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PostPosted: Mon May 28, 2012 6:38 pm 
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mrmarog wrote:
Thank you, Eartling & Sevarin. The doctors have been able to insert a balloon in her aortic artery and expand the valve to make it open a bit more, so she is feeling better. Early this winter she was raking leaves and shoveling snow (what little there was). She is a very feisty lady and I had hopes of her going way beyond 100, but this was unexpected. There is a good possibility of going to Iowa soon to help around the house until she improves.

I was hoping to stop in and see Rip, Exweed, and Twansene when my mother is feeling better. Any body else in Iowa?

Thanks again for the love and support.



Wow, haven't stopped back in on this thread since my original post. Sorry to hear about your mom, hope things work out for you. I don't have any karaoke bar gigs scheduled at this time, just private parties and a few DJ gigs. If I am available if you come, would be nice to hook up with some others nearby if my schedule works out.

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PostPosted: Fri Feb 08, 2013 7:01 pm 
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Update: I was just asked, this evening, to fill in for the "current host" at my old pub because the the host was sick. I quickly replied yes!!! I do miss all the fun of running a successful show with lots of singers (25 to 40). I run a very different show than the current host and I am sure that the patrons will be quick to let the "new owners" know.

I am still not ready to commit to a steady gig. 2012 was way too much for me to handle, and my wife and I are looking for "lucky 13".


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PostPosted: Sat Feb 09, 2013 8:39 am 
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Well, good luck with that.. :mrgreen:


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PostPosted: Mon Feb 11, 2013 9:52 am 
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I did the show Saturday night and the place was packed. We had 34 singers and 2 left before they had a chance to sing. I got all 32 singers through 2 times in 3 1/2 hours, and 3 people sang 3 songs. The place is completely remodeled and they moved the stage to an awkward location in the corner, but by having done that I was able to get perfect speaker placement (and monitor). The sound was perfect. The singers were all ready to go at the beginning of nearly every song. I average 19-20 songs per hour.

I liken my experience to grand parents watching their grand children, you can send them home when you're tired. I had a great time, but I'm done for a while.


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PostPosted: Thu Sep 04, 2014 6:05 am 
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I have been back at my old gig for over a year now and since then I have said goodbye to the 2nd owners which were the reason I left in the first place The 2nd owners were responsible for remodeling the place, but did nothing to promote the business. The current owners (number 3) have been doing a great job of promoting the business and they are starting to attract patrons from the community that this "Pub" resides in.

This Pub sits right in the middle of a finely groomed 6500 resident community of mostly retirees. It is an un-gated private neighborhood that police can only enter if invited. This area was built by Taylor Woodrow in the middle 70's and is a master planned development. The Pub has gone through many owners and is constantly reinventing itself in order to stay alive. I do believe that the Pub is experiencing a renaissance and this upcoming season will be over the top. I am quite sure that they will be adding another karaoke night to handle the overflow. Does 2 nights in a row work better than splitting up the nights? Set up/teardown would be a BIG plus.

Last night I had 28 singers which is about average for "seasonal" attendance, but a great evening for "tween season" (not summer & not winter). I had 2 new customers tell me that the "Pub" is the best environment for karaoke that they have ever seen. Granted most of my patrons are "older" but they are loyal, friendly, polite, non-destructive and in bed early :D.


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PostPosted: Thu Sep 04, 2014 7:02 am 
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mrmarog wrote:
Does 2 nights in a row work better than splitting up the nights


Let me give you a consultant's answer......It depends.....

If you approach this strictly from a workload perspective - Provided they allow you to leave gear on site (and leaving it setup is another big plus), then it is somewhat of a no brainer. Less wear and tear of equipment and body. Easily 1-2 (or more) total hours of time you get back as well.

But there are other considerations.

What nights of the week? - Fri + Sat - Again, no brainer. Those will always be great nights for any karaoke show. Tues + Wed - much more dependent on your geography, client base, time of year, hours of the show.

It may be the case that splitting the days up means more work/less free time, but more successful respective nights. I had a venue that started as Wed + Thurs. Wed nights were fine and Thurs nights were dead. We changed to Mon + Wed and the show thrived (not a sports crowd). We have since moved to Wed + Friday and both nights are doing great.

Of course you can always schmooze with them to see if they will still let you leave gear on site even with split nights. I have been very successful at convincing every bar where we work multiple nights, to let me keep a set of gear on site 7 days a week. It is stored on stage, in a corner, or in a utility area. It sounds expensive to just have multiple sets of gear that sits idle 4-5 days a week, but when I consider the logistics, the time, the wear and tear on gear and body, I can easily justify that added expense.

I don't think I am telling you anything you don't already know though. Experience and knowledge of your area are some of the best tools you can have. You have both!

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Last edited by chrisavis on Thu Sep 04, 2014 7:44 am, edited 1 time in total.

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PostPosted: Thu Sep 04, 2014 7:36 am 
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Thanks for the reply Chris. When I first started there I was doing Wed & Sunday, which worked out well equipment wise, because no one was there on Monday & Tuesday. Then I went to Wed & Sat and I had to teardown for both evenings because they had other gigs in between. Both Wed & Sat were very busy so that was great, but the 2nd owner wanted some different entertainment that drew a more diverse crowd and took my Sat away.... my best night :( . With the 3rd owners I am willing to give another shot of adding a 2nd night, but Fri & Sat are not options I have available. The good thing about Fla is that most people don't go to work in the morning and the show runs from 7-10, so any evening has potential for success.

When season comes I have a guy that splits the nights with me because I would rather be in the crowd having fun, than making the extra money. I would then leave my speakers, stands, cabling, floor monitor, and singer's TV permanently on location and would use his rig for the show. With this scenario Wed & Thurs would be best because he has other shows on Friday and Monday.


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PostPosted: Thu Sep 04, 2014 11:25 pm 
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Does the other host get "a piece of your action" in return for your use of his equipment "rig" - I assume player/PC and amp- or the reverse because he uses your monitor, cables, speakers, etc.....?

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PostPosted: Fri Sep 05, 2014 3:40 am 
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JoeChartreuse wrote:
Does the other host get "a piece of your action" in return for your use of his equipment "rig" - I assume player/PC and amp- or the reverse because he uses your monitor, cables, speakers, etc.....?
There would be no remuneration on either parties part because it is mutually beneficial. I feel it is better to let someone use my equipment than to tear it down and haul it around anyway, as long as they are responsible people with some common sense.


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PostPosted: Tue May 05, 2015 4:39 pm 
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Well, here it goes again. The current owners (3rd ones for me) just surprised me today with the addition of a pool table on the dance floor! They assured me that it will be mostly tucked away during entertainment evenings. But where they are tucking it away is where I keep my main speakers. I will now have to set the speakers up on even more of the dance floor with the speaker legs there to be tripped over.

I have never had a gig where there has been a pool table in the same room. I am giving my notice tomorrow that it will be my last night. Here is the weirdest part of the story..... the table is only for the owners to play on during off hours. They are using the dance floor as an extension to their home's family room.

I know I sound like a broken record, but our singers keep pulling us back into business. There is an old saying "all good must come to and end". We will see tomorrow if the pool table is staying or we are.


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PostPosted: Tue May 05, 2015 6:18 pm 
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mrmarog wrote:
Well, here it goes again. The current owners (3rd ones for me) just surprised me today with the addition of a pool table on the dance floor! They assured me that it will be mostly tucked away during entertainment evenings. But where they are tucking it away is where I keep my main speakers. I will now have to set the speakers up on even more of the dance floor with the speaker legs there to be tripped over.

I have never had a gig where there has been a pool table in the same room. I am giving my notice tomorrow that it will be my last night. Here is the weirdest part of the story..... the table is only for the owners to play on during off hours. They are using the dance floor as an extension to their home's family room.

I know I sound like a broken record, but our singers keep pulling us back into business. There is an old saying "all good must come to and end". We will see tomorrow if the pool table is staying or we are.

They don't realize that it's because of you that people are coming in and the reason they're making money. Bar owners just don't get it and can be so stupid sometimes. Their first concern should be to their customers, not themselves. As owners, aren't they in business to make money? Why would they do something stupid like this that can stop you from doing that?

I agree with you. It seems you have high standards and will not compromise your good reputation for their stupidity. Unless you really need this gig, I would be telling them how things are going to be. Don't settle if you don't have to.

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PostPosted: Tue May 05, 2015 10:14 pm 
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Thank you Alan. Life has a very strange way of working things out. First of all, my 100 year old mother passed away on Feb 8, 2015 in Iowa, and her house (which I own) has been unoccupied since April of 2014. She was born and raised in this town and has 100 years of "stuff" that I have to sort through. Iowa has a relatively short good weather period to get all this accomplished and get the house ready for sale.

To make things worse I had back surgery Feb 18, 2015 and it did nothing to relive my pain so I will need a spinal fusion on L2 to L6. The recovery time will be about 3 months until I am whole again. Saying goodbye and needing the time off for these two situations seems to be very good timing.

I do not need this gig to make ends meet (I'm a little bit like Brian when it comes to spending most of the income on improvements). However, I have developed so many wonderful relationships through the years and so many of them have almost grown dependent on my being there. My wife and I are a big part of their "happiness equation".

Yes, Alan my wife and I have very high standards for every aspect of what we provide at every show we do. We just got back from San Diego yesterday because we were invited to sing three important songs for some friends 50th anniversary party. We practiced every day for a month to get the songs just right. It was at a church and it had a very large multi-function room with a stage. We left Sarasota Friday and were back in Sarasota on Monday evening.

They used all Carvin products (made right there in San Diego) and sound was surprisingly good. To make things real simple I used my laptop on stage (behind some flowers), my Sony wireless transmitter/receiver (to send music from laptop to control room at far end of room about 100 feet), and my Keyspan Presenter remote to play my songs. The sound man was blown away by the simplicity and the quality of my setup. It took less than 10 minutes to get completely ready to go.

The sad part about leaving this venue is because it is so unique. It is smack dab in the middle of a 6500 home master planned private development. Police are not allowed to patrol the area without an invite. The room is very nice, but a little small (100 -120 capacity) but otherwise almost perfect. Parking is ample and safe even for single ladies. Acoustics are very good. It will be difficult to find another place as ideal as this.

My hope is that the owner will see the light and I will be faced with finding a suitable replacement during my mom's clearing out and my recovery. Thank you all for listening to what appears to a never ending story.


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PostPosted: Wed May 06, 2015 4:05 am 
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mrmarog wrote:
Well, here it goes again. The current owners (3rd ones for me) just surprised me today with the addition of a pool table on the dance floor! They assured me that it will be mostly tucked away during entertainment evenings. But where they are tucking it away is where I keep my main speakers. I will now have to set the speakers up on even more of the dance floor with the speaker legs there to be tripped over.

I have worked several bars where they had a pool table in the way. In fact, the last place I had hosted, the pool table could not be moved away (as the place was too small to move it anywhere), so people had to walk around it. As for my Speaker placement, I had 1 speaker set up behind me, in a corner where NOBODY could get near enough to trip on the pole, and the other speaker near the front of the bar. What I did to make sure people didn't casually walk into that was, take some empty beer boxes and stack them alongside the legs of my speaker pole. This made the pole more visible, and people (even the drunk ones) would see it and avoid it.


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PostPosted: Wed May 06, 2015 6:04 am 
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cueball wrote:
mrmarog wrote:
Well, here it goes again. The current owners (3rd ones for me) just surprised me today with the addition of a pool table on the dance floor! They assured me that it will be mostly tucked away during entertainment evenings. But where they are tucking it away is where I keep my main speakers. I will now have to set the speakers up on even more of the dance floor with the speaker legs there to be tripped over.

I have worked several bars where they had a pool table in the way. In fact, the last place I had hosted, the pool table could not be moved away (as the place was too small to move it anywhere), so people had to walk around it. As for my Speaker placement, I had 1 speaker set up behind me, in a corner where NOBODY could get near enough to trip on the pole, and the other speaker near the front of the bar. What I did to make sure people didn't casually walk into that was, take some empty beer boxes and stack them alongside the legs of my speaker pole. This made the pole more visible, and people (even the drunk ones) would see it and avoid it.
Thank you Cue, You have just painted the exact picture of why I don't want to have a pool table at one of my venues. Since I may leave for Iowa sooner than planned now, I will give notice tonight. Between the time to clear out mom's house and my back surgery recovery the owner will have have plenty of time to think about whether he wants us back.


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PostPosted: Wed May 06, 2015 7:57 am 
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I worked in a small bar and they had a pool table where I was to setup, the old host setup on the back wall. I just took my equipment and setup on the pool table with me at one end and my books at the other end. this stopped people from trying to use it during karaoke.

the owners eventually made a wooden cover to cover the top of the table so I wouldn't tear the felt.

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PostPosted: Wed May 06, 2015 9:15 am 
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This pool table is on the dance floor. We have 50 to 65 percent of the customers there because of the dance floor, and because of the nice and pleasing appearance of the room. It is not a tavern or a dive. After tonight time will tell.


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PostPosted: Wed May 06, 2015 6:22 pm 
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mrmarog wrote:
This pool table is on the dance floor. We have 50 to 65 percent of the customers there because of the dance floor, and because of the nice and pleasing appearance of the room. It is not a tavern or a dive. After tonight time will tell.

Get your faves to talk to the owner to get rid of the pool table. You have more power then you think. The folks that pay for drinks can get stuff done! :mrgreen:


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PostPosted: Wed May 06, 2015 6:25 pm 
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Just remember, drinks make a bar, not the owners, but costumers do. :mrgreen: And if you bring them in, so do you. :twisted:


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PostPosted: Sat Jun 06, 2015 12:36 pm 
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Kirks Karaoke wrote:
mrmarog wrote:
This pool table is on the dance floor. We have 50 to 65 percent of the customers there because of the dance floor, and because of the nice and pleasing appearance of the room. It is not a tavern or a dive. After tonight time will tell.

Get your faves to talk to the owner to get rid of the pool table. You have more power then you think. The folks that pay for drinks can get stuff done! :mrgreen:

The pool table is still there and I am forced into taking all my equipment out after every show because the pool table occupies the space where my mains used to sit and be stored. On top of that I now have all my equipment up on the stage which crowds me and the singer. For those not following this thread closely, this pool table is not for public use it is only for the owners personal use.

This Tues (June 9) I am having L3, L4, L5 spinal fusion and will not be doing a show for at least 1 month. During my absence I will have another host filling in for me, and I am hoping that my followers will say something about the pool table. It used to take about 15-20 minutes to set up and now with the new arrangement it takes double that mainly because of cable routing issues. I am a neatnik and appearance is very important to me.


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PostPosted: Wed Jun 17, 2015 3:28 pm 
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Well I am now not able to pass an airport metal detector without showing my implant card. I am on my 8th day post surgery and walking fairly well, but no where near to being well. My fill-in host has been doing an great job and I am looking forward to going back to work. I've lost 14 pounds in 3 weeks.

I've had a huge number of cards and phone calls which makes getting back to work even more important.

The pool table is still there and my need to tear down all my equipment still exists. I am hoping that the owner will see the light and be sympathetic to my condition and come up with a solution that makes us both happy.


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