First and foremost, have an established network to draw from. In the event of extreme illness or the dreaded double booking, have some one or two you can call on to fill in. If on the road, have phone numbers of musical friends and even acquaintances that you can call in a pinch. The average booking person will be clueless as to finding a fill-in. Better for you to choose who can best represent your music.

Last spring when my health was failing, I managd to get through a very busy St. Patrick's Month. Then I had an April gig the night before I was to have some tests at the hospital. Gut feeling and lack of strength advised me to call a friend to fill in. The medical tests resulted in a long stay in hospital. I dread to think what would have happened had I gone through with the performance.

On the other hand, sometimes you just have to gird up your loins and be a veteran trouper. In this case, there are only two reasons to back out: Death's door, literally, or the possibilty that your performance will be so bad as to make dead air preferable. Just my opinion and experience -- Tom