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Last night was my first club-date for my band playing my book in fifteen years. I've been a side-player since 2008. I played mostly double bass, switching to guitar on some tunes (and using the OC-5 pedal to make bass noises too). The book was my (old) tunes, pieces from Maine writers, John Abercrombie's "Ralph's Piano Waltz" and Chick Corea's "Sea Journey."
It's so worth it to move beyond standard-standard repertoire. There are so many deep, beautiful songs to play.
It is always enervating to play my tunes. Even though I know them cold it always feels different from playing standards and tunes. It's just built in. It's part of the fun when it works.
> Crap #1: My sax-playing friend of 20+ years was ill. His sub is an excellent musician but one rehearsal was not enough for the band to know the tunes.
> Crap #2: I could not find my chart package. Tunes I did not know cold got axed. Too bad, @Mark Kleinhaut's lovely "Long Look Back" was on the setlist but it is not a piece to fake on the bandstand.
> Crap #3: One tune too many stayed on the setlist. We started out-of-sync so I cut it off after a few bars and restarted. We were still out-of-sync -- and honestly, I did not know the chords cold for that song -- so I cut it off after the bridge and moved on. That was tough, but given the choice between obvious failure and extended obvious failure I opted for the first.
> Crap #4: As always, the guitar tones which are so rich and nuanced in my 99sf practice-room come out kinda wheedly in a real venue. Not the worst but still a work in progress. (After all these decades the bass is reliable and joyous. I am a lucky bass-player.)
Ah well. It was fun to do it again. The door covered half the expense of band-pay and rehearsal-studio cost, so not too bad. That's what I earn money for.
I could say, "Alright, that's the floor, I want to hone this thing back up and bring out a crackling band again."
But it is a lot easier to say, "I am a side-player. Tell me where to go and what to wear. Play my tunes if you want to."
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01-14-2023 11:14 AM
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I like the sound of a crackling band best vs sideman gigs myself, assuming crackling means something good. Down here cracklins are like portable bacon that you eat. Also pretty tasty.
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Whether I am a sideman, a bandleader or a solo act (and I do plenty of all three for pay), I am humbled by the fact that I get paid to play my guitar. That makes me a lucky man.
Every night isn't stellar (some are and some nights just don't run on all cylinders), but any day spent playing live music is a good day on the planet.
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Originally Posted by Stringswinger
But yes, not every gig will shine.
Keep at it though
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We all know the feelings. Generally someone needs to direct, run the show etc.... The other option... get better musicians LOL. If your paying players... they should be able to cover.
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Sam, you’ve got a lifetime of royalty free use of any of my tunes! Thanks for keeping the torch!
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Today, 03:57 PM in The Players