Oops, sawry Podger! I missed that second inquiry about fees altogether and got caught up in the other question about set length.

Just to add one more note to that question I used to play three hours straight without a break and got to enjoy the extra long set length but my friends who joined me would occasionally get frustrated at my preference. They were whimps! I played and did all of the singing. All they had to do is play along.

Now, on to that second question. It's a more difficult question to be sure, because venues vary so in the amount they are willing to spend for entertainment. These days, in this area, it seems venues care less about whether you actually can play well and seem more willing to offer the gig to the lowest bidder. So, if you play for free, you've got the gig. Anyone wishing to be gainfully employed is out of luck. I guess workin' fingers to the nubs tryin' to learn all that fancy finger pluckin' was all for naught.

There are some venues that feel compelled to charge entertainers a fee for the right to grace their stages with their talents. I personally find this practice outrageous. Others defend these actions just as vehemently as I contest them. Unless the venue in question has some extraordinary audience exposure to offer that might be a vital career steppingstone, and I've only heard of a few of these, you won't find me readily willing to go that route.

There are even venues that demand, perhaps rightly so, that your "following" fill their establishment. They want your list of email addresses for your fan base before the show so that they can send their advertising to your fans. What if you have no such list of email addresses of avid fanage? Well, you lose.

The web is certainly changing some of this. There are a great many that have accrued fame and wealth via the manipulation of their exposure on the web. I, on the other hand, have only received about three email responses from various folks who have stumbled accross my website. Contrast that response with the untold hours I've spent trying to organize and post that info and yes, it does set one to scratchin' his head and wonderin' why I bothered in the first place. I have to add that I am new at all of this www stuff and perhaps my lack of experience is the reason for my limited number of hits and responses.

The short answer to this question of "how much" is, as little as nothing, and as much as $500. for a set. Again it depends upon the venue and their particular needs and my willingness to barter my talent.