Much like your encounter with Tom Scott, when I was in LA I answered an audition ad for a 4 piece lounge band looking for a sax player. As I stop and think now, it's more like WHY did I answer an ad in LOS ANGELES for a sax player. I got there 45 minutes early and was handed a number. I was number 94. 93 other people wanted that gig SO BADLY that they got there earlier for the audition than I did. As I sat there trying not to pee myself from nerves and shrinking self esteem, I looked across the room and thought I saw Lon Price. I went over and said hello and asked if he was Lon Price. He said "Yes. I am. Nice to meet you." (Polite!) And I asked him "Why are you HERE? You play with Al Jarreau." His reply makes more sense to me now than it did then, but he said "Yeah I do. When Al PLAYS. It's not like he tours all year. I have bills to pay just like you do." And as a starstruck nobody I thought "That's the guy who played that solo on We're In This Love Together and we are vying for the SAME GIG???

To bring the story home, that was something like I had never seen before. It was in a movie theater. Down front was about 6 people behind a mixer and a CD player. We were all waiting in another part of the building so we could not hear what went on before us. I walked out and there were 6 folders on the table next to me. They said "Pick up a folder and tell us what number it is." I picked on up and said "I have number 5." They said "Take the music out of the folder and put it on the stand. When the click track starts, turn the blank first page and pick it up on bar 5."

It was the worst nightmare I had ever lived through. It was in Ab, a HORRIBLE key for me, and I had no time to look it over. It was 2 bars of click track and I had to start playing this 2 minute piece with a key change. That was as embarrassed as I have ever been with a sax in my mouth. I actually can't believe I could play that bad, but that was 2 minutes of living proof. I came out from the torture chamber and as I was putting my horn back a guy a few numbers later asked "How'd it go?" My reply was "After that, I will NEVER do this kind of audition again. I was shocked they didn't stop me halfway through and ask me to leave. Wow."

I don't know who got the gig but it wasn't me, OR Lon. I mean, if Lon Price is not good enough... I ran into him in a bar on Ventura Blvd a few weeks later and we talked for about 10 minutes and he just said "That's the scene out here. They want you to be a great sight reader more than they even care about your actual playing. I don't know which chart you picked but I guarantee you after years of this that they were ALL equally challenging." Then he gave me some tips about how to practice, the most helpful one was to learn EVERY song in EVERY key. And if one particular thing challenges you, work on that the most. To not avoid weaknesses, rather play to overcome them.

I wish I had listened... LOL