Donny,
I gotta' agree with Leon. Though we all try to read the audience, and everyone sincerely believes they can, going into a gig without some type of plan or format just doesn't seem like the way to work. I also have sets that I pre-program, and in addition, I have put together gig disks which are nothing more than user files that have been renamed to song titles. For me, this cuts dead time between songs down to a few seconds at best, however, once I determine what the audience wants to hear and dance to that night, I modify my approach in that direction.
One of the main problems is our audiences are becoming far more diverse than they were 20 or 30 years ago. Consequently, during a four-hour performance, you may play everything from Patsy Cline to The Eagles, then throw in a bit of Chuck Berry, followed by Sinatra and a little Bo Didley. Most nights, my audiences range in age from 40 to 80, and for the most part, I'm able to entertain them all. Some, however, cannot be entertained no matter how hard you try and no matter how much enthusiam and energy you put forth.
Bottom line; Donny, you go into every job with a gig plan, but instead of programming the information in your keyboard, it's programmed in your head, When you see which part of the program seems to be working, your brain modifies that venue and kicks things into high gear. That's why you've been so successful over the years, and that's why I'm buyin' the beer when I get to south Jersey in a couple months.
Keep the information flowin' guys,
Gary
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PSR-S950, TC Helicon Harmony-M, Digitech VR, Samson Q7, Sennheiser E855, Custom Console, and lots of other silly stuff!
K+E=W (Knowledge Plus Experience = Wisdom.)