Preparation meets opportunity

Over the years I have been amazed by the endless hard work that musicians put in. Even the really famous ones don't have it easy. Our friend, Keith Knudsen of the Doobies, used to say, "I don't get paid to play, I get paid to travel." When we traveled to St. Louis in January we arrived at the airport minutes before they shut it down due to ice storms in the area. We were the lucky ones. Many people had to jump through hoops to get to St. Louis that weekend so that the show could go on. The dedication and perseverance that these artists showed was awe inspiring.



For the past several years Jerry has volunteered his time to play at a benefit concert for Tony LaRussa's Animal Rescue Foundation. It is always fun and always a ton of work. A couple of years ago the back up band, which usually consists of John McFee, Marc Russo and Keith Knudsen of the Doobie Brothers, Steve George who plays with Jewel, and Jerry, had to learn 20 something songs with about five days notice. For example, Vince Gill and Amy Grant withheld their selections until the night before the rehearsal, so that added about ten songs to the workload and then Amy Grant decided to do completely different songs than the ones the guys had charted out, learned and rehearsed. These guys work their butts off. When they go up on stage the audience has no idea that they don't tour and play with the artists. They are such pros.

Doobies with Michael McDonald and gospel choir (awesome)
Doobies with sixteen year old Lara Johnston (dad is lead singer Tom Johnston) what an opportunity for her


The week leading up to ARF Jerry usually has to spend a few hours each day going over the songs. This year the travel was a bit of a hassle, our early morning flight was cancelled and by the time we arrived at our hotel in St. Louis that evening we were worn out. The next day rehearsal all day and then the day of the gig sound check, back to the hotel for a shower and then back to the venue for the show. After the show off to a restaurant in the Hill District (wherever that is) and then the bus forgot to come back and get the last bunch of us. So at 3:00 a.m. we are standing around the bar of Dominics on the Hill, a goodfellas hangout if I ever saw one, telling jokes and waiting for a ride. Finally, our taxi driver, Tony LaRussa, shows up and seven of us squeeze into his Denali for the ride back to the Hilton at the ballpark. Tony is a revered figure in St. Louis now that he won the World Series for them. He was taking liberties with the traffic laws on the way back and I asked him about the likelihood of getting a ticket. His reply, "Not gonna happen in this town."

Tony and Jerry


Tony had to be super prepared to win the World Series. The musicians who show up and make it look easy for his benefit every year had to practice alone in their rooms for years. All this preparation, work, sweat, travel, money, and fun for a 45 minute set. It got me thinking about all the little moments in life and how other people work tremenedously hard to create these little moments for us. Jerry did all the hard work to get to St. Louis. I just had to show up and have fun.

A Room with a View

Kathy and Carol