As Bobby once wrote, "I'll know my song well before I start singing."

To an extent, though, I was lucky in that I always had a place where I could sing and work on my songs while I was becoming comfortable with newer things in my rep. That was my oasis/home place, the No Exit Coffeehouse in Chicago where I played for 37 years. But we never had notes or books to sing from!!! That was unheard of then, and I woulld hope that it would be, and should be, unheard of now.

The sad thing is having this practice get a foot in the door, and soon bad manners become the norm.

It's just a dumbing down. And that, I think, is sad.

Art Thieme