Session Diary - Better The DI You Know

When it comes to relying on a hired backline, Adam Goldsmtith learns a few lessons the hard way…

- Adam Goldsmith

With the season upon us, many working musicians will be emailing backline requests hoping at least 25 percent of what they ask for turns up in some vague sort of working order, whether this is headlining Glastonbury or the Real Ale & Jazz Festival at the Kebab & Calculator in Somerset. Making my living primarily from recording work means I’m not quite as experienced as possibly some of you might be in this regard, so this has been a learning curve for me in some respects.

The last month has seen me mostly on ‘tour’ (well, quite a few gigs in a row) with firstly Beverley Knight and then Anastacia. Beverley’s regular guitarist and musical director Paul Reid found himself unavailable at the last minute, so I received a call from Beverley’s manager asking me if I wanted to go to Bradford for a gig on a Saturday afternoon. I got this call on a Friday afternoon, and I was very happy to help as