2021 Downtown Eatonton – Makers and Movies Event – Jazz By Two

In 2019 Jazz By Two did the “Spring Art Walk” for Main Street Covington, Ga.  This was a blast! It was held in the town square / park in the middle of downtown. 

Very healthy attendance and a lot of fun performing outside on a such a beautiful day. The Arts and crafts booths and other activities made this a relaxing festival to be a part of.

Makers and Movies Events

Lauren Singleton was the manager for the Conington, Ga event. event. We must have done a fine job for her, because she rehired us for a follow up FALL fest in 2019, as well.

Moving forward to 2021. We all know (only too well) what happened in 2020.

But, Lauren moved on to be manager of Eatonton Main Street Events and has invited us to be entertainment for two upcoming shows on June 12th and July 10th – called Makers and Movies. Alot going on over in Eatonton downtown These days, so Im sure shes going to enjoy it there.

Thanks again Lauren for being a supporter of our group. We look forward to playing your festivals this year it will be a ball!

Proud to be doing out 1st performance(s)of 2021

Our best

Jeff and Billy

Jazz By Two

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Passing of Joe LoRé – owner TV 47

Jeff and I were sad to hear this devastating news. Joe LoRé was a consummate professional and super nice guy to work with.  Joe and Tom Carpenter were always willing to listen to our suggestions about editing and audio on the two broadcasts we did for TV 47.  They did a bang up job as anyone knows that’s seen them.

Atlanta Jazz and Blues Show – Jazz By Two  2014

Atlanta Jazz and Blues Show – Jazz By Three  2018

He was always a welcoming and engaging dude; making us super relaxed in the studio giving way to best performance we could achieve.  What a crazy bunch and so fun to work with. We’ll miss it and you too, Joe.  Below is obit from our friend and on the onsite photog Tom Marnell.

R.I.P.  Mr.Joe

Jeff & Billy

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Greetings,

Very sad to be sending out the news that the technical driving force behind the production of the show Atlanta Jazz and Blues, Mr. Joe LoRe, passed away last night. No details at this time.

Most of you have done at least one recording with Joe at the helm of camera operations in the studio. He was the founder and operator of TV47, a streaming TV show that aired the Atlanta Jazz and Blues show
several times a week. After Comcast 25 Studio closed Joe was the person responsible for keeping the show recording first at the West Side Cultural Arts Center and then at the fellowship hall of the Tucker Methodist Church. We had only done 4-5 recordings in that location before Joe Passed. Joe was a cameraman for the Sesame Street show for many years.

He was fun, creative and easy to work with. He will really be missed.

Production of the show has been put on hold and hopefully we will be up and running soon with another engineer. Not sure, at this point, what is going to happen to the tv47 show.

Peace,
Tom Marnell

 

 

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Friendsgiving 2017 in North Georgia

Jazz By Two For Thanksgiving

 

Thanksgiving time has been a little crazy for Jazz By Two the last couple of years.

Believe me, its a GOOD problem.  In 2016 our friends Jane and Tom of “Amazing Grace Catering & Events” in Blairsville, Ga. employed us to come up north to play on Thanksgiving Eve.

They called it a “Friendsgiving Dinner” inviting all of their friends and business associates. This would be a covered dish and catered event taking place in a stable barn that Jane & Tom freshly renovated into an new event hall.   So creative, and inventive right?  Well, what a beautiful and rustic setting, I’ve never seen anything quite like it.  Way to go guy’s, thats really thinking on your feet.

Well, we’re happy to say the event was a smash (just like last year).  So many welcoming and friendly faces  (and good food!) it was our pleasure to come back and do it again this year!

Look at the little boy in bottom right hand corner of picture. He was there “air drumming” with me all night. (my biggest fan!) Bet he will grow up to be a drummer in a big band one day.

 

Here are the reviews from last year and this year:


“A FIVE-STAR duo! We have invited this fantastic duo for the last two years at our Thanksgiving Friendsgiving Dinner for 100 guests and have reserved them for 2018! They are a lot of fun and our guests enjoy them. 100% satisfaction!”  – Review by Jane Heim. FROM BLAIRSVILLE, GA ON 11/23/2017

“Jazz By Two (aka) A Sparkling Planet was THE BEST duo for our Friendsgiving Holiday Dinner. Their professionalism and music was A+ and they are a lot of fun! Hope to use them again and again…!” – Review by Jane Heim. FROM BLAIRSVILLE, GA ON 11/23/2016

 

Thanks guys , keep the home fires burning and we’ll see ya next year!

 

 

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Rhodes Hall – 1516 Peachtree St. Atlanta, Ga.

 Gilbert / Geise  Wedding – April 2nd 2017 

“We had Billy and Jeff play as our only musical entertainment at our wedding, and they did an amazing job! They were extremely prompt in their responses, easy to work with, affordable, and accommodating- the live music jackpot! We made several song requests for ceremony and reception music, and they learned our songs without issue.

The day of the wedding, they were set up and ready to go on time even though they had never played at our venue before.
My husband and I were extremely impressed by the quality of the music during the event, and they did an excellent job of keeping everyone entertained and dancing.

Billy Bryant

I would absolutely recommend their services for your wedding and other events. We thoroughly enjoyed working with them, and they helped make our wedding a fun and memorable day.”

Thanks again guys!

Lindsay & Charlie

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Jeff Simpson

Beautiful wedding for a beautiful couple, Lindsay Geise and Charlie Gilbert.  First time we ever played Rhodes Hall (Castle!) for an event.  The atmosphere and heritage is really flowing thru the place. Also, it is headquarters for The Georgia Trust for Historic Preservation.  We performed outside on the massive front porch on a gorgeous afternoon.  A “Chamber of Commerce” day, as they say.

Very relaxing.  Charlie & Lindsay couldn’t have been better hosts and made us feel like family.  Guests were very nice and responsive to our performance.  This was very fun and we won’t forget it.

Again, congrats!  Mr. and Mrs. Gilbert

We wish you all the best from us

Jeff and Billy – Jazz By Two

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Valentines Day 2017

Venue: Reunion Country Club

When I planned our Valentines Dinner for the club, I had a certain vision in my mind. I wanted a classy, entertaining, and romantic atmosphere. I had heard Jazz By Two before, and they were fantastic. They were fantastic this evening as well.

The members were blown away by the talent and the overall performance. The whole evening would not have been complete without them. I would definitely have them back. Thank you again!! – Meghan D, Hoschton, GA 

 

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Thumbtack Professional 2016 Reviews

Jazz By Two - Thumbtack ProfessionalHello,

Due to our busy performance schedule, my attention to “In The News” blog has suffered.  Really, not allot of time to update recent events (my apologies).  But, this week has given me a few minutes to catch everyone up as to what we have been doing this year.  Also, make some over due upgrades to this web site.

If you’ve never heard of Thumbtack.com –  it is an online service that helps people connect to entertainment and many other service professionals. (You may have seen the TV ads).

Jazz By Two became a member of Thumbtack in 2012. In the beginning the leads and requests were unfocused and not really targeted towards our “jazz duo” situation.  However, in 2016 they tweaked the site and we made some valid quotes and worked!  Thumbtack seems to listen to vendors concerns and takes action getting more targeted traffic to your niche offering.

Anyway, we sent many quotes out this year and have had some really great responses to the band. I wish to share a few of those with you today:

★★★★

Jazz Band Entertainment Verified Review

★★★★★

Pianist Verified Review

 

★★★★★

Jazz Band Entertainment Verified Review

The band was great!! They arrived on time and played their butts off!! Thanks Billy and Jeff..I will use you guys again!!

 

★★★★★

Music Duo Entertainment Verified Review

This is an amazing group that made a special evening an event to remember. They were professional, on time and came prepared with a broad catalog of music. Our guests had a great time dancing and enjoying the great music.I will definitely contact them for future events.

 

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Cinco’s Run Ends

Jazz By Two - Cinco's

Sorry to say, our 14 month run at Cinco’s Restaurant has ended today. You may remember Jazz By Two was hired (August 2015) to play a Latin Jazz set for Sunday Brunch from 11:00 – 3:00pm each week. (see here)  We will miss coming in and playing for the amiable staff and friendly patrons.  Great hang, good food and atmosphere (except no jazz by us anymore, ha!)

In 2015 this was a new venture @ the Suwanee location and we were part of the projected growth of the new Sunday Brunch addition. We received allot of praises from corporate, the owner (himself) and patrons on our performances.  It was a perfect match…so much so, that they tried to replicate our “jazz duo” show at the Cumming, Ga. location. (Not sure if they ever did, but we saw the inquiries online.)  It was (also) flattering when they asked us to do a regular weeknight performance, as well.  So, things were going great for quite a long time.

There is no accounting for HOW a restaurant chooses to operate and manage its affairs and / or promotion.  Sometimes it fails.  We are just proud of the  longevity of this job and the work we accomplished creating our Latin Jazz show.

In the last 4 months (or so) “musical chairs” with managers began, long time staff members leaving and foot traffic slowing to a crawl.  The writing was on the wall and just a matter of time before they would have to cut entertainment. (Actually I thought it would have come before now).

The Sunday Brunch was not turning around, which paid our salaries.  So, goes the restaurant / bar business.  However, Cinco’s – Suwanee, Ga (est. 2008) weekly traffic is still great and we recommend them.  We’ll miss our regular gig & the nice people we got to know and work with.  But, it makes room for creative projects we’ve put on the back burner.  “Its all good”,  as they say.  On to the next phase.

So,  Adios Cinco’s ! – thanks for supporting us!   You were great to have us in your house for the past 14 months and we do appreciate it.  Good luck and have us back anytime.

 

 

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Autism Speaks! Review

Autism Speaks!“WOW! Thank you Jazz by Two for turning our night into a smashing success. You were so easy to work with and sounded so fantastic. Just two days after the event, emails have poured in singing your praises. I can’t imagine our gala without you, thank you so very much!”

-Meghan Timko – Gala Chair “Autism Speaks!”

 

Man, what a great time we had working for Autism Speaks! last Saturday night at The Marietta Country Club.   Meghan Timko was the “hostess with the mostest”.  She really made us feel welcome and made sure we had everything we needed to put on a great show  And BOY, what an event she can put on!  Very successful and they broke their goal with raising around 46K, which was far more than expected. Yeah!

The fund raising was successful but so was the cuisine which was fit for kings and queens. Just delicious! Very elegant pampered affair including a bourbon tasting event.

Special shout out to Keli Owens (MCC) for all your help getting us settled in -set up and how to navigate our environment for the evening. Also, my new friend Michael Tolleson featured artist at the gala. He is extrodinary and did a painting @ this event that auctioned for $2,500.00 (proceeds going to Autism Speaks!) See more about his amazing story here:  http://www.michaeltollesonartist.com/

Oh, and last but not least, thank you Linda Walker of Speer Entertainment…for booking us on the very rewarding event.

 

 

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Georgia Restaurant Association – October 19th 2015

Georgia Restaurant Association Annual GRA Chairman’s Reception

This is certainly one of those “plum” gigs. What could be better than being exposed to the Georgia Restaurant Association (and we play in restaurants)??  That’s a No Brainier!   These folks could have picked anyone and decided to go with us. We appreciate that SO MUCH and it will be an honor to play for this important annual event.  Also, its being held at the fabulous Ventanas Atlanta venue.  Look forward to having a great time with everyone at the GRA.  we’ll have our business cards ready!!  Here are the details:

The 2015 Georgia Restaurant Association’s Chairman’s Reception is immediately following the first day of the Atlanta Foodservice Expo. Walk on over from the Georgia World Congress Center and join us for some hors d’oeuvres, cocktails and networking with foodservice and hospitality professionals all under one roof!  The GRA Chairman’s Award will be presented immediately following the Expo.

When: October 19, 2015 from 6pm-8pm
Where: Ventanas Atlanta
275 Baker Street
Atlanta, GA 30313
What: Hors d’oeuvres & Cocktails, State of the State Address (GRA Chair), Presentation of  the GRA Chairman’s Award.
Cost: Free with Atlanta Foodservice Expo Badge.
GRA Members & Allied Partners: $15
Non-Member Vendors: $25

 

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Autism Speaks! – October 3, 2015

Autism Speaks!When Linda Walker of Speer Entertainment gave us the call to help out & donate our time to play for Autism Speaks!, it was our pleasure to accept. What a great cause and great to hear from Linda (a good friend from way back) & help out anyway we can.  ✭ Here is Press Release

So, without further a due (because this event is Saturday Night Oct. 3rd) here are th details. Do what you can to help out this very important cause.

ATLANTA, GEORGIA (August 31, 2015) – Participating for a cause that means so much more than just a fancy dress or shiny shoes, hundreds are expected to enjoy an elegant evening at the 3rd Annual Southern Pieces Gala on October 3, 2015 at the Marietta Country Club, sponsored by Cobb EMC. The gala will benefit Autism Speaks, a non-profit organization dedicated to funding research into the causes, prevention, treatments and a possible cure for autism; increasing awareness of autism spectrum disorders; and advocating for the needs of individuals with autism and their families.

 

 

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