A few of you have requested I share more stories from the road. Here’s three short ones to keep you entertained, along with a self-righteous moral: 

Story #1: Grand Ole Opry Cabling Woes

Last year I played at the Grand Ole Opry with a country artist. For those not in the know, the Grand Ole Opry is a live radio broadcast and longest running country music variety show on earth. Artists play 3 tunes each, and change overs are really quick between artists.

The guitar player on the gig insisted on bringing a massive pedal board (it was a double decker deal with probably 15+ pedals). Right as we kicked off the first song a cable went bad. He spent an eternal 30 seconds of air time trying to get it to work. 

Moral: bring the gear you need, and keep your rig simple. 

Story #2: A Tale Of Two Patches

I showed up to an artist gig. I’d talked to the MD a week before the practice, and he told me it was pretty laid back production wise and that I’d be covering mostly piano and organ with her. Being a little anal-retentive, I programmed most of the patches close to the record just in case. 

A few tunes into our first practice, I was glad I’d prepped the patches. It was really important to her that I not only play all the parts exactly like the record, but also have the sounds exactly like the record, too. There were a few tense moments of trying to dial in a sound on the fly, but she walked away really happy with the way it went. (Whew!) 

Moral: be prepared. Do your homework, and be ready to change directions when working with artists. 

Story #3: Keep Drama To Yo-Self

I played a gig in Mississippi a few weeks ago with an amazing cover band called Downtown Band. We showed up to the gig and started unloading as usual when someone realized that the trombone player Eric was gone. We figured he was in the bathroom, and kept setting up.

45 minutes later Eric walks in holding a new trombone. He had accidentally left part of his trombone at home, and Eric had walked a mile and a half to a local music store, bought a trombone, and then walked back in the Mississippi heat just so he could play the gig. 

Moral: if you can fix something without having to make the rest of the members in the group feel stressed, do it. 

That's all I got for this week, folks. Sorry about the drought of blogs lately. Between prepping for a couple of tours, studio work, and trying to actually see my family once in awhile it's been challenging to find time. I'll try to keep you all posted more regularly when I can! 

Eric