May 1, 2013

Hello Apple & Britt Fans,

Spring is here and summer is just around the corner.  I hope you are planning on coming to one or more of our many gigs.  We may not be playing five nights a week anymore, but our one or two nights a week are very important to us and more satisfying now.  Your presence and participation are vital to this musical duo and the restaurants who hire us.  Show your support for non-Rock & Roll live music.  Jimmy Buffet is great, but we are one of the very few acts who play for those who want something more, something different, something more refined.  Jimmy Buffet and Rock & Roll can be heard everywhere, and there’s a time and place for that kind of entertainment.  However, Apple & Britt offer a different genre, a class act.  Thank you for supporting us and the music of Frank Sinatra, Tony Bennett, Ella Fitzgerald, Nat King Cole, the Carpenters, Roberta Flack, Patsy Cline, Broadway, and more.  Our songlist approaches 700 now, and we enjoy playing your requests.  However, we have many beautiful songs on our list that you may have never heard of.  Ask us to play one of those and you’ll get a real show.  A few examples: Never Let Me Go, Dirty Old Man Magnet, and In Summer.

Let me take a moment to thank our webmaster, Dennis Powers, for updating the website.  I am so glad the updated pictures are there and the old, 2003 pictures are down.  Dale and I are truly grateful.

Apple & Britt play mostly at two establishments in the area: Adolfo’s every Friday, and Lighthouse Sound restaurant most Thursdays.  These two places are among the few who offer live entertainment for the discerning patron.  I’ve heard good things about Fresco’s and Captain’s Table, as well.  If you ever get the chance to hear/see Bryan Clarke perform, you should.  He’s great!  He plays sometimes at Captain’s Table, Mio Fratello, 1776 Steakhouse, and at Baywood Greens.  www.bryanclarksings.com  is his website.  Another singer I like to support is Holly Lane in Rehoboth Beach, DE.  Let’s keep supporting classy music and the Great American Songbook at every chance. 

Every Friday we are playing at Adolfo’s Italian restaurant 7 to 11pm. (Yes, that is EVERY Friday, April through November.) This is located in the Beach Plaza Hotel (formerly called the Phillips Beach Plaza hotel), at 13th street and the boardwalk in Ocean City, Maryland. There is free parking in the hotel parking lot, as long as you get your parking stub validated right before you leave. The owners, Kimberly and David Griffin, are down to earth people who love to make their guests feel at home. The food is rich, and I love it. Of course, the view of the ocean and the newly updated boardwalk while you dine and listen to our music adds to the experience. I highly recommend making a reservation for dinner, and letting them know you want to sit where you can hear the music. And, if you don’t want to have dinner, you don’t have to. It is perfectly acceptable to simply sit at the piano bar sans beverage. The regular bartender, Vanessa, will be happy to wait on you at the piano bar, or not. It’s your choice.  So, don’t let the lack of funds or no appetite keep you away. Just come.  Enjoy the music.  Make requests. It’s not as crowded as you might think, most of the time, especially around the piano bar.  What’s the big deal about sitting there?  People act afraid to sit there.  I do not understand this.  Let’s change this.  Here’s their website:http://www.oc-adolfos.com  Their address: 1301 Atlantic Ave., Ocean City, MD.  For reservations call: (410)289-4001

Our other somewhat regular gig is in the dining room of Lighthouse Sound’s restaurant.  We have played this venue for two years now.  Located one mile west of Ocean City on St. Martin’s Neck Road (off of Rt. 90), the room has casual elegance with a gorgeous view looking east on the Assawoman bay and Ocean City’s skyline.  Lighthouse Sound’s golf course is highly rated.  The restaurant is upscale and delicious.  Chef Tracey and his staff do an excellent job.  Again, I highly recommend making a reservation for dinner and informing them that you want to sit near the music.  Our volume is low, so if it gets loud in there, you’ll be glad you did.  Their website has all the information you need: www.lighthousesoundrestaurant.com   Their address:  12723 St. Martin's Neck Road | Bishopville, Maryland 21813   For reservations call:  410-641-1199.

At the moment I am on a two week break from my studies.  That’s how I have time to compose this long overdue newsletter.  I have another year to go in my pursuit of my second career.  Thank you to all who have encouraged me in my journey to becoming a radiologic technologist.  (If you have no idea what that is, just ask me.)  This summer will be a marathon for me as I will be in clinic forty hours a week.  Mr. Britt has already assured me he will handle the driving if I am too tired.  I just hope no one minds that I’ll be employing my barstool a little more to give my aching feet a break.  If I look tired, you’ll know why.  At the end of August I get another break from school, and plan to take off for a week.  Always check our schedule on our website to see if and when we are playing before you come.  Our Facebook page is another resource with valuable information on what’s new with Apple & Britt, as well.  Tonight I am planning on accompanying Mr. Britt and his charming wife to a concert pianist performance at Salisbury University.  Ahhh…the joys of free time.  How I’ve missed them.  Thank God for this time of refreshing and a break from the constant studying.  It’s only by His grace that I am accomplishing this goal.  Hope to see you soon!

Rhonda Apple