Re: Getting the gig. Where did it all start?
Absolutely true, consistent, persistent work is a necessity for success.
My (past life) success in the business started with being a sound guy (with system) for local bands, progressed to a partnership with a a regional sound company that “got lucky” partnering with a lighting company that happened to be out with a band that was filling arenas.
I was “lucky” to have some funding come in when I traded some fingers for a workman's compensation settlement, that money bought a pair of Pro Yamaha 16 channel consoles, some KT EQs and Beyer mics that helped secure my partnership and the first tour.
On those tours realized what the real “A” list production companies were doing right, and what we were not..
That time period encompassed the years from 1972-1978, an “overnight success”.
I had some differences with my partners business approaches and decided to “do it myself”, built the best sound system in town over the course of 9 months, then spent much of the next year working for $50 a night in a bar while my system sat in the garage, and the economy sucked.
1979 to 1981 was tough sledding, but eventually, things started rolling, and nearly every client we got a chance with turned in to repeat business, because we paid attention to what they wanted .
We landed some fairly good tours over the years from 1983-1992, but most of the business continued to be with regional annual shows, the kind that build up over a long time.
It was tough competing with Clair Bros, Showco, DB Sound, and MSI (before they were one company :^( ) for tours, but competing with contemporary companies like Rat and 8th day was even tougher, as we started about the same time, and if one of us got the gig over another, it was not because of ten or 20 year old established deals, it was because of what was being done right.
Things have not changed much over the years, if you want to get to the top tiers in this business, you still have to do it establishing and maintaining relationships, along with technical competence and some business sense.
Simple as that :^).
Art
