Musician Forum - Band Discussion Board - BandMix

... food and beer money, anyway!

Auditioned with a couple of guys yesterday. I could run acoustic lead rings around their playing, no problems, even though I only knew a couple of the tunes (most were originals). I gathered they liked what I was adding to the songs, but normally they have a mandolin player who probably does the same kind of thing, and I don't think it would mesh with both of us. They need someone to play with them (acoustic rhythm and bass) when the mando player can't make it.
Problem - they've never had a paying gig. I told them doing open mics or 1-hour sets with other acts is fine to get a paying job, but to keep going back doing the same (for free) is not what I want to do.
Guess I'll wait to see what develops on this.
Good thing for me is that I can do this type of thing with absolutely no at-home practicing needed, just bring my guitar, plug and play .

I know Im one of the most adamant people on here about being paid with my band, if its a no practice deal and get out and play for 30 minutes or an hour and all you got to bring is a guitar, thats really not that bad of a deal.

Ive done quite a few sit in deals the last few years, since I got remarried I havent been doing them as much, but if it was a cool jam and something came along, it beats playing in my music room to myself.

So if you like doing it and its fun, then go for it.

On a side note, playing live is like 100 practices all rolled into one for me, nothing like it.

Good Luck

GuitarMikeB wrote:... food and beer money, anyway!

Auditioned with a couple of guys yesterday. I could run acoustic lead rings around their playing, no problems, even though I only knew a couple of the tunes (most were originals). I gathered they liked what I was adding to the songs, but normally they have a mandolin player who probably does the same kind of thing, and I don't think it would mesh with both of us. They need someone to play with them (acoustic rhythm and bass) when the mando player can't make it.
Problem - they've never had a paying gig. I told them doing open mics or 1-hour sets with other acts is fine to get a paying job, but to keep going back doing the same (for free) is not what I want to do.
Guess I'll wait to see what develops on this.
Good thing for me is that I can do this type of thing with absolutely no at-home practicing needed, just bring my guitar, plug and play .

playing for free is for the birds.. I live 30 miles from the nearest metro center in Missouri, and to drive 60 miles (or little more little less) just for a rehearsal is a financial burden.. 3-1/2 gallons of gas is $10.00 + wear & tear..it really sucks when the last band I was in were not prepared and did not quite get the 3 or 4 tunes ironed out perfectly amongst ourselves.. prolly bad planning and nobody to insist they were the "manager" did not help either...

that was 3 to 4 songs ironed out per weekly rehearsal period.. another thing is other players in the band want too much improvisation, or a dumb arrangement unlike the original artist's version...if you are going to do covers, play it note for note with as few of "grace notes" as necessary and not 1 "sour note"..

Dane Ellis Allen wrote:that was 3 to 4 songs ironed out per weekly rehearsal period.. another thing is other players in the band want too much improvisation, or a dumb arrangement unlike the original artist's version...if you are going to do covers, play it note for note with as few of "grace notes" as necessary and not 1 "sour note"..

I don't play covers note for note, that's what juke boxes are for. I interpret every cover we do at least a little, in some cases completely change it. Bands that do covers note for note bore me to tears.

fisherman bob wrote:

Dane Ellis Allen wrote:that was 3 to 4 songs ironed out per weekly rehearsal period.. another thing is other players in the band want too much improvisation, or a dumb arrangement unlike the original artist's version...if you are going to do covers, play it note for note with as few of "grace notes" as necessary and not 1 "sour note"..

I don't play covers note for note, that's what juke boxes are for. I interpret every cover we do at least a little, in some cases completely change it. Bands that do covers note for note bore me to tears.

You know, Bob, Awhile back I was an advocate of note for note (Only cause I didnt know better) but recenty I discovered I cant even do my own damn songs note for note...How screwed up is that? The stuff I recorded, I got studio koolaid in my blood...not realizing I may be asked to reproduce my stuff on a stage.. . Well, becuse of that relaization, now I 'welcome deviation . If I ask a feller to do one of my songs with me (if its been recorded already) . I just tell , stick with basic essence of the song, and do your thang any ol way you want..

Very famous artists like Eric Clapton for example don't perform their own famous tunes note for note. Those famous artists that do perform their own songs note for note I find strange. It's like being in a cover band of yourself.

The problem is the average (non-musician) listener doesn't really know the difference. In the old days I chose (for lack of dicipline) to play most of the songs my way. I always had a lot of respect for players that performed the songs note for note. These days I find the audiences we play for prefer to hear the songs the way they are used to hearing them. Having said that cover band means (at least to me) you cover popular songs. When I go to see a band It doesn't matter to me if they do their own rendition or play it note for note. I have been equally impressed and enjoyed both ways.

Nothing wrong with doing a song on your own way - many folks are making good money doing cover versions of songs and releasing them for radio airplay these days.
It's all about pleasing your audience - the last thing you want is for them to be thinking (or yelling) 'what the hell did they do to my favorite song?!'

Ive been going thru some videos of my band and one thing I notice is we tend to cut songs short, I guess so we can play more songs in a night, we have some medleys we do, which if we played more I would love to do more of, but not getting together to work them up makes it a hassle.

Our audience seems to like what we do with songs, its funny sometimes I will hear a song we do and realize Im not anywhere close to what its doing in the original version.

I think this is up to the band members, when I sat in with people I did notice a lot of the better bands I played with pretty much played the songs by the book, so from a sitting in standpoint made it a lot easier than the ones who jam every song out.

But like I said in the end, you need to let your audience judge what you are doing, especially covers, it they are digging it, dancing and singing with you then its all good, if they sit there and just look at you with no response after you play something you may need to re-evaluate what your doing. well other than the first set, it seems people start wither getting into what you are doing or hitting the door around 10, if you have more people leaving during your sets, particulary the later sets then you have a problem connecting.

Hey covers is business and keeping people in the house spending money, dont forget that when you pick songs.

I can remember Led Zeppelin playing on tv in the LIVE AID concert believe the year was 1984?(I think) and Jimmy Page did the first few notes of the lead solo of Stairway To Heaven to a tee, but then went into some improvisational lead solo, to my ears, it was not one of his best renditions of Stairway To Heaven solos.. LOL

GuitarMikeB wrote:... food and beer money, anyway!

Auditioned with a couple of guys yesterday. I could run acoustic lead rings around their playing, no problems, even though I only knew a couple of the tunes (most were originals). I gathered they liked what I was adding to the songs, but normally they have a mandolin player who probably does the same kind of thing, and I don't think it would mesh with both of us. They need someone to play with them (acoustic rhythm and bass) when the mando player can't make it.
Problem - they've never had a paying gig. I told them doing open mics or 1-hour sets with other acts is fine to get a paying job, but to keep going back doing the same (for free) is not what I want to do.
Guess I'll wait to see what develops on this.
Good thing for me is that I can do this type of thing with absolutely no at-home practicing needed, just bring my guitar, plug and play .

You didn't compliment or comment on their music. Was it good? Can you incorporate some of your songs into the band? Money isn't everything and I'm not saying it shouldn't be part of the equation.
But were they entertaining? Isn't that what this is about anyway? You already have a paying gig... but I can't imagine that's too satisfying to someone who writes, plays and produces their own music.

If you have a horn section in the band, they read charts and it's hard to ad lib. They read everything because they're usually with 2 bands and don't memorize the music. It's kinda a bummer if the crowd is dancing and we end a tune. But we do play them just like the record, and I try to play the solos as close as possible on the keyboard.

Sometimes I can't play like the person I'm trying to copy. It's hard to become 50 different keyboard players, even if I listen to the recording over and over. But for little fills and hooks, I play them exact. Youtube videos help with this, there's usually a tutorial on how to play a lick. Then I simplify if it's complicated.

Jahva wrote:You didn't compliment or comment on their music. Was it good? Can you incorporate some of your songs into the band? Money isn't everything and I'm not saying it shouldn't be part of the equation.
But were they entertaining? Isn't that what this is about anyway? You already have a paying gig... but I can't imagine that's too satisfying to someone who writes, plays and produces their own music.

Valid points, Jahva!

The beatles thing (more on that in another thread!) is really helping polishing my abilities, but it is limiting. Hopefully we'll start earnign some bucks with it soon.

The guys sent me an email last night saying they liked what they heard and want to try some more. As I don't have any other things going right now except for Instant Karma, I can afford to explore it, at least.
I suggested that after their gig on Saturday (they are doing a 1/2 hour opener for an open mic night), they talk to the manager about a paying gig. I think I could sit in with them for 2-3 hours with no difficulty, just noodling leads and occasionally playing rhythm when the other guy wnats to do a lead. Not sure how it would work with their part-time mando player, though.
It wasn't clear, from the session, if I would get to do my tunes, or if they were even capable of learning them - my style (pick one!) is probably not too close to what theirs is.
My one thought about this possible gig is that it would give me opportunity to network with others to find a more ideal situation.

Jahva wrote:You didn't compliment or comment on their music. Was it good? Can you incorporate some of your songs into the band? Money isn't everything and I'm not saying it shouldn't be part of the equation.
But were they entertaining? Isn't that what this is about anyway? You already have a paying gig... but I can't imagine that's too satisfying to someone who writes, plays and produces their own music.

Valid points, Jahva!

The beatles thing (more on that in another thread!) is really helping polishing my abilities, but it is limiting. Hopefully we'll start earnign some bucks with it soon.

The guys sent me an email last night saying they liked what they heard and want to try some more. As I don't have any other things going right now except for Instant Karma, I can afford to explore it, at least.
I suggested that after their gig on Saturday (they are doing a 1/2 hour opener for an open mic night), they talk to the manager about a paying gig. I think I could sit in with them for 2-3 hours with no difficulty, just noodling leads and occasionally playing rhythm when the other guy wnats to do a lead. Not sure how it would work with their part-time mando player, though.
It wasn't clear, from the session, if I would get to do my tunes, or if they were even capable of learning them - my style (pick one!) is probably not too close to what theirs is.
My one thought about this possible gig is that it would give me opportunity to network with others to find a more ideal situation.