The Mark LaRochelle Youth Open Mic presented by The Jersey Shore Jazz & Blues Foundation was presented on a beautiful night on February 10th 2023 coordinated by board member Joseph Vincent Riggio. As always it was an incredible night of fun, friendship, and music.
The 2023 Long Branch Jazz & Blues Festival Lineup has been announced. This year’s headliner will be Bronx native and international blues legend Popa Chubby. Touring behind his 2022 release, “Emotional Gangster,” he has been entertaining audiences in the USA as well as Europe since returning from the pandemic.
Sunday December 11th was a cold and rainy night, but that did not deter a near-capacity crowd from dressing up in their best outfits of the season and attending our annual JSJBF holiday party featuring youth sensation, Carlotta Schmidt and Peter Veteska & Blues Train with special guests Mikey Junior and Jen Barnes.
The SlideWinder Blues Band is this year’s JSJBF International Blues Challenge winner band. Help them to raise money to defray expenses by contributing to their Website Tip Jar @ https://slidewinderbluesband.com/home#donate-ibc
Several months ago, I was approached by Jill Merriman, VP of the Red Bank Woman’s Club, about creating a fundraising event. Since we have a long-standing relationship with them dating back nearly twenty years, hosting “Reckless Steamy Nights” and more recently the “Mark LaRochelle Youth Open Mic” in their home, The Anthony Reckless Estate, I immediately agreed. A fantastic afternoon of music was the result!
1-6pm – Admission: $20
Artist Charlie Meidhof will auctioning off a painting as well and donating a portion of all sales to benefit the cause.
The October edition of Blue Collar Blues, hosted by The Incinerators, gave us some fine local blues, as well as some excellent blues and rockabilly from across the pond. Joseph Riggio had been in contact with Ruzz Guitar’s Blues Review who hail from Bristol, England, as does one of the member venue, The Chubby Pickle owners, Craig Andrews, who proudly wore his Bristol football jersey that night.
Our final Reckless of the year came two days after the passing of Dennis Eschbach, past President and founder of this event with his partner in life, Doris Lazur, nearly twenty years ago. It was a bitter sweet coincidence that Goldenseal, a band he played trombone with on numerous occasions, was the band that night.
This years JSJBF International Blues Challenge was a great day of live music as all the artists brought their ‘A’ game. The judges lined up in front and the members and fans filled the room and cheered them all on. In the end the two artist/bands going to Memphis are Jonathan Kalb – Solo Duo category and The SlideWinder Blues Band – Band category
On August 12, 2022, the scorching weather broke here in Monmouth County, NJ but once again the areas most talented musical youth brought the heat to The Mark LaRochelle Youth Open Mic presented by The Jersey Shore Jazz & Blues Foundation. It’s constant influx of new performers and returning regulars truly makes it everyone’s “Favorite Friday Night of the Month.”
On May 15, 2022, the Jersey Shore Jazz & Blues Foundation (JSJBF) held its annual Band Together for Veterans event and fundraiser at Bar Anticipation in Lake Como NJ to continue its support of local veteran organizations. Each band that performed included at least one veteran and a total of $2,400 was raised in support of local veteran organization MA22