"Ye Haa" Bob Jackson Celebrates 20 Years of Port Orleans fun

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The Sassagoula Sentinel
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Joined: April 6th, 2011, 11:32 am

"Ye Haa" Bob Jackson Celebrates 20 Years of Port Orleans fun

Unread post by The Sassagoula Sentinel »

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On the 4th of May 1997, a new piano player named Bob Jackson made his first appearance at the Cotton Co-Op lounge at Disney's Dixie Landings Resort, following a recommendation to apply from none other than the lounge's previous incumbent who he met at a gig at Orlando's Blazing Pianos bar. Dixie Landings (renamed a few years later to Port Orleans Riverside) was to become the regular home for his "Ye Haa Bob" persona for the next 20 years.

Surprisingly at the time, the Cotton Co-Op was not especially well-known as a nighttime entertainment venue, filled mainly with weary tourists relaxing after a long day at the parks, or guests waiting for their reservations at the nearby Boatwright's Dining Hall. However Bob saw the potential to turn this location into a lively destination attraction, and his duelling piano background, which necessitated getting people up on their feet and singing along, gave him the experience needed to bring the same vibe and energy to his new home.

Two decades later, and now an official Walt Disney Legacy Award recipient, "Ye Haa" Bob Jackson is still wowing the crowds four nights a week at what is now known as the River Roost Lounge. His zany mixture of toe-tapping, sing-a-long standards, and increasingly frequent Disney classics performed in his own inimitable and enormously energetic style, attracts a multi-generational crowd from babes-in-arms to octogenarians, all of whom are encouraged to join in the fun, and his amazing memory comes to the fore as he interacts with his audience members by name.

Away from the Port, Bob is a talented musician and composer in his own right. He began playing piano from a very early age, and was a music composition major at the Cincinnati Conservatory of Music. He has also worked at many other locations around Orlando (such as Rosie O'Grady's at the new-defunct Church Street Station, SeaWorld, and Universal's CityWalk) and around Walt Disney World (including the Diamond Horseshoe Revue in the Magic Kingdom). Bob has recorded at least ten CDs (available from his website) including collections of his own original material. He also regularly performs at local churches and for children with life-threatening illnesses and their families at the wish-fulfilling "Give Kids the World" village.

As Bob so often says at his shows, "no one has more fun than us," and given that he can count the likes of Disney/Pixar's Chief Creative Officer John Lasseter among his many fans, he's probably right!

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MardiGroggy
Posts: 290
Joined: August 11th, 2013, 10:30 am
Location: North Florida

Re: "Ye Haa" Bob Jackson Celebrates 20 Years of Port Orleans

Unread post by MardiGroggy »

Thanks for all the good times and great memories, Bob. Still lookin' GREAT!!! Here's to the next 20!
MardiGroggy
Aka: Steve

"Laissez les bons temps rouler!"
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