I've been doing this since 1985 in a duo.

Leilani and I were in a 5 piece band back then. First the bass player had to quit and we were out of work over a month. A few months later and the drummer moved away, and we were out of work again.

When we had our first gig with the new drummer, the dining room was packed, so they folded back the accordion doors in the country club and put us in the lounge.

The drummer said "God won't forgive me if I play in a bar." I replied, "God will have to forgive me for homicide if you don't play in the bar tonight."

The next day I bought a 4 track tape recorder and started making backing tracks (I play drums, bass, guitar, and some keys as well as sax and flute).

We were cassette based for a while, then digital arrived and we fed floppy disks into a sequencer, and finally laptop.

I put the link in earlier posts that describe it in detail.

But I also keep a spare laptop on stage, booted up and ready all the time.

Since 2002 when I bought my first ThinkPad I had to go to the spare twice, and it saved the gig (cheap insurance). I simply moved the USB cable from one computer to the other and continued. The audience never knew we were in trouble.

For me, my method (as described in the links I gave) is the easiest, the most reliable, and the most flexible to suit the needs of the audience that I can think of. Until something better comes along, that's how I do it.

Insights and incites by Notes

Bob "Notes" Norton smile Norton Music
https://www.nortonmusic.com

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