playing the music of the Eagles! Joining them is the multi-talented Steven Patrick Bolin (vocals, guitars, flute, saxophone), who also played with Pure Prairie League in January 1979-1980. Hotel California is booked extensively throughout the year, so you can visit their website to see where they perform next. All the members are like family with their fans. Hotel California, A Salute to the Eagles is the ONLY show with official authorization to perform the Eagles catalog of music. Anything else is just a tribute band! Visit their website to learn more: https://hotelcal.com/ Another favorite was the Steve Probst Band (See cover this issue). This writer cannot say enough great things about Probsts songwriting. He sings what most people would have a difficult time saying and expresses himself with real and down-to-earth emotion. He is also a guitarist and singer with Hotel California A Salute to the Eagles. When asked if he performs original music, he says, I am always the first to raise my hand and say I write original music! If you get a chance, visit his website and learn more about his passion for the stage and for creating original music, as well as his newest CD, Steve Probst Band . Probst is a very talented arranger too and writes original music and at times on recordings is a one-man-band (in fact, he recorded every instrument on the CD in his own studio). One of this writers favorite songs of Probsts is A Thousand Angels . True to his word, he sings with deliberate intent to make the listener feel what he is saying. One thing: Probst sings so you can understand his words and that is important when sharing an emotion. He is always touring from his home base in Riverside, Calif., and is on the road throughout the year with Hotel California: A Salute to the Eagles. And, he has toured with Kenny Loggins, Little River Band, America and Three Dog Night! He also does house concerts, so if you are inclined, go and book a party in your living room with Steve Probst. https://decadesofrockandroll.com/house-concerts. He is always creating new music. His tracks have appeared on YouTube/Renault Italy and Access Hollywood, among others. Here is a link to his website to learn more about him, his travels, his bands, and to get a CD or download one: https://steveprobst.net/. If blues is more your thing, then Hadden Sayers Band can fix whatever is wrong in your life. Sayers plays original songs and other hits on the cruise with Phil Dirt & the Dozers as well, when he is not playing with his own band. Sayers hails from Texas and plays the blues the way they were meant to be played, with emotion and feeling, and he plays every note to last. He wears his heart out in the open and his guitar is an extension of what he feels. There were so many magical moments with Sayers, one coming when he performed Purple Rain . That spontaneity is what made this cruise truly special. In 2011, Sayers released the acclaimed Hard
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