Chas, I agree with much of the above. However, the country club jobs in this part of the nation pay about the same rate as the upscale nite clubs. I used to play at Hillendale Country Club , piano-bar kinda' job, but used the arranger keyboard instead. Lots of very rich, boring people who rarely tipped anyone, including the bar tenders and waitstaff. They all told me how much they loved the music and my vocals, I played there for about a year, and one night I said to myself "I gotta' get out of this place!" and did. The guy that took my place, a good friend, stayed there for about three years, played a great piano, and one night in the dead of winter decided he had enough as well. He moved to the Florida Keys, ran a fishing charter boat during the day, and played Tiki Bars at night until he died.

Captain Russ, on the other hand, is very fortunate in that he resides in a part of the nation that has loads of country clubs, many of which cater to the Horse Racing/Owner industry. They tend to spend a lot of money, and apparently, tend to pay a lot for the Captain's type of entertainment.

DonM is a great entertainer, a wonderful people person, he interacts with everyone that comes into the lounge and provides an outstanding show that is geared to his clientele. His talents go far beyond playing the keyboard and singing, and having seen him perform in person and keeping in touch with him over many years, I can say, without hesitation, he is at the top of the list of great OMB entertainers. He IS the best of the best and I am very proud to know him both as a fellow entertainer and friend.

As I have often stated, this is a business and must be treated like any other business. It requires years of dedicated, hard work in order to make it successful. Very few individuals are willing to do what it takes to fit into that mold. Russ and DonM are two classic examples of individuals that did what it takes to be successful in this industry.

Gary