Donny, I think all of us that have been successful at entertaining for many years do it as you described. Otherwise we would be selling sporting goods at WalMart. Not that there's anything wrong with that--just not what I want to do!
I took one break during the four hours last night. Made $167. in tips too! Wish it were like that every night.
DonM

I hear ya Don.....this is an ocupation of LOVE.....making it good enough to support you & your family comfortably doesn't happen taking Breaks but instead making people very happy to have you do it over & over!!!!

After playing in a band with the same guys for 26 years in NYC, I didn't play out for 7 years when I moved to RI ... I guess I had lost my 'security blanket' ... but after finding myself often sitting down at the piano for 4 hours or so in the evening, my wife and I decided it was time for me to get out again... So now there are times when I go straight through a 4 hour gig without thinking about it .... heck, if I do it at home, why not do it when people are paying to listen?!? ....
t.

I even had some jerky musician on a break in the hallway doing another room... ask me why I was on stage so long, and that it was making it look bad for the rest of them who were hanging out in the foyer..
milking their clients with excessive breaks & bad music.

[This message has been edited by Dnj (edited 02-05-2004).]

..... Don't compliment him by calling him a musician .. even a jerky one .....
t.

Here's one that nearly brought tears to my eyes and inches from sending my wife on the stage to slap the female keyboard player. At out local college a band was performing for an event.. This event was held outside and the temp was over 80 degrees. This woman wasn't using an expensive keyboard but it's the stupidity of her actions. She was playing a Yamaha DJX (original). That keyboard just as a simple LCD screen with no backlight. She left this keyboard out in the sun, and due to the heat and direct sun light the screen turned completely black.. The simple way to fix that would have been cover the keyboard up... However, this idiot too a ziplock bag filled it with ice, and placed this on top of the screen.. With the condensation building up on the bag from the sun, water was running all down her keyboard.. She didn't even care. It drove me nuts to see this. Hell I knew one guy who had a Roland XP-60, and his mode of transportation was to throw it in his trunk with no case or anything for protection. That keyboard was so beat up from him moving it everywhere unprotected.. Plus when he bought his XP-60 it was a $1,600 keyboard at the time. I just don't understand people.

Squeak

[This message has been edited by squeak_D (edited 02-05-2004).]

I was jamming with a guitarist the other day, and he asked me if my kb was new. Actually it's over 10 years old, but I always use a gig bag when I take it anywhere.
Another thing to note..
Take off, or unscrew any joy-stick you might have. It'll save you a lot of grief, if the case gets bumped.

Dnj: Sounds like this could have been
borrowed or rented equipment. It surely
tells you what kind of person they are:
ARJ