Friday, March 5, 2004 | 8:34 a.m.
Job security isn't in a musician's vocabulary.
Their lives generally consist of one-night stands, a gig that may last a few days or a few weeks, a party here, a concert there.
Uncertainty is a keynote to their existence.
It is amazing, then, that Jim Fitzgerald and his Kinda Dixie Jazz Band have been performing in a lounge at the Gold Coast for 17 years.
The group bills itself as "The Longest Continuous Running Lounge Show in Las Vegas."
The 69-year-old Fitzgerald has worked for Michael Gaughan at various Coast properties for three decades, beginning with Gaughan's Royal Inn, which opened in 1972.
"We were called 'The Royal Dixie Jazz Band' back then," Fitzgerald, a native of Knoxville, Iowa, said.
"Michael Gaughan said to me 30 years ago, 'You keep people 30 minutes or an hour longer than they intended to stay and you'll always have a job.' "
Most Mondays through Fridays, noon to about 5:30 p.m., Fitzgerald and his group can be heard playing not only Dixie, but straight jazz, pop tunes and other styles of music.
"That's why we call it 'Kinda Dixie,' " Fitzgerald said.
The band used to be called "Sorta Dixie" when it debuted at the Gold Coast in 1987. Ten years later there was a shakeup in musicians and the name was changed.
Along with Fitzgerald, members are Edward Sherry (trumpet), Paul Testa (percussionist), Daniel Ellis (piano), Steven Johnson (clarinet, saxophone and vocals) and "Ty" Robert Lemley (bass, guitar, banjo, vocals).
Fans are of all ages, but mostly retirement age and older.
Sometimes the place is packed with listeners and a few dancers who learned their steps in the Big Band era. Sometimes the crowds are sparse. A dozen or more fans from an assisted living facility come by almost daily.
"We've become part of their daily ritual," Fitzgerald said.
One recent afternoon Kinda Dixie warmed up the audience with a couple of Duke Ellington numbers, "Satin Doll" and "Take the 'A' Train." Then they threw in a song by Alan J. Lerner, "Almost Like Being in Love," and trumpeter Ray Anthony's theme, "Young Man with the Horn."
In October, Kinda Dixie will perform in Ireland, Scotland, England and Finland. Throughout the year they have engagements at jazz festivals around the country.
Fitzgerald, who has been performing professionally since the age of 17, came to Las Vegas in 1960. The musician's union was strong back then. Once you were a member of the union you didn't have to worry about job security. There was so much work that if you quit a job, or got fired, you could go down the street and get another.
But the trick was to get into the union.
It took Fitzgerald four years to get his card and get a union job. To support himself, he became a parole officer.
When he finally was offered a gig, he had no qualms about giving up the security of a career with the state government.
"I was earning $511 a month with the state," Fitzgerald said. "I would earn $460 a week with a band."
During the early days of his Vegas career he backed such legends as Frank Sinatra, Lena Horne, Mel Torme, the Mills Brothers and Jerry Lewis.
He has rarely been without work since.
But there was some anxiety among the band members last month when it was announced that Gaughan's Coast Casinos Inc. and Boyd Gaming Corp. had agreed to merge (a deal worth $1.3 billion).
Under the merger proposal (still subject to approval by shareholders), Coast would become a subsidiary of Boyd Gaming.
Officials with both companies said they will keep all of their respective employees. Even so, when changes occur they inevitably create ripples, and ripples could rock the Dixie boat.
But after the initial shock Fitzgerald left his future in the hands of fate.
"I've reached a point in my life that I don't worry about things I can't control."
He and Kinda Dixie just keep on playing, and the fans keep on dancing.
Lounging around
The March entertainment lineup at The Lounge in the Palms includes Vibe, featuring guest DJs from 9 p.m. to 2 a.m. Fridays and Saturdays; Acoustic Jam, 10 p.m. to 2 a.m. Sundays; Acoustic Asylum, from 10 p.m. to 2 a.m. Tuesdays; Wired, from 10 p.m. to 2 a.m. Wednesdays; UnderCover, 9 p.m. to midnight Thursdays.
The Kelly Richie Band will perform at 8 p.m. Thursday at Sunset Station. For information, call 547-5300. The blues band, led by vocalist/guitarist Kelly Richie, was originally scheduled to perform at Boulder Station's Railhead lounge. Richie is described as a female Jimi Hendrix and Stevie Ray Vaughan because of her ripping guitar leads.
Rebel, Rebel, Ultra Pricks and The Luv-Tapz perform at 10 p.m. Saturday at the Double Down Saloon, 4640 Paradise Road. There is no cover charge. For more information, call 791-5775.
For a taste of old Las Vegas, check out the Algiers Cocktail Lounge, 2845 Las Vegas Blvd. South. The joint has been around since the days when the mob kept the city running smoothly.
The Roadhouse, 2100 N. Boulder Hwy., in Henderson, has re-opened under new ownership. Country Chuck, popular part-time DJ for KWNR 95.5-FM, hosts karaoke there 8 p.m. to midnight Mondays.
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