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Band leader

GeorgesEric

GeorgesEric

Mar 24, 2021
371
495
#1
I read about “band leaders” once in awhile on this here chat board. In my experience playing in bands, there’s no “band leaders”.

The only band leaders I can think of are the country and western band dude that drives the Winnebago in the Blues Brothers movie and the dude with the chop stick at the orchestra.

In you current band, do you have a “band leader”. If you do, what exactly does that person do?
 
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#2
More than 95% of the bands I've been in have had band leaders. The cooperative/democratic model is all well and good when you're 17 and spend hours on end sitting around getting high and fooling with instruments, but when you get out on the real world bandstand that model generally falls apart.

What does the band leader do?

Book jobs
Handle the money
manage band equipment
Set the repertoire
Set the set lists
Call tunes and adjust on the fly as needed
Run rehearsals
Discipline musicians who foul up
Control personnel - hiring, firing
Arrange subs when someone can't make the gig
manage the library (if this exists)
Handle business matters with clubs, record companies (if it gets that far), rehearsal studios, etc.
Front the band on stage (not always)

Obviously in large organizations, those that are at the top of the field, or those that have been around for decades, some of these tasks will be delegated, for example many bands have a musical director that handles the purely musical aspects while the leader is more focused on the business.
 
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#3
GeorgesEric said:
what exactly does that person do?
Click to expand...
@turf3 pretty much covered it for you!

sounds like you haven't had the "pro musician" experience. if and when you do: you'll come to know the difference between the good ones and the bad ones re: "band leaders."

keep practicing, good luck! :thumbsup:
 
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#4
I am more familiar with band managers than band leaders.

One pretty cool thing I saw years ago was how a particular band split the gig income pie. They were a 3-piece band, the pie was cut in 4, whomever secured the agreed-upon-by-the-band gig got the extra piece of the pie. Good incentive to find work.

Of course I will keep practicing, I am not a real musician, just a leaderless enthusiast who plays music for fun.
 
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#9
In most of the bands Ive been in, including my current one, we have "leaders" in certain areas. For example, our singer knows alot of people from being in his previous bands, so he is connected to get us the gigs. I lead in doing graphics, videos, social media, website, etc. Guitarist and drummer do other things. There isnt a final voice on anything, besides maybe the singer who can veto a song if he cant do it physically, but its more of a democracy. However, we are a cover band doing it for fun mostly. If it were a job, i could see the need for a de facto leader though.
 
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#10
I've never been in band that accomplished much that didn't have one person who was more focused, more organized, and better connected to get gigs. Whether they were called the BL or not, they were natural leaders and willing to be in that role. I guess the pure democracy thing works for some, but in my experience it bogs down decision making and creates drama trying to please everyone.

Like any good leader, a BL of a weekend fun band shouldn't be a dictator. Everyone's opinion should be welcome, but still, have someone to make the final call on things and keep the thing moving.
 
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#11
Our band divides up the jobs. We share in the booking as we all have different contacts where we live. We have a singing/harmony leader who teaches us the singing. We have one guy who is in charge of the website, one guy in charge of the Instagram page, and one I charge of the finances.

We have an “on stage” band leader. He’s the guy who we look to for when it comes to intros, endings, calling out solos and the overall arrangements during a gig. Even if he doesn’t know or we all forget what to do, we follow his direction. This keeps us all together and from making mistakes on stage.

Whatever works for your band, go with it. I’ve been in different situations through the years. I like this best as it keeps anyone from being overwhelmed and anyone thinking they have too much sway in the decision making.
 
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#13
Nope, the most we have is a person who is the focal point but in no way, shape or form do they dictate anything. They know that the best players wont put up with that sort of crap but it nevers gets out of hand because everything knows the score and isn't an idiot about things.
Its literally, what date, whats the gig, how much, I'll do it.

People ask and they get, there is no demand, law or dictat.
 
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#14
GeorgesEric said:
I read about “band leaders” once in awhile on this here chat board. In my experience playing in bands, there’s no “band leaders”.

The only band leaders I can think of are the country and western band dude that drives the Winnebago in the Blues Brothers movie and the dude with the chop stick at the orchestra.

In you current band, do you have a “band leader”. If you do, what exactly does that person do?
Click to expand...
We have a bandleader (who I'm actually related with). His job is basically organization of setlists (choosing which songs might fit for a given event), soundcheck (as in how the band sounds and not if our equipment is working correctly. That's what the sound guy is for), rehearsal organization and pay. Now he doesn't directly pay us. Instead he has a small sort of business (not sure how it's actually called / described as in this context), which consists of him and a friend. This small company is legally the band and therefore also the employer of every band member. So technically he's quite literally our boss. But it's more of a friendship and I'm his relative so there's no problems communication wise.
 
#15
Yeah. I hadn’t heard the term before I knew/played with full time professional musicians.

Even when I spent most of my time pursuing my aspirations to become a professional musician, I wasn’t really aware how many projects had someone in that role.
 
#16
GeorgesEric said:
I read about “band leaders” once in awhile on this here chat board. In my experience playing in bands, there’s no “band leaders”.

The only band leaders I can think of are the country and western band dude that drives the Winnebago in the Blues Brothers movie and the dude with the chop stick at the orchestra.

In you current band, do you have a “band leader”. If you do, what exactly does that person do?
Click to expand...

You mean Tucker McElroy? LOL
 
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#18
GeorgesEric said:
I read about “band leaders” once in awhile on this here chat board. In my experience playing in bands, there’s no “band leaders”.

The only band leaders I can think of are the country and western band dude that drives the Winnebago in the Blues Brothers movie and the dude with the chop stick at the orchestra.

In you current band, do you have a “band leader”. If you do, what exactly does that person do?
Click to expand...

Yes. He books gigs, promotes the band, oversees merchandise sales, sets the schedule of events, organizes rehearsals and the work flow therein, and finally, the last work in what we play.

I’ve been working with this cat since 1970. it’s been a great relationship as well as a good product.

I was with a band in Richmond that the BL was a middle school band director, who booked gigs ran the band calendar, and I’m here to tell you, ran the most efficient rehearsals on the planet.
 
#19
Band Leaders and/or Music Directors are common down here in Texas Country. A lot of times there will be an MD/BL that works with the band on issues related to the songs, transitions, solos and such as well as special song requirements and bringing songs in and out of the setlist depending on what songs the Artist is releasing or promoting.

Anything related to booking, guarantees, travel, accommodations, etc. would be handed by a Tour Manager/Road Manager. They’re the ones that are more involved in the business side and are the “day to day” people for runs or tours.

The Artist is the one that’s in charge at the end of the day but the two positions above are meant to take some of the managerial weight off their shoulders so they can focus on other decisions related to their career.

All this said, I greatly prefer this setup over the democracy of a “band”. There’s always gotta be a captain of ship and I’ve found the chain of command really helps keep misunderstandings and easily hurt feelings in line with reality.
 
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