The Smooth Jazz Cruise is proud to present a stunning lineup of musicians in 2022.
SMOOTH NEWS: Your Monthly Update for
The Smooth Jazz Cruise in 2022!
Embrace the Talent!
An embarrassment of riches is an idiom that means an overabundance of something or too much of a good thing.
When you look at the lineup for The Smooth Jazz Cruise ’22: Back to Sea Sailing you see an Artist list that includes Marcus Miller, Boney James, David Sanborn, Brian Culbertson, Candy Dulfer, Jonathan Butler, Rick Braun, Eric Darius, DW3, Euge Groove, Everette Harp, Paul Jackson Jr., Jeff Lorber, Keiko Matsui, Peter White and Eric Marienthal. Our Special Performers include Maysa, Vincent Ingala, Damien Escobar, Patches Stewart, Brian Simpson, Dave McMurray, Larry Braggs, Marcus Anderson, Rebecca Jade and Ivan Peroti. And, of course, three house bands each comprised of top-flight stars in their own right: Arlington Jones, Collin Clauson, Eddie Miller, Randy Jacobs, Gerey Johnson, Kevin Turner, Nate Phillips, Nate Kearney, Lamar Jones, Third Richardson, Jay Williams, Omari Williams and Munyungo Jackson.
Yes, in jazz cruise terms, this is definitely an embarrassment of riches. But, since this cruise will be our first sailing since early 2020, not only are we not embarrassed by this gaudy lineup, we proudly call this our embracement of musical riches!
How did it happen that we have so many musicians on one cruise? The Smooth Jazz Cruise ’22: Back to Sea Sailing began as The Smooth Jazz Cruise ‘20.2, which was cancelled due to the pandemic. In the days approaching the cruise, a few Artists were disqualified from sailing on that cruise due to their travel histories. As we do, we filled those spaces with other top talent. Now that we have rescheduled the cruise for ’22, both the Artists previously scheduled and those added to fill the vacancies will be on the cruise.
What does this mean in terms of programming on the cruise? Music Director Eric Marienthal tells us that there will be more major shows, more special shows and more “only on The Smooth Jazz Cruise” shows than ever before. Artists are already crafting their performances and offering a whole host of new performance ideas. Though we hope that live music shows come back as soon as possible, clearly The Smooth Jazz Cruise ’22: Back to Sea Sailing will be among the very first major smooth jazz events in the world. The Artists, Featured Performers and Band Members will be more ready to perform than at any other time in their careers.
Two Diamonds Shining Brightly!
Both The Smooth Jazz Cruise ‘22.1 & ‘22.2, the Diamond Celebration Sailings of the program, are more than 90% reserved. Typically, reservations reach that level sometime during the sailing of the then-current program. Absent that sailing and with the news of a super lineup that features Vanessa Williams and Jeffrey Osborne, plus visits to Aruba and Curacao, and the assignment of Celebrity Summit (post-Revolution upgrades), guests are acting sooner and swifter than ever.
Stateroom selection is dwindling, so if this program is your jam, then acting now makes the most sense. And, of course, it is still not too late to do a double. Sail on The Smooth Jazz Cruise ’22: Back to Sea (January 24 – 31, 2022) and The Smooth Jazz Cruise ‘22.1 (January 31 – February 7, 2022).
We will be on both cruises … join us!
STATEROOM STATUS: Great Time to Book Your Cruise!
It has been a while since we brought you up to date on the availability of staterooms on our jazz programs for ’22. As you can see below, even though our sailings are more than 14 months away, many, many guests have already reserved their staterooms for the ’22 smooth jazz cruise of their choice.
Particularly enticing for guests seeking reservations is the fact that they can secure a stateroom now and s-t-r-e-t-c-h their payments, on an interest-free basis, over a full year. Act soon — here is the up-to-the-minute stateroom availability:
For more information, please contact our Guest Services team during our normal business hours (9 a.m. – 5 pm CT, Monday – Friday). Or you can email us anytime at info@thesmoothjazzcruise.com and one of our Jazz Representatives will get back to you as soon as possible.
Please know that due to the pandemic, most of our team members are working from home. The calls coming in go directly to them through our phone system, but you may incur some slight delays in our response until we are all back in the office.
What to Expect on Celebrity Summit Post Revolution?
All 3 Sailings of The Smooth Jazz Cruise ’22 will sail on Celebrity Cruises’ Summit. We have sailed on Celebrity Summit before. In fact, our first sailing on Celebrity Cruises in 2017 was on this ship. Since that time, we sailed on Celebrity Infinity, which is the sister ship of Summit. Our move to Summit is exciting as it will be our first sailing on a Celebrity ship that has completed the “Revolution” upgrade. Infinity was to have completed this process this fall, but that process was delayed due to the pandemic. We are grateful to Celebrity Cruises for rearranging the deployment of Summit so that our guests could enjoy these fabulous upgrades.
Celebrity Summit was “Revolutionized” in 2019 and some of our ECP Staff sailed on its maiden voyage. The modifications were significant. Most importantly, every stateroom was replaced entirely. The walls, floors, bathrooms, etc. of each stateroom are all completely different. So, too, are the electronics, including the television and electrical outlets. Those improvements would be the most exciting renovations if it were not for the fact that the old beds and bedding have been replaced with top-of-the-line bedroom furniture and materials. The resulting improvement in the sleeping experience is dramatic.
In completing the renovations, Celebrity Cruises chose a modern, almost Scandinavian motif. That design standard is repeated throughout the ship. The most successful incarnation of that design can be seen in the Main Dining Room, which is called The Cosmopolitan Restaurant (…as opposed to The Trellis Restaurant on Infinity). The functionality of the Oceanview Cafe has been dramatically improved as well. Cafeteria-style food displays have been replaced with food and beverage stations that can be accessed easier and provide augmented offerings, such as a more complete salad bar and more fresh food options. The seating in the Oceanview Cafe has been improved, too.
Thankfully, our key venues — Celebrity Theater, Rendezvous Lounge, Sky Lounge (was called Constellations on Celebrity Infinity) and the Grand Foyer — have been refurbished but have not been altered to affect our programming. The one exception was the inclusion of a small bar extension in the Rendezvous Lounge. It does not reduce seating, but it moves some of the seating a bit. We asked Celebrity to remove it for our sailings, but they said it could not be done. When you see it, you will ask the same question we did … namely, “why?”
Massive changes were also made to the Spa, Fitness and Beauty facilities. The workout area is a bit smaller, but the rest of the modifications are solid improvements. A new semi-private cabana area has been added to the area near the Rooftop Terrace, which has also undergone several upgrades.
Though the “Revolution” upgrades will benefit our cruise programs and our guests in a significant way, the process was not perfect, at least in our estimation. Applying the new modern motif to Michael’s Club, which has been renamed as the Retreat Lounge, may have been an error in judgment. That room was perfect for meetings, small events and other gatherings in a low-key, sophisticated manner. The Tuscan Grille has been downsized a bit, mainly by eliminating the Wine Room table. The entrance has been moved as well and takes some careful planning to find it.
We know that no cruise ship has been built or modified with our cruise programs in mind. For more than 20 years we have chartered cruise ships and worked hard to utilize the venues and facilities to make our cruise programs amazing. Without any doubt, Celebrity Summit, after completing the Revolution upgrades, is the best cruise ship we have ever chartered. We cannot wait to see you on The Smooth Jazz Cruise in 2022.
Your Smooth Jazz Stars Are On-Demand Now Through November 23!
Were you among the thousands of people from more than 50 different countries who watched Saturday Night with Marcus Miller & Friends featuring Stars of The Smooth Jazz Cruise Jonathon Butler, Keiko Matsui, Kirk Whalum and Peter White?
If you missed this 2+ hour Smooth Jazz Spectacular, or one of the other awesome studio concert events, you can still catch them by clicking here and checking out the “Shows On-Demand Now.” When you purchase your ticket, you have access to your show On-Demand whenever, wherever and as often as you’d like to watch, but ONLY through November 23.
Marcus on bass, Jonathan on guitar, Kirk on the sax, Keiko on the keys, Peter on guitar, Nate Phillips on bass, plus the Saturday Night Band featuring Eric Marienthal, Paul Jackson Jr. and more as well as Alonzo Bodden with your comedy fix. Now that is The Greatest Party at Sea streaming direct into your living room!
This show will have you standing and dancing as if you were in the Celebrity Theater on the ship. Doing so will be good practice for ’22!
Click here for more information and to watch the sensational streaming concert event featuring Stars of The Smooth Jazz Cruise!
Thanksgiving Message from
Entertainment Cruise Productions
With all that we have been through this year, it would be easy to approach Thanksgiving cynically. The loss of life, livelihoods, entertainment and freedoms has been significant. The level of stress, strife and suffering has surpassed any point in most of our lives. Our country is deeply divided. Our world is suffering at an unprecedented scale.
Yet, with all that going on, the sun still rises in the morning and sets in the evening. Our loved ones remain in our hearts. Our spirit, though challenged, is strong. There is a growing sense that people of goodwill and great intentions will prevail and that this too shall pass.
Your Thanksgiving celebration may look different, perhaps vastly different, than past years, but however you spend your Thanksgiving, take a moment to be grateful, to refresh your spirit and to renew your commitment to being the best person that you can be and to caring about the fates of others. Thanksgiving stands for sharing. None of us are always right and none of us are always wrong. We must learn to share our ideas, goals, principles and lives in a way that makes room for everyone.
All of us at Entertainment Cruise Productions wish all of you a wonderful Thanksgiving — full of hope, cheer, family and sharing. That includes sharing some great music. Play on!
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