Just thought I'd check in with a report from my new band.  As some of you 
know (and some don't), I just joined an oldies band called Rocky and the 
Rollers who backs up a lot of the old-time acts from the 50's and 60's, plus 
we do our own show as well.  Turns out it's probably the best-known and most 
requested backup band that does oldies shows.
Since starting in this band in February, here is a list of the acts I've  
backed up:
The Platters
The Coasters (4 different Coasters, BTW...each with their own arrangements) 
The Drifters (2 different Drifters)
The Marvelettes
Frankie Ford
Bowzer 
The Crystals
The Tokens
Fabian
The Marcels
Merrilee Rush
Gene "Duke of Earl" Chandler
Freddy "Boom-Boom" Cannon
On the near horizon are Peter Noone of Herman's Hermits, Tommy Roe, Little 
Anthony, and I'm sure there's another couple of Drifters and Coasters I 
haven't done yet, though we try to get
the gigs with the versions that have original members instead of the  other 
ones who just use the name.  Funny thing is, nobody seems to care that it's 
not original members except us.
Let me tell you, this is a hell of a lot of work.  We have music, which makes 
things a little easier, but some don't actually use the arrangements. Most 
do, though.  I've had to sight-read about a third of the acts I've done ,
but for some reason, I pull off the shows I sight-read better sometimes than 
the ones I've rehearsed (rehearsals usually consist of playing thru 2 or 3 
songs fully and going over the endings for the rest of them if I'm lucky).   
But I've discovered that I'm a sight-reading son of a bitch!  I've had so 
many compliments about my reading from some of the hardest acts to please, 
and when these acts show up and find out it's us playing, you can tell how 
relieved they are.  Some were a little iffy about seeing a new guy, but I put 
that to rest after 2 songs every time.  
The band consists of me on bass, a guy on guitar who plays great and sings 
even better (got a voice like Steve Perry---he's in charge of the music), a 
fantastic keyboardist from Jacksonville, and the drummer who's in charge of 
everything else.  He also sings and fronts the band and plays  great but he 
can be really demanding at times, even when everything's going  well.  
Sometimes it gets a little heated, but he's really a nice guy who  just wants 
to do a good job.  Fine with me, though.  I've had it with bands  who just 
whack off up there and it's kind of nice to be in a band where  they're all 
on time, straight, equipment all works fine, then go onstage  and kick ass 
for 2 hours and leave.  Plus he's smart, which is rare in  drummers ;)
Had to buy a lot of stuff, though.  I've bought a 4x10" cabinet to replace my 
beloved SVT cabinet (too much of a pain to carry), a new wireless, a a rack 
for my amp and wireless, and about $200 in clothes.  On the bright  side, 
they pay me enough to be able to afford all this stuff, and for once  in my 
life, I have over $1000 in savings to boot!  I don't quite make the  big 
bucks, but for once I can say I'm making a good living between this gig  and 
my other freelance work.
So on a scale of 1 to 10, I rate this gig a solid 8.  And once I get a raise 

it'll go up a point ;)  We're not getting rich off this, but at least we're 
making a decent living and playing some big places.  And though most of the 
acts haven't had hits for 20 years, there's still a huge market for it and  
believe it or not, there's plenty of young chicks at these gigs, especially 
with Fabian.  Not that I care of course, since I've got a great girlfriend, 
but everyone likes a little scenery.  So for those of you in the Houston  
area, I'll be playing with Little Anthony and the Imperials on Saturday  May 
2.  Don't know the venue but you should be able to find it in the paper.
 
Don't know who I know in this echo who lives near Houston, but if you feel  
like it, come say hello.  Can't promise I can get you in for free, but I  can 
probably do it if you don't come in with a van full of people.
Jimmy
___ Blue Wave/386 v2.30 [NR]
--- GEcho 1.00
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