Notes_Norton

We loaded the van last night, drove to the gig site, which is outdoors but on a large covered patio. Torrential rains, mph winds, no way to stay dry. So we didn't play, didn't get paid, didn't have the fun of performing, did half the work by loading the van at home, and unloading it when we got back. The restaurant and waitresses didn't make any money, either. These things happen. It's the rainy season in Florida, and the past few days have been wicked. At least our regular gig has enough area to keep us protected for all but the most extreme rains. We did that on Thursday, and stayed almost dry. Notes ♫

I played at a grand opening of a club in Palm Beach many years ago. It was by invitation only and Rolls-Royce's, Ferraris, and Maserati's were common. By the third set, over half the people were either naked or almost naked. It was a good party. Definitely not stuffy rich people. I've also played in mobile home parks where retirees can't afford much else, and that's fine with me too. As long as the audience is having fun, I'm having fun. And if the audience isn't having fun, either I'm totally mis-booked, or it's my fault. Notes ♫

We almost got rained out yesterday. It's the rainy season in Florida, and the arrangement is, if we set the gear up, we get paid. Florida is unique. The peninsula heats up in the summer, and the hot air rises. The cooler air from the Gulf of Mexico on the west coast, and the Atlantic on the east, rush to take its place. This creates huge thunderstorms. Then as the storms cool the land, the reverse is true and they slowly move to both coasts. Sometimes they hit us, sometimes they miss and hit others. The places where we play have protection from 'normal' t-storms, but every once in a while we get an extremely violent one with 60mph wind and up to nickel sized hail. We had one of those on Monday - thankfully we weren't gigging on Monday afternoon. All the industrial, drop-down plastic and canvas shades aren't enough for something like that. We also carry a huge tarp to cover our gear - just in case.

I'm in a duo with my wife. We do 2 part harmony, and sometimes, I'll sequence the parts we can't sing on an appropriate synth voice. It fills it out. We'll sing the melody and what we consider the most important harmony part and sequence the others. Since Mrs. Notes and I wend duo, we never-ever have any personnel problems (we both have strong work/play ethics) and except for the COVID vacation, we have never been out of work. I got lucky. Notes ♫

Our one-day-per-week outdoors (under cover) at the hotel on the beach has turned into to three days per week. Two afternoons and one morning for brunch. Plus the RV Resort and a few other places. It's summer, supposedly slack time, and we're doing 15 or more gigs per month, that's like the winter season work. It's tiring, but delightful. (It's a good kind of tired.) Here's where we gig 3x/week. Facing south - the public beach is directly to the east, and the picture is taken from the edge of a huge public park. It's open-air, good restaurant, and full bar. The booths out front are add-ons, each holds 6, and they rock. To the left (stage right) they bring out picnic tables with umbrellas for the overflow. It's a fun gig. Notes ♫

I guess people just got sick of hibernating, figured COVID is here to stay, most of us got vaccinated, and we figured the jab should keep us from dying, so we might as well get back to living. Whether we are right or wrong, it will be judged in the future. I'm fortunate to live in coastal Florida where there are so many outdoor gigs. Outside it does seem safer. Of course, the salt-air is hard on the gear, but the gear can be replaced much easier than lungs can. Insights and incites by Notes ♫

After almost 2 years of covfefe unemployment, someone turned the switch "on" in February. 14 or more gigs per month. May starts the traditional slow season, we're doing 14 this month, but only 10 next month. But that's about 5 better than usual for this time of year. We usually make 3/4 of our yearly money between Haloween and Easter. During the plague, we were keeping our chops up by rehearsing an hour or so per day, 3 or 4 days per week. Then in February our first gig came, after one hour we were mentally ready to pack it up!!! Stamina? What stamina? We're over that now. It feels good to be back at it. We play with our audience, get crowd participation, for example: They sing "Ride Sally Ride" with us, The chorus to Jimmy Buffet's "Volcano". "Boo-La" in the Rascals' "Good Lovin" (Instead of good lovin), and during Sweet Caroline they sing the horn stabs "Wo Wo Wo" and "so good so good so good". The audience loves the tired old 'war horse' songs, and are eager to participate in the shtick that we dream up. We even call them our background singers, "The Mormon Bait And Tackle Choir" and in the winter, when the Canadians are down, 3 or 4 of them will stand next to us, sing along, and direct the newbies when to sing along. We have other running gags, celebrate silly holidays, share lame jokes (the lamer the better), and so on. Our following is like extended family to us. One guy invites us out on his +40' boat, we know so many personally enough to share their triumphs, and offer sympathy for their losses. We have a following, and basically, we play music and goof-off with them. It's not a gig, it's a party. For Mrs. Notes and I, gigging is our second favorite thing to do Notes ♫

I was in a 5-piece band with a woman I would later marry and 3 other musicians. After a couple of personnel problems that kept us out of work for 3 months one year, we decided to form a duo. Since I also play drums, bass, guitar, and a few other instruments, I bought a 4 track Teac A-3440 reel-to-reel tape recorder and started doing backing tracks, mixing to cassette. That was 1985, when digital and MIDI came around we embraced that instead of tape. Mrs. Notes plays guitar and synth and is an incredible singer. I play sax, wind synth, flute, guitar, bass, drums, keyboards, and am a decent singer. 37 years later, we are still gigging. Except for the COVID unemployment drought, we have always been gigging as our main source of income. In fact we have to block out vacation times, telling people we are already booked then, or we wouldn't get a vacation. We joke and tell people that the only band that has been together longer than we have is The Rolling Stones. Mrs. Notes and I got married many years later, we have no problems, we both have strong work ethics, love what we do, and get along like very best friends. It's like I won the life lottery. Notes ♫

Definitely a trend. Here in S. Florida, it kicked in during February. The audiences seem especially festive and glad to be back, enjoying live music. We had 14 gigs in March, all outdoors, and all but two midday. So far, 12 have been scheduled in April. What's amusing to Mrs. Notes and I, was that for the year and a half of unemployment, we had the gear set up and practiced an hour 3 or 4 days per week to keep our chops up and to rehearse new songs we learned. We got our first gig, and it was 3 hours -- after the first hour we were a bit tired. Our internal clocks said, "OK, let's pack it up". 😵 Of course, we did our best for the rest of the gig. But what I also noticed is that after the dry spell, the speakers and road rack got heavier It's good to be gigging again. Insights and incites by Notes ♫

I have a good ear for pitch, as the saxophone is not in tune with itself, and each note requires a different amount of pressure on the reed to play it in pitch. That means I need good ears. I know about proper breathing and breath support, because sax and vocal breath support are identical. The problem was muscle control in my voice box. That took years and gradually got better the more I did it. The effort was worth it, I enjoy singing. And I don't have to look for a singer in any band I'm in. Notes ♫

I wear my mask, am vaccinated and boosted, and I limit my exposure to crowds. We especially avoid indoor crowds, go grocery shopping when the store traffic is light (usually mornings), don't dine at restaurants, and so far have avoided the plague. We're gigging, but we are only taking outdoor gigs. I can't mask while singing, playing the sax or playing the wind synthesizer. Since I went on a keto diet (they called it Atkins then) in the 1980s, I've had one mild cold; one day sneezing, one day cough. That was after a vacation in Vienna when I went way off diet (They are famous for sugar laden desserts). I understand that when your body runs on ketones instead of glucose, your T cells are much stronger. I don't know if that's true or not (you can't believe everything you read) but I lost 65 pounds on keto and seem to never get sick. On the other hand, with COVID, I'm not taking too many chances. That's why, only outdoor gigs for me. Fortunately, in Florida, we have the weather for that. The one-day-per-week gig on the beach is going so well, they added a second. We now have 14 gigs this month, which for COVID not being gone, is pretty good (especially after 1.5 years of no gigs and sheltering at home). You can throw caution to the wind and ignore COVID, you can shelter at home and don't do anything, or you can find your spot somewhere between the two extremes. We lean towards the safe extreme, but we do need to work, so we are limiting that to safer gigs. I've never got a flu shot, since I don't get the flu. But if they come out with an annual COVID booster, I'll probably get it. I think COVID can give the ill permanent damage, that's a lot worse than the flu. Insights and incites by Notes

I'm with you on that red tide thing, it stinks - literally. Big Sugar runs Florida politics, and they have a license to pollute and send their sludge to both coasts as they please. I don't vote for anybody who gets campaign funds from big sugar. But there aren't enough of us to dethrone them. I was in a house band for a year in Fort Meyers a few decades ago. I prefer the climate on the southeast coast of FL. There is almost always a nice sea-breeze. I grew up in Pompano Beach, just north of Fort Lauderdale. When I was young, nobody had AC in their homes. The way to keep cool was to paint the roof white, and plant shade trees around the house. I still do that, and prefer the fresh air to canned AC. I know that makes me weird in today's world, but I've never shied away from being strange. We also have a lot of gear. I play sax, wind synth, lead guitar, and sometimes flute, Mrs. Notes plays rhythm guitar, and synth and we both sing. I make our own backing tracks since I also play drums, bass, and can get around on keyboards. That's a lot of gear to schlep. The only problem I have with outdoor venues is the threat of rain. The salt air is hard on gear, but they are just tools that make me money, and when they reach their 'best by' date, I just replace them. By then they have more than paid for themselves. We have 3 outdoor gigs this week, one is midday, one is late afternoon to early evening and the other is after dark. Playing music for a living is better than any day-job I can think of Notes ♫

I've been there, and I feel for you. I wish I had some advice. When a band is working, it's hard to quit it. Plus the next band might be as bad, or worse in the same department. Singing on pitch is hard, and requires long hours of practice. Singing long notes over a reference note might help. That is if one is willing to put the work in. Good luck Notes ♫

We covered for another sick band Friday night, in a new venue, about 30 miles away, that called us out of the blue due to a referral from an audience member. They cancelled, the manager called a few of their regular bands, and they were all booked, an audience member suggested us. It was open, the money was good, so we accepted. I don't know if it was COVID or not, but I'm glad we could cover it. It went great, the audience was very enthusiastic, and it looks like we will be back. They are booked a couple of months in advance, so I hope they don't forget about us It was on the waterfront in a multi-building Tiki bar setting. BTW, leftjay, you and I are very different in the heat department. I don't mind the heat at all. I grew up in Florida before Air Conditioners were common in homes, and today I still choose to live without mine. Not only is it an environmental choice, but a comfort choice. AC units put more carbon in the air in the US than the industrial sector does. Plus, the little heat island by each unit adds more. It seems a feedback loop to heat the earth more to live in a cooler house, but the hotter environment means more energy and global heating to cool the house at the hotter temperature, which heats the earth even more which requires the AC to work and pollute even more - ad infinitum. When you live in AC of about 75 degrees or less, you get acclimated to that temperature so when you go outdoors, it seems hotter. I remember gigging on the road 'up north'. In September, after the summer's heat, 65 degrees seems freezing and people are bundled up. In the spring, after a frozen winter, 65 degrees seems warm and people are going out in t-shirts and shorts. I painted my roof white, planted shade trees around my house, and when it's 90 degrees outside, it's never more than 80 in the house. Fortunately, Mrs. Notes was reared in Florida too, and doesn't like AC either. And when we get that outdoor gig at 85-90 degrees, as long as we are in shade, we are happy (and we don't play without a shelter, in case a sudden rain crops up). To each his/her own, I guess. I'm glad you're gigging and the tips are good. I think the 'safer at home' people missed music and are enthusiastic to have it back. Insights and incites by Notes ♫

We've got 14 one-nighter gigs this month, with 5 more possible (confirmation or refusal soon). The temps are in the upper 70s or lower 80s (F) and outdoor gigs are plentiful right now in Florida. For those 'up north' it might be time to start looking for outdoor gigs. People are tired of COVID, and many feel safer outdoors. Notes ♫

I'll never understand the violence directed at someone who simply disagrees with you. Thanks DM

I learned to sing (the hardest instrument I've tried so far), play guitar, bass, wind synth, flute, drums, and some keys in addition to my sax playing so that I can become a chameleon and find work easily when a band breaks up. I learned to play many genres of music, from standards to Latin-American to rock to disco to blues to reggae to whatever. The last 5-piece band I was in was a good one. The bass player quit, and it took two months to find a replacement, teach him the songs, and get up to snuff. That's 2 months of no income. Then we lost a drummer. Since there is less memorization, we were only out another month (in the same year). She had a small kit, kept perfect time, supported the songs, did not over or underplay, had some tasty fills and even sang background vocals. We got to our first gig, at a country club. The dining room was packed, so they pulled back the accordion pleat room divider and told us to set up in the lounge. The drummer said, "God will never forgive me if I play in a bar" and I responded, "God will have to forgive me for homicide if you don't play tonight." The next day, Mrs. Notes and I decided to become a duo. I bought a Teac A3440 four track reel-to reel and began making backing tracks. That was in 1985, and we haven't been out of work since 1986 until COVID reared its nasty spikes. I could have a drink with all of those people today and still enjoy their company. The drummer ended up switching religions and plays bars now and sings lead. We're back gigging now, only taking outdoor gigs, but in Florida we can play outdoors all year long. On the opposite side of the coin, there are musicians I could jam with, but off-stage have such different opinions about life and different lifestyles, I can be friendly with them, but I wouldn't want to sit at the bar with them for very long. Notes ♫

People, I didn't intend to bring anti-covid propaganda into this thread. If anything, the intent was to help my good friends here to make decisions about what they need to do about this disease. There is no need to get on a soap-box. I'm a moderate, middle of the road guy who has voted for Democrats, Republicans, Independents, and "third party" candidates. I consider the far right and the far left both to be far wrong, and feel the real solutions almost always lie somewhere between the two extremes. In the case of COVID, I personally feel the anti-vax, anti-mask, right is definitely wrong. Science and experience seems to point to this. Judging from my experience, I know that COVID is much worse than the annual flu. How? I know more people who have died or have been permanently and extremely damaged from COVID than I have known in my entire life from the flu, and I've been on the planet a long time. IMO, anyone who still touts the "it's only the flu" has been brainwashed by the faux news propaganda media. And the faux news propaganda is very convincing and conceived by some of the best advertising copy authors in the business. However, I've been wrong before, reserve the right to be wrong again, but going by my experience and that of my family and fellow musicians, COVID is much, much worse than the flu, and something I will take precautions not to get stricken by. That doesn't mean I'll stay locked up in my home, and it doesn't mean I'll throw caution to the wind and ignore it. The point for me between the two extremes is to only take outdoor gigs, keep away from closed, crowded indoor facilities as much as is reasonable, wear a KN95 masks if I have to go in, limit my time there as well, no hugging, and keep my health up. I don't go to concerts, movie theaters, indoor restaurants and other places that are not necessary. But that's just me. I believe anyone who is eligible for the vaccine has the right to refuse it. However, since the government (that's you and me) pays $80/shot, and we have been offered 3 jabs. That adds up to $240.00. So if you refuse the vaccine and get covid, the government should pay the first $240 of your treatment, and you should have to pay for the rest yourself, or forego treatment. After all, why should we all play millions when you turned down the best prevention offered so far? It's not about punishment, revenge or any negative reasons, it's about you accepting responsibility for your own decisions. The first time I covered a gig for a COVID stricken, vocal anti-vax singer, I felt sorry for her. I still do. She has so much lung damage that she will never be able to sing again. I still feel sorry for her. I like the girl, and she was a good singer. But she is paying the price for her decision, and she just has to accept that. I feel sorry for the musician in my good friend's band's family. He died, he didn't have life insurance (what full-time musician can afford that) and he has a small child. If he got vaccinated, the odds are 99% that he would have not died and left his family in a lurch. So they are paying the price for his decision. The 6-piece band that all got COVID, probably gigging in that Indian Reservation Casino, confirms my decision to have turned down that gig. It's indoors, in the least vaccinated county in the state, full of people who still smoke (it's OK in the Casino because it's not state land), and still fly flags for someone who lost the presidential election. That led me to believe it's a dangerous place for me to play. Mrs. Notes and I have gotten 4 gigs in 3 months due to COVID stricken musicians. I've been playing music all my life and have never had to cover 4 gigs for sick musicians in all this time. I filled in for a sax player in the 1970s and that's it. Believe me, I'd rather get the jobs on my own, and not due to someone's illness, but I'm happy to get the work. We all have to make personal decisions as to our personal risk vs reward ratio is in many situations through life. A mountain climber knows the risk of falling vs the reward of making it to the top. That's too much risk for me but OK for the climber. My hope is that by sharing our own personal experiences, and reading scientific information from middle-of-the-road sources neither far left nor right, we can all be better informed to make our personal decisions. Insights and incites by Notes ♫

Ask my dead uncle, my sister-in-law who spent a couple of weeks on a ventilator and in isolation thinking she was going to die, my cousin who will probably never smell or taste again in his life because the brain damage is so bad, the girl singer who will probably never sing again due to lung damage, the musician in my friend's band who died, and my brother-in-law who is a world-famous doctor among other doctors and has no reason to lie to me that says, "You want to avoid this at all costs." If your faux news pundit or politician who secretly got vaccinated tells you any different, perhaps you should choose another. According to multiple health departments I googled, unvaccinated people are 20 times more likely to die than vaccinated who catch COVID, and over 100 times more likely to catch COVID in the first place. I think I used this as a music related topic. I'm getting over one gig per month because other bands are playing indoors and getting "Darwined out" of the entertainment business due to them catching COVID.. I'm pretty much a moderate, I lean a little left on social issues, a little right on fiscal issues and think both left and right extremes are wrong. In this case, I've used my own experience, that of my relatives, that of my friends, and my bro-in-law who is on the front lines and has no reason to lie to me. If any pundit tells me that this disease is just like the flu, I will consider that person a propagandist and will not believe another thing he/she says. My suggestion to my fellow musicians is to avoid indoor gigs if there is a possibility of an unvaccinated person in the audience. You can't sing or play a wind instrument with a N95 mask on. There is no Ctrl+Z or Cmd+Z if you get COVID, and there is a possibility it will end your music career and possibly your life. Insights and incites Notes ♫

It's the fourth time since November we covered for a COVID no-show band. The lead singer of one we know of is a vocal anti-vaxxer. We covered 3 gigs for her. She may never be able to sing again due to severe lung damage. Saturday, we covered for a 6-piece country band that played a couple of weeks ago at a Casino gig that we have been turning down. They all caught COVID and one member is still in the hospital. To be safe, we are only playing outdoor gigs, we are vaccinated, boosted, and when not gigging, being careful of where we go and bringing KN95 masks along. I have a friend who was in another band who played at another indoor venue that we have been declining. They all caught it late last year, and one member died of the Delta variant. He was middle-aged and otherwise healthy. We've been very fortunate to play 2-3 gigs per week since November, all outdoors. Getting a gig from a band that caught COVID is not a pleasant reason to get the gig, but I'm glad we could cover it. Fortunately, in Florida, there are enough outdoor gigs so we can at least gig a little without subjecting ourselves to a bigger risk. Stay safe out there, friends. Despite what the faux-news pundits and secretly vaccinated politicians tell you, this is not just like the flu. Insights and incites by Notes ♫

Cakewalk is now free from a company called BandLab.

Redundancy is good. The show must go on. Notes ♫

We did a NYE gig at an RV resort that we have done many times in the past. It's outdoors/indoors, and the indoors is a rec room with windows all around and open. The RV Resort has about 900 spaces, 600 of which are usually filled by French Canadians spending the winter here. The RVs range from mid-sized to fifth wheel trailers and huge busses. Instead of the usual hundreds of pre-COVID guests, there were only about 50. The Canadians have socialized medicine and there is no handshake with the US system. The Canadian government told their citizens, if they get COVID out of the country, they will not be able to return until cured. Since the US for-profit system is expensive, most have gone back to Canada. The ones that stayed were wealthy enough to buy expensive US short-term health insurance. We all had a great time anyway. The dance area was full from the first song through "Auld Lang Syne" and at the end of the evening, people came up to tell us how much they enjoyed the music. We got paid in full, and we have a couple of other dates with them. They assure us not matter how many show up, we will still have the gig and still get paid. The park is looking to keep their yearly long-term vacationers and figure it's an investment. Life goes on, and we have no choice but to do our best in a bad situation. We're happy. Insights and incites by Notes ♫

I agree with DaddyMack here. One should be plenty. If you get a lot of gigs and decide you want something lighter, you can always reconsider. But you have a good speaker now, so try it out. Notes ♫

Since I have my own website, everything important gets saved to my personal cloud. And my stage songs get stored on two computers plus a thumb drive as well as my cloud. Hardware can be replaced, software cannot. Notes ♫