MID-MONTH Report:

15 jobs down and about that number to go. Interesting!
9 of these jobs were singles on guitar/and/or piano. They went well...quiet solos with few vocals before a meeting for a government, University or Non-profit organization.

The rest were jobs involving a group: everything from a B-3 and a drummer to part of the Philharmonic (10 pieces), with me as the featured soloist.

Believe it or not, this has made the appropriateness of an arranger clearer.

Yesterday, I was inside a lounge at one of the country clubs I play. I could see through the double-doors and knew that, if it were a Saturday afternoon on the patio about a month from now, using an arranger would result in a much more appropriate performance.

What's cool is the diversity. I'm going to start taking "low-stress" jobs on electric upright bass next month.

That's always been something I really enjoyed (I really like bass in general) and, until my accident, I was the "go to" guy for all the jazz, funk and legit jobs in the area.

That's my next recovery step, although I have been told that I really need to take it easy to avoid more damage.

I've had fun the last few weeks playing. That's something that's been in short supply the last few years.

Your positive, over-generous support of my little guitar posting gave me the push I needed to stop feeling sorry for myself and "get on with it"!

Russ Lay, cub reporter signing out. I'll be back at the end of the month with a final report.


R.