My wife and I made a trip to the Crab Trap in Somers Point NJ to see Mr. Smooth or as you all know him Uncle Dave. His new setup is the pinnacle of efficiency and sounds great. The addition of a very sharp lighting setup from two small units was also impressive. I was very entertained in how he flowed continuously from one song to another, sang great, and used no music. I'm jealous as I use lead sheets for most of my stuff. He covered all the basses from oldies to current to fit the crowd and enviorment. The room requires very low volume but still danceable music, a tough combo.
Excellent dinner too, we'll be back.

Glad you had fun........I don't use any charts either hard to make eye contact and sing....me and Dave do it just about the same......I actually filled in for Dave last night at a nice country club gig Rookie golf tournament dinner which was a lot of fun in Philly.....Crab Trap is nice summer gig also. I also only allow a second or two between songs....gotta flow one after the other keeps the audience in their toes..

It's nice to see a real pro in action, Bill, and, it always inspires us..and, at the very least, we pick up some valuable tips.

Ian

Don
Your next. I know your in the Toms River area and we have a house there, so sometime when we're up that way we'll look you up. Your name did come up last night--all good stuff. Fran too. Sounds like the Three Amigos of arrangers.

U.D. is one of my many mentors. I've only seen him perform in person about three times, but every time was a real treat. I have photos of him when he had dark hair and performing at a rib place along the Jersey shore. He definitely is a class act!

Cheers,

Gary

I haven't visited the Crab Trap for a couple of years ... had a pleasant visit with Dave a couple of years ago and missed Fran by a day.
Wait 'till you guys are my age ... I use a 7" monitor for lyrics, I don't like to do it, but I've found that I need a crutch even for songs that I've done for many years.
Ciao,
Jerry

I found out that I can freeze the gobo pattern so I opted for a static wash of notes behind me. And the jumping star/dot pattern on the dance floor. Cool!
I'll post a pic from home - cant do it on my phone.

Jerry
May I ask what kind of monitor you use and how did you set it up. I'd love to be able to do lyrics w/chords. Very basic lead sheets. Never could memorize very well and its getting worse plus I do a wide range of music. some I may not do for a long time so its not like I have the same set lists every gig.

Now, where did I leave my coffee cup??
Thanks

dave
I'm redoing everything form keys to PA so after seeing your lights they may be in my future too. They really add a lot . If you don't mind I will be in touch with you and Fran for some expert advice. Lets do lunch at the Trap some Tuesday

Hey Jerry - I am your age and use a 9-inch netbook for lyrics! I had my eyes operated on and I can see the words a bit clearer, but it's still not like when I was using a 15-inch laptop screen. Problem is, when people see the laptop they immediately assume that you are a KJ or DJ, despite the fact that they can see you playing the keyboard and singing. I have never been able to figure that out, but that's one of the reasons I went with the tiny netbook PC so it wouldn't be as noticeable.



Cheers,

Gary