Lineup - The Smooth Jazz Cruise

Marcus Miller, winner of two Grammy Awards, the 2013 Edison Award for Lifetime Achievement in Jazz (Holland), the 2010 Victoire du Jazz (France) and appointed UNESCO Artist for Peace in 2013, is not only an exceptional musician but also a highly gifted composer and producer who we are proud to call a host and headliner on The Smooth Jazz Cruise. The legendary album Tutu, written and produced for Miles Davis, sealed his international fame when Marcus was only 25. Over the course of his career, Marcus has collaborated with artists as varied and talented as Eric Clapton, George Benson, Luther Vandross, Roberta Flack, Aretha Franklin, Chaka Khan, Al Jarreau, George Duke, Wayne Shorter, Lalah Hathaway and Herbie Hancock. The multi-instrumentalist and world-renowned bassist has also produced his own genre-defying albums, among them The Sun Don’t Lie, Tales, M2, Silver Rain, Free, A Night in Monte Carlo (with the Monte-Carlo Philharmonic Orchestra), and Renaissance. Along with international tours, Marcus Miller hosts “Miller Time,” a weekly program on SiriusXM.

Boney James’ personal relationship with music has never been anything but solid. Picking up the sax at age 10 in his native New Rochelle, New York, “I immediately loved it, and it pretty quickly became my favorite hobby.” By the time he entered his teens, James was already gigging with bands, and he turned pro at 19. He apprenticed as a sideman for artists like Morris Day and the Isley Brothers, touring and doing sessions for seven years before cutting his first solo album in 1992. The independently released Trust led immediately to a major label deal and a string of increasingly successful recordings and nonstop touring. Now a four-time GRAMMY nominee with four RIAA Gold records and career sales topping three million units, James continues to defy genres as a two-time NAACP Award nominee, a Soul Train Award winner and named one of the Top 3 Billboard Contemporary Jazz Artists of the Decade. James says he’s looking forward to heading out on the road and seeing how the material from Solid (the saxophonist/composer’s 17th album as a leader) evolves from night to night. “I love playing live, maybe more than I ever did,” he adds. “That has not gotten old at all. A lot of guys get tired of the traveling but it’s still a joy for me every time I go out there and play.” It’s still a joy to his multitude of fans too. “I try to be there for the people who are interested in listening to my music,” says James, “to be solid in that relationship and to never let anybody down. I often get great compliments from the people that come to my shows, that I ‘never disappoint’ them, and that’s very gratifying to me. That’s what I was trying to express with this title, that sense of character. To stand for something principled.”

With a career that encompasses 5 Grammy Awards, numerous chart successes and personal and professional accolades, as well as collaborations with some of the world’s most prominent artists, Michael McDonald remains an enduring force in popular music.

Hailing from St. Louis, McDonald arrived in Los Angeles in the early 1970s, honing his talents as a studio musician before becoming an integral part of Steely Dan. In the mid-70s, McDonald was invited to join the Doobie Brothers as the band redefined their sound with McDonald serving as singer, keyboardist and songwriter on such Top 40 singles as “Takin’ It To The Streets,” “It Keeps You Runnin’,” “Minute By Minute” and “What A Fool Believes.” Throughout the 80s and 90s, McDonald’s solo career took off with a string of hits including “I Keep Forgettin’ (Every Time You’re Near),” “Sweet Freedom,” “On My Own” (with Patti LaBelle) and the Grammy-winning James Ingram duet “Yah Mo B There,” plus he co-wrote the Van Halen hit “I’ll Wait.”

In 2020, McDonald was elected to the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame as a member of the Doobie Brothers. In celebration of the group’s 50th anniversary, McDonald is touring with the band for the first time in nearly 25 years on an extensive run of U.S. dates running throughout 2021 and 2022.

McDonald’s recent collaborations include his work on the critically acclaimed track “Show You The Way” with multi-genre bassist, singer and producer Thundercat and Kenny Loggins. McDonald’s first full length record of all new music in nearly a decade came out in 2017 and received extensive critical acclaim. McDonald continues to tour extensively as a solo artist as well, completing a U.S. tour with R&B legend Chaka Khan last summer.

Vanessa Williams is one of the most respected and multi-faceted performers in entertainment today. She has conquered the musical charts, Broadway, music videos, television and motion pictures. She has sold millions of albums worldwide and has achieved critical acclaim as an actress on stage, in film and on television.

Her albums The Right Stuff, The Comfort Zone and The Sweetest Days earned multiple Grammy nominations and have yielded such classic hits as “Save the Best For Last,” “Dreamin',” “Work To Do,” “Love Is,” and the Academy Award-winning single “Colors of the Wind.” Concord Records released Vanessa’s, The Real Thing, in June 2009, for which she received a NAACP nomination for Outstanding Jazz Artist.

Vanessa has taken Broadway by storm when she replaced Chita Rivera in Kiss of the Spider Woman, and was nominated for a Tony Award for her performance as the Witch in the revival of Into the Woods. She also headlined a limited special engagement of the classic, Carmen Jones, at the Kennedy Center and starred in the Encore! series staged concert production of St. Louis Woman. Vanessa returned to the stage in 2013 where she starred alongside Cicely Tyson in the Tony nominated play, The Trip to Bountiful.

Vanessa has starred in features such as Eraser, Hoodlum, Soul Food, Dance with Me, Light It Up, Shaft and Tyler Perry’s Temptation: Confessions of a Marriage Counselor. On television, in addition to many movies and mini-series, Vanessa starred in ABC’s critically-acclaimed hit series, Ugly Betty, earning three Emmy nominations in addition to numerous individual and ensemble awards and nominations, including SAG, Golden Globes and NAACP Image Awards. She spent time on Wisteria Lane on the 78th season of ABC’s long-running hit, Desperate Housewives, winning an NAACP Image Award. Other starring credits in the ABC supernatural drama 666 Park Avenue and VH1’s Daytime Divas.

In 2007, Vanessa achieved a career pinnacle, with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame for her accomplishments as a performer.

A regular panel member on Wait Wait…Don’t Tell Me, The Smooth Jazz Cruise comic and event host Alonzo Bodden has been making audiences around the country laugh for more than 20 years.

Alonzo’s first big comedy break came when he was on the “New Faces of Comedy” showcase at the Just for Laughs Festival in Montreal. However, it was as the season three winner of NBCʼs Last Comic Standing, where Alonzo was first introduced to America. Since then, he has starred in two comedy specials for Showtime: Historically Incorrect and Who’s Paying Attention. His television appearances include ABC’s Dr. Ken and Fresh Off the Boat, Dr. Phil, The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, Late Night with Conan O’Brien, Comedy Central’s The Nightly Show with Larry Wilmore and Californication.

A car and motorcycle aficionado, Alonzo hosted Speed Channel’s 101 Cars You Must Drive and America’s Worst Driver on the Travel Channel. He’s also joined Jay Leno for several off-road trips on his CNBC series Jay Leno’s Garage. Alonzo was a field correspondent on Animal Nation with Anthony Anderson, and a contributor on the Science Channel’s How to Build Everything.

Alonzo released his fifth comedy CD titled Man Overboard in 2018. He currently hosts the podcast Who’s Paying Attention? and his own daily radio show on KBLA-AM 1580 in Los Angeles where he gives his unique take on what’s going on in the world.

In August 2019, Alonzo starred in his fourth stand-up special, Alonzo Bodden: Heavy Lightweight, which premiered exclusively on Amazon Prime Video. In the special, he touches upon a range of topics from slavery, cell phones and the #MeToo movement, to millennials, Kanye West and Taco Bell.

Alonzo has been the comic in residence for Jazz Cruises for many years now and has become one of the leaders and drivers of our program.

The youngest of 13 children, Jonathan Butler grew up in poverty in Cape Town, South Africa, ruled by Apartheid and segregation. Butler began his singing career at age 7, releasing his first album in 1973 and winning the Best New Artist Grammy in South Africa the following year at age 12. He made history by being the first black artist played on white South African radio while earning three gold records (“Please Stay” went double gold and “I Love How You Love Me” went gold) in 1975 as he became a teenager.
More than a decade later, Butler moved to London, England and released his first album internationally. The self-titled set went gold in 1987 in the United Kingdom and in the USA. He received Grammy nominations for Best R&B Song for his R&B-pop vocal hit “Lies” and for Best Jazz Song for the instrumental “Going Home.” His genre-busting material earned songwriter’s awards and received abundant airplay in multiple radio formats: pop, urban, contemporary jazz, adult contemporary and gospel. Butler’s 2004 album, Surrender, went gold in South Africa where he remains a superstar.

Butler is still taking care of people back home. Last fall, he launched the Jonathan Butler Foundation in his native country to fund music education programs that give children the purpose to overcome a life of drugs and poverty just as he did. His music has purpose, providing comfort and genuine inspiration. When he sings, he testifies to the glory and healing power of love. When he plays guitar, his fast fingers innately find notes of passion and divinity. Jonathan Butler’s recording career has carried him far, far beyond his wildest dreams. He’s living his dream and that is a blessing for us all.

Born and raised in Los Angeles, Gerald Albright was already an accomplished saxophonist by the time he enrolled at the University of Redlands, but he switched to bass after he saw Louis Johnson in concert. A few months after graduating from college, he joined jazz pianist/R&B singer Patrice Rushen, who was in the process of forming her own band. Later, when the bassist left in the middle of a tour, Albright replaced him and finished the tour on bass guitar. Playing both sax and bass, he became the consummate session and touring musician in the 80s, working with everyone from Anita Baker, Ray Parker, Jr., Atlantic Starr, The Temptations and Maurice White to Les McCann, Teena Marie, the Winans and Whitney Houston.

He launched his solo career in the infancy of what became the smooth jazz format, with Just Between Us in 1987 and has been a core part of the genre with chart-topping albums, countless radio hits and as a member of many all-star tours, including Guitars & Saxes and Groovin’ For Grover. In the late ‘90s, he fronted a big band for and toured with pop star Phil Collins and did a dual recording with vocal great Will Downing called Pleasures of the Night. Between his last two Grammy-nominated solo albums Pushing The Envelope (2010) and Slam Dunk (2014), he enjoyed hit collaborations with two huge hits – 24/7 with guitarist Norman Brown and Summer Horns by Dave Koz and Friends (including Mindi Abair and Richard Elliot), which were also Grammy-nominated for Best Pop Instrumental Albums. He toured with Brown and Summer Horns, and most recently has been on the road with South Africa gospel/jazz singer and guitarist Jonathan Butler.

Saxophonist and The Smooth Jazz Cruise Music Director Eric Marienthal has won 2 Grammy Awards and has been nominated 8 times as a member of the Chick Corea Elektric Band, Jeff Lorber Fusion and Gordon Goodwin's Big Phat Band. Having performed in over 80 countries and played on hundreds of recordings, films and TV shows, Eric also has recorded 15 solo recordings including his latest entitled Double Dealin’ with legendary trumpeter Randy Brecker. Eric's recordings have produced several top 10 radio singles including three tunes that reached #1 on its respective chart.

Eric is the recipient of the Berklee College of Music Distinguished Alumnus Award for outstanding achievements in contemporary music and earned the highest proficiency grades in the esteemed history of that institution. Eric was also named one of the top 3 alto saxophonists in Jazziz Magazine's Reader's Poll along with Phil Woods and David Sanborn.

For the past 22 years Eric has organized an annual charity concert for the High Hopes Head Injury Program in Tustin, CA. These concerts have raised awareness for this great organization and have raised over 2 million dollars.

For the past few years, Eric has applied his vast knowledge and experience in the world of jazz to being the Music Director for The Smooth Jazz Cruise and Blue Note at Sea. In that challenging role, Eric is charged with curating the performances, schedules and support for 100’s of the top musicians in the world. His ability to perform this task with skill and professionalism has made the quality of the programming on those sailings among the very best in the world.

One of the most recognized and sought-after saxophonists, two-time GRAMMY nominee Mindi Abair has been electrifying audiences with her dynamic live performances and sax prowess since her debut album in 1999. In 2014, Mindi received her first GRAMMY nomination in the Best Pop Instrumental Album category, followed by a 2015 GRAMMY nomination for Best Contemporary Instrumental Album for her solo LP Wild Heart featuring the late Gregg Allman, Joe Perry, Trombone Shorty, Booker T. Jones, Keb’ Mo’, and Max Weinberg.

You might know her as the featured saxophonist on American Idol, sitting in with Paul Shaffer on The Late Show with David Letterman and The Roots on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, or as the first solo saxophonist touring with Aerosmith since 1973. She has garnered twelve #1 radio hits in the jazz and blues world, two #1 spots on the Billboard Contemporary Jazz Album Chart and two #3 spots on the Billboard Blues Album Chart. In 2018, Mindi Abair and The Boneshakers won 8 Independent Blues Awards including Artist of the Year and Best Blues Song fan award for the Independent Music Awards for “Pretty Good For A Girl” featuring Joe Bonamassa. They won the 2019 LA Critics Award for Best Holiday Album for All I Got For Christmas Is The Blues. And in 2019, 2020 and 2021 she was nominated by the Blues Music Awards as the Best Instrumentalist: Horn.

As creator, designer and owner, Mindi successfully launched Reserve Tastings Wine Company in 2019 as a lifestyle concept that brings together the worlds of wine + music through members-only exclusive wines paired with personally curated music playlists, label art and branded wine + music festivals.

Mindi wrote the book How To Play Madison Square Garden – A Guide To Stage Performance, created the website prettygoodforagirl.net to celebrate women, and served 10 years as an LA Chapter Governor, President and National Trustee for The Recording Academy.

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