Members Preacher Will Posted September 11, 2005 Members Share Posted September 11, 2005 Last gig i screwed up big time. We've got drums, keys, bass, rythmn guitar and two vocalists. i'm the band leader and play guitar and sing lead vocals. Got the intro to a song from my keyboard player, was getting ready to come in, and i blanked. Couldn't remember the rythmn, couldn't identify where the keyboardist was in the intro (an intro i'd heard a thousand times before), couldn't figure out where the vocals should come in, nothing. My keyboardist realized i was in deep trouble, she did a quick turnaround and went back into the intro again. i still couldn't do it. Here i am, trying to catch the groove following the old "never stop and start again" rule and miss it a second time. Once more, she throws in a turnaround and i get a third chance. By now the beat's off, my backup singer's looking at me like i'm an idiot (and i'm about to agree), and everybody else is lost because they can't come in until i do. Thankfully, this time i at least hit the opening chord, off the beat but in the right key. Eventually we make it into the song and, by the second verse, we're all tight but it was a mess getting there. The thing that really got me was that we'd played that same song in four other sets this week. i'd even warmed up to it about thirty minutes before we hit the stage. it should have been a cakewalk and it was a catastophe. Arrrrrrrrgh!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members SpacedCowboy Posted September 11, 2005 Members Share Posted September 11, 2005 Don't beat yourself up over it, dude. Happens to the best of us. You should talk to squealie and THX1138 (my bandmates and HC regulars) about how many times I totally blanked out on lyrics to songs...which wouldn't be so bad except we're a band that plays a lot of originals, and I'm the damn lyric writer! Just chalk it up to a 1 in 1,000,000,000 brain fart and something that'll make a good drinking story someday. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members GCDEF Posted September 12, 2005 Members Share Posted September 12, 2005 That happens. A few weeks ago we decided to change the key a song was in. Well two of us remembered, one of us didn't. We were about a minute into before we figured out why it sounded terrible. Last week, we were playing Honky Tonk Woman. For some reason either the drummer couldn't find the intro lick, or I wasn't picking up on it right. I had no idea where to come in based on what he was doing, so I just jumped in with the opening chords. A simple intro like that and we muffed it big time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Guitar Centaur Posted September 12, 2005 Members Share Posted September 12, 2005 My bass player and I share lead vocal duties, and he's very open about the fact that he just can't memorize lyrics. We have to build him a box to put on the floor to hide his lyrics, so he can look down at it for reference every now and then! I blanked on a "signature" guitar solo one time, and got some really strange looks from the band. Luckily, it was in the middle of a song that was already rolling along, so the audience didn't even notice. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Jiggs Posted September 12, 2005 Members Share Posted September 12, 2005 Lemme ask you this... Do you tend to blank out on lyrics and chords when you've done a song a bunch already? I seem to. Like at practice...the third or fourth time we try something I feel I sing/play it much worse that the first time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members fastplant Posted September 12, 2005 Members Share Posted September 12, 2005 I sang the first verse to a song once and couldn't for the life of me remember the rest of the words after that. This was a song we had done 100 times before. Never happened again after that, but we ended up playing off it and it was actually pretty funny. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Jiggs Posted September 12, 2005 Members Share Posted September 12, 2005 What irritates me the most is that I do this with the origianl music I wrote. You'd think I'd have it memorized. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Preacher Will Posted September 12, 2005 Author Members Share Posted September 12, 2005 Originally posted by Jiggs Lemme ask you this...Do you tend to blank out on lyrics and chords when you've done a song a bunch already? I seem to. Like at practice...the third or fourth time we try something I feel I sing/play it much worse that the first time. Yeah, i sometimes feel that way. i also have a theory that's become sort of a mantra around my band: "Good rehearsal=lousy performance; lousy rehearsal=good performance." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members GCDEF Posted September 12, 2005 Members Share Posted September 12, 2005 Originally posted by Preacher Will Yeah, i sometimes feel that way. i also have a theory that's become sort of a mantra around my band: "Good rehearsal=lousy performance; lousy rehearsal=good performance." I agree with that completely. I'm usually pretty happy when we have a bad rehearsal as it pretty much guarantees the following gig will be great. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members SpacedCowboy Posted September 12, 2005 Members Share Posted September 12, 2005 Originally posted by Jiggs What irritates me the most is that I do this with the origianl music I wrote. You'd think I'd have it memorized. Ditto. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members doubleR Posted September 12, 2005 Members Share Posted September 12, 2005 Originally posted by Crustycabs My bass player and I share lead vocal duties, and he's very open about the fact that he just can't memorize lyrics. We have to build him a box to put on the floor to hide his lyrics, so he can look down at it for reference every now and then! I blanked on a "signature" guitar solo one time, and got some really strange looks from the band. Luckily, it was in the middle of a song that was already rolling along, so the audience didn't even notice. Our singer has his music stand right in plain view! (When you get to be in your late 40's-mid-50's, as we all are, the mind is the first thing to go). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members MDLMUSIC Posted September 13, 2005 Members Share Posted September 13, 2005 I'm a 52-year old singer/guitarist working with three different oldies/classic rock bands. In some I'm the lead singer, in others, I sing mostly backup harmonies. I have learned over 3000 songs (at a rough guess) during my 35+ years of gigging, and there's no way I can remember the lyrics and/or chord changes for all of them. I have amassed a gigantic book of lyrics/chord charts that I keep on a low music stand off to the side. It doesn't obstruct the audience's view of my spectacular features (Ha!), and I don't need to see it for every song, but it's there when I need it. As a previous poster stated, sometimes when you get near (or pass) that half-century mark, things tend to get a little fuzzy in the recall section of the brain. Once started the classic bar band tune "Mustang Sally" and, for the life of me, I couldn't remember the first couple of words (which are.... "Mustang Sally"...). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Guitar Centaur Posted September 13, 2005 Members Share Posted September 13, 2005 Originally posted by MDLMUSIC Once started the classic bar band tune "Mustang Sally" and, for the life of me, I couldn't remember the first couple of words (which are.... "Mustang Sally"...). My Bass player sez: "When you forget the words, use 'watermelon'. That word works in 90% of all situations!" ...I'm inclined to believe him, since it has the same number of syllables and even the same METER as "Mustang Sally"! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Cortfan Posted September 13, 2005 Members Share Posted September 13, 2005 I'm 53-no vocals, bass player. We played a July 4th gig, and I was really hitting on all 8, until we got to Wonderful Tonight. The easiest song on bass there is. I went totally blank. The guitar player is looking at me, and I'm a deer in the headlights. I finally come to on the 2nd verse and get it back together. All I could do was apologize. I usually play that song in my sleep. Do do occurs. It won't be the last time. He started My Favorite Mistake in A one time and there was no place else to go except start over. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members 69lespaul Posted September 13, 2005 Members Share Posted September 13, 2005 Great stories. I have been a lead vocalist in 7 or 8 bands over the course of 25 years and I still go blank from time to time. I also have taken to using a book and stand. Pisses my lead player off no end sometimes (says I look unprofessional) ............until he needs it for a new song that he hasn't memorized yet. LOL. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members LateGreats Posted September 13, 2005 Members Share Posted September 13, 2005 If you forget the lyrics to original songs, and if you're quick on your feet, you can usually fudge through and get by. Who knows, some people might think it's an artistic statement. Forget lyrics to covers people know can get a little ugly. I have so much trouble remembering lyrics to covers. That's probably why I'm not in a cover band. And I suck. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members SpacedCowboy Posted September 13, 2005 Members Share Posted September 13, 2005 Originally posted by LateGreats If you forget the lyrics to original songs, and if you're quick on your feet, you can usually fudge through and get by. Who knows, some people might think it's an artistic statement. I agree! But the only problem is...your band mates always know when you futzed the lyrics to your own songs...and if they're anything like mine, they have no problem giving you endless amounts of {censored} after the show is over. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members squealie Posted September 13, 2005 Members Share Posted September 13, 2005 Originally posted by SpacedCowboy they have no problem giving you endless amounts of {censored} after the show is over. You deserve it! The funny thing, is you could step on any stage THIS INSTANT and play and sing 13 different Cole Porter tunes, 5 Burt Bacharach(sp?), 12 Alice in Chains, 9 Stevie Wonder, and probably the entire Flatt&Scruggs catalog. But you'd forget to bring your pants! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members CompleteGuitard Posted September 13, 2005 Members Share Posted September 13, 2005 It happens. Just make sure you can laugh at yourself about it. One of the times i saw green day Billie joe forgot the lyrics to brain stew, he had to stop the song and ask the bass player mike what they were. But the audience didn't care because he was laughing about it at the same time. Its all in the attitude. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members SpacedCowboy Posted September 13, 2005 Members Share Posted September 13, 2005 You deserve it! The funny thing, is you could step on any stage THIS INSTANT and play and sing 13 different Cole Porter tunes, 5 Burt Bacharach(sp?), 12 Alice in Chains, 9 Stevie Wonder, and probably the entire Flatt&Scruggs catalog. Thank you... But you'd forget to bring your pants! Actually, mcsqueal, it's my shoes I seem to forget most often. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Dave Martin Posted September 13, 2005 Members Share Posted September 13, 2005 I was doing an R&B gig one time (horns, backgrund vocals, the whole bit), and we were doing 634-5789. As it happens, that song modulates a half step, but this singer has been known to want to mod a whole step. So half the band went from B flat to B, and the other half, from Bb to C. And we were ALL committed to the key that we'd chosen. That next verse was pretty ugly... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members ibobunot Posted September 13, 2005 Members Share Posted September 13, 2005 http://www.jeffreyfoucault.com/Redbird_LetsTalkDirtyinHawaiian.mp3 This is Jeffrey Foucault forgetting the lyrics to a John Prine song. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members BndGrl Posted September 13, 2005 Members Share Posted September 13, 2005 Originally posted by squealie The funny thing, is you could step on any stage THIS INSTANT and play and sing 13 different Cole Porter tunes, 5 Burt Bacharach(sp?), 12 Alice in Chains, 9 Stevie Wonder, and probably the entire Flatt&Scruggs catalog. But you'd forget to bring your pants! Except he'd forget his guitar too Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Fendercaster Posted September 17, 2005 Members Share Posted September 17, 2005 A year or so ago, I called a song I've done 100's of times. We got through the intro, and I had no idea what the words were. We stayed in the root chord for a while, all the band members staring at me, and I had to just stop the song. Thinking quickly, I told the audience that the first person who could recite the first line to the song would get a free tee shirt! That gave me time to remember the damn words!If I'm in the middle of a song and go blank, I'll just mumble some garbage until I remember what the lyrics are, the audience usually doesn't even notice. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Perfessor Posted September 17, 2005 Members Share Posted September 17, 2005 What jazz great Charles Mingus used to do is throw in some last minute changes to charge everyone up and keep things fresh. If you practice too much it seems like the blank-out occurs more easily. I usually go through the stuff once earlier in the day and then go do something else, like it's just another day without a gig. I play jazz, though, so a train wreck describes every jazz song. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.