I love so many things about cruising: alcoholic beverage packages, afternoon trivia, and having the freedom to do as much or as little as you like. I also love discovering talented musicians on board. The latest to catch my attention is Hunter deBlanc, who I’ve had the pleasure of checking out on my last two cruises on the Pacific Jewel. He hails from New Orleans, but he embraced Aussie tunes and delighted the masses in the Orient Bar with his stellar piano renditions of tracks from John Farnham, The Angels, and Daryl Braithwaite, to name a few. My husband and I were also thrilled with his knowledge of our favourite ’90s tunes. In amongst the covers, if you were lucky, he’d play one of his incredible original songs.
Which brings me to the point of this post. His contract on the Jewel is coming to a close, but he’s had such a blast with Australian audiences he’s already planning a return visit to play pub gigs in Melbourne, Sydney, and Newcastle. I’ll be sure to bring you the dates once they’re announced, but I just wanted to put him on your radar with my favourite of his originals, “California Orleans.”
Enjoy!
“Sweat Tours was created because I have an intense passion for live music and travel – however, the majority of tour companies in the market today place a heavy emphasis on sightseeing, which means most of the time spent on the tour is in transit. They have never particularly interested me!” explained Sweat Tours founder Eli Akerlund, who is really doing something different with his company.
I’ve had such a busy day, but I couldn’t leave it before congratulating Busby Marou on claiming the number one spot with Postcards from the Shell House. I love this album, as I do everything Busby Marou has released, so I’m thrilled to see the Queensland duo claiming their first number one. It’s a good thing they were representing the Aussies too, because they’re the only local act in the top 10 albums charts.
“This is how you exercise your right to be over 40 and still party, without worrying about the millennials getting in the way,” laughed Clisby, the all-time favorite artist from reality show, The Voice Australia. “We’ve taken the dinner, dance show concept and turned it on its head. People are always telling me that the thing they love most about my gigs is the chance to get up and dance like they used to – to the music they love. Now there’s a show especially for them.”
I’m thrilled to see Kasey Chambers’ excellent new album Dragonfly sitting at the top of the ARIA charts this week. Dragonfly is the first Aussie album to score the coveted number one possie and Kasey’s fifth number one album, after Barricades & Brickwalls (#1 in February ’02), Wayward Angel (#1 June ’04), Carnival (#1 June ’04) and her collaboration with Shane Nicholson, Rattlin’ Bones (#1 April ’08).
Top 10 Aussie Albums/EPs