Musings from Story Jam Land

5/30/09

Orchestral Highs



I write songs and sing in dive bars, but quite often, I am a "jobber." In Chicago, jobbing means you are hired by bands or orchestras to play parties, fundraisers, weddings, and other fancy affairs. In New York, apparently it's called "playing clubs" or "clubbing," presumably named for the country club circuit. 
In Los Angeles, they play "casuals." It's all the same thing, however I am told that in NY and LA, "jobbing" (or "clubbing" or doing "casuals") is completely UNKEWL. However, in Chicago, the BEST MUSICIANS job (verb form of "jobbing"). And believe it or not, you may often find yourself playing cheesy wedding music, but with a hot band and good arrangements, this can be extremely fun.

Fun was the case last week, when I rocked it with The Chris Sarlas Orchestra. 


First and foremost, Chris is a very classy guy who is endlessly grateful to have such an awesome band. The band - Tom Leddy (drums), Wayne Jones (bass), Paul Coscino (keys), Dave Berger (guitar), Mark Hoffman (trumpet), Mike Pendowski (sax) and Tim Coffman (trombone) - is replete with super nice people who play their asses off. How rare and amazing! I have worked with a lot of popular Chicago bands, and this was a highlight. Another amazing element: Chris's singers, most notably Opal.  


Opal is pure astoundingness. I know, that's not even a word. She has earned the creation of a new word to describe her! Her energy is infectious and upbeat, sweet and generous. She threw me leads when she could have sung them herself quite easily. And from the minute I met her at rehearsal, she was all "Hey Steph! I got your back Stephie! Sing it Steph!!!!" Damn, she made me feel so welcome. And, Opal is a singer of stratospheric high caliber. No lie. Maybe she could be like a Whitney or a Mariah. 

Sometimes it sucks being a sub on a gig. You don't know how things roll and the songs might be arranged uniquely. You're trying to look like you've been with the band for years while following signals and watching the other singers to match harmonies. It can be awkward. But, Chris, Opal, Barry and Dick (his other singers) were all incredibly smooth and inclusive and I was on a high for three days after hanging with them. 

2 Comments:

Blogger Hipchick said...

The gist of my comment was: Your bio spoke to me. I'm "parallel playing" (mom term) with you. Our lives are similar. I'm not a singing in dive bars, but I'm going to dive bars to hear some amazing artists and want so badly to get more people our age out to discover all the great music out there. I'm not a soccer mom with a music blog, I'm a boy mom with a music website. Ah, the plight of the N.Shore mom / Artist -- and yes, it starts with the clothes. I'm just not myself in pink and green... I too know the joy of wearing jeans, not coiffed hair, and great hippie jewelry - Nirvana to me. And the music - oh so top priority! I'd really like to interview you for my upcoming valslist podcast series. I have so many questions for you! You'll be in good company with other great artists I've already interviewed (Blind Pilot, Alternate Routes, Jonah Smith, Angel Taylor, to name a few.) Let me know if you have time to meet for an hour!

Warm regards, val

www.valslist.com
Boutique Music Website
val@valslist.com

June 1, 2009 at 9:21 AM  
Blogger Julia B. Edelmann/Buckingham Interiors + Design said...

You are a Mom, a Rocker, a Beauty, a Hostess, and a Friend..Now you are a Blogger??
Da bomb baby!
:)

June 1, 2009 at 5:01 PM  

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