Keith,

I'll answer for South Louisiana as follows: New Orleans is always jammin, but that is because New Orleans is always jammin. So there are many bands of all sizes playing the many live music venues 5-7 nights a week. Also there are the Mardi Gras Clubs and numerous Social Clubs who have "dances" on many occasions throughout the year. Now for the bad news . . . everyone, and I mean everyone seems to be a musician in New Orleans so even with all the venues some musicians get left out, however the rule of thumb is if you are worth hiring (and it doesn't hurt to have a connection or two) you can get a gig in the New Orleans area. Also I'll add the Mississippi Gulf Coast and it's many casinos keep many musicians working and they are just a short drive from Nawlins.

While I play gigs from the Mississippi Gulf Coast and New Orleans area I am located just outside of Baton Rouge, La. so I try to book as many in my area as possible. With this said there are only a handful of bars/clubs with live music in my area and in all honesty they too seem to want to get musicians on the cheap so I very seldom do a gig in one of these.

On the other hand we have numerous local business who have annual parties, from summer picnics and seafood boils to the usual Christmas parties and many of these hire musicians. They are also the American Legions, VFW's and other fraternal organizations who have dances a couple of times a year plus the Country Clubs. Add to this the ever growing number of Retirement Communities and we have more than enough venues at which to perform, and the better news is the going rate for a good act starts at 100.00 per hour per man for a single or duo type act.

While they still are a few good weddings available (but most use djs now) I left out weddings as I gave up playing weddings quite a few years ago, just too much hassle for this old picker. Keep in mind I am not saying that there is enough work for a single or a duo to support a family, just enough to make some extra scratch and keep you in the latest equipment.

PS: In an effort not to not jump all over this thread I thought I'd post my recipe for getting started (or in some cases re-started) playing live gigs on the Tricks & Tips Forum.

Later,

Danny C.
www.dannycampo.com
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Danny-Campo/379776252109306?skip_nax_wizard=true

The More You Drink The Better I Sound