Talk about diversified jobs. Had a first yesterday.

Publix Supermarkets have an annual Holiday Fest in their Florida stores every year. I got the call and showed up not knowing what to expect. They put me in the back of the store right next to the pickles and Eggs in a teeny tiny space. Just room enough for me, a PSR 2000 and a small powered speaker.

Being Veteran's Day, I started with all the Military hymns and patriotic stuff. Shoppers started marching behind their carts. I was getting the "thumbs up" sign from a lot of folks. Little kids were mesmorized, mothers were smiling, Srs. nodded signs of approval. I gave one little old lady a mic and she did her best to bellow out some oldies like Ain't She Sweet and Five Foot Two to the delight of shoppers (and the chagrin of her daughter who was at first very embarassed, then later thanked me for letting her mom participate).

I tried some of the usual dance stuff...but the things that really went over well were Patriotic, Christmas and some novelty things like Zippee Doo Dah. ( Sorry Tom, no Beatles )

Several ppl asked for cards. A few of the passer bys were friends I haven't seen in years and, all in all, I felt it went much better than I would have imagined. I wouldn't want to make a steady diet of it...but it was fun and they asked me to do it again next year.

Now back to our originally scheduled program.
Eddie

Eddie,

Sounds like you had as much fun as the patrons. As for a steady diet of that kind of thing, WHY NOT? Let's face it, Friday night I'm going to play for 50 to 80 drunks in a smoke-filled bar-room. About two dozen people in the 60s to 70s will show up just to hear me play and dance to the music until about 11 p.m.. Then the 45-year-old adolescents will get rowdy, some will be completely blitzed, the smoke will be so thick you can only cut it with a chain saw and some whacko woman will get off her bar-stoll and poll dance to a blues number.

As for the supermarket job, it's in the middle of the day, you don't have to contend with drunks and cigarette smoke, everyone loves the music, the job takes place in the middle of the day and the pay is about the same. This is a NO BRAINER. Do they have room for another performer next to the bakery department? (I like donuts.)

Cheers,

Gary

[This message has been edited by travlin'easy (edited 11-12-2003).]

Gary...
LOL

It wasn't all peaches and cream (no pun). My little Carol -- who dressed up as "Herself The Elf" and was very helpful in talking to the customers, transporting the gear in and out and watching over it while I took a short break --could not even get a drink of water. And, except for the Egg Nog Lady who was passing out little cups of non-alchohol cheer, there was nothing to wet your whistle or soothe your throat. Ever stood by a supermarket cooler for 3 hours? BRRRRR.

The job was 5-8 pm...so we ended up have to light dinners...one before, one after.

I am not complaining. It WAS fun...and like all new experiences I learned something and will be more prepared. Maybe you could send me some of your famous home brew next time.

They don't pay exactly as well as most jobs, but $50 an hour on an off-night seemed fair enough for what it was... and its only once a year...all stores on the same day.

Yeah...I'd do it again.
Eddie

Hey - thanx for grouping us "Adolescents" into a youtful catagory ..... where we belong !
(48 and holding .....)

One more thing Eddie ....
I did a wedding once where the space was so small that I was at the end of the buffet line.........potatoes, greenbeans, then me ! What a riot!

Luckily, us New York musicians do not have to put up with the cigarette smoke any longer. State law requires they all go out side to smoke. However, the state failed to see one little caveat, all the smokers have stopped going to the bars!!

Attendance at many of our gigs have been down 50% due to this no smoking law.

I hope it turns around, but my lungs are very greatful!!!

Al

I once did a wedding a few years ago in the middle of a Cornfield! The farmer cut out an acre of corn and set up 3 Circus tents ......1- w/dancefloor and stage
2- w/Buffett 3- w/Guests tables.....
it was a great affair!

I also played at a Big Chinese Wedding in China Town where in the midle of the affair they had Chinese Acrobats on Trampolines doing their act while I was playing Circus Music !!


Just another day in Paradise!!

I played for a Kroger grand opening once upon a time. This Saturday morning I have a gig at a local real estate auction, and I'll be playing before and during the auction itself. I've never done this before... I've been told that I am to be ready to play certain "sounds" or cues when winning bids happen, and what those sound/cues are supposed to be has yet to be defined. I'm supposed to rehearse with the auction people an hour before the affair begins. I figure it'll be some kind of "ta-da" or a drum roll & crash so I spent last night programming the MultiPads on my 9000 Pro with some accent/tidbits, which also retrained me on how to program the Multipads since I hadn't used them recently. So whatever they want for cues, I'll be able to program it into the MultiPads and have ready.

BTW: I have a keyboard-muso freind who performs for auctions full-time and travels throughout the US and as far as Hawaii. He says he hates it - he described it as like playing at a baseball game so the music and the "cues" are pretty corny, and apparently most of the auctions happen either at the airport or nearby so he never gets to really see the areas he plays at. He flies in, does the auction and flies out the same day. Well, it's different anyway.

Eddie,

$50 an hour isn't a bad income for this kind of activity, and there are a lot of so-called professionals out there that wish they made that much. The next time, you'll be more prepared, know what to expect, and the job will be easier. Last night's job was supposed to be four hours, but ended up at nearly five hours. Only had time for one break, kept the dancefloor filled with seniors and at the end of the night, the pay envelope had a $35 tip enclosed. Additionally, I booked six jobs at the same location for next year.

A friend of mine used to play a Baby Grand Yamaha at Mars Supermarkets four days a week. He got $150 for three hours, didn't have to sing and the job was from 2 till 5 p.m. during the week. He had this gravy train for three years, and while he often complained about the job, saying it was boring, when it all ended, he had a tough time replacing that income from other gig sources. Keep in mind one of my father's old sayings "There's only one thing money can't buy--poverty. You can rent all the other stuff."

As for the Kickapoo Joy Juice, email me your snail-mail address and I'll send you a bottle within the next week.

Enjoy,

Gary

Jim,
I did one of those real estate auctions - what a riot ! You need to be Paul Shaffer and be ready for anything that can enhance the mood of the bidding. Basically, you need a little snippet after each property is won, because you can't play during the bidding.
Stuff like:
"We're in the money"
"Our house"
"Moving out" ......
anything that's cute, catchy, and recognizable. I did mine in a field, so all I had was a guitar, but it was a ball nonetheless.
Enjoy it ...... it's a change of pace from the routine !