About Us - How we met and got started - New York Jazz Cats
Main menu:
Our Goal: To create the ambience of an ultra sophisticated New York style Jazz Bistro for your guests' enjoyment. We have a vast repertoire of jazz and pop classics as well as country, soul and soft rock. We deliver the ideal mix of music to give any dining experience or private party the perfect atmosphere of a night out on the town in the Big Apple. We also specialize in weddings and corporate affairs of all types. We are both experienced entertainers and have emceed at hundreds of affairs, and we gladly accept requests; we are hard to stump! We can also augment our sound by adding other fine musicians we have worked with over the years for a more high energy experience.
The Bottom Line: Atmosphere is critical to any special event. The mood created by the New York Jazz Cats can make the difference between just going to dinner, or having a memorable fine dining experience or cocktail party, that will have everyone saying "I just loved the music, who are those guys?"
The
New York Jazz Cats.
It just doesn't get any
better!
How Mike and Rob Met
Once upon a time there were two boys who grew up in the northern part
of New York City. They were born a couple of years apart and lived a couple
of miles apart; Rob Tenney in the North Bronx near Jerome Avenue and Mike
LeVasseur in the Washington Heights section of upper Manhattan. They were
both blessed with incredible musical talent. Rob took the “D” train south into
Manhattan to 135th Street, to attend “The High School of Music and Art” while
Mike traveled across the Harlem River, which separates the boroughs, and
then north to “The Bronx High School of Science” just a mile north of Rob’s
family’s apartment. Never met. They both went to “The City College of New
York” and were music majors. Never met.
Rob moved to the Atlanta area in 1977 after 5 years in Woodstock, NY and Mike arrived in Atlanta a few years later. Time went by and still they never met. They both toured extensively in the US, Europe and the Middle East for the next several years. They played with many of the same musicians in the Atlanta music scene. Still never met. Both became bandleaders thru the late 80s and 90s and knew of each other as competitors. Still never met.
Fast forward to 2005 - Rob picked up a sales call at the music store where he worked. The customer was interested in a Shure SM57 Mic and some cables.
He said he would come by and pick up his stuff in an hour. Rob asked for his name and the customer replied, “Mike LeVasseur”. “Oh I know you”. “Oh yeah? Who is this”. “Rob Tenney”. “Oh I know you too”. They finally met!!!!
Since that day in 2005 Mike and Rob instantly knew they had met a Musical Soulmate and have played hundreds of gigs with many different bands together. They have played on dozens of CD recording projects at Rob’s TenneyTunes Studio and continue to perform regularly as
the New York Jazz Cats.