Tribute acts degrading?

[spinynorman]

[quote name='Bilbo' timestamp='1346752927' post='1792591']
It is, as everything is, horses for courses and there will always be those who want to recapture some halcyon days or be satisfied with a bastard version of the things they missed because they were born too late. I would always rather see something fresh and original than people reproducing the greats of yesteryear. That applies to Jazz bands and classical stuff as much as it does Rock and Pop etc
[/quote]

I find it very difficult to believe you really think the way this reads to me. Classical stuff? Leaving aside that a lot of classical music wasn't originally performed by the composer, are you really suggesting we throw away the entire western european musical heritage, just because we were born too late? Same applies to jazz and even rock and pop. Where does all the great new, original stuff come from? New artists building on what went before. Standing on the shoulders of giants. That's how we progress.

[Bilbo]

[quote name='chris_b' timestamp='1346761989' post='1792759']

The only issues are is it a good or bad performance and is the playing good or bad.

[/quote]

No, it's not. It is more than that. What Dylan stood for in the late 60s/early 70s is not served by someone dressing up as Dylan or even playing his stuff. What the Pistols stood for or Maiden or Joni Mitchell or Zappa or Lennon or The Jam or Yes or Mingus was something more than 'entertainment'. Entertainment is Max Bygraves, Freddie Starr, Opportunity Knocks and The X Factor. The tribute band scene dishonours those it seeks to reproduce in the same way that Athena posters misrepresented Hieronymous Bosch paintings or Hollywood dishonoured The Italian Job. The first generation versions are Art, the second generation is not.

[SteveK]

[quote name='Norris' timestamp='1346759921' post='1792719']
^This^

Hells Bells (AC/DC tribute) are playing locally soon, and I'll certainly be getting tickets. I've seen them a couple of times before and they have been excellent.[b] I'm unlikely to get the same 'intimate' experience from the real thing,[/b] assuming they are touring anywhere near the UK in the forseeable future.

I think there's a certain amount of snobbery in some of the responses to this thread. Yes, probably all of us would like to be in a top original band - however the majority of us will probably never reach those heights. I have a feeling that some of the site members here are in tribute or covers bands, and other members could perhaps be a little more supportive. However the occasional negative sentiments do not reflect the overall positive vibe of basschat. There are good & bad tribute acts, the same as there are good and bad bands of all genres.
<Puts tin hat on ready for flaming>
[/quote]
Of course, if it's an intimate experience, then a half decent tribute is fine...but, if the band are slavishly copying the original, then you won't get the same [b]musical[/b] experience. When I hear music I want to hear something personal, I want to hear the musician reveal himself .

[quote name='Norris' timestamp='1346761959' post='1792758']
So here's a question - if there's only one or two of the original members left, is it still the original band or a tribute act?
(Especially if the gig is primarily made up of their old 'classics' & little/no new material)
[/quote]I guess I kind of fall into that category, although we do a lot of newer material.
The band is well known (amongst its half dozen fans) for completely stripping back and rearranging the songs, no 2 nights are the same. Each member adapts/changes parts on a fairly regular basis. Basically, even songs we've been playing for 20 + years are still "work in progress". The band may not be the "original" lineup, but it's certainly not a "tribute" either.

Edited September 4, 2012 by SteveK

[Spike Vincent]

[quote name='PaulWarning' timestamp='1346763097' post='1792791']
fair enough then, wouldn't do for us all to be the same, personally I don't like listening to bands doing a set of stuff I've never heard before
[/quote]

No personal disrespect intended,but this shocks me.

[Bilbo]

[quote name='spinynorman' timestamp='1346763203' post='1792796']


I find it very difficult to believe you really think the way this reads to me. [/quote]

Beware of absolutes . Of course I don't want to eliminate the existence of all that has gone before but I would like to eliminate the idea that everything stopped when Beethoven died etc and that all the good stuff was around when I was between the age of 17 and 24 .

[Spike Vincent]

[quote name='spinynorman' timestamp='1346763203' post='1792796']
. Where does all the great new, original stuff come from? New artists building on what went before. Standing on the shoulders of giants. That's how we progress.
[/quote]


Yes.

If AC/DC had thought "bugger it,lets be a Status Quo ( or whoever) tribute band then Hells Bells would be out of a job.

[PaulWarning]

[quote name='Spike Vincent' timestamp='1346763649' post='1792809']
No personal disrespect intended,but this shocks me.
[/quote]
I'm surprised it shocks you, have you never been to a gig when the band says" this is a song from our new album" everybody buggers off to the bar?

[Low End Bee]

Do tribute bands get tribute WAGS/groupies? Does a Beatles tribute have an annoying woman in a black wig getting in the way at rehearsals?
Doesn't add anything to the debate. Just asking like.

[Spike Vincent]

[quote name='PaulWarning' timestamp='1346764320' post='1792815']
I'm surprised it shocks you, have you never been to a gig when the band says" this is a song from our new album" everybody buggers off to the bar?
[/quote]

No.Never.

[Spike Vincent]

Who wants to form a Wombles tribute band?

[Dr.Dave]

[quote name='Bilbo' timestamp='1346763496' post='1792804'] The tribute band scene dishonours those it seeks to reproduce
[/quote]

No , mate. What's happening is you underestimate the capacity of a trib band audience to understand exactly what's up there in front of them and have little respect for the motives of those who choose to play in one.

I've never understood why anything that has mass appeal is considered 'wrong' by definition by those who consider their own less popular tastes 'highbrow' and therefore more valid .

It's OK to be in trib band , sing karaoke , go on the X factor , play modern jazz , read Shakespeare , read Razzle , go to football , go to the ballet....... folk can do what they want. It's even OK to do all of those things above as the mood takes you - you don't have to define yourself one way only.

You talk of some things being 'entertainment' like it's a dirty word. True - some things can be for more than that - but some that doesn't make entertainment invalid. It just means it's never enough for you.

Edited September 4, 2012 by Dr.Dave

[Dr.Dave]

[quote name='Low End Bee' timestamp='1346764425' post='1792818']
Do tribute bands get tribute WAGS/groupies? Does a Beatles tribute have an annoying woman in a black wig getting in the way at rehearsals?
Doesn't add anything to the debate. Just asking like.
[/quote]

Yes. I got asked to keep the beard on.

[PaulWarning]

I suppose the bottom line is that the majority of people want to hear something they're familiar with when they go to a gig, this is why originals only bands have such a hard time

[JellyKnees]

[quote name='Spike Vincent' timestamp='1346763649' post='1792809']
No personal disrespect intended,but this shocks me.
[/quote]

Me too. I went to Womad this summer (my 5th time there) and I'd never heard about 90% of the music I heard there before hand, and it was utterly fantastic. In fact one of the main reasons I go there is so I can experience new sounds, most of it stuff that you just don't get to hear in the mainstream, and I usual buy a few CDs off the back of it.

The idea of only going to gigs where I know all the music beforehand is totally bizarre.

[Bilbo]

Mass appeal is not the problem. Passive consumption is, along with the assumption that 'giving the people what they want' is a simple case of cause and effect. Lack of imagination, lack of ambition, willingness to accept second and third rate product etc etc.

I guess a good metaphor would be a child who doesn't eat anything but bland food because they are never exposed to anything that is not bland. They genuinely DO like their chicken nuggets and settle for nothing less. Why is it wrong for someone who knows that there is better, tastier, more wholesome etc food out there to say so?

PS none of this actually matters

[wateroftyne]

[quote name='Bilbo' timestamp='1346765771' post='1792850']PS none of this actually matters
[/quote]

Yip.

[Sté]

Both is a good balance. I like to go see gigs to discover new sounds, and also go to tribute bands acts.
Though, i don't wan't to pay a ticket for a tribute same price i would for originals.
For example, an international led Zeppelin tribute band came here and claimed 58 euros !!! Not for me. I paid this for the real AC/DC on their next tour !
On the other side, for 10 euros, i went to a tribute bands evening, both from my area: a Queen tribute band (average level. Good for having a beer with friends) but a Pink Floyd tribute band which was AMAZING. A real magical trip. The best 10 euros i spent from a long time.

Floyd Generations:

[url="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2zwDwyIJ0G4"]https://www.youtube....h?v=2zwDwyIJ0G4[/url]

Way better than having a real Floyd evening on DVD.

Edited September 4, 2012 by Sté

[BILL POSTERS]

[quote name='Norris' timestamp='1346761959' post='1792758']
So here's a question - if there's only one or two of the original members left, is it still the original band or a tribute act?
(Especially if the gig is primarily made up of their old 'classics' & little/no new material)
[/quote]

You mean like The Feelgoods, No original members left, although Phil Mitchels been with em years and years. I have heard them described as 'Just a tribute act now'

Which is cobblers isnt it ? Theyre still a good band. Wilko is still playing stuff from the feelgoods heyday, so is he a tribute act ?

Of course not.

Lets go one further, A large proportion of the well known Feelgoods numbers were actually covers of R&B standards. So were they a covers band, or a tribute act, or just a bloody good R&B band. ?

So what would that make a feelgoods tribute band playing early feelgoods stuff if not just an R&B outfit. ?

Now if that band was called, (say) The doctorfeelzgoods they would be a tribute act, but if were called something completely differen, but they played the same set of R&B standards, what would they be ? and does it really matter as long as they are entertaining people ?

Edited September 4, 2012 by BRANCINI

[Bilbo]

Eevrything is acceptable if people are being entertained.

Now the question is: am I being ironic?

[Dr.Dave]

[quote name='Bilbo' timestamp='1346765771' post='1792850']
Mass appeal is not the problem. Passive consumption is, along with the assumption that 'giving the people what they want' is a simple case of cause and effect. Lack of imagination, lack of ambition, willingness to accept second and third rate product etc etc.

I guess a good metaphor would be a child who doesn't eat anything but bland food because they are never exposed to anything that is not bland. They genuinely DO like their chicken nuggets and settle for nothing less. Why is it wrong for someone who knows that there is better, tastier, more wholesome etc food out there to say so?

PS none of this actually matters
[/quote]

Bilbo , Bilbo , Bilbo.......... why is something with mass appeal automatically a second rate product?? Why is that? What it is - is a product. Here's one product. Here's another different product. End of. Your imaginary kid can have lobster thermidore one day and chicken nuggets another - it's OK.

I agree that none of this matters but...well......... it doesn't half seem to matter to you !

[Dr.Dave]

[quote name='Bilbo' timestamp='1346767972' post='1792912']
Eevrything is acceptable if people are being entertained.

Now the question is: am I being ironic?
[/quote]

No. You're just making a statement you , and likely the rest of us , know to be wrong.

Now if you were to say that everything a reasonably balanced person finds entertaining is acceptable.... you'd be right. Except I doubt you'd say that. Maybe that's ironic !

[JTUK]

I think I'd tend to side with Bilbao and SteveK on the expression in music against just the notes.
This is the difference in covers bands who get the notes right but nothing much else...it is playing by numbers.
I want to see a band really doing it..with a piece of the player in there adding or maybe even taking the song/track on a bit...this defines good and not so good musos IMV..
and the version is more honest, IMO...

Not that it is the be-all and end-all...and I can enjoy a night of bland covers or tributes easily enough, it is just that I think the band might be missing a trick..
but then also, the band will not realise they are missing that trick. ...oh well. not the end of the world, but I know what I would prefer

[Dr.Dave]

[quote name='JTUK' timestamp='1346769058' post='1792941']
This is the difference in covers bands who get the notes right but nothing much else...it is playing by numbers.

Not that it is the be-all and end-all...and I can enjoy a night of bland covers or tributes easily enough, it is just that I think the band might be missing a trick..
but then also, the band will not realise they are missing that trick. ...oh well. not the end of the world, but I know what I would prefer
[/quote]

So - bands who play covers do so because they're too thick to realise there's another choice?

I've written , recorded and gigged original material. Played in a trib band. Played in a covers band..... all of this I enjoyed for what is was/is. None of this I did because I didn't realise I was missing a trick ! Just the opposite - I did it because I wanted to know as many tricks as I could learn !!

And if you think covers bands play by numbers - come see us - as someone once sang ,I 'll show you something that'll make you change your mind.

[JTUK]

I would indeed have to come and see you to see if that is true. It isn't beyond covers bands by any means, but probably beyond more than a fair few... IME.

[4 Strings]

Depends what you're out for. If you want a boogie and laugh with friends then covers, Motown etc is a great background and way more fun if by a (half decent) live band. If you want to gasp at musicianship this is not the place to be, get down the jazz club. If you want to see some imagination, creativity and maybe even something new, then you'll be wanting to see an originals band. They're probably not much fun if you just want a boogie though.


Most people love to see live music, something I hope to always encourage and prefer them to be played by a live band than by a dj. Hence a quite big market for covers bands.

I enjoy them all.