variable conditions

Sunday 26th October 2008

5:14 p.m. In terms of the number of passengers, last night the ship was the busiest yet during all the time I have worked on here. As such the piano bar was extremely busy throughout the evening, with people even stood up waiting for tables at one point!! There was a group of Germans in from the night before, sat in the same place, who were listening attentively and helped things along. Despite the numbers it took a while to get the audience going, but I managed it eventually, playing a few more up-tempo numbers during my last set. I had a stream of requests as well, one of which was for With Or Without You which I played for the first time, and earlier I also performed Sunny Side of the Street which I hadn’t performed before, both went down well.

A few times recently when I have been on deck at night during the outward crossing from Hull, I have noticed a line of evenly-spaced red dots on the horizon. For a while I thought they might have been radio masts, but having done some research and seen a feature on a recent television programme, I think they are actually wind-turbines, at the Scroby Sands wind farm, off the Norfolk coast.

I haven’t been able to see anything on the horizon in Europort today, as like the last time we were in port here the on Friday, the whole place has been shrouded in thick fog.

Wednesday 29th October 2008

5:15 p.m. Sunday night went well, it was fairly steady with people coming and going throughout the evening, and my last set was probably my best, as there was a large group sat behind me who were singing along to some of the songs. I had some nice comments from various people afterwards too.

Monday night too was good, it was busy all evening, nothing really outstanding to report but it was a pleasant evening with a good atmosphere in the bar and several requests. Last night went fairly well, slightly lacking the vibe of the night before, but there were several couples and groups who were in for almost the whole evening, singing along to some songs and making requests. The weather contributed to the atmosphere, as another thunderstorm loomed overhead during my second set and remained there for well over an hour, and the view was fairly spectacular from the panoramic view of the Sky Lounge.

Not only is it Hallowe’en on Friday but it is also the first of a two-night themed mini-cruise, during which, in additional to the usual entertainment schedule, a pair of illusionists and the 70’s pop-rock band Sweet (mostly known for their hits ‘Ballroom Blitz’ and ‘Blockbuster’) will be performing. It was due to feature glam-rockers Slade (with a different front-man) but they have pulled out at the last minute.

Only three more round-trips to go now.

Thursday 30th October 2008

4:10 p.m. Despite it not being quite as busy, last night very well, one of the few evenings that seemed to flow nicely. I had several requests from various people from the start until the end. The weather played a part again, ironically as soon as I had begun to play ‘I Can See Clearly Now (the rain has gone)’, a torrential downpour ensued! (Although obviously it didn’t affect my performance in any way, apart from the noise of the rain falling on the roof.) During my last set, one older couple who had been in most of the evening (gradually succumbing to the effects of copious amounts of alcohol) requested and were singing along to Bridge Over Troubled Water (albeit a slightly jazzed-up version), and also asked for Blueberry Hill, which I didn’t know, so I managed to get a copy of it today and learned, and I am going to play it for them tonight. Also, the woman from another couple who were in most of the evening jokingly requested Piano In The Dark by Brenda Russell, so I played a bit of it despite not having the words or the music. They slow-danced to Angels, then were joined by the other couple as I played my last number, My Way.

Apparently, Sweet have now pulled out as well, and Boney-M are due to be coming in their place. We’ll have to wait until tomorrow to see whether they actually make it or whether some other act turns up!

Friday 31st October 2008

10:53 a.m. Last night went fairly well despite my playing and singing being slightly under par. There were a few people in from the night before, including the couple that I mentioned, and I played Blueberry Hill for them, which I thought went pretty well considering I only learned it a few hours previously! I also played my own arrangement of Careless Whisper for the first time for another couple, which seemed to go down very well.