This clip is not exactly the most professional you’ve ever heard, and will definitely NOT make Mark’s Top 10 list. Here’s the history behind it.

About 2 years ago, before I bought a PA3x, I went to Sam Ash to try out a used model they had (which, BTW, sold for more than Frankie V charged me for a brand NEW one!). I spent an hour just trying to figure out how it worked. Finally, I managed to set a “big band” style (don’t remember which one), one piano patch, one brass patch, and one jazzy trumpet.

Then, I spent 3 hours going through the other styles and sounds and recorded everything so I could get an idea of what it could do before I bought one.

I just played this song by memory because most of my attention was on trying to access the different instruments on this very complex machine. I couldn‘t figure out how to lower the piano an octave which would have made it sound much better. And, I couldn’t find the trombone. And……the extra measures are ‘cause I just plain “couldn‘t figure out just what I was doing” so I took liberties with the measures.

The reason I’m posting this.....

I mentioned I was cleaning up my computer desktop of MP3’s a few weeks ago when I came across this. Forgot I even had it. Most of the 3 hour recording was absolute rubbish, but this didn’t come out too bad for not knowing how to work a PA3x.

So I’m listening to it every night for the past few weeks with mixed feelings. On the one hand I think I’d like to finally start learning that PA3x and do some songs correctly this time as, listening to it……….I think I never really appreciated what that board can do.

On the other hand, is there any point in spending hours on a PA3x when there’s hardly any place to play anymore no matter how good you are on it?

For the record, I’m a one-man-band player for longer than I’ve been a pianist and I can’t say I don’t miss playing an arranger, but…..I get more work as a pianist or accordionist

I’m also thinking maybe if I get back into playing, the jobs will just start appearing somehow, though I can clearly see the handwriting on the wall. Both live music and white, middle-class America are both disappearing rapidly around where I live (Bill Lewis is absolutely correct in his posts about disappearing venues and work in general).

As I already mentioned, I completely burned out of playing about six months ago and have hardly worked at all last year and this year. I picked a bad time to “burn out!” But it was the sudden change in the music industry and people’s crap attitudes nowadays that has left me with no desire to go back out there into the field.

Still.....bills have to be paid, so, in the meantime.....every night I listen to what I did with this tune and hope somewhere along the way it prompts me into cleaning up my act and getting back into playing somehow and getting reacquainted with playing an arranger again!

Mark