I make no apologies for returning to Alastair Greener’s We Are Cunard blog today, because it includes an interview with one of my musical heroes – Roger McGuinn of The Byrds.
There’s even an impromptu performance of Mr Tambourine Man, and a guest blog written by the man himself, who sailed on Queen Victoria from New York to San Francisco last month.
As well as entertaining passengers with two talks about his life and career, Roger and his wife Camilla hosted a couple of sailaway parties on the balcony of his cabin and was a hit with his fellow guests at the dinner table.
He writes ” The camaraderie of the voyage began the first day at our restaurant table with the three other couples who sat with us; one from New York, one from Scotland, and another from Australia. By the end of the voyage neighbouring tables were sharing stories of their daily adventures with our gregarious group. The restaurant quickly became a gathering of friends.
” I met with the folks after the lecture and heard about how my music affected their lives. Queen Victoria created a small town feeling for all the guests. There were no strangers on board. There was so much to do, but there were days where we just sat on the balcony and enjoyed the changing colours of the ocean and sky.
“Queen Victoria captures the grand days of ocean voyages.! We are looking forward to our next trip!”
So am I, and I just hope Cunard will tell me in advance next time Roger is sailing with them.
Did McGuinn sing any of his sea shantys to the other guests while on the cruise? Did anyone try to harpoon Crosby mistaking him for a whale?