Perfect Taste of Minnesota by Hopes and Dreams

Taste of Minnesota 2008

Taste of Minnesota 2008
Taste of Minnesota 2008
REO Speedwagon
Taste of Minnesota 2008
Plenty of people at the 2008 Taste of Minnesota, including The Poncho Dogs... I mean... REO Speedwagon!

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Musician's Guilt
The flier in the latest issue of the Musician Union News relieved about three month worth of musician's guilt. The flier advertised the lineup at the 2008 Taste of Minnesota. Look at all the working musicians!
July 3rd Cosmo (Fran & Anthony Cosmo, former members of Boston)
R.E.O. Speedwagon (R.E.O. were the initials of Ransom Eli Olds)
July 4th Ladies of Doo Wop (The Chiffons, Maxine Brown, Barbara Lewis)
The Original Idols (Bay City Rollers featuring Ian Mitchell, The Cowsills, Bo Donaldson & the Heywoods, Barry Williams)
Badfinger
July 5th Sick Puppies (from Australia)
Finger Eleven (from Canada)
Seether (from South Africa)
July 6th Jordan Pruitt (from Radio disney)
The Zombies
Eddie Money
Plus there's T. Albert Lloyd, G.B. Leighton, Ipso Facto, The Truth, Backseat Boogie Band, The Trashmen, Shannon Curfman, plus more on the Christian Music Stage!

It's an amazing group of young and old musicians. All working! I know what it's like, and I have no idea.
I'm a musician, but unlike other musicians, I'm working all the time.
.......... I'm a banjo player. ..........

You'd think I was the only banjo player in the country. I am constantly bombarded by requests for banjo music... not any specific or identifiable tune, just a banjo lick. Sometimes, if I'm teasing the requestor, I'll ask them if they want bluegrass, country, irish, dueling... dueling takes twice as long to record... And they'll just start to explain their project instead. They want music representing either --

So I've provided the uncredited background music to countless TV, movie, DVD, and game soundtracks. I just plucked the final notes on Grand Theft Auto V -- Backwoods Edition. So the guilt of being a working musician, night and day, has kept me up nights. It's great to take a break, open up Musician Union News, have the insert fall out for the Taste of Minnesota, and see all these musicians working one of the largest free fairs in the country.

Back to work.
- Ben  


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