[Dixielandjazz] Whom do you chose

[Stephen G Barbone]

Ginny asked whether folks would chose a great player who is hard to  
get along with, or a lesser player who makes the gig more pleasant.  
Here is my 2 cents.

I learned early in my business and musical careers that to get things  
done properly was to build a team that respected each other and worked  
together to get the desired result. A mentor told me that no one was  
irreplaceable. That in effect a band or team was like a bucket of  
water and the prima donna was like a hand in the water. As soon as you  
remove the hand, the water fills in the space where it was.

Moral being that if you have an irreplaceable person on your team (or  
in your band) who is great but pisses everyone else off,  fire him.  
The resulting team will be better for your action and you'll save  
yourself a lot of grief.

Cheers,
Steve Barbone
www.myspace.com/barbonestreetjazzband