Tour advice...

[Insouciance]

Hello!

I am going on tour for the first time with my band. We are going out for a 12 date tour over the course of about 15 days. This is all our first time doing this. Since I am the bass player, that means I am in charge of just about everything, not because I am a self-appointed dictator, but because of the other two being coated with more naivete than myself. So I am looking for some advice, the no-brainer stuff of course, but also the weird, "Man, I would have never thought of that!" advice from the seasoned veterans of the forum. As of right now, it's the blind leading the blind, and being the optimist I try to be, I want it to be the slightly-visually-impaired leading the blind. Thanks for all your help TB!

Taylor.

[albertofrog]

Money - when you get paid, grab another band member to watch you count out the notes.

that way, if a venue tries to short change you, you got a witness.

Keep a book recording ALL your expenditure.

at the end of the tour, you'll always wonder where all the money went, so this way there is no arguments..

Try and have a proper meal every day

(McD's doesnt count, live off that for a fortnight and you'll be sick as a dog....)

a weekly shower doesnt go a miss either....

[Insouciance]

That's sound advice! Thank you. How sick do you get of each other?

[BassmanAd]

Very

[Luther Blissett]

the hardest part of being on tour is that you're always with the same 4 or five people, 24 hours a day, in the van, playing, sharing a hotel room, eating lunch. It can be enerving sometimes. go for a walk now and then, if you find the time.

take a towell and drink lots of water

oh and most importantly: have fun

[VisualShock]

I'd say take a spare lead for every band member that needs one anyway. spare set of strings plus emergency spare set of strings. Work out what you will need to spend on ie van, acomodation, food. and then aim to have that figure and then about 20% over. that way if you get totally stuffed you've got a little bit of leway

+1 on the book of expenses.
+10 on the having time to yourself
+100 on having eye witnesses at time of payment!

also, eat well! your shows depend on it!

[Dmanlamius]

I spent most of my time on the road in my twenties, and definatly agree with the above. Do you have a manager? If so, get them to sort the money...

Looking back, in addition to what everyone else has said, i'd say that light excercise is also very important. Just some light stretches when you get out of the van, or before you go onstage.

It helps to get the blood flowing again.

An ipod or any mp3 player will help you switch off from everyone else's noise. Just shut your eyes, and take yourself away from it all. relax as much as you can. I got one of them cheesy meditation tapes to keep me going, and it really did help. You feel really refreshed afterwards.

That's what helped me cope with all the arguments.

[benmoore88]

buy yourself some earplugs to ensure you get some sleep..... ;p

[John Wentzien]

All-you-can-eat Chinese Buffet is a good value at lunch. Healthier than McDoogles too.

[Insouciance]

These are beautiful! I guess I am the manager, but we are all relatively autonomous, we are pretty DIY. I will make sure there is more than one of us watching during payout, bring earplugs, and not too much McDonald's. I planned on keeping all our expenses to see where money is going, just to see how hard or how easy touring is. Thanks for all your help!

[FriscoBassAce]

Go out right now and buy (or borrow) "Tour Smart" by Marty Adkins. You can probably find a used one on eBay. Best money I ever spent regarding dealing with touring. This guy has been there done that and knows from experience how to make a tour successful (meaning the ability to break even, pick up new fans, sell your cd's and merch, AND keep the band together by the time you get back).

Good luck dude....have fun and don't get your van or trailer stolen!!!

[southshoreconor]

bring about $100-$150 personal money if you. allow yourself $7-$10 a day to ensure a hot meal. if you guys stay on the road, you'll find yourselves working with better clubs and promoters who will include meals and drinks as well as gas money, but don't expect any of that on your first tour. be nice to people, get used to sleeping on floors. its summer, you won't want to sleep in your vehicle. are you touring in a car? van? van and trailer? RV? always park it somewhere safe. bring a book or ipod, ear plugs and sunglasses so you can just sit there, not hear anything or say anything and no one knows you're awake so they wont bother you if you're trying to relax. gas is expensive, no matter what you're touring in, estimate 10 miles per gallon or less and over $3 a gallon and budget your money from there. your van is the most important member of your band, it needs gas and oil just as much as you need food and water, so take care of it. save your receipts for gas and tolls and everything you spend band money on. you're going to lose money (sorry), so in the big scheme of things you're expenses wont matter but like you said it's nice to keep track.

7-10 t shirts (do laundry once or trade a couple shirts with bands you meet on the road)
7-10 underwear and socks
1 or two pairs of shorts (or pants and sorts)
bathing suit or gym shorts
sandals/flip flops (we have a no shoes policy in the back half of our van, and putting on shoes and socks at every gas station is tedious.)
ipod/books
sunglasses
earplugs
toothpaste/toothbrush - if possible don't get a tube of paste get a bottle or jar as seen here so when your backpack gets stepped on it doesnt explode
towel (i actually never bring one, but its recommended)
deoderant/axe spray - you're not showering every day
oil/coolant/washer fluids/spare tire!!!
have a checklist (or a band member with a good memory) so when you pack up after shows you don't forget stuff

a lot of this stuff goes without saying but there's always something i leave behind. which is why there is always half empty tubes of toothpaste and sticks of deodorant at my house.

oh and have fun.

[BassScum]

Originally Posted by southshoreconor

bring about $100-$150 personal money if you. allow yourself $7-$10 a day to ensure a hot meal. if you guys stay on the road, you'll find yourselves working with better clubs and promoters who will include meals and drinks as well as gas money, but don't expect any of that on your first tour. be nice to people, get used to sleeping on floors. its summer, you won't want to sleep in your vehicle. are you touring in a car? van? van and trailer? RV? always park it somewhere safe. bring a book or ipod, ear plugs and sunglasses so you can just sit there, not hear anything or say anything and no one knows you're awake so they wont bother you if you're trying to relax. gas is expensive, no matter what you're touring in, estimate 10 miles per gallon or less and over $3 a gallon and budget your money from there. your van is the most important member of your band, it needs gas and oil just as much as you need food and water, so take care of it. save your receipts for gas and tolls and everything you spend band money on. you're going to lose money (sorry), so in the big scheme of things you're expenses wont matter but like you said it's nice to keep track.

7-10 t shirts (do laundry once or trade a couple shirts with bands you meet on the road)
7-10 underwear and socks
1 or two pairs of shorts (or pants and sorts)
bathing suit or gym shorts
sandals/flip flops (we have a no shoes policy in the back half of our van, and putting on shoes and socks at every gas station is tedious.)
ipod/books
sunglasses
earplugs
toothpaste/toothbrush - if possible don't get a tube of paste get a bottle or jar as seen here so when your backpack gets stepped on it doesnt explode
towel (i actually never bring one, but its recommended)
deoderant/axe spray - you're not showering every day
oil/coolant/washer fluids/spare tire!!!
have a checklist (or a band member with a good memory) so when you pack up after shows you don't forget stuff

a lot of this stuff goes without saying but there's always something i leave behind. which is why there is always half empty tubes of toothpaste and sticks of deodorant at my house.

oh and have fun.

Now your starting to sound like his mom.

[Insouciance]

These are all awesome. Thank you! I am so concerned with all the small stuff, that I figured I might forget the obvious, no-brainer ones.

[Pitbull Growl]

Make sure you have a first aid kit and grab a tire plug kit from k-mart or wherever. Both are worth their weight in gold when you need 'em & cost under $25 together.
Most interstate truckstops will letcha use their showers for free when you fill up there.
A CB Radio is also good to have... truckers will warn you if there's any "bears" (cops/speedtraps) or accidents out there to watch for. They usually use channel 14.
Make sure your gear is insured.
Change your oil/oil filter/air filter and check your battery/spark plugs/spark plug wires before you hit the road.
Be safe & have fun.

[Gopherbassist]

southshoreconor says bring toothpaste, I say don't. A bar of soap won't leak an also cleans your mouth better. In my experience it usually just tastes like salt, but if you can find one that tastes good get that. Please get a dedicated bar of mouth soap.

[southshoreconor]

check your tires every other day or so. one time on a hunch i checked the tires and noticed a huge bubble on the back passenger side tire. the 4 tires on the van were brand new about a week before (1000-1200 highway miles). who knows how long the tire was like that, but in just a few miles it could have blown. and at 80-85 psi, 70 mph, that would have made for a pretty exciting blowout, and possibly a cargo trailer on its side.

[John Wentzien]

If you are towing a trailer..put a toung-lock on it at all times.

[mrkreuzschlitz]

Call your mom to tell her you love her.

[varunkapahi]

have some fun too! good luck