Montana,

This advice is from on old man that plays a lot of nursing homes, assisted living centers, and retirement communitities--Don't play for free. Those of us that perform at these places have huge sums of money invested in equipment, and the amount of time invested is beyond comprehension. When anyone plays for free they're taking money out of our pockets and food from our childrens mouths.

Keep in mind that most of these places make huge profits by warehousing the elderly. Most have entertainment budgets, and some are quite large. Anything less than $100 is working for McDonald's wages. You must take into consideration the time it takes to set up, tear down, drive to and from the job, fuel expenses, equipment cost, equipment and vehicle maintenance, insurance, and all the other expenses associated with the performance.

Now, the best tip I can give you is to NEVER play anything other than upbeat songs that they can dance to--even if everyone in the place is in a wheelchair. These folks are a short step from the cemetary and the last thing they need to hear is balads and gloom & doom songs. Keep everything upbeat, keep the place jumping and you'll have more work than you can handle.

Good Luck,

Gary

------------------
Travlin' Easy