Well, i promised myself i'd never do this again......
I used to play with a guitar player/singer/bandleader some time ago. The drummer was great, the rest, not so much. He and i quit about the same time and all was amicable.
Every once in a while i get a call from the bandleader asking me to sub in his current band. One night? no problem! Well.......I get a call a couple of months ago. He is setting up a mamas and papas tribute. Has the old drummer on board, low commitment, learn the tunes at home, practice a few times, will call for gigs. Sure. First night i learn all the tunes beforehand, drummer sounds great, and he has a second guy on vocals and guitar who is awesome! the "mama cass" gal sounds super too. Sure i'll play, why not?
Well the drummer can't do it. neither can the 2nd male gp/singer. Ouch. So he gets another good drummer. Finds a second woman singer who is also good. Keyboard player is classically trained but has never played with a band. we can work on him, right? Still no second male singer/guitar player (boy do we ever need at least one guy who can do both well, maybe just one of the two).
Back at the beginning band leader e-mails us all and says something like "you are all professionals, i expect you to learn your parts so we aren't learning the songs at practice". That's what i always do. I could mail my part in every two weeks for the 2 hour practice. Guess who doesn't really know the songs? Yeah, you were right. The band leader. Sound familiar to anyone? Everyone else is more or less mostly prepared. Mostly. Drummer has a few questions but he's good enough that you can give him a look and be on track. The singers are sorta working out some stuff at practice but whatever. Keyboard player? Well when he's good he's great, but sometimes i have no idea where he got the chords for the songs. Seems to trust the net rather than his ears. Oh well.
Then........Mama cass books a gig. Right before another gig i have the same night. Ok i can swing it. Some more songs get added. Fine. They want us to do christmas songs. Great. Next thing you know we are playing "merry christmas darling" by the carpenters. I want to die. We make it sound ok except for the harmonies at the end. A train wreck. Bodies everywhere. I ask nicely if we can forgo the end and "cass" nearly bites my head off, "that's the best part of the song!" Yeah, when the carpenters and six studio vocalists do it it is...
. Then i find out that we are going to be in the paper. And the guy wants us to wear period relavant clothes. Awesome. The drummer wails that we're going to look like a comedy act. You bet. Next thing i know everyone and their brothers find out about this gig and are showing up. I'm sizing my head for the paper bag i'm going to wear over it. See you after the 19th to tell you how it was......
I used to play with a guitar player/singer/bandleader some time ago. The drummer was great, the rest, not so much. He and i quit about the same time and all was amicable.
Every once in a while i get a call from the bandleader asking me to sub in his current band. One night? no problem! Well.......I get a call a couple of months ago. He is setting up a mamas and papas tribute. Has the old drummer on board, low commitment, learn the tunes at home, practice a few times, will call for gigs. Sure. First night i learn all the tunes beforehand, drummer sounds great, and he has a second guy on vocals and guitar who is awesome! the "mama cass" gal sounds super too. Sure i'll play, why not?
Well the drummer can't do it. neither can the 2nd male gp/singer. Ouch. So he gets another good drummer. Finds a second woman singer who is also good. Keyboard player is classically trained but has never played with a band. we can work on him, right? Still no second male singer/guitar player (boy do we ever need at least one guy who can do both well, maybe just one of the two).
Back at the beginning band leader e-mails us all and says something like "you are all professionals, i expect you to learn your parts so we aren't learning the songs at practice". That's what i always do. I could mail my part in every two weeks for the 2 hour practice. Guess who doesn't really know the songs? Yeah, you were right. The band leader. Sound familiar to anyone? Everyone else is more or less mostly prepared. Mostly. Drummer has a few questions but he's good enough that you can give him a look and be on track. The singers are sorta working out some stuff at practice but whatever. Keyboard player? Well when he's good he's great, but sometimes i have no idea where he got the chords for the songs. Seems to trust the net rather than his ears. Oh well.
Then........Mama cass books a gig. Right before another gig i have the same night. Ok i can swing it. Some more songs get added. Fine. They want us to do christmas songs. Great. Next thing you know we are playing "merry christmas darling" by the carpenters. I want to die. We make it sound ok except for the harmonies at the end. A train wreck. Bodies everywhere. I ask nicely if we can forgo the end and "cass" nearly bites my head off, "that's the best part of the song!" Yeah, when the carpenters and six studio vocalists do it it is...
. Then i find out that we are going to be in the paper. And the guy wants us to wear period relavant clothes. Awesome. The drummer wails that we're going to look like a comedy act. You bet. Next thing i know everyone and their brothers find out about this gig and are showing up. I'm sizing my head for the paper bag i'm going to wear over it. See you after the 19th to tell you how it was......
