Finding The Right Place

In the old days in Toronto, there was so much work that you really had to be careful to end up at the right place e.g. dance hall, synagogue, hotel, whatever.  You had to be careful to have the correct date, time and dress requirements accurately noted in your calendar at all times.

Some musicians in that city, got into the habit of writing down every detail the band leader was laying on them e.g. the time of the call, the date of the call, everything just to be on the safe side just in case there was a dispute.  Dates could be changed and times could be adjusted and other details could also be altered.  I've experienced my share of close calls in such situations both as a sideman and as a leader.

In TO, especially up and down Bathurst Street there are several synagogues in close proximity to one another.   I've never understood why they were built this close.  It wasn't uncommon for musicians to blunder into the wrong synagogue and realize their mistake when they spotted another unknown band already playing. 

There was a lot of Jewish work in Toronto in those days (weddings, bar mitzvahs, bat mitzvahs) and the guys that had the connections cornered this ethnic market.  When I first came there, I ended up doing my share of these long hour engagements. Being hired for five and six hours wasn't out of the ordinary. True to tradition the band was treated well and you were always fed the same meal as the guests.  There was always too much to eat and too much to drink.

This one particular bandleader was thinking of replacing his bass player. It might have been for musical reasons or perhaps they just didn't get along or whatever.   To initiate this up coming change he told the musician that the job on the following Friday was postponed. He wanted to try out another bass player that night.

Well, the soon-to-be-fired bass player, perhaps suspecting something was up, did show up that Friday in tuxedo and with his instrument and came ready to play.   The bandleader was astonished to see him walk in and blurted out, "I thought I told you this job was cancelled!"

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