• TalkBass has been independent since 1998. Add your voice.
    Create a free account to reply to discussions, view embedded media, and browse with fewer display ads.
    Join free Log in
    Want zero display ads or expanded classifieds tools? Compare plans.

Ever hate a song so much you'd risk being fired?

#221
I just listened to the song in question, "Call Me Maybe."

This is contemporary dance music. It is typical of the genre in my opinion, no better, no worse.

If your clientelle expects such contemporary dance music, and this song has a high profile and popularity, and your business model is to cater to this clientelle who wants to hear this music, in keeping with your business model and desire for it to succeed, you damn well better play it with a smile on your face and keep your opinion to yourself (which is what I've had band leaders tell me).

If you don't give a flip about the expectations of the venue owners, clientelle, or the success of the business model, then boycott the song and do your bandmates a favor by seeking a different band that is a better fit for you.

Harsh reality? You bet. That's the "business" part of the "entertainment business." If being an entertainer, whether full-time or weekend warrior, is more a hobby for your personal gratification than a business, you need to find like-minded individuals to play with.

EDIT: This sentiment applies to all those songs mentioned in this thread that musicians claim they would quit over. My advice to you: Quit, move on, with as little drama as possible, do everyone in the mix a big favor.
 
#222
Here at the job, and everyone asked me to switch the station when SRV came on (what the??) to contemporary adult hits.... and guess what song came on... CALL ME MAYBE.

It's terrible. I don't blame you for hating it and being very offended when your bandmate wanted to play it when you agreed not to.

Personally, I wouldn't quit, and try hard to only play it upon client's request. It is not cool if the band decides not to play it and goes ahead and plays it anyway. I am really sorry to hear it, actually. That sucks! Strike one in my book... but I wouldn't get fired over it. If you really want to quit, just don't burn any bridges. It is more about the principal and not the song itself. Although you hate it, people want to hear it. Ugh!!
 
#223
Pockett said:
Here at the job, and everyone asked me to switch the station when SRV came on (what the??) to contemporary adult hits.... and guess what song came on... CALL ME MAYBE.

It's terrible. I don't blame you for hating it and being very offended when your bandmate wanted to play it when you agreed not to.

Personally, I wouldn't quit, and try hard to only play it upon client's request. It is not cool if the band decides not to play it and goes ahead and plays it anyway. I am really sorry to hear it, actually. That sucks! Strike one in my book... but I wouldn't get fired over it. If you really want to quit, just don't burn any bridges. It is more about the principal and not the song itself. Although you hate it, people want to hear it. Ugh!!
Click to expand...

Once again, and for the record ........

  • I have not at anytime considered quitting my band for any reason, including CMM
  • I have not been at anytime in danger of being fired from this band for any reason, including CMM
  • The question about "songs you'd risk being fired over" is a hypothetical, based on my thinking about the events of last Saturday's gig.
  • We will still be performing that song at a private party because they are paying us and specifically asked for it
  • We will not (if I can help it) play CMM at regularly scheduled gigs.

That is all.......
 
#225
No.

It does one good to read this once in a while:

"When you go on a gig, you have to remember that it's a privilege to play any kind of music -- even sitting in your house by yourself. Music is this wonderful, universal language. It's meditative and spiritual. A lot of people get caught up in the frustrations, and they lose it, the way a preacher loses the calling. When you pick up an instrument, realize how blessed you are. It doesn't matter whether you're playing for 50,000 people or by yourself. I'm not saying I'm a guru of this stuff. It's just that when I pick up a bass, I'm conscious of how much it has given me, and I try to take that onstage with me wherever I go."

- bassist Darryl Jones, who’s played with Miles Davis, Sting, Madonna, The Rolling Stones, and many others.
Click to expand...
"Suppose you play in a top 40 band and you’re sick of playing Celine Dion's “Because You Loved Me” for the 500th time. What if Celine called you tomorrow to join her band for a sold out year of shows in Vegas? Would you like playing the song more? If your answer is yes, you’re not doing your job as a bassist. “Because You Loved Me” has the same chord changes no matter where or for who you’re playing it, and that framework should be your focus. Your role is to make that song sound and feel as good as it possibly can every time you play it. The audience should never factor into the way you approach your performance or the energy you put into it."
Click to expand...

http://www.ricksuchow.com/press-group-80.html

We recently learned a song called "Corpus Christi Bay" as done by Robert Earl Keen. The song is about big money + part life oil rig folks sometimes get stuck in. Not too hard and it can be made fun actually.
 
#227
Rockin Mike said:
Soft Cell's "Tainted Love"
Click to expand...

As opposed to Gloria Jones' original?


I never had a problem playing songs I hated, and I've had to often enough. I think anyone in a cover band, or an originals band where you don't write the songs will eventually have to face this issue. I don't think I'd join a band that would do CMM (I agree it's terrible), but if I was in one that did, I'd just get through it as best I could and forget about it. Learning it would be most of the pain, and once learned it's not a problem anymore.
 
#228
malthumb said:
Once again, and for the record ........

  • I have not at anytime considered quitting my band for any reason, including CMM
  • I have not been at anytime in danger of being fired from this band for any reason, including CMM
  • The question about "songs you'd risk being fired over" is a hypothetical, based on my thinking about the events of last Saturday's gig.
  • We will still be performing that song at a private party because they are paying us and specifically asked for it
  • We will not (if I can help it) play CMM at regularly scheduled gigs.

That is all.......
Click to expand...

I meant it to be hypothetical answer, and then just got into the idea of wonder whether I'd be fired for getting so mad about it/refusing to play it or quitting bc I just would lose interest if my band played a song I hated and we agreed not to play; that's all. Didn't mean to say you were thinking of quitting; my bad. It was just me who would think about it, I guess!

To get back on topic, "Hit Me With Your Best Shot", Pat Benatar...
 
#229
Pockett said:
I meant it to be hypothetical answer, and then just got into the idea of wonder whether I'd be fired for getting so mad about it/refusing to play it or quitting bc I just would lose interest if my band played a song I hated and we agreed not to play; that's all. Didn't mean to say you were thinking of quitting; my bad. It was just me who would think about it, I guess!

To get back on topic, "Hit Me With Your Best Shot", Pat Benatar...
Click to expand...

Pockett,

I appreciate the clarification. I responded as I did because I thought it was specifically addressing me.

And you bring up a very good point....I would probably have reacted a lot more calmly and maybe even not hate the song has much i
Were it not for the fact that we had agreed SEVERAL TIMES in advance that we would not play the song last Saturday. So when it came up three more times in the course of the evening, my reaction became increasingly harsh each time.
 
#230
Haven't read all the replies, but I just quit a band for playing so much crap I don't like. I understand, though, that if someone's paying you to play you best do what they want to hear. No problem with that rule. For me, though, the solution was to get away from a band that was doing too much of what I hate to play. First it was one tune, then another, until half the list was that way. I just couldn't stand it anymore. No gig is perfect, but I had to draw the line on that one. I began to feel silly up there, and the songs just didn't fit that band. But, not only that, the band's whole style began to turn me off. So, I'm off to better gigs for me.

Hey, I'm 62, and I decided there was no more time to play gigs I didn't like. From here on out I must stop being a mercenary, and instead, go play gigs that I enjoy. Life's too damn short.
 
#231
Wow its one song..get over it.

EDit: Went over and listened to that song the OP complained about...liked it and my Daughter 7 years old does to . Try playing Sk8ter boy once...I did in a cover band and I lived :D
 
#232
My band play Brown Eyed Girl, third song, third set. Do I like the song... no. Can I argue that the song doesn't fill the dance floor and keep 'em there for the next two or three... no. It works and works well. I always watch the crowds reaction to our songs... and as a band, we discuss what worked and what didn't work and make playlist decisions from there.
Re the Op... feel free to add...
The Bucket - Kings of Leon.
Fishheadjoe

Ps... played TCB in one band... I think they got the idea that I didn't like the song, when I layed down on the floor, flat on my back, during rehearsal of that boring piece of work.
 
#233
Russell L said:
For me, though, the solution was to get away from a band that was doing too much of what I hate to play. First it was one tune, then another, until half the list was that way. I just couldn't stand it anymore. No gig is perfect, but I had to draw the line on that one.
Click to expand...
+1 vote with your feet.

There is a big difference between making a choice for you (leaving the band) and forcing your choice on the band (refusing to play a song).
 
#234
It all depends on the gig and the reason I'm there. If it's a hired gun/sideman date, I play whatever is called. I do those either for the money or the experience or because I want to play with a specific person or a specific venue. Or maybe I just like the idea of a weekend away.

OTOH, I play in a cover rock band that I do strictly for fun and the fun comes from:
- playing music I like
- with musicians I enjoy playing with
- for an audience who is enjoying listening to us
- making a few bucks

Those are my criteria for this gig. If they stop being met I'll end my association with the band. The drummer keeps trying to get us to play some pop country songs which I just despise. His rationale is that audiences will love them but that's irrelevant to me. I'm not doing this just to get in front of an audience. There are plenty of songs we can do that everyone in the band likes that go over well, so there's no need to play songs we don't like.

I've made it very clear what my terms for this gig are and so far we've been successful on those terms. So yeah, I'd quit this gig before adding the pop country tunes to the set list. I just have too many other things I'd rather do with my time.
 
#235
My band play Brown Eyed Girl, third song, third set. Do I like the song... no. Can I argue that the song doesn't fill the dance floor and keep 'em there for the next two or three... no. It works and works well. I always watch the crowds reaction to our songs... and as a band, we discuss what worked and what didn't work and make playlist decisions from there.
Click to expand...

Yep that and Mustang Sally and Proud Mary are slam dunks as far as crowd success goes. IMO 'Mustang Sally' which I truly enjoy playing, is a magical song. The effect, no matter what style or how badly its played just can't be denied. A few years ago I went with a friend. We went to three different venues and heard 3 different bands play 'Mustang Sally' (a country version, a r&b and heavy metal) and each time the dance floor was filled. I doubt any other tune could claim the same thing.
 
#237
im trying out for a blues trio on sunday and just got the set list. Mustang Sally is in there...I was like "ugh" ....but then I listened to the recording they gave me... they turned it into a ballsy upbeat blues tune thats actually really cool.

I guess if you dont like a song....make it better!
 
#238
marmadaddy said:
It all depends on the gig and the reason I'm there. If it's a hired gun/sideman date, I play whatever is called. I do those either for the money or the experience or because I want to play with a specific person or a specific venue. Or maybe I just like the idea of a weekend away.

OTOH, I play in a cover rock band that I do strictly for fun and the fun comes from:
- playing music I like
- with musicians I enjoy playing with
- for an audience who is enjoying listening to us
- making a few bucks

Those are my criteria for this gig. If they stop being met I'll end my association with the band. The drummer keeps trying to get us to play some pop country songs which I just despise. His rationale is that audiences will love them but that's irrelevant to me. I'm not doing this just to get in front of an audience. There are plenty of songs we can do that everyone in the band likes that go over well, so there's no need to play songs we don't like.

I've made it very clear what my terms for this gig are and so far we've been successful on those terms. So yeah, I'd quit this gig before adding the pop country tunes to the set list. I just have too many other things I'd rather do with my time.
Click to expand...

You very well may be my long lost twin! I could not have stated it better!
 
#239
Bert Slide said:
I've never been a fulltime musician except for about a year when I found myself unemployed and managed to survive playing in three bands. One band was a hair metal tribute we started as a joke and ended up being the biggest money making band I've ever been in. I absolutely detest hair metal but it was a blast dressing up and putting on a big stage show. I can understand how playing even the song in question here could be fun if you put the right twist on it and the crowd response was good.

As a part-timer who doesn't put food on the table with music I prefer to be more selective with what I will play. My time is limited and 5 min. playing Mustang Sally even if the yokels love it is too much for me. I was a flyfishing guide for ten years in CO. After I finally decided to "retire" I didn't go near a river for several years. What I once loved had become a chore to me. I would hate to have that happen with music. I've played for weddings and corporate gigs before and if they are the pinnacle of coverband gigs then I would rather play music I like for people I like in the lowliest dive bars for much less money.
Click to expand...

No offense to anybody making their living doing music because you gotta makes yo paper baby, but I can't imagine doing being in a wedding band. I much prefer dive bars my self.
 

Latest posts

Top Bottom
Back