I'm doing 6 things
Both my bands have a nice repertoire to work from, and there’s not a whole lot left to do as far as learning songs. But from this point we have two different sets of problems facing us.
My Dixie band (Route 66 Revelers) (see us at www.rt66revelers.info) is facing a personnel crisis: the clarinet player quit and we need to find a replacement. There are several players around, but my drummer is dead set against having any sax players in the band – I’m not sure why. Bernie H. is already playing with the Duke City Jazz Band, and is not hot on practicing – OK for live gigs, not so great in practicing for recording tracks. Then there’s Cindy F. – great player and music reader, not so great at ad libbing. Russ J. said he’d be interested in playing, but he lives in Jemez Springs – more than 2 hours away. Finally is Joe F. – great clarinet player, and can double on trumpet and sax. But he’s almost blind, and needs to be driven. He may be the solution for studio work, but we’ll need to find someone who can join us for live gigs.
Trombone is a different problem. Phil A., our regular T-boner, is a superb player and can pick up any tune quickly, but he has priced himself out of our market. If our Fri/Sat gig isn’t paying at least $100 per man he has better paying gigs. Plus there is this history of showing up late or not at all. I suppose if the money’s good enough he’ll be motivated enough to remember. Maybe it’s the same solution – Phil for the studio and a different temp for live gigs.
That’s enough for this entry. I’ll cover the Swing band problems in another entry.
