Wow! Some big names in that bunch, Scott.

I played at a children's hospital in St. John's Newfoundland called the Janeway, quite a few years ago, and was surrounded by kids from 5 to about 12, all dealing with cancer. I was using a Roland E-70 at the time and we had a ball...even played the "sound effects" which were a real novelty at the time. The kids were totally fascinated, and I was totally humbled.

Here I was, a healthy man, in my 40's, with the ability to play, and there were kids there with less than a few months to live...their attitudes were certainly inspiring and after the gig, I took the gear out, put it in the Jeep, and then sat behind the wheel for over 15 minutes, crying like a baby.

It was the most rewarding thing I ever did in my career as a musician.

An unexpected by-product of the gig was several very lucrative dinner gigs as the owner of one of the premier restaurants in St.John's was the Dad of one of the children, and those gigs led to more well paying jobs...all because of a little bit of my free time spent with kids in dire situations.

The old saying "sometimes you have to give it away to keep it" is one I have always believed in very strongly.

That's not to say that those who do charge are in the wrong, or are exploiting the ill and elderly...on the contrary...it takes a special kind of person to be able to handle NH gigs, and the places with budgets for entertainment should pay the performers well for their time.

And, most importantly, those who do charity work should be very careful not to take work away from those who make their living with music.

It has been my experience there is room for both.

Ian