blue

[quote name='kevvo66' timestamp='1508178935' post='3390315'] Well it's a sad day, but I need to admit it, I ain't feeling the love in fact it's boring me to tears, how hell do I get back on track before i do something stupid like go back to guitar help before it too late! [/quote] Why did you start playing bass in the first place. Is playing bass something you love? Blue

[quote name='Dr.Dave' timestamp='1508186628' post='3390418'] The interest is in making music. Playing bass is just a means to that end. If you never pick up a bass again but that choice means you continue to enjoy making music in other ways - why worry. [/quote] Not sure how I would make music in other ways? I'm a rock bar band bass player. It's all I know. Blue

[quote name='FinnDave' timestamp='1508185777' post='3390403'] Probably is in many cases, most of the pub gigs I play have strict curfew times, often half eleven or midnight - pub gigs after midnight are very rare in my experience. A lot of places don't want us to start until nine as people eat in pubs and want to enjoy their meals in peace. [/quote] Interesting our bars and clubs are located in busines & commercial zoned areas and can be open until 2:30am. We actually play a few 9:30- 1:30 gigs. Blue

[quote name='Dad3353' timestamp='1508104905' post='3389831'] There seems to be a different target audience, I'd say. Some have dancing in mind (a Saturday night out at the pub...), others more of a concert attitude, with a (preferably seated...) audience listening and watching. In my (distant..!) youth, I can't remember ever having assisted at the former, but spent (too..?) many late nights at clubs, concerts and festivals of all sorts, watching and listening to 'live' bands. I can't really imagine folks getting up to dance to Pentangle, for instance, or Johnny Winter. Originals bands are in the latter category for the most part, I'd suggest, so choice of repertoire and pick of songs to do (including some covers; it's often done, and allowed...) have very different criteria. Maybe things have changed with the advent of discos and raves and such, though; I wouldn't know. [/quote] Great point, When your on tour and headlining 250 seat venues playing your own stuff the target is probably not dance. Material choice in that arena is a different ball game. Blue

[quote name='peteb' timestamp='1508191267' post='3390457'] This is a bit of a moot point at the moment as my band have just had to replace singers recently and have just had to change singers recently. This means that we have desperately re-jigging the set to get songs in to suit the new singer whose range does not go quite as high as the departing one. I would say that first of all the proposed song has to suit the singer’s voice and range (I think that the band can manage most guitar based rock songs – we’re not talking Mahavishnu Orchestra covers here). Also, it has to be something that the audience want to hear us play but not the more obvious choices that they can hear any other band do every week. Unfortunately, we have had to delve into the standard rock cover songbook to put a set together with the new singer but we are trying to rectify that as soon as possible. [/quote] Good luck Pete, You guys will be fine. Blue

[quote name='Conan' timestamp='1508156609' post='3390092'] Why is that? if you are in a band playing a certain style or genre of music, presumably it is (at least partly) because you like that style of music? Does it not then logically follow that you will like some (or even most) of the songs? It seems very odd to be playing in a material that you don't like... [/quote] If I played what I like I'd be broke. I play whatever pays well. However it's still fun. Blue

[quote name='bazztard' timestamp='1508126162' post='3389880'] easy peasy one of us says he's written a new song he plays it to us while we look at the charts he provided then we all play along, and bada bing bada boom, we have another song. songs went down well at our first gig at a music festival a fortnight ago,got another headlining multi band gig next week to test the waters again. that's the joy of playing originals, not knowing if the crowd will like it or not. the thrill you get when they like it is nothing like the feeling you get after playing a cover,regardless of the reaction to it, nothing like it [/quote] Isn't that more like being given a song and not picking or chising a song? Do you ever look at all your originals and say let's play this one or I don't think we should play that one anymore? Blue

[quote name='Nicko' timestamp='1508166067' post='3390186'] Everyone in the band agrees we do not want to be gigging every week. Our ideal schedule would be 10-12 gigs a year[/quote] 75-80 is where I'd like to be. Blue

[quote name='EliasMooseblaster' timestamp='1508159656' post='3390125'] One difference which is worth noting: over here, your "local" pub/bar is often within walking distance, especially if you live in a town/city centre or suburb. No need for a designated driver when you can just roll home after closing time! [/quote] If the pubs are in residentially zoned areas, is that why you don't have 4 hour gigs? Blue

I wonder if there's a reason all these working functions bands play what many are calling "the same old tired stuff" Blue

The Jefferson Airplane's *"White Rabbit" came into our set list and I thought it was dated and not a very good idea. I couldn't have been more wrong, people love it, we usually close with it with everyone singing a real crowd pleaser. It's why I stay out of the picking material arena. Blue * Another reason why I don't like to see Blues bands painted with a broad 12 bar shuffle label

[quote name='NoRhino' timestamp='1508102480' post='3389814'] Do people know it? Can they dance to it? Two yesses and it's in. [/quote] I guess that's a good start. It's no garaantee it will work. I've seen bands play very dancable songs and nobody dances. Blue

[quote name='Graham S' timestamp='1508057285' post='3389454'] I don't know about the "wrong" band - I currently play off and on with several bands, and in none of them do I play bass, so I guess in that sense I'm in maybe 4 "wrong" bands, in that I'm primarily a bass-player but play guitar and one or two folk instruments well enough to get away with, while the "right" band would be where I'm playing bass. I did a stint with a hotel lounge keyboard/guitar/bass/drums outfit but I didn't really enjoy it for both musical and personnel reasons. The bands I work with now are all pleasant, easy-to-get-on-with people, but one's a country music quartet, and country music's really not my style, one plays blues, which is OK, on'es a covers band, which again is OK, and one's an Irish/Scottish folky band that does stuff like St Patrick's Nights and Burns Nights. Is any of them the "right" band? No - I'd rather be playing bass in a Fairport/Steeleye Span/Jethro Tull style outfit or an out-and-out rock'n'roll band. Is any of them the"wrong" band? Well, I don't know; I'd rather be playing than not playing, even if it's not necessarily what I'd choose to do in an ideal world. The punters like what we do, so I guess I can roll with it for a bit longer. What I think I'm saying in a rather long-winded way is that "ideal" and "less than ideal" are probably better terms than "right" and "wrong". Graham [/quote] If playing is better than not playing (and I feel the same way), then your not in any wrong bands. Blue

[quote name='martin8708' timestamp='1508056111' post='3389448'] Same here , I joined a Disco /funk band with a female singer whose set list was based upon female singer / songwriter tunes . Enter new guitarist and drummer and we are now churning out the same Clapton / ZZ Top / Blokey Pub Rock that I was trying to get away from . [/quote] How did 2 new members have the power to change the direction of the band? Blue

[quote name='TimR' timestamp='1508086688' post='3389655'] A terrible situation. How dare they? Whatever next? Members of the audience suggesting tunes? [/quote] I meant, it seems like a band might start out playing a specific genre, not mainstream and as soon as gigging becomes an issue for certain band members they're going to deviate from that initial genre and start suggesting covers. It seem like that's what some here are suggesting. My point, it seems like the OPs band is deviating from what he signed on for. Hence, he is probably in the wrong band. Blue

[quote name='Spaced' timestamp='1508100780' post='3389790'] Is there any way option 1 can lead to better songs than option 2? To be honest I reckon too many songs being written in styles musicians [i]think[/i] audiences will prefer has lead to the crazy amounts of mediocre music that have flooded almost every corner of our perception. More passion projects, please. [/quote] I don't really know, but now that I think about it writing songs is not really the same as picking songs. I would think most songs are written from the heart for the heart. Blue

I have no say in what songs we play or don't play. However, my personal experience is not picking songs that I happen to like. IMO that would be a recipe for disaster. The decision maker in my band picks songs we can play and sing and based on what our audience might like. Blue

[quote name='DJpullchord' timestamp='1508093801' post='3389709'] Sit down and write some songs. [/quote] Do you write with an audience or what you think people will like or do you just write in hopes people will like it. I'm assuming the songs you write will be heard by other people. Blue

I'm not sure how much of this topic we've seen, but I thought it would be a good enough discussion. What are some of the processes and basis and guidelines you use to pick new songs for gigs. Blue Vlue

I think anytime you join a band that's not playing a mainstream genre and you have members that want to gig your going to have members suggesting covers. Blue

[quote name='Tonteee' timestamp='1507985503' post='3389151'] Whilst initially suspicious of this thread being another moanfest, I've found this discussion quite interesting, plus a reflection of a discussion I was having with my dad - also a gigging guitarist of varying amounts over the years, of the 50's/60's blues/pop persuasion. He postulated that I don't seem to enjoy playing to people. Or even playing with a group of people, in say a jam context. I thought this quite odd - I gig quite a lot, I enjoy gigging, I'm usually proud of the quality of music the bands I'm in produce for the audience - the usual mix of pubs, bars, functions, etc. I gig between 1-6 times a month, with 4 different bands playing RnB, soul, old-school funk, pop. Not showing off, just giving context. Our discussion showed that he felt the difference is that I don't get a kick out of 'entertaining the crowd'. He felt that I did a job and got out. I thought it odd, but on reflection he's probably right. I see a big crowd as a marker of the band's ability to hold attention and entertain, as opposed to a warm feeling of self-fulfillment. Now playing a tricky part correctly in a gig context? Nailing a harmony? Making a brilliant sound? That makes me smile. If others enjoy that too, cool. I raise all this as I want to support the notion that playing an instrument, forming a group and not gigging with it can be very rewarding. Most of the jazz stuff I've done has rarely gigged, but the experience of having to follow a chart playing unfamiliar structures has been invaluable in my growth as a player. I'm grateful to have had those opportunities. There's been talk of rehearsal without a gig in mind is not rehearsal. The goal is not so defined, surely? Playing a piece well is a goal in itself. To wrap up this gargantuan message, I wanted to add that I'm not keen on rehearsal in front of an audience. I think any new material needs to have been rehearsed. To not do so is - to me - disrespectful. Right, as you were, outpouring over. 😀 [/quote] I think I know where your Dad's coming from. After 50 years I'm still completely excited about entertaining a crowd. It's a part of my DNA. There's nothing wrong about where any of us gets the joy or fun as long as your getting it. Sounds like you have plenty of outlets besides gigging to get it. Blue

[quote name='Nicko' timestamp='1507898698' post='3388659'] Is it me or they have they got the wrong bassplayer?[/quote] Depends on what you want out of a band. For me, as longs as a band has a consistent schedule of paying gigs and the the band members are fun, honest trustworthy people, I'm in the right band. I could care less what songs they play. Sounds like the material a band plays us very important to you.At this point it sounds like you might be in the wrong band. Blue

[quote name='odysseus' timestamp='1507836337' post='3388330'] It all depends on what the people in the band are aiming for. I've been in gigging bands, I've been in studio-only bands. If you want plenty of gigs around here, then you're going to have to play the same type of tired old covers that everyone else is playing [/quote] That's too bad, as you indicate "around here" In some markets, if a band is good and has built up a following over many years you don't need to play easily recognizable tired covers at all. We're a cover band to a degree, however we have 2 CDs of originals. We probably play a half dozen originals over the course of a typical 4 hour bar gig. And I would doubt anything else we play would be considered a tried and recognizable cover. Blue

[quote name='FinnDave' timestamp='1507798460' post='3387976'] That's not the only difference for me, Blue - at a gig you get joy, money, and audience reaction/feedback, which is the most important reason for gigging in my my book.[/quote] Agreed,however I would say positive audience reaction and feedback is actually part of the joy. Blue

[quote name='Happy Jack' timestamp='1507812075' post='3388127'] In all fairness, some drunken idiots can add something to the evening. I'll just leave this here. The fun starts about 40 seconds in ...[/quote] That guy seemed pretty much harmless. Seemed like he was actually trying to be decent. Lol Blue