[Dixielandjazz] Re: Amateurs and Pros

[TCASHWIGG at aol.com]

Well spoken Elazar:

This is precicely the attitude which made many of the greats GREAT, and is 
missing in most of the musicians today who believe they are legends in their own 
minds and too professional to do what you are doing.

This is also why most of them are sitting around waiting for the guy like you 
to show up out front of their house inthe big Yellow gig bus to get them and 
take em to the gig where they will give you exactly 2 hours of their time and 
if your employers asks for an additional thirty minutes or an hour they either 
demand to be paid more money, or take a taxi home and spend their earned gig 
money to do so.

Yet these same musicians will put in 8 to 10 hours a day in another field of 
work to make a living, yet call themselves Professional Musicians, and they 
are usually the same guys who will show up and continually say when a tune is 
called, no man I don't know that one, or no man I gotta play it in a different 
key I don't do that key.  Hey man when do we eat ? are the drinks free?  do you 
think we're gonna get any extra money from these folks they seem to be rich, 
you shouldda got a lot more money for this gig than what we are getting paid.  
Or even I bet you knocked down plenty of long green for this gig huh Elazar, 
so we're all gonna get a bonus tonight huh?   What play another fifteen 
minutes, are you nuts? I'm a Pro man and I'm outta here,   I have polayed with 
EVERYBODY WHO IS ANYBODY,call me again sometime when you can afford  to pay a guy 
lke me what he is worth.

My stock answer to these Pros is:  Well, you ain't playing with any of them 
these days are you?  and you were available for this gig wern't you, and now 
you can add my name to that long list of bandleaders who fired your ass and 
won't ever call you to play again.  None of us can afford you. :))   But we are 
getting gigs and you are not so what is wrong with this picture?  Perhaps I 
could interest you in a DJ setup???   Guys like you give all musicians a bad rap 
and folks don't want to hire Pros like you because you  want to charge a full 
days pay for  10% of the day.   Perhaps you would be better off as a Brain 
Surgeon or maybe a Plumber. :)


Keep swingin and having fun with it man.


Cheers,

Tom Wiggins