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

[bassteban]

You actually give a damn about any of that?


I would bet money I could easily find professional musicians who've never heard that song. I come across people like that quite often. They're usually too young to have been exposed to some 1960's Rock.

You have to understand that everyone didn't come up listening to the same things you do.

To refuse to play any of her songs over a single song and an interview? Wow.

The interview & tune are just the deciding factors- I think I have an instinctive/kneejerk-reactionary distaste for whatever is most popular at any given time, and in protest I will not play her music. I'm sure she'll never know and that's OK. I also get that not everyone has heard the same stuff I have and will have varying tastes. I'm just saying I am very unimpressed w/FH as a so-called pro claiming to have never heard the tune in question; to me that says that she is either ignorant or BSing.
I don't really care all that much about it, I just dislike her as an artist to the point that I will not play her music- it would make my skin crawl. She is likely a very nice person; I'll never know.
Sorry if that bothers you- it is one of my very few *standards*

 

[michael_atw]

It's like selling your soul. If your band is strictly about money then I guess it doesn't matter. I put my band together from scratch myself, so I cannot be fired. I wouldn't say that I have the only input on song choice, but the fact is that if I say we ain't playing it, we ain't playing it. lol

I think it's worse than that. You lose all credibility. You are now the "house" band, you aren't worthy of anything more than the title of "live jukebox".

When someone is playing questionable music for a band, they are doing it for a wage. If you do music for a wage and will do anything for that wage, you are akin to the guy at Wendy's who is forced to do the fecal jobs for minimum wage. One has to have more confidence in themselves - if I'm willing to fore-go my integrity for a buck...nasty.

For me, I would NEVER play anything by Jimmy Buffett.

 

[malthumb]

I know... that's one reason why I was surprised by your hatred of the song. Seemed pretty harmless to me.


......

Now that I have the benefit of 20/20 hindsight and the lingering effects of a morphine drip, I think what put me over the top was the rush to shove this song into the playlist. I'm a 2-rehearsal guy, no matter how simple the song is. I like to KNOW that we all agree on how we start the song, where changes occur, how we end the song. Especially if we're adding any sort of a twist. With this one, we were told on Tuesday that we'd be adding it for a party. We listened to it on Wednesday. Might have spent 2-minutes finding the chords and moved on. Didn't really rehearse it. We agreed that we would not attempt it at our Saturday gig. Then on Saturday it becomes a "must play?". I don't work like that.

Now don't get me wrong.....I still don't like the song, but I'm less likely to fall on my sword over it. I've even worked out a little "Forget Me Nots" -esque groove in the event we do wind up adding it to our play list.

Hope you feel better.

Already do....especially since I've finally shaken the after-effects of the previously mentioned morphine drip. That had me messed up for a week AFTER I was released.

 

[Brad Johnson]

The interview & tune are just the deciding factors- I think I have an instinctive/kneejerk-reactionary distaste for whatever is most popular at any given time, and in protest I will not play her music. I'm sure she'll never know and that's OK. I also get that not everyone has heard the same stuff I have and will have varying tastes. I'm just saying I am very unimpressed w/FH as a so-called pro claiming to have never heard the tune in question; to me that says that she is either ignorant or BSing.

Or maybe she never heard the song. Unlikely because...?

She beens doing her own music for a long time. If she were doing classic Rock covers for years including alot of Joplin maybe I could see your point.

I don't really care all that much about it, I just dislike her as an artist to the point that I will not play her music- it would make my skin crawl. She is likely a very nice person; I'll never know.
Sorry if that bothers you- it is one of my very few *standards*

Quite the contrary, it doesn't bother me at all. I look at your attitude as a luxury... the more bassists there are in this world like you, the more possibilities for me. No offense, I'd guess you can see how that works.

You care enough to actually dislike her and refuse to play her songs because it would make your skin crawl. That's caring way more than most people including myself do.


I never understood the attitude particularly because of something you pointed out... you really don't know her. If you met her and liked her, would your attitude change?

I don't know the vast majority of musicians whose work I cover. I'd be willing to bet there's a jackhole or two amonst them. Why would that concern me? I'm not lending them money, I'm playing a song.

 

[michael_atw]

QUESTION: Are there songs that YOU dislike so much that YOU would fall on your sword to not play? Mine is "Call Me Maybe". And yours is????

Fall on a sword??!

A band like that is playing cover songs. Not originals, covers. It's like the equivalent of a job that doesn't require training. You can take all those covers you know to another band in five minutes. No sword is being fallen on.

The pay for most of us if we were in cover bands is a pittance.

Beyond that, falling on a sword would involve ruining yourself. The opposite is true - playing trash is what ruins oneself. Next week, you're the band that people remember plays the annoying stuff.


I'm not old...I'm relatively not that experienced. But friendly advice from someone who stands in a crowd: 4 screaming girls do not speak for 80 people. For every person who loved that song you just played that sucks, 2-3 hated it.

You would from thenceforth be known as the bad who played that horrid song. The opposite could ring true - you drew 5 people but drove away 15.

 

[malthumb]

I know... that's one reason why I was surprised by your hatred of the song. Seemed pretty harmless to me.


.... .

One more thought on this.....

IMHO, Stephanie Mills had one of the best voices in the industry.....almost on a level with Whitney Houston, but way before Whitney......

But 90% of the material written for her sucked.

Bad material + great voice = bad final product. That's how I see CMM.

 

[bikeplate]

Hi

When a cover band asks me to sub I let them know I won't play Margaritaville. Hate the song, hate the artist.

Rob

 

[DWBass]

To answer the initial question... no.

I can have fun with so many things and work with musicians who are on the same wavelength that frankly the OP really took me by surprise. Genuine surprise.

What could I possibly hate about any song to that degree? Beats the hell out of me. The fact that so many say they'd quit rather than play song X also took me by surprise but now that I think about it I guess that's why I have so much work...

I know the gig ain't about me!

So making it in any way, shape or fashion about me as a sideman seems childish at best... no offense to anyone, that's just how I see it. In the whole scheme of things it certainly doesn't compare to being a dancer at a bachelor party.

If I were a BL and I got that ultimatum, I'd say "it's been fun. Bye". With a genuine smile on my face. Because honestly I'd think you had a screw loose to jeopardize a gig over something as trivial as five minutes of any song... and who knows what's next.

and I've played "The Chicken Dance".


In all sincerity this smacks of completely missing the big picture. Here's why: You never know who's watching.

It is entirely possible that your band could pick up more work by taking a song that you feel is lame and rocking it... and I mean rocking it, not phoning it in, not looking bored. I've actually had people tell me they absolutely hated a song that we did..., until they heard us do it.

In closing, I'll let you guys in on a little secret... I don't love every song I perform.

I know... shocking. But I've found ways to have fun with even the most mundane stuff, because as a musician I have the ability to do that so I don't look at any song name on a setlist as a death sentence. As a professional musician that's what I do... and I get paid pretty well because I'm devoid of anything approaching this kind of drama. But I do genuinely appreciate the drama... more work for me

Just my thoughts on this. No offense to any song haters.

Damn, once again...I agree with Brad!

I don't like every song we do either but if they're payin', I'm playin'! Hell, every gig we play Happy Birthday by Stevie Wonder! There's always someone there who has a birthday! I'm not a fan of the song. As for the song in question, I've played far worse tunes! How about "Can't Get You Outta My Head" by Kylie Minogue? I played it and rocked it. The key is to make the song fun! How about "Do You Believe" by Cher? I played it and rocked it! Not to mention the pre-requisite Mustang Sally or Brick House! I play 'em and I funk 'em out! We've even done "Toxic" by Britney Spears!

 

[abngourmet]

I had to google it too. Horrid, horrid synth pop garbage. At the place I get my hair cut, they play that kind of dance-pop crap over their pa system. By the time my haircut is done, I want to walk into the woods and harm myself with a dull knife. I wouldn't play that crap either.

A band I played in not long ago had a "policy," if you will for Freebird. We'd put up signs on the monitors that read "Freebird - $100." When asked to play it (as we inevitably always were), we'd tell them "100 bucks, and we'll do it." It was always hilarious to see some drunk person running around the bar trying to raise $100 so we'd do it. A few times, they actually succeeded. We took the $, and played it. Nothing quite like supplementing one's income at the gig ....

 

[Brad Johnson]

Now that I have the benefit of 20/20 hindsight and the lingering effects of a morphine drip, I think what put me over the top was the rush to shove this song into the playlist. I'm a 2-rehearsal guy, no matter how simple the song is. I like to KNOW that we all agree on how we start the song, where changes occur, how we end the song. Especially if we're adding any sort of a twist. With this one, we were told on Tuesday that we'd be adding it for a party. We listened to it on Wednesday. Might have spent 2-minutes finding the chords and moved on. Didn't really rehearse it. We agreed that we would not attempt it at our Saturday gig. Then on Saturday it becomes a "must play?". I don't work like that.

We all have our comfort level. I'm the complete opposite... I work with people who for the most part take it upon themselves to be prepared so no rehearsals necessary and any arrangement changes can be discussed and done.

I once did a first gig with a guitarist several years ago where half the songs we did were originals. That night was the very first time I'd ever played with him. No rehearsals. It actually went great, I thrive under those conditions and this month I have five gigs with him. No setlists, some stuff will be familar, others will come right off the top of his head. To me that's fun.

I'm not saying there's anything wrong with wanting or needing rehearsals. I prefer the spontaneity with the right musicians.

I have another band (strictly covers) that doesn't have the same comfort level and they have rehearsals that are largely a waste of time. Stuff we could've discussed through a group email vs. coming together to largely discuss and not play. My favorite was a couple of months ago.

I missed one the gigs due to a prior commitment and they found a sub, who apparently didn't do very well. IOW he wasn't me on that gig... not that he should've been but he could've done much better than he did. Anyway, they called a rehearsal and what they wanted to go over were the "problem areas" they had with the sub.


Not a real firm grasp of the obvious so after about twenty minutes of this I pointed out that I was playing on the gig and since those areas hadn't been problems before, why did they think they'd be problems going forward?

Now don't get me wrong.....I still don't like the song, but I'm less likely to fall on my sword over it. I've even worked out a little "Forget Me Nots" -esque groove in the event we do wind up adding it to our play list.

Like I said, liking a song is a luxury in my world. It brings to mind the scene in "Being John Malkovich" where everyone is Malkovich. The audience isn't me, doesn't have my tastes so why should what I like have any bearing? Now I can like what I do with a song whether I like the song or not... that's where being an imaginative musician comes into play IMO.

Already do....especially since I've finally shaken the after-effects of the previously mentioned morphine drip. That had me messed up for a week AFTER I was released.

Cool.

 

[bassteban]

Just a quick sum reply to Brad: I don't think my 'tude(re her music)would change if I met her; also bear in mind this entire scenario is in a hobbyist bandninja:I disclaimed in my OP)- no pay or genuine *firing* is possible, so I can afford the luxury of refusing. Gimme a few bucks or a drink or three & THEN my outlook may very well change.
Lastly- I guess I do care enough to spew a little here, not losing any sleep over it.

 

[Brad Johnson]

Damn, once again...I agree with Brad!

Stings, don't it?

I don't like every song we do either but if they're payin', I'm playin'! Hell, every gig we play Happy Birthday by Stevie Wonder! There's always someone there who has a birthday! I'm not a fan of the song. As for the song in question, I've played far worse tunes! How about "Can't Get You Outta My Head" by Kylie Minogue? I played it and rocked it. The key is to make the song fun! How about "Do You Believe" by Cher? I played it and rocked it!

I've played that song by Cher too... in a lot of cases with songs like that I channel Anthony Jackson from his Chaka Khan projects. There's room for that kind of playing, cool note choices that propel the groove. Again, it's a song I've had people tell me they hated... until they heard us play it.


It's about having fun IMO IME. It's not the end of the world or one of Dante's circles where you'll have to play the song for an eternity. Maybe five minutes... unless the crowds really into it. That's better than having them sit on their hands listening to the usual self-indulgence. Isn't it?

 

[bunkaroo]

The last cover band I was in was a pretty good upstart hard rock cover band with alumni from several successful area bands. Even then we were playing songs I didn't care for (Nickelback for starters) but none of them were so bad I felt I had to quit.

Then it was suggested we needed to become more "dance-y". Um, OK, but we're a hard rock band with some swagger. So next thing I know we're doing "Play That Funky Music" and "Superfreak". I'm still not at the tipping point but close, imagining the ****ing Chicken Dance is next.

No, now the plan is to do a medley of stuff by Lady Gaga and Katy Perry, and others like them. With a male singer. That's when I wished the guys well.

 

[baileyboy]

I know the feeling of hating a song that much But over the years I've learned that I can learn something from nearly every song or artist. I'll give any song a chance now.

Yup, good outlook here. I play tons of songs I wouldn't normally listen to. As a performer working with others, I don't always have the luxury of just playing the tunes I want to play. Our band lets the crowd reaction dictate our set list. If some see this as "selling out", so be it.

 

[Brad Johnson]

Just a quick sum reply to Brad: I don't think my 'tude(re her music)would change if I met her; also bear in mind this entire scenario is in a hobbyist bandninja:I disclaimed in my OP)- no pay or genuine *firing* is possible, so I can afford the luxury of refusing. Gimme a few bucks or a drink or three & THEN my outlook may very well change.
Lastly- I guess I do care enough to spew a little here, not losing any sleep over it.

Understood.

Even before I gigged, I never had a don't play list. I was the guy who said "Cool, let's give it a shot... what's the worst that could happen?".

In your case, the worst might be that you find out you actual liked it.

jk

 

[Holdsg]

The only time I can see myself flat out refusing to play a song is if it's really repugnant to my values or philosophy.

I get this completely.

The first band I joined after my mid-life crisis was about 2 years ago, the singer wanted to cover "Man in the Box" by Alice in Chains. I'm a Christian, and I said "you know, I can do any of the sex, drugs, and R&R you want to do, but when you put out a song dissing my Savior, that's where I draw the line".

The rest of the band respected my veto, and we never talked again about it.

 

[Brad Johnson]

The last cover band I was in was a pretty good upstart hard rock cover band with alumni from several successful area bands. Even then we were playing songs I didn't care for (Nickelback for starters) but none of them were so bad I felt I had to quit.

Then it was suggested we needed to become more "dance-y". Um, OK, but we're a hard rock band with some swagger. So next thing I know we're doing "Play That Funky Music" and "Superfreak". I'm still not at the tipping point but close, imagining the ****ing Chicken Dance is next.

No, now the plan is to do a medley of stuff by Lady Gaga and Katy Perry, and others like them. With a male singer. That's when I wished the guys well.

Again, I've played the Chicken Dance and damn near LMFAO at the crowd's attempts at doing the actual dance. It was requested, we played it. Those gigs pay a minimum of $300. Bring it on.

I don't care for Gaga's or Perry's works from a personal listening POV but for live entertainment it's so easy to get a crowd going with that stuff it's not even funny. And with a male vocalist? Even better IMO. The unexpected.


I'll be doing some of both of their songs this weekend on my beach gig. Pay: $500. Maybe I have more motivation than most not to care one way or another. I've played worse for less.


I do fusion or Jazz gigs for the "artist" side of me but I can bring that mindset to just about any gig I do. The best paying gigs for me aren't the artist ones and often they're not the most fun either. Just saying. It can be what you make it.

What exactly is it that people genuinely hate about particular songs. The music? The lyrics? The artist? The people who like it? The way it makes your butt look too big? What is it?

Again, I'm genuinely curious.

 

[Brad Johnson]

I get this completely.

The first band I joined after my mid-life crisis was about 2 years ago, the singer wanted to cover "Man in the Box" by Alice in Chains. I'm a Christian, and I said "you know, I can do any of the sex, drugs, and R&R you want to do, but when you put out a song dissing my Savior, that's where I draw the line".

The rest of the band respected my veto, and we never talked again about it.

Sounds legit to me.

 

[fraublugher]

+1 on the adaptation version ,especially with these cookie cutter tunes, which we[cover bands] have to do for a lot of tunes anyway.

Also +1 on the respect your band-mates with veto cards for all, but learn the tune anyway just in case of [whichever scenario].

 

[Brad Johnson]

As usual some folks really don't seem to get what doing covers entails. It does not require that you do a carbon copy rendition of the original. That's the box unimaginative musicians are stuck in.

Coltrane played covers. Think about it.


If you see originals as some higher calling, cool. I don't. I see music as that and the idea that if you play covers you're selling out... it's simply narrow minded. And that's cool too, somebody has to fill that spot. I've err on the side of having a good time exploring music with my more open minded friends, whatever that music may happen to be.


And if I get paid well to do it sorry, that's a win-win in my book. Then again I don't hate anything I do musicially... it would be a genuine waste of my time and energy. Playing any kind of music can and often is a learning experience, unless you shut yourself off to it. Which is completely voluntary last I checked.

Not that anyone shouldn't use their time and energy as they see fit.