I believe that at some level, you really don't WANT to work in three more arrangers. It's one thing to NEED to use them and quite another to WANT to use them on certain gigs. The problem with working mixed (diverse) venues is that the 'CONTROL' you have over the music in the non-arranger gigs (piano/organ/drums/guitar/vibes/vocals) makes it difficult to relinquish that control (as you must) for arranger-based gigs.

Now notice, I said control over the music, not the gig. For a musician, that's huge; for an entertainer, not so much (NOT a putdown of entertainers, just trying to make a point). No matter how you slice and dice it, that arranger is not going to play the same bass line that you would have if you were playing it live. On the other side of the coin, no arranger player in the world wants to deal with trying to get back in sync with a vocalist who has missed a beat or come in too quickly. BUT if you're playing it live, no problem. And let's not even get into the joys of playing with other good musicians, even at the cost of a diminished paycheck.

Although some people here will honestly and legitimately state that they prefer to work an arranger-based gig (drunk drummer, bigger paycheck, etc.) I think most people would prefer to play 'live' if music was the only consideration. I also believe that for most audiences, it is more exciting and entertaining to watch a good, well-rehearsed band than an equally good arranger-based OMB. JMO.

chas