Backstage With the Band

[Potts]

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Tullsterx wrote:

I just stepped out of a Jimmy Buffett tribute act that I was in for a couple of years. We didn't know any JB when we started, so we spent a lot of time practicing and learning songs.  

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I'm a huge Buffett fan and cant understand this concept unless you were strictly doing it for cash and had the market to support it. 

[TIMKEYS]

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Potts wrote:

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Tullsterx wrote:

I just stepped out of a Jimmy Buffett tribute act that I was in for a couple of years. We didn't know any JB when we started, so we spent a lot of time practicing and learning songs.  

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I'm a huge Buffett fan and cant understand this concept unless you were strictly doing it for cash and had the market to support it. 

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pretty well every hunk of sand with water has its own version of jimmy buffett.    Lots of guys are making a full time living playing parrot head music

[Howie22]

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TIMKEYS wrote:

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Potts wrote:

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Tullsterx wrote:

I just stepped out of a Jimmy Buffett tribute act that I was in for a couple of years. We didn't know any JB when we started, so we spent a lot of time practicing and learning songs.  

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I'm a huge Buffett fan and cant understand this concept unless you were strictly doing it for cash and had the market to support it. 

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pretty well every hunk of sand with water has its own version of jimmy buffett.    Lots of guys are making a full time living playing parrot head music

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Pretty much this. There are a LOT of Jimmy Buffett tribute bands. I'd say the majority of them aren't truly by definition "Tribute Bands," but more just a Beach/Party cover band that plays a lot of Buffett and other related tunes.

[tlbonehead]

$50???ouch!?

[Potts]

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Howie22 wrote:

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TIMKEYS wrote:

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Potts wrote:

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Tullsterx wrote:

I just stepped out of a Jimmy Buffett tribute act that I was in for a couple of years. We didn't know any JB when we started, so we spent a lot of time practicing and learning songs.  

---

I'm a huge Buffett fan and cant understand this concept unless you were strictly doing it for cash and had the market to support it. 

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pretty well every hunk of sand with water has its own version of jimmy buffett.    Lots of guys are making a full time living playing parrot head music

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Pretty much this. There are a LOT of Jimmy Buffett tribute bands. I'd say the majority of them aren't truly by definition "Tribute Bands," but more just a Beach/Party cover band that plays a lot of Buffett and other related tunes.

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What I'm saying is that I couldn't imagine forming a Buffett tribute band without even know his music. That gives a new definition to the term whore. Not that there's anything wrong with that- trust me- I'm probably more of a music whore than anyone else on this board.

[TIMKEYS]

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Potts wrote:

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Howie22 wrote:

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TIMKEYS wrote:

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Potts wrote:

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Tullsterx wrote:

I just stepped out of a Jimmy Buffett tribute act that I was in for a couple of years. We didn't know any JB when we started, so we spent a lot of time practicing and learning songs.  

---

I'm a huge Buffett fan and cant understand this concept unless you were strictly doing it for cash and had the market to support it. 

---

pretty well every hunk of sand with water has its own version of jimmy buffett.    Lots of guys are making a full time living playing parrot head music

---

Pretty much this. There are a LOT of Jimmy Buffett tribute bands. I'd say the majority of them aren't truly by definition "Tribute Bands," but more just a Beach/Party cover band that plays a lot of Buffett and other related tunes.

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What I'm saying is that I couldn't imagine forming a Buffett tribute band without even know his music. That gives a new definition to the term whore. Not that there's anything wrong with that- trust me- I'm probably more of a music whore than anyone else on this board.

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we are actually doing very little jimmy buffet stuff these days.  typically only by request.  Most of the beach stuff we do is all original stuff thats more geared toward our local.   Its really catching on. 

[3shiftgtr]

I don't have a problem if folks do the basement/mancave band thing. Just don't ask me to diddly fart around with your bullshit. I'll have my shit together for each practice. Perfectly everytime. I'm not here to fuck around. I'm all about fun, but fucking around is not fun.

Waiting for you to figure out a part while you rewind the cd 10 times is not fun. Arguing with a bandmember who can't play their part right, but won't admit it so they argue is not fun. Having to show the bass player his part only to have him forget it next rehearsal cuz he drank too much is not fun. I could go on....

The bottom line is that people who are serious about their music are serious about it and that is fun to them. Then there are the folks who think they are serious, but really just want to fuck around. Fucking around is fine, just amit that you just fuck around then we'll all know what to expect. And those of us who are serious won't sweat the small shit.

Nor will we show up to your beercouch/mancave jams that you call rehearsal. We will show up to the gig prepared and able to play the songs right. That way we won't have to listen to your haint of a wife yell from the top of the stairs that it's time to walk the dog in the middle of working out the bridge in "Bodies".

[Kevin T]

BINGO! Im too old have significant skills & time & gas are

[Kevin T]

Bingo
Time/ gas /my skills are not free. At the 50-75 / gig avr pay Im not in it for money BUT lets be pros and not waist each others times.

[jeff42]

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3shiftgtr wrote:

I don't have a problem if folks do the basement/mancave band thing. Just don't ask me to diddly fart around with your bullshit. 

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there are quite a few people I know in their late 40s early 50s that are "coming out of retierment" and jamming in their mancaves... that's all they are doing though. Getting together with pals every week and jamming out classic metal tunes.

I have been invited to a few over the years and have turned them all down but one. It was kinda fun for an hour jamming on all kinds of stuff but thats it. I couldn't see it going on weekly...

with that said my other band There & Back Again started this way... 10 years ago as a weekly jam/bullshit session in our singer's garage. All kinds of people showed up for the first few weeks. One week three guitar players, one week 2 bassists, one week a board player and a female singer... soon It settled down to six people but it was directionless and I was getting bored with it so I gave us a direction. I said lets get a setlist together and play shows. And we did, for 10 years. If it stayed as just a way to get away from the wives, GFs and SOs I would have stopped showing up. I feel we never did get totally away from it being a jam/bullshit session because we did TONS of that but we also worked hard. 

With Ostrich Hat it is very little messing around and more... lets get these songs nailed and get done with practice for the night.

[New Trail]

I've driven an hour to rehearse on a regular basis before, but I wouldn't again unless it was a really hot band with a lot of quality high profile good-to-high paying gigs.  I like to rehearse and learn new music but an hour drive is out of the question these days.

[Yer Blues]

I got a few buddies who do the mancave music thing.  It started with a guy bringing his drums to my house.  Fine with me as now I got a full set up.  Usually it starts over at my neighbors with some good grub and then when they've had a couple drinks they like to play.   It's more of a social thing than a music thing and nothing serious musically.  Maybe 1x a month. I would not expect anyone I play out with to want to be involved at all, nor would I expect anyone looking to play out to want to even check it out.  It's pretty funny to see some of your friends try to belt out "Mother" by Danzig or get pissed because they're no better at drums than the were 3 weeks ago when they haven't even done anything to improve in 3 weeks.

[Lee Knight]

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3shiftgtr wrote:

 I'm all about fun, but fucking around is not fun.

You are my new hero. That's awesome.

[Tribal Techie]

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3shiftgtr wrote:

I don't have a problem if folks do the basement/mancave band thing. Just don't ask me to diddly fart around with your bullshit. I'll have my shit together for each practice. Perfectly everytime. I'm not here to fuck around. I'm all about fun, but fucking around is not fun.

Waiting for you to figure out a part while you rewind the cd 10 times is not fun. Arguing with a bandmember who can't play their part right, but won't admit it so they argue is not fun. Having to show the bass player his part only to have him forget it next rehearsal cuz he drank too much is not fun. I could go on....

The bottom line is that people who are serious about their music are serious about it and that is fun to them. Then there are the folks who think they are serious, but really just want to fuck around. Fucking around is fine, just amit that you just fuck around then we'll all know what to expect. And those of us who are serious won't sweat the small shit.

Nor will we show up to your beercouch/mancave jams that you call rehearsal. We will show up to the gig prepared and able to play the songs right. That way we won't have to listen to your haint of a wife yell from the top of the stairs that it's time to walk the dog in the middle of working out the bridge in "Bodies".

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This is really where I'm at these days. I'm finding that there are people who seem to actually prefer rehearsal to gigs, though you could never get them to admit it. It can be maddening, b/c the ones who will not admit to stuff like that will also accuse you of being a non-committed or unprofessional musican b/c you don't want to rehearse every week so they can play bandleader.

I have no problem rehearsing intensely a few times with a band in the beginning, especially if it's a top 40/variety type band that requires note for note delivery of most of the parts. Fair is fair. But please don't guilt me about not wanting to rehearse every week when things slow down to 1 or 2 gigs a month because you think it will "keep us tight". Especially when you make as many or more mistakes than anyone in the band despite all the rehearsal.

I am in the process of leaving a fairly successful (for this area) band for this very reason. Constant rehearsal in a space that the bandmembers are required to pay for, micromanagement by a non-playing manager who takes 15% off the top of EVERY gig, bandleader who nitpicks you on parts that he thinks are wrong that nobody in the audience would ever hear,  while playing  some of his parts OUTRAGEOUSLY wrong (like playing min7 instead of dom7 on funk tunes, kindergarten chord voicings, etc), and also throws his temper at you when he thinks you are fucking up. No thanks, just can't do it any more.

In keeping with my attempts to act professional through the whole thing, I gave the manager my notice and told her I would be happy to play out the booked gigs while they found a replacement. Hilariously, the first thing she asked is if I would still come to rehearsal every week (or more) while they looked for someone. Sorry, but no, lol. Bandleader called me up and wanted the same thing.

I have not played with them for a month, and I have a 2 nighter with them this weekend, 5 sets a night. I got the setlist and I'll go over all the tunes. I've been with this band for 9 months, and not ever played a lot of this stuff before joining them (70s funk) and I guarantee I will make less mistakes (if any) on those gigs than the leader who has been playing all these tunes for ten years.

Sorry for the rant, but this issue has been killing me in bands for the last few years. I think the solution is that I will no longer "join bands", but just "do gigs. " 

[TrickyBoy]

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3shiftgtr wrote:

I don't have a problem if folks do the basement/mancave band thing. Just don't ask me to diddly fart around with your bullshit. I'll have my shit together for each practice. Perfectly everytime. I'm not here to fuck around. I'm all about fun, but fucking around is not fun.

Waiting for you to figure out a part while you rewind the cd 10 times is not fun. Arguing with a bandmember who can't play their part right, but won't admit it so they argue is not fun. Having to show the bass player his part only to have him forget it next rehearsal cuz he drank too much is not fun. I could go on....

The bottom line is that people who are serious about their music are serious about it and that is fun to them. Then there are the folks who think they are serious, but really just want to fuck around. Fucking around is fine, just amit that you just fuck around then we'll all know what to expect. And those of us who are serious won't sweat the small shit.

Nor will we show up to your beercouch/mancave jams that you call rehearsal. We will show up to the gig prepared and able to play the songs right. That way we won't have to listen to your haint of a wife yell from the top of the stairs that it's time to walk the dog in the middle of working out the bridge in "Bodies".

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I love this!!!.  

For the way we do stuff, we generally require one rehearsal before we play a tune live.  So, we generally like to get 4-6 together, rehearse once and add them to the set.  And the only reason a rehearsal is required is due to rearrangements, etc. associated with our instrumentation and/or if we're mashing up tunes.  Bruno Mars Locked Out Of Heaven - I told every to show up at the gig with it ready.  We sound checked with it and it was in our first set.

[Lee Knight]

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Tribal Techie wrote:

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3shiftgtr wrote:

I don't have a problem if folks do the basement/mancave band thing. Just don't ask me to diddly fart around with your bullshit. I'll have my shit together for each practice. Perfectly everytime. I'm not here to fuck around. I'm all about fun, but fucking around is not fun.

Waiting for you to figure out a part while you rewind the cd 10 times is not fun. Arguing with a bandmember who can't play their part right, but won't admit it so they argue is not fun. Having to show the bass player his part only to have him forget it next rehearsal cuz he drank too much is not fun. I could go on....

The bottom line is that people who are serious about their music are serious about it and that is fun to them. Then there are the folks who think they are serious, but really just want to fuck around. Fucking around is fine, just amit that you just fuck around then we'll all know what to expect. And those of us who are serious won't sweat the small shit.

Nor will we show up to your beercouch/mancave jams that you call rehearsal. We will show up to the gig prepared and able to play the songs right. That way we won't have to listen to your haint of a wife yell from the top of the stairs that it's time to walk the dog in the middle of working out the bridge in "Bodies".

---

This is really where I'm at these days. I'm finding that there are people who seem to actually prefer rehearsal to gigs, though you could never get them to admit it. It can be maddening, b/c the ones who will not admit to stuff like that will also accuse you of being a non-committed or unprofessional musican b/c you don't want to rehearse every week so they can play bandleader.

I have no problem rehearsing intensely a few times with a band in the beginning, especially if it's a top 40/variety type band that requires note for note delivery of most of the parts. Fair is fair. But please don't guilt me about not wanting to rehearse every week when things slow down to 1 or 2 gigs a month because you think it will "keep us tight". Especially when you make as many or more mistakes than anyone in the band despite all the rehearsal.

I am in the process of leaving a fairly successful (for this area) band for this very reason. Constant rehearsal in a space that the bandmembers are required to pay for, micromanagement by a non-playing manager who takes 15% off the top of EVERY gig, bandleader who nitpicks you on parts that he thinks are wrong that nobody in the audience would ever hear,  while playing  some of his parts OUTRAGEOUSLY wrong (like playing min7 instead of dom7 on funk tunes, kindergarten chord voicings, etc), and also throws his temper at you when he thinks you are fucking up. No thanks, just can't do it any more.

In keeping with my attempts to act professional through the whole thing, I gave the manager my notice and told her I would be happy to play out the booked gigs while they found a replacement. Hilariously, the first thing she asked is if I would still come to rehearsal every week (or more) while they looked for someone. Sorry, but no, lol. Bandleader called me up and wanted the same thing.

I have not played with them for a month, and I have a 2 nighter with them this weekend, 5 sets a night. I got the setlist and I'll go over all the tunes. I've been with this band for 9 months, and not ever played a lot of this stuff before joining them (70s funk) and I guarantee I will make less mistakes (if any) on those gigs than the leader who has been playing all these tunes for ten years.

Sorry for the rant, but this issue has been killing me in bands for the last few years. I think the solution is that I will no longer "join bands", but just "do gigs. " 

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I love that ^^^ post ^^^

Some guys want you to be their karaoke machine. You know? They're lost without a player doing his part. But the reality is, if they really feel the need to practice so often, they would be better served to practice without certain parts anyway. Take the guitar away and see what everyone's doing for real... without the security blanket covering up their mediocrity.

My theory is, every player should be able to fill the dance floor with his part, alone. Really. This whole notion of needing all the guys to rehearse is just kid stuff.

It's like when a player asks the drummer to play his hat along with their solo intro. I say, no! Get yourself a fucking metronome and learn to groove you worhtless lily white basement dweller.

sorry, what were we talking about?

[guido61]

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TrickyBoy wrote:

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I love this!!!.  

For the way we do stuff, we generally require one rehearsal before we play a tune live.  So, we generally like to get 4-6 together, rehearse once and add them to the set.  And the only reason a rehearsal is required is due to rearrangements, etc. associated with our instrumentation and/or if we're mashing up tunes.  Bruno Mars Locked Out Of Heaven - I told every to show up at the gig with it ready.  We sound checked with it and it was in our first set.

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We do this a lot.  Especially with the modern pop stuff.  A lot of the pop stuff we do are extended medleys of just a verse and chorus or so of several songs anyway, so very often I'll just out an MP3 to everyone, tell them what bit of the song we're doing and where we'll fit it into the medley and we'll often just play it cold with little more than just talking about it during load in and making sure we'll all on the same page.   There's really only so much group rehearsal time something like "We Found Love" really deserves anyway, ya know?

[benzem]

Some badass mofos, here.

[Lee Knight]

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benzem wrote:
Some badass mofos, here.

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[Tribal Techie]

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3shiftgtr wrote:

I don't have a problem if folks do the basement/mancave band thing. Just don't ask me to diddly fart around with your bullshit. I'll have my shit together for each practice. Perfectly everytime. I'm not here to fuck around. I'm all about fun, but fucking around is not fun.

Waiting for you to figure out a part while you rewind the cd 10 times is not fun. Arguing with a bandmember who can't play their part right, but won't admit it so they argue is not fun. Having to show the bass player his part only to have him forget it next rehearsal cuz he drank too much is not fun. I could go on....

The bottom line is that people who are serious about their music are serious about it and that is fun to them. Then there are the folks who think they are serious, but really just want to fuck around. Fucking around is fine, just amit that you just fuck around then we'll all know what to expect. And those of us who are serious won't sweat the small shit.

Nor will we show up to your beercouch/mancave jams that you call rehearsal. We will show up to the gig prepared and able to play the songs right. That way we won't have to listen to your haint of a wife yell from the top of the stairs that it's time to walk the dog in the middle of working out the bridge in "Bodies".

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Also, I'm at the point where if I am going to do the "mancave" thing, I would like to do it with badass players who want to shed on instrumental tunes like So What or Black Orpheus at the very least, or more traditional standards that would kick my ass and teach me something, but not on note for note versions of I Kissed A Girl or Fire, with pauses to help the people who haven't learned the songs yet, lol.