the last word? maybe?
now playing: tom petty, "straight into darkness"
ok.
if this is how we're gonna do it, then so be it.
first of all, let's review one of your points - you gave me the option, via email, to "opt out" of the july 16th show. here's the quote, lifted directly from your email of 5:07pm on 5/2/05:
"Are you really up for the Tin Angel show or do you want to bow out now? Can I count on you to deliver the late set on July 8 at The World Cafe Live and the party in Maryland on July 16th or do we need to end it all now?..."
that's pretty clear to me - and i opted to finish the tin angel show with you, due to its proximity. the tin angel show was on 5/12. the party in maryland is 7/16. that gives you a two month period to find another guitar player before that show. (i'm also baffled as to why you'd be more upset about bailing on that show than the WCL show a week prior.)
so why offer me the option of "bowing out" and then complain about it when i take you up on it?
regarding my job, and how taxing it is - i don't have to explain to anyone who knows me and my situation what's going on with my job. as an example, a couple of weeks ago i missed a day and still had over fifty hours on my timecard.
have i booked other gigs? certainly, i have. to be specific, a friend recommended me for a series of "happy hour" gigs at a club in the town where i live. on the days that i have these gigs, l leave work approximately 25 minutes before showtime, play the gig, and i'm back at work to do my end-of-day chores by 7:30...and i'm finished with work by 8:30 or 9:00 altogether, and with a sum of money that i'm not comfortable disclosing in my pocket to show for the extra time and effort.
on nights that i had to schedule in a rehearsal, i would have to cram to try to finish my work between 6:30 and 7:00 in order to even entertain the possibility of making it to rehearsal on time...and then, as i mentioned in my earlier post, there are other factors that come into play where rehearsal is concerned that start to pile up over time.
so what i'm saying is that it comes down to a simple "asset versus liability" comparison, when it comes to accepting these gigs that i've accepted. the only gigs i've accepted, outside of these happy hour gigs, are two shows with todd's band and two shows with charlie degenhart, all of which are paid, and i've committed to a minimal number of rehearsals with todd, only because i'm doing those shows on drums instead of guitar. charlies' situation is completely self-rehearsed...he has a keys guy and myself, and we do our homework and go out and execute. it's that simple.
and most of what's on my calendar right now was put there after i discussed leaving the band in the first place.
i could meander on and on, justifying why i do what i do, for a lot longer than you'd care to read it - but the bottom line is, i take on projects based on a number of different criteria...and money isn't always chief among them. but i'm simply not in a position to bleed myself for a project at this point in my life. would i rather be playing with you than singing cover songs in front of Jimmy Buffett Nation? i sure would. but the fact is, my friend, i make more money for one of these two hour gigs than i made in the entire time i played in your band - and after this much time has gone by, i simply can't ignore that fact any longer. in fact, if you take away the CD release party from last october, i made more money in one night playing with todd's band two saturdays ago (playing original music, i might add) than i made the entire time i was in your band.
none of this is being said with any disrespect for your motives for taking on the gigs that you've taken, or for whatever your strategy is at this point, with regard to playing live. you have your reasons for doing what you're doing, obviously - and i'm not here to say they're right or wrong. we could evolve into a whole sub-discussion of the pros and cons of playing certain rooms, taking gigs for certain reasons, etc, etc...but that's none of my business - not anymore, anyway. and it's really moot at this point.
i'm sorry to hear that you feel that i was dishonest with you regarding my reasons for leaving the band - it is true that my occupational workload was the primary factor in my decision to leave the band (which i made before the absolutely abysmal gig that inspired the rants that i posted here that left you so irritated). in retrospect, had i not had the commitment that i had with my job, i would not have quit when i did - but i can assure you that by now i would've, and i would've had no qualms with telling you why.
i'm not judging your motives, or calling your strategy into question, or any of that - nor am i giving assessments of your professionalism. not that this has stopped you from engaging in all of the above, but that's beyond my control. you're entitled to your opinions, and you're entitled to air them here. i won't stop you from commenting, but i think we'd both be better off looking forward and learning from this experience, with regard to what we are or aren't willing to accept in similar situations in the future.
you'll find another guitar player - considering that you take 90% of the solos, you should have a pretty easy time rounding up someone with more than capable chops to fill the spot who'd be thrilled to be part of something like this. as such, i'd like to think that this would be a much easier pill to swallow than it's proven to be for you.
you guys will be fine. you've got a solid rhythm section, a great pile of songs to play - i don't see this as the setback that you seem to see it as.
i hope at some point that you see it the same way.
ok.
if this is how we're gonna do it, then so be it.
first of all, let's review one of your points - you gave me the option, via email, to "opt out" of the july 16th show. here's the quote, lifted directly from your email of 5:07pm on 5/2/05:
"Are you really up for the Tin Angel show or do you want to bow out now? Can I count on you to deliver the late set on July 8 at The World Cafe Live and the party in Maryland on July 16th or do we need to end it all now?..."
that's pretty clear to me - and i opted to finish the tin angel show with you, due to its proximity. the tin angel show was on 5/12. the party in maryland is 7/16. that gives you a two month period to find another guitar player before that show. (i'm also baffled as to why you'd be more upset about bailing on that show than the WCL show a week prior.)
so why offer me the option of "bowing out" and then complain about it when i take you up on it?
regarding my job, and how taxing it is - i don't have to explain to anyone who knows me and my situation what's going on with my job. as an example, a couple of weeks ago i missed a day and still had over fifty hours on my timecard.
have i booked other gigs? certainly, i have. to be specific, a friend recommended me for a series of "happy hour" gigs at a club in the town where i live. on the days that i have these gigs, l leave work approximately 25 minutes before showtime, play the gig, and i'm back at work to do my end-of-day chores by 7:30...and i'm finished with work by 8:30 or 9:00 altogether, and with a sum of money that i'm not comfortable disclosing in my pocket to show for the extra time and effort.
on nights that i had to schedule in a rehearsal, i would have to cram to try to finish my work between 6:30 and 7:00 in order to even entertain the possibility of making it to rehearsal on time...and then, as i mentioned in my earlier post, there are other factors that come into play where rehearsal is concerned that start to pile up over time.
so what i'm saying is that it comes down to a simple "asset versus liability" comparison, when it comes to accepting these gigs that i've accepted. the only gigs i've accepted, outside of these happy hour gigs, are two shows with todd's band and two shows with charlie degenhart, all of which are paid, and i've committed to a minimal number of rehearsals with todd, only because i'm doing those shows on drums instead of guitar. charlies' situation is completely self-rehearsed...he has a keys guy and myself, and we do our homework and go out and execute. it's that simple.
and most of what's on my calendar right now was put there after i discussed leaving the band in the first place.
i could meander on and on, justifying why i do what i do, for a lot longer than you'd care to read it - but the bottom line is, i take on projects based on a number of different criteria...and money isn't always chief among them. but i'm simply not in a position to bleed myself for a project at this point in my life. would i rather be playing with you than singing cover songs in front of Jimmy Buffett Nation? i sure would. but the fact is, my friend, i make more money for one of these two hour gigs than i made in the entire time i played in your band - and after this much time has gone by, i simply can't ignore that fact any longer. in fact, if you take away the CD release party from last october, i made more money in one night playing with todd's band two saturdays ago (playing original music, i might add) than i made the entire time i was in your band.
none of this is being said with any disrespect for your motives for taking on the gigs that you've taken, or for whatever your strategy is at this point, with regard to playing live. you have your reasons for doing what you're doing, obviously - and i'm not here to say they're right or wrong. we could evolve into a whole sub-discussion of the pros and cons of playing certain rooms, taking gigs for certain reasons, etc, etc...but that's none of my business - not anymore, anyway. and it's really moot at this point.
i'm sorry to hear that you feel that i was dishonest with you regarding my reasons for leaving the band - it is true that my occupational workload was the primary factor in my decision to leave the band (which i made before the absolutely abysmal gig that inspired the rants that i posted here that left you so irritated). in retrospect, had i not had the commitment that i had with my job, i would not have quit when i did - but i can assure you that by now i would've, and i would've had no qualms with telling you why.
i'm not judging your motives, or calling your strategy into question, or any of that - nor am i giving assessments of your professionalism. not that this has stopped you from engaging in all of the above, but that's beyond my control. you're entitled to your opinions, and you're entitled to air them here. i won't stop you from commenting, but i think we'd both be better off looking forward and learning from this experience, with regard to what we are or aren't willing to accept in similar situations in the future.
you'll find another guitar player - considering that you take 90% of the solos, you should have a pretty easy time rounding up someone with more than capable chops to fill the spot who'd be thrilled to be part of something like this. as such, i'd like to think that this would be a much easier pill to swallow than it's proven to be for you.
you guys will be fine. you've got a solid rhythm section, a great pile of songs to play - i don't see this as the setback that you seem to see it as.
i hope at some point that you see it the same way.
posted by tom at 17:52
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