Powell returned to introduce Ms. Jane McCreery, a communications consultant and event organizer, who shared some of her experiences, as well as gave suggestions for events which could be put together to bring attention to the scene.

McCreery began by sharing her vision for “Destination Asbury Park.”  This is a program to highlight the history of the area, and also promote the musicians who are active now and the current events taking place for people to experience and enjoy.  She presented slides about the city of Austin, Texas, which currently bills itself as the “Live Music Capitol of America”, building on the popularity of its hot local music scene and “South by Southwest” music festival.  McCreery pointed out that Austin, which has a population almost identical to Monmouth County brings in $1.68 billion of tourism dollars per year, at least 10% of which is specifically related to music tourism.

McCreery, along with Powell, helped organize the “Jukestock” festival at the Holiday Inn in Tinton Falls in March 2001.  The festival was meant to bring fans of Southside Johnny and The Asbury Jukes together to share their love of the Jukes’ music, and to have the opportunity to hear the various Jukes perform in the bands they play with while the Jukes are not touring.

Three hundred tickets for the event sold out, via the Internet, at $140 each in one day.  The number of tickets was limited by the size of the room at the facility, and McCreery stressed that more tickets could have been sold for a larger venue.  Fans came to Jukestock from nine countries and 20 different states to participate.

McCreery went on to detail the economic impact of the event.  As an example, she mentioned that the $42,000 budget was almost all spent within Monmouth County.  This included salaries, the venue, staging, hospitality, security, insurance and communications.  The largest part of the budget went to paying the many bands that performed.  In addition to the budget for the event, which was covered by ticket sales, attendees paid for their own lodging, meals and other amenities.

McCreery estimated that if all guests paid for an average of two nights of lodging, about $18,000 was made by local hotels.  All of these figures do not included money spent by guests on transportation, side trips or souvenirs, both at the event and elsewhere in the area.

McCreery also stressed that despite the reservations about holding a rock show, especially where there would be alcohol being served, the crowd drank responsibility and there was no “spring break” atmosphere.  Rick Harrison, general manager of the Tinton Falls Holiday Inn where the event was held, followed-up briefly to second McCreery’s version of events, confirmed the hotel benefited financially and wondered out loud when the second Jukestock would be held.  “Can it happen and financially be a great success to the community?  Yes.” he said.

McCreery concluded the segment about Jukestock by highlighting that over $100,000 was put into the local economy during the off-season due to this one event.

She concluded her talk by presenting a series of other concepts that could be used to develop musical events, bringing attention to the area, and spreading news about the music currently being made.  These included:

• “The City Rocks the Shore”, New York City bands play in Monmouth County venues, a weekend package with tickets, food and local transportation.

• “Clarence Clemons Fan Weekend”, highlighting the music of the E Street Band’s famed sax player, and featuring other horn-driven bands.

• “Count Basie Festival”, a weekend at The Count Basie Theatre highlighting jazz bands and those who have been influenced by the music.

• “Blues on the Beach”, a blues festival highlighting nationally-known headliners.

She also proposed the creation of a “Jersey Shore All-Star Band” that would tour the country.  It could be organized with the state tourism bureau, travel to various cities during the off-season and help promote music tourism in the area.

Colleen Sheehy, Director of Education at the Weisman Art Museum, University of Minnesota was the following speaker.  Sheehy, a cultural historian and scholar, is also the curator of “Springsteen – Troubadour of the Highway”, an exhibit presenting Springsteen’s use of car and highway imagery in his music, through the use of video, music and lyrics and well as extensive photography.

Sheehy explained how Minnesota has been slow to take advantage of its own musical history, both as the birthplace of Bob Dylan, and as the breeding ground for great acts as The Replacements, Hüsker Dü and Soul Asylum.  She said the difference between those bands and their relationship with Minnesota, and the Jersey shore’s relationship with Bruce Springsteen, is significant.  While those musicians paid scant attention to the area, Dylan has said barely a word with the exception of one album title, Springsteen has written and talked extensively about New Jersey, both through his lyrics and in interviews.  He has added to the magic and legend of the area, in the lyrics of songs like “Born to Run” and “The E Street Shuffle”, and countless photographs which have adorned album covers, t-shirts and tour programs.  His imagery appeals to fans around the world who have never seen any of these places.  “Springsteen even made the New Jersey Turnpike cool,” mused Sheehy.

Obviously, Sheehy explained, any effort at music tourism would need to take advantage of Springsteen’s popularity.  Two million people attended his last tour, those who could actually get tickets, and “the nature of his music is very self-reflective of his own life”, which has created a special bond between the artist and his fans.  Springsteen would be the biggest draw of any music tourism effort, and the places – both real and legendary – recalled in his lyrics would be some of the more popular attractions.

The good news, said Sheehy, is that an infrastructure is already in place to support a music tourism industry.  Because efforts thus far to save legendary sites as The Stone Pony rock club and The Palace have succeeded, the local “communities are a living museum”.  She stressed that these important sites must be saved and restored, “nothing can compare to the actual place.  A replica doesn’t have the same sort of power.”

While music tourism is developing nationally and internationally, continued Sheehy, “it’s important to engage audiences.”  She explained that exhibits have to be innovative, and must reach out beyond simply being entertainment.  “The bread and butter of museums for nine months out of the year are schools,” explained Sheehy, and grade schools, colleges and universities must be involved in these efforts as well as be given useful lessons with which to engage their students.

“Springsteen – Troubadour of the Highway” will open in the fall, and will travel to several cities around the country.  Hopefully, said Sheehy, a plan will be worked out to bring the exhibit to either Freehold or Asbury Park.

The featured speaker at the event was Simon Osborne, who was visiting Asbury Park for the first time from Liverpool, England. Osborn, a Manager at the National Trust, manages several properties including the Paul McCartney family home at 20, Forthlin Road, the “birthplace” of the Beatles.  The National Trust, which is independent of the British government, is subscribed to by over 2.9 million people and has taken on a significant role in developing music tourism in Liverpool.

Osborne explained that, for many years, Liverpool ignored its relationship with the Beatles and did little to take advantage of it. Today, the city is forced to paint a “Penny Lane” street sign on the wall, because too many of the actual signs were being stolen by tourists.

He explained some of the similarities between Liverpool and Asbury Park. Liverpool was once a thriving shipping and port city.  Its role as the second most important port in England 100 years ago made it the landing stage for blues and jazz records brought over by mariners from overseas.  These records eventually made their way into the eager hands of British youth who, unencumbered by the burdens of race, embraced the sounds and made them their own.

The citizens of Liverpool held a long-standing animosity towards the Beatles, since the band never returned to the city after gaining their fame.  Osborne described how the process of changing this view has been a slow process and, despite many mistakes being made, there were still lessons which could be learned by Asbury Park, and other cities looking to develop their own music tourism trade.

Most notably, Osborn described the plight of The Cavern.  The club where the Beatles first made their mark was closed in 1973, and the basement eventually filled in.  What stands today is a facsimile of the club, an irreplaceable loss to the music world.  Despite this, The Cavern, rebuilt in 1984, had 180,000 paying customers last year, and is still a popular attraction.

The demolition of The Cavern reflected the state of Beatles-related tourism in Liverpool in the 1970s.  While there were ad hoc events and tours in the area through the decade, the first official tour guide wasn’t published until 1979.  When fans realized that a Beatles reunion was impossible with the death of John Lennon in 1980, interest in the history of the band grew and soon Liverpool christened itself “The Birthplace of the Beatles”.  Last year 600,000 people visited Liverpool due to the Beatles, and added 27 million pounds to the local economy.

The Beatles helped to revitalize Liverpool by bringing tourists to the area.  Fans had always visited Liverpool to try and locate pieces of Beatles history, but often left disappointed due to the city’s lack of attention and recognition for John, Paul, George and Ringo.  Now, “Beatles tourists become ambassadors for the city”, said Osborn.

Much of Osborn’s efforts, and his presentation, focused on “20, Forthlin Road”, the childhood home of Paul McCartney and his family, which has been purchased and restored by the National Trust.  In addition, Yoko Ono purchased John Lennon’s home and turned it over the National Trust, as well as gave them a large endowment for the building’s restoration.  Osborn expressed gratitude to Ono for her work on behalf of the National Trust.  He also explained that Sir Paul McCartney paid a touching visit to his old home, and authenticated the restoration of the building, including his old bedroom.  McCartney stressed that the building was a home, with a family, and that it will always hold special memories for him.

While Liverpool still lacks a dedicated and coordinated effort to promote music tourism, it has had success in bringing in tourism dollars due to the incredible popularity of the band. An International Beatle Week Festival is held in the city each August, and “The Beatles Story” has become a popular tourism center and a base for the Beatles industry in Liverpool.  Unfortunately, said Osborn, it is not always possible to wait for public sector money to become available, and that is still a challenge facing further development of the industry in this city on the west coast of England, as well as another on the east coast of New Jersey.

To conclude, Osborn paid tribute to those in attendance and the host city: “I wish Asbury Park every success.  If you want it to happen, it’s in your hands.”

Concluding the morning’s program, Powell stressed that she hoped Asbury Park would not duplicate some of the mistakes made by Liverpool, but could replicate some of its successes in developing a music tourism industry.  She hoped that official ties between Liverpool and Asbury Park could be developed, and an ongoing relationship to promote each other’s tourism effort created.

The meeting was attended by about 50 participants, in the main hall of the library.  Afterwards, a bus tour was held highlighting some of the sites in Asbury Park and Belmar which would be of interest to tourists to the area.

“We must recognize music tourism as a viable product”, said Powell.  “We must preserve landmarks at all cost”.