The "Sound Guy"

The Commodores are currently on a three-week tour of the West Coast. For more information, visit our website.

Being the sound engineer for the band gives me a unique perspective. I get the great pleasure of getting to hear the band every night. I also get the opportunity to say hello and goodbye to many of the audience members.

A few of the questions I get asked every night:

-What is the difference between the red stripes and the gold stripes?

-Are you all in the military? -followed immediately by: is this all you do?

-do you have to setup all that stuff every night?

-where are you going next?

Being the sound engineer also gives me the opportunity to drive the truck to every gig with the assistant stage crew chief, Musician 1st Class Nick Cooper.

Yesterday's drive had us pass through a haboob. A haboob is what the locals call a dust storm. The storm caused us to move from an outside venue to a small older theater, the Paramount. Being a small stage, I got the rare opportunity to not have to do much sound-wise and listen to the band acoustically. Even with a huge dust storm the town filled the paramount to standing room only.

Luckily on the drive home the storm had passed and Cooper and myself made it home safely. On to the next city where we will get to set up all that stuff again!


Musician 1st Class Scott Shepherd is the sound engineer and a tour manager for the Commodores.