With Memorial Day weekend right around the corner, the countdown for Summer Camp music festival has begun. Excitement and anticipation is at an all time high, so much so that an official Pre-Party was thrown on the Spirit of Chicago Yacht. Entertainment was provided by the Summer Camp All Stars, a combination of musicians such as Kris Myers of Umphrey’s McGee, Marcus Rezak from Digital Tape Machine, and Joey Porter and Garret Sayers from the Motet. Over the course of two hours, these All Stars jammed out and left everyone even giddier for the festival to come in three days.

Upon stepping onto the boat, one couldn’t help but feel happy. The boat itself was massive, with three different levels to explore. Despite the amount of space, the environment was certainly intimate. In fact, there was no formal announcement when the music started. Most people were on the deck enjoying the sun and wind when the All Stars started playing. People quickly filtered in, and even then there was plenty of space to dance and move.

The All Stars played a healthy mix of genres including funk, jazz, and rock and roll. It’s amazing, although not surprising, that these talented professionals can come together with little to no rehearsal time and put together a solid evening of music. Some of the real highlights included the Grateful Dead’s “Shakedown Street,” Eddy Grant’s “Electric Avenue” with Joey Porter on vocoder, and a soul-filled version of Prince’s “I Wanna Be Your Lover.”

The All Stars brought out special guests Joe Hettinga (Digital Tape Machine) on keyboards and later added Elli Sutter to vocals on a couple tracks. Elli’s voice was a very nice touch, especially to “I Wanna Be Your Lover.” Even members of the crew stopped working to thoroughly enjoy the stellar vocals of the song.

A Sunday fun day was had by all. Being on a boat, on a beautiful day, with the beautiful city of Chicago in the background, with some beautiful music being played, what more could one ask for? All of the Summer Camp All Stars’ bands will be at the Summer Camp Music Festival this coming weekend.

Check out the full setlist and gallery from the yacht party below:

Ain’t It Funky Now, Windjammer, Dujii, Girlfriend is Better, Stratus, Sing Simple Song, Tippie Toes, Shakedown Street, Electric Avenue, Get Down On It, Break Out, I Wanna Be Your Lover, Do I Do, Hang Up Your Hangups, Red Baron, Root Down, Cardova, More Bounce to the Ounce, Spank A LeeÂ