I'm a 34 year old newbie who has never gigged and only been playing bass for a little more than 1 1/2 years. My bandmates all have 10+ years experience gigging each. In fact, this band was around before me and went on hiatus when the rhythm section quit. I was asked to join by the lead guitarist after they got the drummer to come back on board. Coincidentally, the LG is actually my stepbrother, although our parents married just a few years ago. So, we didn't know each other particularly well until we started jamming recently. Well, despite my newbiness, they have been pretty pleased with me although I know I'm not as good and polished as their old bassist. They're very patient with me and I think they really appreciate my enthusiasm and work ethic.
As I've mentioned on other threads, I'm fairly typical in that I played guitar off and on for many years (about 14 to be exact) never taking the time to progress far and never planning to play in a band. Finally decided to buy a cheap bass and fell in love with the low end. After a few months of practicing religiously, I decided I'd like to play bass in a band. I found my musical calling.
So when the above opportunity arose a couple months ago, I jumped at it even though the music (Southern style rock) is not my normal cup of tea.
And so here we are... our first gig (or at least my first gig with them) is tomorrow night. A private party at a rented lodge. We're expecting as many as a 300-400 folks and I'm excited and not as nervous as I thought I'd be. But I was wondering if some of you 'pros' out there could share some advice with me. Maybe a few "wish I'd known 'this' beforehand" type stories. Or maybe, "don't forget to bring your ****" or whatever. Any advice or encouragement will be greatly appreciated.
