TANTRAMARSH BLUES SOCIETY REQUESTS FEEDBACK

Dear All,

We wanted to thank you for your continued support this year...and what a year it's been! We hosted 9 shows (as opposed to our usual 6): Syl Johnson (Chicago), Matt Anderson (Halifax), Eddie Shaw (Chicago), Guy Davis (NYC), Garrett Mason (Halifax), Toni-Lynn Washington (Boston), Moreland and Arbuckle (Kansas), Kelly-Joe Phelps (Washington) and Johnny Rawls (Mississippi).

In addition, we brought in Papa Don's Ribs and BBQ and looked into the possibility of recording shows live at the Roadhouse. George's made it to the top ten live clubs in the country in a CBC3 poll, but we lost a good friend in Michael Wheaton shortly thereafter.

We are planning another strong year, but before we went any further, we wanted to get some feedback from you. We are happy to hear on any front...what worked what didn't work, what you thought of the food, the quality of the music, the timing and frequency of the shows, etc.Second, we wanted to get your feedback on some specific issues.

In recent years, there have been some opportunities to present on off-nights, though we have tried our best to present on weekends (which we will continue to do). But the off-night opportunities are very tempting since they sometimes involve top-notch acts that are otherwise difficult to bring to town. So we wondered if people might be interested in coming out to these shows once or twice a year if we started early enough (either a 6 or 7 PM start) with a bbq dinner available before and during the show...also, if you think this might work for you, please let us know if Sunday or Tuesday night would be preferable.

Third, we wondered if there would be interest in advance season tickets. This would have the advantage of making things a bit more convenient for you and guaranteeing TBS some advance sales.

Finally, our costs seem to be on the rise (because of the stronger US$; fewer and fewer clubs interested in blues across N. America, which means that the costs per show go up; potential increases in government fees for US bands crossing the border, etc.). But, we will try our best to keep ticket prices unchanged, though we hope that small increases of a couple of dollars per ticket will not keep you away...

The Tantramarsh Team
Sackville, NB

Email: tbs@mta.ca

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