First band I played live gigs with, one night a drunk told us he'd pay us to stop playing.
In hindsight he was right, we really sucked!
In hindsight he was right, we really sucked!
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Drunk guy didn't like my playing.
- Thread starter bassplayer1494
- Start date
It's probably politically incorrect to say so these days but most of the problems we encountered when I started playing semi-pro (one-nighter dance band) were from drunk girls dancing right in front of the stage and flirting with the band, which got their boyfriends incensed at the band but not at their girl friends. Weird.
Not me playing, but in the mid-1970s, a music group made up of a few friends asked me to photograph their show at a small club in Bakersfield. Two one hour sets, 7pm and 9pm. I had two Nikon F2 cameras, one with a wide zoom, one with a tele zoom, fairly impressive rig if I do say so myself. About 3/4 into the second show, a young woman who sat through both shows getting herself plastered, grabbed me and plastered one on me, wet and stunk from booze, then sat down and never looked at me again. After the show, the guys went on and on , "What the hell was that all about." "I almost choked when I saw that." "Did you get her number?" I said she just ignored me after that, but I'm not going to start a long distance relationship (I'm in Los Angeles), especially not with a lush."
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Ric5
Inactive
- Jan 29, 2008
- 29,772
- 30,452
- Disclosures
- I like 5, 8, 10, and 12 string basses
this thread reminds me that I hate playing for drunks
devnulljp
Supporting Member
I had two guys stand about 2 feet in front of the stage one night arguing. Guy A said I was the best bass player he had ever seen, Guy B said I was the worst.
I honestly thought they were going to come to blows over it.
Either way, I got paid.
I honestly thought they were going to come to blows over it.
Either way, I got paid.
Never had your experience.
Sorry you did. Yeah, sounds like someone who wanted to play and needed his diaper changed too.
The last "drunk" I let play my equipment, (back in 1990), was a friend of the BL.
Turns out he was so wasted he knocked the hi hat stand over in his stumbling and when he tried grab it, one of legs poked thru the grill of my cabinet and did the same to one of my speakers. I actually had to go this loser's house to "remind" him he needed to pony up the money to fix it. The BL went with me to make sure it happened amicably. From that point forward, I never let anyone play my stuff unless I knew them AND they weren't inebriated. Oh yeah...that was the last time I let anyone of his friends play my gear too.
Sorry you did. Yeah, sounds like someone who wanted to play and needed his diaper changed too.
The last "drunk" I let play my equipment, (back in 1990), was a friend of the BL.
Turns out he was so wasted he knocked the hi hat stand over in his stumbling and when he tried grab it, one of legs poked thru the grill of my cabinet and did the same to one of my speakers. I actually had to go this loser's house to "remind" him he needed to pony up the money to fix it. The BL went with me to make sure it happened amicably. From that point forward, I never let anyone play my stuff unless I knew them AND they weren't inebriated. Oh yeah...that was the last time I let anyone of his friends play my gear too.
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This is the same guy that drunk heckles at a comedy clubs.
Has a sad life and gets his jollies this way. If he were sober he could probably write country music.
Great that BL has your back. Glad it didn't come to a beat-down though. Could've taken a wrong turn real fast.
Assume drunky boy paid for this in the morning if he didn't slam into a telephone pole on the way home.
"Turn down your f*****g alcohol abuse. Your life sucks. Monkey in a bar holds his liquor better than you. Get help."
Not really appropriate... but your inner voice right?
Maybe a discussion with the bar owner to watch out for this guy and cut him off. Could be a lot of liability exposure for them if he injured or killed someone and that bar was the last place he had a drink.
She must have liked your "telephoto lens."
I can't begin to tell you how many issues I had with drunks (being a drunk, myself back then).
One of the funniest was the guy who was up all of our behinds all night. We were the greatest. We should be signed to all the big record companies. We should be touring the world and making a billion dollars ... until we didn't let him get up and sing a song with us. He could barely talk and his throat sounded like he'd been gargling razor blades for decades.
Suddenly, we sucked. We were unprofessional. We should have paid the management to play there, etc.
A little aside to my friend @two fingers: I can completely relate. I always became more attractive to the ladies in direct proportion to to how much alcohol they'd consumed
My over-use of alcohol (and similar substances) meant there were two of us making awful decisions that night!
One of the funniest was the guy who was up all of our behinds all night. We were the greatest. We should be signed to all the big record companies. We should be touring the world and making a billion dollars ... until we didn't let him get up and sing a song with us. He could barely talk and his throat sounded like he'd been gargling razor blades for decades.
Suddenly, we sucked. We were unprofessional. We should have paid the management to play there, etc.
A little aside to my friend @two fingers: I can completely relate. I always became more attractive to the ladies in direct proportion to to how much alcohol they'd consumed
My over-use of alcohol (and similar substances) meant there were two of us making awful decisions that night!
Just a thought, but getting even would be watching him go to his car, get the LP# & description. Making an anonymous call to the local police & report an impaired driver. It's actually not a bad thing, you might save someone else's life that is on the road that night. Maybe even save him from killing himself.
Wow crazy stories here. Reminds me why I hated playing dumpy bars. Some drunks in the band were as bad as drunks in the audience. The end of the night the club parking lot would have cars getting steamy windows, drunks hooking up. And my Fender would always stink of cigarettes the next day. Things have changed.
When I played in a rockabilly band 45 years ago some bars you would see used syringes on the floor at the end of the night. We had to lock amps up with chains. If you did not someone would run out the door with your amp head. This particular band would get paid for a week what I made in one night at a top hotel for what I called a ‘tuxedo’ gig. I did it cause the rockabilly guys were actually fun to play with. That bandleader still owes me money.
I recall a gig where a jealous husband came in with a handgun. Really not the kind of thing you normally see in Canada in the ‘70s. The place emptied, don’t know how it was resolved and we all went back in and carried on playing and dancing. Lol
Also back then I was in a seven piece band (imagine that) and playing a huge packed pub (imagine that too).
We were playing an old bluesy tune called ‘Black and Blue’ and two idiots started fist fighting in front of us, to our delight.
When I played in a rockabilly band 45 years ago some bars you would see used syringes on the floor at the end of the night. We had to lock amps up with chains. If you did not someone would run out the door with your amp head. This particular band would get paid for a week what I made in one night at a top hotel for what I called a ‘tuxedo’ gig. I did it cause the rockabilly guys were actually fun to play with. That bandleader still owes me money.
I recall a gig where a jealous husband came in with a handgun. Really not the kind of thing you normally see in Canada in the ‘70s. The place emptied, don’t know how it was resolved and we all went back in and carried on playing and dancing. Lol
Also back then I was in a seven piece band (imagine that) and playing a huge packed pub (imagine that too).
We were playing an old bluesy tune called ‘Black and Blue’ and two idiots started fist fighting in front of us, to our delight.
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In the early 80s I was playing with a cover band in a Chicago bar, and there was Mr Drunky, flirting with our (female) singers and falling all over everybody while challenging them to fight. Each time we had a set break, he would disappear, and next set he would be back - with a couple more bruises, cuts, black eyes, whatever. By the end of the night, he looked REAL bad. We all felt bad for him, and also we couldn’t stop laughing.
Some people deserve a beating.
This is why I stopped going to bars years ago.
Some slobbering drunk needs to tell you how much they really love you.
Or one is malevolently staring you down.
Slamming whiskey and getting angrier with every swallow.
I don't need either one.
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We are regulars at a Irish bar in downtown Amsterdam. I have unlimited stories.
It wasn't negative and I don't know if the guy was very drunk, but setting up for a 9PM gig in Mississippi, a guy sauntered in, walked right to me and said, "Play some SHEE-han, man!".
I was playing upright.
I was playing upright.
Played a gig in Paso Robles and on break we all went back into the green room (this was a 7 or 8 piece) and a similarly plastered woman - not unattractive but plainly nuts - came back into the room and was similarly, umm... 'forward'. I declined as gracefully as I could saying I'm married (not that she cared). Best part is that in front of the rest of the band she said "but none of the rest of the band are any good looking!" before storming out.
Yeah I had a drunk Marine come up to me after a gig and said something similar. I think he was just looking for a fight. I told him we'd try and play better next time and walked out. Nothing exciting, just a sad drunk.
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A “solo guy” I know had some drunk “relieve” themselves into one of his Bose 802 covers left near the dance floor. So he put his guitar down, picked up the cover, and tipped it over the drunk’s head. Classy stuff.
I just successfully forgot all of the horrors of the music biz and now you want to bring 'em up again? Shame on you!
