New and Exclusive Products At CES

Video Snippets of New Product Launches at 2012 INTERNATIONAL CES

TRIKKE TECH PRODUCES 21st CENTURY EVs

A great work vehicle and traveling trike for all planners and producers involved in large-scale events, concerts, TV and Film production. Also great for Security, Venue staffing, Parking lot management, Tour rentals, Hotel and Resort mobility for both management and guests. The TRIKKE Electric Vehicles by TRIKKE TECH is the world leader in 3-point carving vehicles for commercial and recreational uses, fitness, and personal transportation.

WIRELESS POWER CHARGING

Busy planners, producers, entertainment industry professionals, venue and theater owners and operators many different types of the Event City members will marvel at this new wonderful technology by Fulton Innovation. Wireless Power Charging like you have never seen before, truly a technology breakthrough.

 

ZIENON Booth 73106 – A truly innovative product.

 

NEXTGEN HOME EXPERIENCE South Hall, Booth 26100 – NextGen Home Experience is the 2012 Next Generation Concept Home – a Must See at CES!

 

KUPA booth 36075 – A real Notebook computer, very powerful features.

 

 

E- WILSON ELECTRONICS Booth 35219 – World’s first Cell-phone 4G Signal Booster

 

 

SENSIC Booth MP25942 – Sensic Smart Goggles – Great for Gaming, your own virtual reality headset!

 

LELO – Booth 25817 Ground Floor -

 

IRDETO – Irdeto Hospitality Suite, Venetian Tower/Accedo Hospitality Suite, Venetian Tower -

 

Oovoo – Oovoo Hospitality Suite, Venetian Tower- Social Media Platform that allows for a Social Video communication with a Multi user Chat up to 12 participants from any device – Android, Iphone, Laptop, Adroid tablet, Ipad, PC, HD Video Quality, even web browsers.

 

IN10DID’s “It Types” chord keyboard - Booth #73409 – Mini Keyboard for on the go typing.

 

LapKeyBoard Booth 73503 – A cool new product for both office and on the go!

 

 

SONAMBA by pomdevices, LLC: CES Booth #3330 – Seniors and Caregivers a great product to help those with medical issues in need of constant surveillance.

 

MSW Wireless  Booth 5419

 

VELODYNE venetian hotel suite #29-118 – An exciting new line of futuristic headphones.

2012 The YEAR of the EVENTS & CREATIVE INDUSTRIES

Nolan Apostle
Producer and Contributing Editor
Event City Premier Magazine

The Event City Premier Magazine for the past couple of months has talked about the anticipation of 2012 being a banner year for the Events & Creative Industries as a whole and the excitement of the upcoming special events, conventions and trade-shows effecting those industries in the first quarter alone. One of those shows, the Winter Fancy Food Show in San Francisco is host to an incredible array of 17,000+ attendees who engage in the more than 80,000 scrumptious products featuring the world’s finest foods and beverages from more than 1,300 exhibitors representing 35+ countries.

Many of our readers, albeit, are involved in the hospitality, special events, concessions and other industries that heavily involve a food and beverage program of some type are not familiar with the Winter Fancy Food Show or are not aware that it is hosted in the great city of San Francisco. So we promise to do our part to let you know about it and all of the latest and greatest coming from the world of the Food & Beverage industry.

Some of the great new products, special attractions and features of the Fancy Food Show show will be showcased through the Event City Premier Magazine’s features and articles, but you can also find specific information on the new Food & Beverage site as well, FOOD & BEVERAGE LIVE .

We are looking forward to bringing you the best of information from the layers of all industries which are relative to all that is Creative, Projects and Events.

2012 International CES to Feature Many Celebrities

Hollywood Stars, Sports Legends and Musical Icons at 2012 International CES

By Nolan Apostle
Producer/Contributing Editor
Event City Premier Magazine

There is always sometime new at CES, every year the products just keep on coming, and of course the avalanche of celebrities is expected, but nothing ever like this year’s 2012 International CES. The buzz is on about what stars will shine at the Consumer Electronic Show in Las Vegas this year, and Event City will be there to show you the way.

Hollywood stars, sports legends, musical icons and entertainers will attend the 2012 International CES to showcase and promote the innovative products and technologies shaping consumer technology. The 2012 International CES, the world’s largest consumer technology tradeshow, is scheduled January 10-13, 2012, in Las Vegas, Nevada.

Actress Eliza Dushku will represent the Entertainment Matters at CES program as the Entertainment Matters Ambassador. Back for its second year, the Entertainment Matters program is designed by and for Hollywood’s film, television and digital communities.

As part of her ambassadorship, Dushku will contribute to Spike TV’s “CES All Access Live” broadcast coverage from 12:30-1:45 p.m. on Tuesday, January 10, and she will also host the network’s exclusive VIP CES party that evening at Tryst Nightclub in the Wynn Las Vegas. Dushku rose to fame with her role in Buffy the Vampire Slayer and its spinoff series Angel. She is also known for her starring role in the network series, Tru Calling and Dollhouse, as well as roles in True Lies, Bring it On, This Boy’s Life, Wrong Turn and Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back.

Jillian Michaels, inspirational television personality and fitness guru, will highlight the marriage of tech and fitness at the CES TechZone FitnessTech. From 10:30-11 a.m. on Tuesday, January 10, Michaels will discuss the impact of digital innovation and her recent partnership with BodyMedia, an on-body monitor company, in N256, North Hall. She will also be available for interviews on Tuesday upon request.

Acclaimed rapper 50 Cent will sign autographs from 3-4 p.m. on Tuesday, January 10, Wednesday, January 11 and Thursday, January 12 for his new audio company, SMS Audio, which combines technology, function and style to bring the highest caliber of sound, comfort and fashion to every product, at their booth (LVCC, South Hall, #20818). He’ll also be on hand to discuss his new line of wireless headphones with the editors of TechCrunch at the AOL Studio (LVCC, Grand Lobby) on Wednesday, January 11 from 12-12:30 p.m. He is also scheduled to interview with CNET at 2 p.m. on Wednesday, January 11.

Grammy-nominated platinum pop megastar, Justin Bieber, will be appearing with TOSY Robotics at this year’s CES. Justin Bieber is helping TOSY unveil their new innovative entertainment robot at the their booth which is located in the Robotics TechZone of the LVCC South Hall ground level (#21964, 21968, 22064, 22066 and 22068) on Wednesday, January 11 from 1-3 p.m.

Dennis Rodman, NBA Hall of Fame player, will be at the 2012 CES representing Paltalk, a service that allows users to explore the online world of chat sites with community chat rooms and cool webcam technology that lets you see and be seen. Dennis will make an appearance at Paltalk’s booth (LVCC, South Hall, #26915) from 2-3:30 p.m. on Thursday, January 12.

Miss America 2011, Teresa Scanlan, will walk the CES show floor from 10-11 a.m. on Tuesday, January 10. Teresa competed in the 2011 Miss America pageant as Miss Nebraska. The Miss America 2012 pageant is scheduled January 14 at Planet Hollywood Resort and Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada and will be televised on ABC.

Haier America will host NBA legends Robert Horry and John Salley, and celebrity chef Allison Fishman. Seven-time NBA Champion and current sports commentator Robert Horry will make an appearance at Haier’s booth (LVCC, Central Hall, #9826) from 11 a.m.-2 p.m. on Tuesday, January 10. Horry is one of only two players to have won NBA championships with three different teams. John Salley, the first NBA player to win four championships with three different teams, will make an appearance at the booth from 11 a.m.-2 p.m. on Wednesday, January 11. Allison Fishman, cookbook author and creator of The Wooden Spoon cooking school, will give a cooking demo and make daily appearances at Haier’s booth from 10 a.m.-5 p.m. on Tuesday, January 10 and 9 a.m.-5 p.m. on both Wednesday, January 11 and Thursday, January 12.

Star of the hit CBS drama NCIS: LOS ANGELES, LL COOL J will introduce exciting new technology from Boomdizzle on the CNET stage (LVCC, South Hall Lobby) on Tuesday, January 10 at approximately 2 p.m.

Television actor Greg Grunberg, best known for his starring role on the NBC television series Heroes, and Emmy winner and Grammy nominated actor, singer, Wayne Brady, known for his work as a regular on the American version of comedy television series Whose Line Is It Anyway?, will join OnStar for their Tweet House sessions, the official social media track for CES, on Wednesday, January 11 from 1-5 p.m. in N254, North Hall. Greg and Wayne will also attend OnStar’s “It Won’t Stay in Vegas” party on Wednesday from 6-8 p.m. at the Stirling Club.

Zeikos USA, Inc.’s trademark iHip will introduce an all star lineup at CES, including Nicole “Snooki” Polizzi, best known for her role on the most talked about reality TV show Jersey Shore, Former NFL linebacker Carl Banks and urban music pioneer Jose “Hyde” Cotto.

Snooki will make a guest appearance and sign autographs at iHip’s booth (LVCC, South Hall, #21920) from 2-4 p.m. on Tuesday, January 10 and will also host iHip’s new line and 2012 collaboration celebration on Tuesday evening from 9:30 p.m.-1:30 a.m. at the Gallery at Planet Hollywood Resort and Casino. Carl Banks, New York Giants legend and Superbowl champion, will make an appearance at iHip’s celebration on Tuesday evening and will launch his new NFL line at iHip’s booth on Wednesday, January 11. Jose “Hyde” Cotto, along with Mas Flow, “El Verdadero Quimico,” Luny Tunes and DJ Nelson will perform at iHip’s celebration on Tuesday evening and will be signing autographs at the booth on Thursday, January 12.

Panasonic will host Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment’s second annual Directors’ Panel. This year’s panel discussion will kick off the 50th anniversary of MGM’s James Bond on Tuesday, January 10 at 1:30 p.m. at Panasonic’s booth (LVCC, Central Hall, #9806). Critically acclaimed directors John Glen (For Your Eyes Only, Octopussy, A View to a Kill, The Living Daylights, License to Kill), Martin Campbell (GoldenEye, Casino Royale) and Michael Apted (The World Is Not Enough) will take a look back at the legacy of the iconic character and have a candid discussion about how technology has changed their approach to filmmaking. Additionally, former Bond girls Olga Kurylenko (Quantum of Solace) and Caterina Murino (Casino Royale) will be on hand for a special presentation that will include props from the legendary film franchise.

Jabbawockeez, the all-male, hip-hop dance crew best known for winning season one of MTV’s “America’s Best Dance Crew” and headliner at the Monte Carlo Resort and Casino, making them the first and only dance crew to headline their own show in Las Vegas will perform at CES, opening Qualcomm’s keynote address, scheduled for 8:30 a.m. on Tuesday, January 10 in the Venetian’s Palazzo Ballroom.

Monster, Inc. will host their annual Retailer Awards and Concert, featuring real music from the legendary Chicago, on Wednesday, January 11 at the Paris Hotel. Awards will begin at approximately 8:45 p.m.

Jamie Michelle, one of southern California’s most requested models, will be at CES representing automotive audio company Powerbass USA, Inc. Michelle has been modeling for the past nine years for online and commercial print work, calendars and swimsuit fashion shows, and has worked with famous photographers such as Ladi Van Jansky and Mike Prado. She will be in the Powerbass booth (LVCC, North Hall, #920) from 10 a.m.-12 p.m. on Tuesday, January 10, and 1:30-4 p.m. on Wednesday, January 11.

Alistair Overeem, three-time World Champion Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) fighter and winner of the recent Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) Heavyweight bout, will battle against Qualcomm executives and media in mobile MMA fight games, including “Fight Game Heroes” at Qualcomm’s booth (LVCC, South Hall, #30313) at 2 p.m. on Tuesday, January 10, 2 p.m. on Wednesday, January 11 and 12 p.m. on Thursday, January 12. Overeem will be available for interviews and autographs following the in-booth battles.

Jordan Rudess, recording artist, composer, producer and performer, will be representing iConnectivity at CES, demonstrating software applications from Wizdom Music including their innovative Sample Wiz and Geo Synth applications, and connecting his iPad to his musical gear with iConnectMIDI, the ultimate MIDI interface. Rudess will make appearances at iConnectivity’s booth (LVCC, North Hall, #3922) at 11 a.m., 2 p.m and 4 p.m. on Tuesday, January 10, 10 a.m., 1 p.m. and 4 p.m. on Wednesday, January 11and Thursday, January 12, and 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. on Friday, January 13.

A band comprised of top Australian musicians including drummer Andy Fisenden, bass, guitarist and vocalist Simon Fisenden and monster bass player Dane Alderton will be playing at Audiofly’s booth ( LVCC, South Hall, #26728) at 11 a.m., 2 p.m. and 4 p.m. each day. World renowned graffiti artist “The Yok” will also be at the booth throughout the show creating some of his artwork.

All of this and so much more will take place at this year’s CES and we look forward to sharing it all with you! If you have any particular interest and information you might want, or would like to see us report on any particular line of products or specific type of products please feel free to drop us a line by Emailing us your thoughts or you can leave them here by writing a comment.

EVENT CITY’S FOOD & BEVERAGE LIVE!

CELEBRATION – EVENT CITY’S FOOD & BEVERAGE LIVE is now LIVE!

   

By Nolan Apostle & Cesar Plata
Producer/Contributing Editor & Reporter/Photographer
Food & Beverage Live

Now that the launch of the Event City Network™ is eminent in the coming months it is time to get on the Events & Creative Industries™ bandwagon and if you are involved in one of the Events & Creative Industries, get in early and learn how this new and unique online portal will help your professional endeavors exponentially!

Event City’s Magazines and Blogs has reached each industry as a whole, but will also have many exciting opportunities of the cross-over industries the Event City Network represents. You will see the many features and benefits of these cross-over markets not just through this Food & Beverage industry site, but with the many other areas covered by Event City™ and the Event City Online™. Through this network of industry portals, Event City and it’s Editorial Channels will offer much more than any other site of its kind.

WHAT TO EXPECT FROM FOOD & BEVERAGE LIVE
The Event City Food & Beverage Live site will feature EVERYTHING Food & Beverage and then some. Top Restaurants, Hotels, Bars, Nightclubs, Bed & Breakfast facilities, Caterers and food products from around the globe will be featured in our program as well as invited professionals and guests to write about their industries and share their industry knowledge with you. Reviews and featured articles on new products all across the board – from olive oils to Italian cookies, from wheat corn tortillas to delicious caviar. Wines, breads, meats, cheeses, even equipment, supplies and anything that might be used or consumed by any industry professional imaginable. The goal is to cover all avenues associated with the food and beverage industries.

Our publishers and editors believe that these industries are more prevalent to who the consumer is as a “consumer” than almost any other industry on the planet. Why do they think that? What we consume, what pleases our pallets is an endorsement of how we think and feel, it engages the pit of our desires to be who we want to be. Simply put, what we eat and drink (especially eat) persuades us to be who we are, so the more we know about what we eat, the better it is for everyone.

That leads us to information gathering. This editor is a firm believer in the ideology of gaining knowledge from those that know, especially those that know well about any given subject. Where do you go to find your movers and shakers? Conventions, trade-shows, conferences. Throughout the world, almost daily, you can find these types of events scheduled for just about any industry known. And when a new industry forms, a new convention will take place and be created by someone. Besides reading the advertisements in trade publications, the best place to gain quick and precise knowledge on the food and beverage industry and their products and services are from the trade-shows and conventions that feature those products and services. We promise to bring you the best from these industry shows through our editors, writers, reporters, producers and all of the freelance journalist that help us along the way to gather the information to help you in your business of presenting food and beverage products to your customers.

Here are some links to just a few of the industry shows we may attend and cover over the next year. Remember to check back here often for all of the latest news especially for the Fancy Food Show coming to San Francisco in the next week.

International Hospitality Week – Nightclub and Bar Convention

Hospitality and Design Expo – Winter Fancy Food Show

The Hotel Show – in Dubai – AMI Show – Meat, Poultry and Seafood Industry

AAA Offering FREE Tows & Rides on NYE to NY AM

 FREE TOWS For NYE REVELERS

By Nolan Apostle
Producer/Contributing Editor
Event City Premier Magazine

NO EXCUSES for drinking and driving if you’re in California and about 20 other states throughout the country. It has always been a rule of thumb in our household, “DON’T Drink and Drive and NEVER EVER RIDE with anybody who does. AAA, the Roadside Assistance service company is offering a FREE program called TIPSY TOW service and it is NOT exclusive for members only, it is for ANYBODY NEEDING A RIDE during the New Year’s holiday and other holidays throughout the year. Yes you read that correctly, you don’t have to be a AAA member and it is FREE! It is available in most areas from 6pm-6am on New Year’s Eve to New Year’s Day. EVENT CITY™ members have actually used the Tipsy Tow service last year and found it to be very helpful and comforting knowing if they were a bit too festive they would have a solution for getting home safely.

The  Tow-to-Go or Tipsy Tow service is also available during certain holidays for members and nonmembers alike. This service is not available everywhere though. It is always encouraged for all family and friends to pick a designated driver before they head out on New Year’s Eve.

To utilize the Tipsy Tow service please call the AAA Roadside Assistance Center standard phone number 1-800-222-HELP or 1-800-222-4357. You can also visit the AAA WEBSITE for further details. We have received a AAA approved list below of  AAA Clubs currently offering the Tipsy Tow programs:

• AAA Alabama (Statewide. Program is called “Tow-for-Life”)
• AAA Arizona (Statewide)
• AAA Auto Club South (Statewide in Florida, Georgia, West and Middle Tennessee. Program is called “Tow-to-Go”)
• AAA California (See Northern and Southern California below)
• AAA Hawaii (Islands of Kaui, Maui, Oahu and Hawaii only)
• AAA Merrimack Valley (Program is called “TOWEDD.”  From December 16th-January 1st.)
• AAA Montana (Missoula, Bozeman, Helena and Billings)
• AAA New Mexico (Statewide)
• AAA Nevada (Statewide)
• AAA Northern and Southern California (Statewide)
• AAA Oklahoma (Metro Tulsa, Metro Oklahoma City, Shawnee, Bartlesville, Enid, Muskogee and Lawton)
• AAA South Dakota (Sioux Falls, Rapid City, Aberdeen, Mitchell and Yankton only)
• AAA Texas (Statewide)
• AAA Tidewater Virginia (Greater Hampton Roads area including Virginia Beach, Norfolk, Portsmouth, Chesapeake, Suffolk, Newport News, Hampton, Poquoson, Yorktown, and Williamsburg. Program is called ‘Tow-to-Go”)
• AAA Utah (Statewide)
• New Jersey Automobile Club (Morris, Essex and Union counties only)

AAA Mid-Atlantic is a key part of the “TipsyTaxi” program in the Baltimore area only. This program offers cab rides home to members and non-members who have had too much to drink.

For a comprehensive list of other community programs listed state by state, please visit AAA’s DUI Justice Link Website.

To use the Tipsy Tow service call the AAA Roadside Assistance Center standard phone number 1-800-222-HELP or 1-800-222-4357. Please feel free to send the link to this article to any of your friends and family or you can POST this link on any Social Networking site such as Facebook. Thank you for participating in or sharing this program, doing so you are HELPING TO SAVE LIVES!

Music Review: ‘So to These Blue Notes, I Say Goodbye.’

Country Blues Revue Scores Big With Blues For Too Long

By David McGee
Event City Premier Magazine
Writer/Reporter

Blues listeners will find themselves drawn to a newly released recording Blues For Too Long by Country Blues Revue for a number of reasons. We hear in Blues For Too Long the intimacy of blues: its hard, angry feelings, its jubilations, its regrets, its busting out laughing over nothing particular . . . the whole gamut of emotions that makes the blues a long-beloved musical form.

For instance, there’s the tight shuffle rhythm of “Hey Baby,” written and sung by co-leader Michael Handler, and reminiscent of Stax Records in its hey-day. Yet, Country Blues Revue, from Santa Fe, NM, pays homage to a primal blues style, the great incubator of the modern blues styles of Buddy Guy, Eric Clapton, Muddy Waters, and B. B. King that followed country blues.

The recording includes covers of M. Travis’s “Cannonball Rag” and W. Brown’s “Mississippi Blues.” There’s a country feel to “Love Flows Round My Heart” by Marc Malin, Country Blues Revue’s other lead vocalist and guitarist. Malin contributes six original songs, one of which is co-written. His “Jasmine and Gold” evokes country blues’s classic images: “Way down on the Mississippi where the air is thick and slow. Well, I can hear my baby calling, but I just can’t seem to go . . . she goes to my head just like cherry wine.” Malin and Handler set up the song with several instrumental choruses before the vocals start; this was a wise choice. The introduction emotes a nice-and-easy feeling that’s unhurried, just like all good country blues does.

Handler and Malin began Country Blues Revue as a duo and have added support musicians who are quiet capable of setting up the grove for the two vocalists. In addition to singing and performing guitar, Handler plays blues harmonica, his choice instrument since the mid-1960’s. There are obvious influences from country blues forefathers who come to mind listening to Blues For Too Long: Robert Johnson, Reverend Gary Davis, Son House, and Blind Blake. “Cannon Ball Rag” features Malin’s adept finger picking and a walking bass line on guitar that blends nicely with sideman Vin Kelly’s mandolin work. Blues For Too Long excels because the musicians are all willing to share the limelight. It’s clearly a group effort, and the ensemble supports each member as they take chances in their solos. An interesting arrangement of “Love is Blind,” another Malin composition, presents a seldom heard harmonic device in the blues. The lyric laments, “Love is blind, and that’s a damn good thing . . . . If love wasn’t blind, I couldn’t see a thing.” In three-part harmony, the band’s vocalists sing “I . . . I . . . I” adding an intriguing tension to the song which the quip line pays off with: “I couldn’t see a thing.” Here, Country Blues Revue milks a blues technique of tension and release to the hilt and delivers drama the master country blues musicians from long ago created so well.

The joyful vibe of “Funny Feeling” features Cozy Ralston drumming a Charleston rhythm along with Larry Diaz’s bass setting up the groove on Handler’s song. What’s the inspiration for “Funny Feeling”? “Man, I think I was on a long drive, and I pulled over to write this song at a diner,” Handler recalls. “It is not based on fact as far as I know.” Again, winning backing vocals echo Handler who’s singing lead. Here, the band really stretches out. Throughout Blues For Too Long, Handler has matured as a blues harp soloist compared to his previous recordings. He’s tighter on the groove and matches the other soloists and vocalists superbly in the emotions they evoke. “My momma got a chicken,” Michael intones in a whimsical image, “she thought it was a duck, she put it in the oven with the legs all straight up. I know she’s got that funny feeling.”

Malin’s title song “Blues For Too Long” starts off with a reminiscent feeling accompanied by Handler’s plaintive and wistful harmonica playing. The song refers to the harmonic structures of Willie Nelson’s “Nightlife” and Ray Charles’s “Hard Times.” “When you first . . . said goodbye, I was alone, I couldn’t understand why. Even in my heart, I knew was wrong . . . . I’ve had those blues for too long.” Kudos goes to vocalist Stephanie Hatfield who makes a cameo appearance with some spirited vocals.

What’s a blues recording without a good traveling song? Country Blues Revue delivers one with “Goin’ to Taos,” another Handler original where the band reveals its harder, rocking side. It’s “mostly a true story,” Handler says, “A date that went bad, then driving back to Santa Fe from Taos, and a story about a storm on the high road . . . . Folks love it, a real dance tune.” A blues tune inspired by jilted romance? Let’s alert the media on the big news!

“Now baby, don’t turn that love lamp low . . . . Cause I’m heading down the highway baby, to Taos, New Mexico.” “Taos” features Malin’s tasty country guitar licks. A New Yorker, Malin spent many years in the Boston and Cambridge, MA, areas teaching country and finger-picking guitar. He’s played the blues for 35 years and is the lead guitar player for Santa Fe’s the Rattlerz in addition to the County Blues Revue. A “Taos” highlight is the versatile Vin Kelly’s lyrical fiddle playing. In the stop-time chorus, Handler shouts: “There’s thunder on the left of me, lightning on the right, you know I’ll be lucky if I make it home tonight!” It makes you want to hit the road too, jack! Handler seems fond of Taos, Santa Fe, and the Southwest he now calls home, as opposed to his former city Oakland, CA, with its hard street life: “violence, rape, and murder everywhere,” he laments in “Taos.” Since relocating to Santa Fe about five years ago, Handler has played with Michael Hearne, the HooDoos, Joe West, The Three Faces of Jazz, Felix y Los Gatos, Magdalena’s Dream and the Rattlerz, and has recorded with Bill Hearne and Bethleham and Eggs.

Handler points out, “The ‘live feel’ we were after comes courtesy of a great engineer we had in Bill Palmer at Santa Fe’s Frogville Records, and his wife Stephanie Hatfield sang great and added SOOOO much to the title track ‘Blues For Too Long.’ I can’t thank them enough.” The live feel gives Blues For Too Long an immediacy that’s sustained throughout and allows for enjoyment of repeated listening. Listen for a surprise, as the band breaks into a jubilant cadence breaking from the slower nostalgic groove of “Blues For Too Long.”

Asked why he plays the blues, “How can I not?” Handler responds. “It’s all about inspiration that’s either there or it’s not . . . . Anyway, I learned finger-picking guitar years ago. Jerry Garcia was one of my teachers, so why let it go to waste?”

And what of Handler’s affinity to country blues? “It’s what I was listening to in the early- to mid-1960’s along with Texas style, Mississippi delta, Chicago style, so that’s what I learned to play. I was inspired by Lightin’ Hopkins, Mississippi Fred McDowell, Mance Lipscomb, then Dave van Ronk, Tom Rush, Bob Dylan, folk festivals and hootenannys, Monterey Folk Festival, Monterey Pop Festival . . . . I had a lot of influences.” He adds, “I’m glad to be in a band that respects that tradition.”

Blues For Too Long’s title songrejoices: “So to these blue notes, I say goodbye. You had me down, well you sure didn’t have me tied. I’m going to leave here with a happy song, yeah ‘cause I’ve had those blues for too long.” No doubt, listeners will find in Blues For Too Long the happy songs they’re longing for.

Virgin America Appoints New VP of Marketing

Virgin America Airline Appoints New VP of Marketing

Virgin America, California-based airline told Event City that they have appointed Luanne Calvert as its vice president of marketing.

Luanne Calvert New VP Marketing For Virgin America

Calvert will take the place of Porter Gale who left Virgin earlier in 2011 to pursue other opportunities.

Calvert will lead the airline’s Brand and Online Marketing, In-flight Content and Loyalty teams.

She will play a leading role in developing the Virgin America brand as the airline continues to grow into new markets across North America.

Calvert comes to Virgin America with an impressive array of successful companies as a leading digital marketing strategist and online consultant with Louis Vuitton Moet Hennessy’s (LVMH) Fendi and Moleskine brands in Italy as well as Calvin Klein Cosmetics, Netflix and Ebay. Calvert served as creative director at Google, where she managed the brand globally and developed campaigns to bring Google products directly to consumer and business audiences — including Google Checkout, Google Apps, iGoogle and Google Maps.

Virgin America, known for its use of social media and edgy marketing campaigns, has been successful at conveying the idea that the company provides an entertaining and comfortable way to travel.

Calvert said her approach to marketing and advertising steers away from use of traditional vehicles like TV and billboard advertising. She prefers using other avenues – like social media or events – to draw in customers.

The airline, based in Burlingame, flies to 14 cities, increasing to 16 by the end of the year. The company said sales grew to $724 million last year, a 32 percent improvement over 2009.

Virgin America is planning the first major renovation of its in-flight offerings. The move holds big implications for the airline, which has attracted a strong following among travelers who say they are drawn to amenities like power plugs at every seat, a wide array of video games and even techno music in the bathrooms.

Travelers won’t see the changes until 2012, executives said. We wish Ms. Calvert the best of success for her and Virgin America in the coming years!

Nolan Apostle
Contributing Editor
Event City Premier Magazine

DAILY DEAL SUMMIT

Daily Deal Summit West

September 22 and 23, 2011, San Francisco

See the story on what is the Daily Deal Summit

See the Event information of the Daily Deal Summit coming to San Francisco.

DREAMFORCE 2011 Comes to Moscone SF Aug 30

DREAMFORCE OPENS In SAN FRANCICO ON AUGUST 30

METALLICA To Play 1st Corporate Gig at Gala Party

By Nolan Apostle
Producer & Contributing Editor
Jeff Patino
Editor & Blogger
Event City Premier Magazine

Here’s some great activities to add onto your Dreamforce Schdule beginning on Tuesday, August 30th, 20ll at the Moscone Center in San Francisco. Don’t know what Dreamforce is and you are in Business? Oh my, well you need to read on to find out what all of the excitement is about and visit the Dreamforce Website for more information.

Salesforce, the San Francisco based cloud-computing company, is hosting its annual Dreamforce Conference and Expo from Tuesday August 30th to Friday September 2nd at Moscone Center. The conference will play host to a plethora of companies surrounding the Cloud, Social Networking and Business arenas, along with a host of leaders in cloud computing – and, yes, Metallica will be playing its first corporate gig ever – giving them an opportunity to talk about the industry’s future. More than 42,000 people have registered to attend this record breaking event.

Salesforce, traditionally makes various announcements and launches new products and acquisitions at Dreamforce, is expected to make a lot of noise about its fairly new application, Chatter. It will focus on the year-old social-networking application for businesses, which Salesforce began to offer just last year. The company claims it is being used by more than 100,000 businesses. Event City™ will soon launch it’s own Chatter on the Event City Network™ to hopefully partner with the company to reach out and create a channel for the Events & Creative Industries.

Who said work couldn’t be fun, too? One of the most important and relevant reasons for attending Dreamforce is the ability to network. It is one of the strongest mainstream, corporate conventions that offers the business person many great networking opportunities. We hope you are ready to network, dine, toast, and make new contacts? Be sure to bring along your business cards for the scores of fantastic networking activities they’ve got in store for you at Dreamforce!

Here is just a few of the Dreamforce opportunities and events:

The Dreamforce App with Chatter
Start connecting before the conference even begins with the Dreamforce App! Use Chatter to choose sessions, plan meet-ups, and share your thoughts on the cloud computing event of the year!

Community Conference
Start your Dreamforce experience with a little inspiration! The Community Conference offers dozens of great ways to network, connect, and find the answers you need—whether you’re an active community member or a certified newbie.

ICMI at Dreamforce 2011
Learn from the leaders in enterprise contact center strategies at Dreamforce 2011. Join the International Customer Management Institute (ICMI), customer service leaders and peers, and our own Service Cloud experts to get the scoop on the latest trends, technologies, and best practices.

Welcome Reception
Kick off the evening entertainment at the energy-filled Welcome Reception on Tuesday, August 30. Mingle with salesforce.com employees and watch live demonstrations of partner solutions . . . With cocktails and hors d’oeuvres, of course!

Birds-of-a-feather lunch (by role)
Administrators, sales, marketing, service, and IT executives—you all have unique needs and challenges when it comes to using Salesforce. Tap into the power of the community with roundtable lunches by role.

Birds-of-a-feather lunch (by vertical)
Are you facing a challenge that only those in your vertical can help you solve? Don’t miss out on these roundtable lunches by industry.

Meet the experts in the Developer Lounge
Throughout Dreamforce, you’ll have the opportunity to meet the experts who build our award-winning applications and platform.

Global Gala
Wednesday’s Global Gala is our chance to celebrate you, so grab those dancing shoes and get your groove on with 30,000 of your closest Salesforce buddies! It’s sure to be a memorable evening of food, friends, and fun. Oh by the way did we mention it is an evening with METALLICA?!!

Salesforce.com Foundation events
Forge lasting relationships with your Salesforce peers while giving back at the Salesforce.com Foundation volunteer centers. Various projects supporting different organizations take place throughout the conference.

Come one come all to the fabulous Dreamforce Conference and Expo at Moscone Center in San Francisco. For more details and to receive your FREE Registration Pass visit the DREAMFORCE WEBSITE now.

San Mateo Co Fair Entertainment

FAIR “MAIN STAGE” ENTERTAINMENT SCHEDULE

The San Mateo County Fair begins Saturday, June 11th, with a FREE Admission until 11am for a Disaster Preparedness Promotion. Learn how to prepare your family for any possible future disaster and what to do “just in case”.

As always, admission to the County Fair includes all concerts and musical performances, including those on the Main Stage. There is so much to see at this year’s fair, it keeps growing and growing every year it gets larger. Visit the Fair’s website – San Mateo Fair for more details and learn about all of the great fun you can have at the San Mateo County Fair 2011.

Main Stage Artists

Air Supply – June 11

It is quiet and still in Utah’s Wasatch Mountains. At Woodland Magic, his home studio high on a ridge near Park City, Graham Russell, along with his music partner Russell Hitchcock, is hard at work on the new Air Supply album. Of course, “work” may be too dreary a term; for Graham and Russell, making music is nothing less than pure joy, and has been for over a quarter century. Best known for their towering love ballads, Graham and Russell are the first to point out that with every album, Air Supply seeks to break new musical ground. That is certainly, and strikingly, true on their new Reprise Records release Yours Truly.

The Four Tops – June 12

In 1954, at a high school party in Detroit, Stubbs, Fakir, Benson and Payton were urged by partygoers to provide some impromptu entertainment. The synergy was obvious, immediate and strong. The quartet decided to start performing, and called themselves The Four Aims (Aiming for the Top). The group’s popularity grew as they performed at small clubs all over Detroit, honing their act while singing jazz and standards. So as not to be confused with the Ames Brothers, The Four Aims changed the name of their group to the Four Tops and recorded their first single, “Kiss Me Baby,” with Chess Records in 1956.

Battle of the Bands – June 13

Download the 2011 Application Here

WAR – June 14th

Singer/keyboardist, Lonnie Jordan is best known as a founding member of WAR. One of the most popular funk groups of the ’70s, WAR were also one of the most eclectic, freely melding soul, Latin, jazz, blues, reggae, and rock influences into an effortlessly funky whole. Although WAR’s lyrics were sometimes political in nature (in keeping with their racially integrated lineup), their music almost always had a sunny, laid-back vibe emblematic of their Southern California roots. WAR kept the groove loose, and they were given over to extended jamming — in fact, many of their studio songs were edited together out of longer improvisations. Even if the jams sometimes got indulgent, they demonstrated WAR’S truly group-minded approach: no one soloist or vocalist really stood above the others (even though all were clearly talented), and their grooving interplay placed WAR in the top echelon of funk ensembles.

Tower of Power – June 15 & 16

Always inspired by soul and R&B music, Tower of Power formed in the Oakland area of California in 1968. The ten-member Tower of Power’s first album was the 1970 release, EAST BAY GREASE for Bill Graham’s San Francisco Records. The group’s hits included “What Is Hip?” (1973), “You’re Still A Young Man” (1972), “Soul Vaccination” (1973), “Don’t Change Horses (In the Middle Of the Stream)” (1974) and “So Very Hard to Go” (1973). The group continues to play 200 dates all over the world, every year. When not on the road, Tower of Power’s horn section guests on albums for quite a range of other artists, including recordings for Elton John, Phish, Rod Stewart, Neil Diamond, Aerosmith, Little Feat, Smokey Robinson, Bonnie Raitt, and David Sanborn.

Grand Funk Railroad – June 17th

Originating from Flint, Michigan in 1969, this top selling American rock group of the ’70s is “COMIN’ TO YOUR TOWN TO HELP YOU PARTY IT DOWN.”  Grand Funk Railroad is extremely excited to be touring in 2011 marking a 42-year milestone. After playing to millions of fans on the band’s tours from 1996 to 2010, Grand Funk’s 2011 Tour will continue to reach both new and long-time fans.Known as “The American Band,” the high-energy five-piece group will play forty shows all over the USA this year. Grand Funk Railroad includes original founding members Don Brewer (vocals and drums, writer and singer of the multi-million selling hit, We’re An American Band) and bassist Mel Schacher, “The God Of Thunder.” Joining Don and Mel are true “All Stars.” Singer Max Carl is a rock veteran from 38 Special. Max penned and sang 38′s biggest hit Second Chance and was co-founder of California’s legendary Jack Mack and the Heart Attack. Don refers to Max as “the best blue-eyed soul singer on the planet.” Lead guitarist Bruce Kulick is best known for his 12 years with KISS and also has credits with Michael Bolton, Meatloaf and Billy Squier. (KISS members Gene Simmons and Paul Stanley were influenced early on by Grand Funk.) Keyboardist Tim Cashion has a master’s degree in music from the University of Miami. Affectionately called “Dr. Tim,” his credits include stints with Bob Seger and the Silver Bullet Band and English soul man Robert Palmer.

Pablo Cruise – June 18th

Thirty years ago, in 1975, Pablo Cruise released its first A&M album simply entitled Pablo Cruise. The album cover was shot in the tropical gardens of San Francisco’s Golden Gate Park and it featured a huge gorilla standing front and center. The band, David Jenkins (guitars & vocals), Cory Lerios (keyboards & vocals), Steve Price (drums) & Bud Cockrell (bass & vocals) was nowhere in sight. At  that point there was a bit of a mystique as to who Pablo Cruise really was. When asked, “who’s Pablo,”the band, which is a quartet, would answer, “he’s the guy in the middle.” When asked what Pablo Cruise meant, the well-rehearsed answer went something like this, “Pablo represents an honest, real, down to earth individual; and Cruise, depicts his fun loving, easy going attitude towards life.” In essence that’s what Pablo Cruise’s music is all about – honest, real, down-to-earth vocals, accompanied by fun, yet elegant and infectious grooves. To hear Pablo Cruise on record is one thing, but to experience the band live is an exhilarating event.

Dia de la Feria – Domingo 19 de Junio, 2011

By Nolan Apostle
Producer, Editor and Photographer
Event City Premier Magazine