Martin - December, 2016
Despite a few issues (see below), this was probably the single best ‘fun’
trip for Caroline and I, meeting up with old acquaintances and managing
to meet more than a fair share of NEW guests, with whom we had great fun
throughout our two-week vacation (Nov 27th – December 11th)
Week one was quite quiet and there were some memorable and notable
entertainments going on including Satan (Think Adams Family on Speed)
and his merry followers from German who brought a whole new meaning to
“a bit of slap and tickle” with Red Tantra, BDSM, spanking, flogging and
Shibari events (Japanese rope tying) that had many guests held in equal
measures of enthralment and morbid apprehension! Add to that the steel
bands and dinner on the beach and it was a very enjoyable 1st
week.
The 2nd week (WWW week) was also fabulous however it was badly marred by
the arrival of two competing (and yet the same!) bands who completely
dominated the venue for more than 6 days! (Miranda Lambert Tribute Band
and Band 303)
The bands were from Ohio, which in itself isn’t a problem, IF they were
just guests who came to play one night but they didn’t – They played and
played and played for 6 nights, night after night. They even tried to
dominate the Nude pool with one of their number Jeremy, trying to impose
‘their’ songs (by that I mean Rock and Country) rather than the music
that is appropriate and raises the energy at the Nude pool in the early
afternoon – They had no understanding of what the audience there (or in
the evening on the main pool deck), actually wanted. Fortunately,
several hundred plastic syringes appeared and a water fight broke out
that was epic (!) and despite Jeremy’s best efforts, the boredom of his
session meant that he was soon ignored and he left with his tail between
his legs! His cries of “someone make some noise” AND “someone scream”
did not seem to alert him to the fact that when a band is good, people
shout and scream – when they are not, THEY DON’T! He didn’t seem to pick
up on that message! Even when they / he started to play, they spent an
inordinate amount of time tuning and retuning equipment to the point
that many guests jointly started chanting “Play the f*c&ing music” –
Clearly Roots do not act like Diva’s in this manner………. They don’t need
to, simply because they are ALREADY talented.
Very early on, they stated in various conversations that they wanted to
REPLACE the WWW slot with their own people, style and culture, which
angered SO many of the WWW group.
Add to that the fact that the bands were NOT Jamaican, were not
particularly talented musicians (compared to Roots Explosion and
Winston) and it was clear early on that this week was going to go from
bad to worse, specifically regarding the entertainment and the impact
that they had on the ‘normal’ type of entertainment WWW are used to.
They even took over one of the guest Talent nights AND even replaced
Winston and Miguel’s Rock evening! Fortunately, as their performance
began to fail, Winston stepped in and rescued their asses and showed
then what true talent really is.
No one goes to Hedo to listen to a band from Ohio more than once – They
go to immerse themselves in JAMAICAN culture, lifestyle, community and
to have fun, rather than have their vacation overrun by a 2nd
rate (by comparison) band(s) all but murdering classics such as “Sweet
Home Alabama” and “Don’t Stop Believing” When Winston did perform, it
was like watching “Prince” performing with a preppie band – even HE had
difficulty in them trying to replace his normal professional Roots band
!
There are many who will not complain or provide the resort with feedback,
preferring instead to just retire to bed early, but the impact of these
bands was more than significant and in an extremely negative way. Had
Dion been available in the piano bar, those that were dancing (given
there was NO other entertainment available), may well have left them
playing to the group of people who were frolicking in the pool only!
These people did not even understand their audience, let alone the
culture, community or lifestyle of the resort! They openly admit to
having published videos and pictures of the band performing at Hedo,
including video of many guests who, albeit mainly clothed, but without
theirs or my personal permission. This to me shows the abject lack of
understanding, preferring instead to see Hedo as a vehicle for THEIR
promotion and not for the benefit of the guests.
If they do return next year, they will have a HUGE negative impact on the
WWW guests – If they are only able to play for 1 night, then fine – I
see no problem even though I still feel it is “inappropriate” to have
non-Jamaican entertainers on site, BUT it will possibly inhibit them
bringing their equipment etc as it would not then be viable?
Having said all of the above, Hedo and Hedo groups have withstood this
sort of ludicrous situation before and will again. Unfortunately, people
vacations are impacted and their pleasure and enjoyment substantially
diminished in the process, especially as the silent majority do not air
their views but instead move to other venues such as Desire, Pearl,
Tulum, Caliente etc. These issues aside, it was a fabulous week and
memorable for 100 other reasons APART from the bands !