Take Nothing For Granted

Today, the lesson is to never take anything for granted. EVER!

Last night I performed at a wonderful place in Valparaiso, Indiana called the Front Porch. (  www.frontporchmusic.com) I have played there for years and actually count the former owner and present owner as friends of mine. I arrived around 4:30 pm for my 8 pm gig. Loaded in and set up my gear and then the CD’s for sale. The sound man arrived and we did a sound check. I then went to my dressing room and played my guitar and sang, as I had not done any playing or singing in about three days. It was like listening to a rusty garden gate.

After a while the sound man came in and asked me if I he could show me this new Fishman (www.fishman.com) one man amp. It is a portable sound system designed to compete with the Bose column sound system (www.bose.com). As we still had over two hours til show time, I said okay.

We went down to the room and he set it up on the stage and took my feed to the room and plugged it right into the Fishman and I played with it for a while. It sounded good; I told him so and then unplugged my guitar and returned to my dressing room.

When the show started, I came out on to the stage, plugged in and began my show. The monitors seemed a little light and I asked for more guitar. During the fourth song of the set, I decided to use my looping box on the tag. I played the chord progression and then punched the floor button to record it. The flashing lights indicated that it had been recorded.

As I attempted to play it back and overdub something else, I discovered that my effects were not plugged into the system. The sound man had neglected to put the arrangement back the way it was before he demonstrated the Fishman and I, assuming that he would do his job, didn’t sit there and make certain that everything was the way it should be before I went back to my dressing room.

I covered the discovery by moving into the guitar mike and playing a coda kind of thing and ending the song. Then I asked for the sound man, who mysteriously, was no longer at the sound console. He returned momentarily and we got everything back the way it was before the demonstration and I went on with the show.

The blame lies with me. I should have ascertained that everything was right before I left the stage. I took for granted that he would do it. NEVER TAKE ANYTHING FOR GRANTED. It doesn’t matter if they think that you are an anal retentive a-hole. What matters is that when you take the stage everything is working FOR you, not AGAINST you.

Your job is to make certain that everything that you can possibly do to ascertain a smooth and professional show is in place. If you have a road manager, then it’s his job and it’s your job to ascertain that he is doing that job. In the final analysis, it’s you up there in the spotlight and everything good or bad will be attributed to you. The perception is that it’s your responsibility.

On a slightly different topic, the sound man had told me that he contacted Fishman to suggest that they have a kill switch that would cut off the reverb when the act was talking and then with the flick of that switch turn on the reverb when the artist was singing. I thought it was a very good idea.

All during my show, the sound man never turned the reverb off during my monologues and I didn’t want to tell him to do so from the stage, as I felt it would make us both look worse. So I spent the evening sounding like the Wizard of Oz...”Dorothy, put that puppy down!”

People are weird and unpredictable and inconsistent. Cover every base you can and still be prepared for the snafu.

Comments

[Bobby Brogan]

you are absolutley right...I once kept at someone about an audition via voicemail and I inadvertantly sounded really pissed off once...But I got the info that I needed...And when I showed up for the audition and this dear sweet woman saw my name on the cattle call list she began shouting asking asking where I was that she wanted to meet me...she turned out to be a wonderful talented woman...but had I not kept at her I never would have gotten the info i needed

What character said: "Dorothy put that puppy down!"?

I dont recall the Wizard himself ever saying it...and it would only make sense that Auntie Em would say it when Miss Gulch came to take Toto away

"I'll bite you myself!!!!!"