[Dixielandjazz] Eating at the table

[Steve Barbone]

JDut953944 at aol.com wrote:

> My first post though I read all this every day.  A gig I played for in
> Monterey at a very swank hotel offered the band food and drink; however, we
> were told we could not eat in the dining room with the guests but were led
> out to the loading dock in the back of the hotel. There one of the waiters had
> set a table for us with linen tablecloth, candles, and beautiful silverware.
> Amidst the trucks and boxes, we had a fine time.  It was a little scenario
> I'll never forget.

Hey Carol, welcome to your first post. Hope you were not put off by the
negative reaction of the shoulda, woulda, coulda answers. many hotels gigs
are exactly like the one you did. Nothing wrong with it in my opinion.

We did a gig last week at a very famous local place, the Drexelbrook Club.
In years past Louis Armstrong, Count Basie, et al all appeared there. Now a
posh catering venue. (Louis asked for, and got, his money up front when he
found out it was "restricted" to whites back then.)

We had a table set for us in a corner of the dining room, however the place
was full to capacity and the wait staff asked if they could use our table
for the overflow. Sure we said.

The then proceeded to set a table on the bandstand for us. And we ate there
on stage, in full view of the entire room.

Cheers,
Steve Barbone