Every band member should read this article about bar owners and how they feel

[lax4bags]

http://chrisledrew.wordpress.com/201...-to-musicians/

[robd]

There is already a post going about this

Open letter from bar owner to musicians

[bassteban]

Say it twice

[MatticusMania]

There is already a post about this

Open letter from bar owner to musicians

[bassbully]

Yeah its old. To me if the bar has a good customer base and flow it will only better its self thru good live music.
If the bar is struggling just to get drinkers and customers in it is doomed ....good music or not.
Most of the doomed bars book bands to get them to bring people in to drink and increase their sales. That logic fails since most bands can't always draw well or bring a crowd everytime. These same bars that require or demand the band to bring a crowd in some cases pay very poorly.

I have spoke to allot of owners who tell me having live music is their choice and they want and support it even if sales are not really showing it is a benefit or not to them. They know it is another part of their buisness that they want to offer to their customers.

[eriky4003]

Agree with Bassbully on his point.
20 years ago Ottawa had clubs that would attract crowds based on the club. The bars did themselves a favour by hiring and paying good bands. The crowds then must have done something else in their spare time because suddenly the crowds weren't there and the quality of the bands started going downhill probably due to the pay heading downhill.
What our band experienced was a bar was hoping a band would deliver their crowd at every gig. What this did for the band was - it didn't give the band the ability to have any new fans as the club would have their 10 or so regulars with the already converted fans. You could only grow your fan base more organically by word of mouth.
Said bars wouldn't do well during the nights bands weren't playing so they went out of business in a year to year and a half.

[bassbully]

Originally Posted by eriky4003

Agree with Bassbully on his point.
20 years ago Ottawa had clubs that would attract crowds based on the club. The bars did themselves a favour by hiring and paying good bands. The crowds then must have done something else in their spare time because suddenly the crowds weren't there and the quality of the bands started going downhill probably due to the pay heading downhill.
What our band experienced was a bar was hoping a band would deliver their crowd at every gig. What this did for the band was - it didn't give the band the ability to have any new fans as the club would have their 10 or so regulars with the already converted fans. You could only grow your fan base more organically by word of mouth.
Said bars wouldn't do well during the nights bands weren't playing so they went out of business in a year to year and a half.

I have seen quite a few bars go down the path you are talking about and another place we used to to play at is shutting down soon I'm afraid.

The places we play who feel the bands help draw and hold their customers are very good at thier buisness...bands or not. They don'tt really need us but we help keep people in their seats longer and they eat and drink more this way..easy peasy.

It's kind of like a struggling restuarant that hires a chef to bring in his own friends and family to eat the food he makes so the place can stay afloat. If the place has solid food and service a good chef will help get people in, keep them and sales will go up but his family and friends alone should not be the center of their sales.