Stage Banter - What's your (or your band's) approach?

[supermonkey]

I am generally a pretty witty sort of dude, have some drama background, no trouble at ALL speaking publicly. Yet I think talking to the audience from the stage in the context of a gig is just nerve-wracking.

I mean, there's always stuff to say, but if you just start talking there's a >50% chance you'll blurt out something stupid. It's just Murphy's Law or something.
Unless you're one of these cats that just has endless pithy stories on tap, or can freeform like Robyn Hitchcock or Peter Gabriel and be completely serious while spouting all kinds of psychotic crap, and make it sound COOL on top of all that.

So after years of being the talking guy, making inane attempts at humor, blurting out ridiculous non-sequitirs, etc. I've adopted the silent approach. The most I'll say these days is "thanks", maybe let 'em know who we are. The rest is just claptrap.


What about you guys?
Who talks in your band? What do they say? Is it "scripted", like they do the same at every show? Can they freeform it and not sound stupid? Does everybody with a mic just yell random sh!t from the stage?

[MakiSupaStar]

Less talk more playing! That's our mantra. We had to sit our singer down and tell him to stop telling people what the songs are about, or stop with the corny schtick. We limit it to identifying us "Thanks, we're Fuzzymoto" and to stuff that directs people to the merch table. Remember people show up to listen to music. They really don't care what you have to talk about. It's a much better show that way. Not to say that every once in awhile you can't comment on something, but if you're having to think about being witty and how you can draw on your drama background, then I would say you should NOT do it. A few bands are good at it (Yonder Mountain String Band comes to mind), but generally I would recommend avoiding it. That's my oh so humble opinion.

[MakiSupaStar]

However, after reading your profile, I gotta add that playing in a Dylan cover band could be fun as hell, so some funny banter might just come out of that. Rainy Day Women #12 and 35. That would be a good time for a "social" "smoke 'em if you got 'em" call.

[DaftCat]

Originally Posted by MakiSupaStar

Remember people show up to listen to music. They really don't care what you have to talk about.

Mostly, yes.

I do find a crowd is more involved when you do take the time to talk to them. In my case, in a previous cover band we would take requests within 30 minutes of playing. Good crowd connector.

But supermonkey stick to what Maki says and just keep the chatter to a minimal. Later on you might get ideas of how to connect to the crowd. It won't develop overnight.

Hope this helps,

[Sundogue]

People come to see bands for the following reasons...

1. To get drunk
2. To get laid
3. To be entertained

It all depends on the crowd. You've got to feel the crowd (and no, I'm not referring to No. 2). Some crowds love the banter, some don't.

You just gotta work it. The longer you do it, the easier it gets. To where eventually you just go with the flow.

I saw Lyle Lovett once, and he talked frequently between songs...and damned if he wasn't entertaining! He could have done stand-up comedy all night and it still would have been a great show.

My point is, yeah you are there to play music...but you are mainly there to entertain. So...entertain!!! That doesn't necessarily mean one song after another, all night long. It all depends on the crowd itself.

[txbasschik]

The drummer is our talker. He's funny, and can be so without having to plan for it. Since our singer/rhythm player breaks his strings a *lot*, Drummer and I have a little time-killing routine worked out. I play cool blues or jazz progressions while he does his comedy routine, which he's always working on. Gives Singer time to change his strings without losing the crowd.

Sometimes, we pull out country songs that just about every Texan knows..."Long-Haired Country Boy" is a favorite, or "Today I Started Loving You Again". Or I'll do "The Girl With Faraway Eyes". Anything to give Singer time to change his strings.

I always come off a total dork when I try to do the banter thingie, so I just play. :-)

Cherie :-)

[supermonkey]

Sundogue-
I agree, you've got to read the situation. Most of the time, I find it's more successful to just "shut up and play yer guitar". I like it when, like that LL show you mentioned, the entertainer is able to be raconteur, tell a story, say something meaningful. But that's "best case scenario", it seems.

Cherie-
Same here. I'm not all that proficient, so I've learned to shut up. Best for everyone.

The flip side of the coin is that NOBODY in my band is naturally able to take that spot (including, most unfortunately, our frontman), so we occasionally have some uncomfortable silences when we don't just jump right into the next tune.

Still, I think I'd prefer the silences to dorky, unentertaining patter....

[Sundogue]

Originally Posted by supermonkey

Sundogue-
I agree, you've got to read the situation. Most of the time, I find it's more successful to just "shut up and play yer guitar". I like it when, like that LL show you mentioned, the entertainer is able to be raconteur, tell a story, say something meaningful. But that's "best case scenario", it seems.

Cherie-
Same here. I'm not all that proficient, so I've learned to shut up. Best for everyone.

The flip side of the coin is that NOBODY in my band is naturally able to take that spot (including, most unfortunately, our frontman), so we occasionally have some uncomfortable silences when we don't just jump right into the next tune.

Still, I think I'd prefer the silences to dorky, unentertaining patter....

Well, I agree...there are only so many times someone in a band can say..."Are you having a good time tonight", or "Let's have a team drink", etc.

I usually am the one saying something. I like to make sure the bartenders get their dues. I'll also be looking around the crowd for a mark and then say something like...

"Let's give the bartenders a hand for workin' so hard, serving all of us. Don't forget to tip them...cause you know the owner ain't paying them much. They're really working it tonight...but not as much as that guy over there (I point to some guy trying to hook up with some woman)...Yeah, you! How's that workin' out for you? No go? Hmm...Well, there are lots of beautiful women here tonight to talk with (and then I'll look in the direction of a few)."

Or something like that.

It does a bunch of things all in a short time. It let's the bartenders know they are appreciated, and they usually respond in kind. It makes the owner know you've got a sense of humor (or called him out for being a cheapskate...depending on the venue and your relationship with him). It makes the crowd laugh. It makes a lot of women know they've been noticed...and most importantly, while you've entertained them for a bit, the guitarist did a string change.

Or, we have quite a following and I know a few people who can't dance to save their lives and they know it, but don't care. So, if the dancers are slow to come out, I'll point out one of our crazy dancing followers and tell the crowd, "For those who can't find it, the dance floor is right here. And for the rest of you guys who know where it is, but are too scared to come out here...hell, look at this guy (and point to him). He's out here dancing and there ain't a person in here who can't do better than that." They are our friends and they know me and take it all in good fun. They know I'm just kidding around with them. But it does help put guys on the spot, because you know the girls are trying to drag them out there.

Then there are the times there is some guy trying to hit on my wife while I'm up on stage playing. My wife usually shows up during one of our sets so those who don't know us, don't know were married. Instead of getting mad, I'll just come right out and challenge him by saying something like..."Hey, you think you got a chance with her? I've had my eye on her too. I'll bet you a drink she goes outside with me before she does with you! What do you think people? Huh? You think he stands a chance? I AM in the band after all." My wife loves to play along with that game.

Those are just a few examples that kind of stick out in my mind.

Pay attention to what's going on in the audience. I love watching people. Their actions are so interesting, funny, quirky, etc. And most of the audience sees some of the flagrant things people are doing that you can pick up on. Everyone in the crowd will relate to what you are saying.

Just pretend your at a party and you're having fun. That is the point of it all anyway, isn't it?

[gsys]

In addition to the typical imploring the audience to get involved at the beginning, begging them to buy merch, and thanking the other bands/venue toward the end, the rest is taken care of either by butting the songs up against each other or our singer making sarcastic comments.

[blast_tyrant]

I saw a band a few weeks ago where the lead singer deadpanned between EVERY song: "Thank you, we're going to take a break right now." He would pause for a few seconds and then say: "Alright, we're back. This is a song for all the beautiful ladies in the house." The band would then launch into something like "Ace Of Spades" or "Stranglehold".

Sounds cheesey, but it was pretty funny. It's all about delivery.

+1 on entertaining the peoples!

[Sundogue]

Originally Posted by blast_tyrant

I saw a band a few weeks ago where the lead singer deadpanned between EVERY song: "Thank you, we're going to take a break right now." He would pause for a few seconds and then say: "Alright, we're back. This is a song for all the beautiful ladies in the house." The band would then launch into something like "Ace Of Spades" or "Stranglehold".

Sounds cheesey, but it was pretty funny. It's all about delivery.

+1 on entertaining the peoples!

We played a gig last weekend where some dude kept requesting Johnny Cash. So we played one. Then he kept on doing it, so I kept saying "Here's another one by Johnny Cash" and then we'd play some hard rock. The crowd knew he was drunk and getting obnoxious. They knew we weren't going to play another one, so they all would start yelling "Johnny Cash, Johnny Cash" in unison. It became a unifying theme throughout the rest of the night. It was a lot of fun.

I love hecklers the best.

[Dkerwood]

We play a lot of 30-45 minute sets, and the comments that I make between songs are getting more and more "scripty". I tend to talk too much, so I force myself to talk way less than I want to...

...of course, by the end of the night, I'm talking way too much again... but by then, they tend to forgive you.

[tZer]

I agree with:

- Less talk, more music

But you do have some things that you should say:
- Promote the band (let em know who you are), the website so they can come see your next gig, but don't be ridiculous about it.
- If your band takes requests, ask the crowd to come up and offer their suggestions if they like
- Encourage tipping of the staff, obviously.

Otherwise, play!

Unfortunately for me, our band has a guitar player whose guitar cannot stay in tune for more then one song, so between songs there is ALWAYS THE NEED TO FILL SPACE WHILE HE TUNES!!!! Very unprofessional, but it is a fact of our band's life and I am too much of a new guy to have enough weight to demand that the founder/leader of the band pull his head outta his arse and deal with the tuning situation...

So, "Hey, We're Bad Andie... You can visit our website at.... Remember, tip those waitresses and bartenders! They are workin hard for ya! ...is he done tuning yet? Damn! Uh, Did I mention we have a web site?..."

[Stabone1972]

I saw Jethro Tull a few months ago and Ian Anderson is the king of great banter, On the isle of wight j-tull dvd they show him bantering alot in between songs. If you wanna see some good bantering and music check that out

[lomer]

lol bantering.... sounds like something dirty you'd do in the privacy of your own home....

[MysticMichael]

I hate stage banter. 90% of it is a waste of time and a distraction. It just takes the audience out of the mood of the music, breaks the flow of the show and disrupts the band's mystique...

Less is more. Whatever you have to say, you should be able to say through your music. Let 'em wonder about the rest...

MM

[Sundogue]

Originally Posted by MysticMichael

I hate stage banter. 90% of it is a waste of time and a distraction. It just takes the audience out of the mood of the music, breaks the flow of the show and disrupts the band's mystique...

Less is more. Whatever you have to say, you should be able to say through your music. Let 'em wonder about the rest...

MM

It really is dependent on the crowd. Most nights, we just play and barely say a word to the crowd.

However, there are those other nights when Murphy rears his ugly head and there is a slew of minor equipment failures, or the crowd is just in a very receptive mood. Go with whatever works. It's all about the crowd. Figure them out and you don't need to plan anything.

[Sundogue]

Originally Posted by tZer

I agree with:

- Less talk, more music

But you do have some things that you should say:
- Promote the band (let em know who you are), the website so they can come see your next gig, but don't be ridiculous about it.
- If your band takes requests, ask the crowd to come up and offer their suggestions if they like
- Encourage tipping of the staff, obviously.

Otherwise, play!

Unfortunately for me, our band has a guitar player whose guitar cannot stay in tune for more then one song, so between songs there is ALWAYS THE NEED TO FILL SPACE WHILE HE TUNES!!!! Very unprofessional, but it is a fact of our band's life and I am too much of a new guy to have enough weight to demand that the founder/leader of the band pull his head outta his arse and deal with the tuning situation...

So, "Hey, We're Bad Andie... You can visit our website at.... Remember, tip those waitresses and bartenders! They are workin hard for ya! ...is he done tuning yet? Damn! Uh, Did I mention we have a web site?..."

Our guitar player has broken a lot of strings lately which is weird, because he neither goes out of tune much, nor breaks strings.

But he has a solution to the problem anyway. He just brings four or five guitars with him!

[txbasschik]

Originally Posted by supermonkey

Sundogue-
I agree, you've got to read the situation. Most of the time, I find it's more successful to just "shut up and play yer guitar". I like it when, like that LL show you mentioned, the entertainer is able to be raconteur, tell a story, say something meaningful. But that's "best case scenario", it seems.

Cherie-
Same here. I'm not all that proficient, so I've learned to shut up. Best for everyone.

The flip side of the coin is that NOBODY in my band is naturally able to take that spot (including, most unfortunately, our frontman), so we occasionally have some uncomfortable silences when we don't just jump right into the next tune.

Still, I think I'd prefer the silences to dorky, unentertaining patter....

Yeah, if the choice is either silence, or goofy banter...silence is golden.

Our frontman, when he does talk, keeps it short. He'll say what band we covered, if the tune is kinda obscure, or he'll introduce a new original simply by saying, "This is a new original tune."

We cover "Border Lord", by Kris Kristofferson. There's an inside joke at a couple of venues about this sweet-but-odd-guy, Mark, having written the song. So, Singer always says, "Our friend Mark wrote this song!" at those two venues, only. No one else would get the joke.

I'm really glad we have Drummer and his humor, though. Singer really does break strings a lot. Drummer will try out his ideas on me and Guitar, too, so we can say, "Don't use that. It ain't funny, and someone will want to kick your a$$." Or, "That's freakin' hi-larious...use it!"

Cherie :-)

[txbasschik]

Originally Posted by MysticMichael

I hate stage banter. 90% of it is a waste of time and a distraction. It just takes the audience out of the mood of the music, breaks the flow of the show and disrupts the band's mystique...

Less is more. Whatever you have to say, you should be able to say through your music. Let 'em wonder about the rest...

MM

I agree. However, it *is* good to have something figured out for when you have technical difficulties.

Cherie