How long is your gig?

[SemiDriven]

Classic rock cover band with a smattering of originals thrown in.

Primarily bars with a start time of 9:00 pm.

3-4 hour gig, 45-60 minute sets, 20-minute breaks.

If most of the people have cleared out after the 2nd set, we either end early or practice some new material.

Yeah…by the 3rd set I’m running a little ragged — especially those Friday night gigs where I rush home from work, grab the gear, and head to the gig.

I’m having a hip replaced later this month. I’m hoping that I experience a slight bump of energy after that!

 

[BlueTalon]

We're doing the Goodwood Revival Motor Festival September 17,18,19 and have been slotted in doing 30min. sets 4 times a day from 10am to 4pm. We rotate with another band and DJ. i can tell you we will be pretty sick of those songs by Sunday!

You know you can play different songs each set, right?

 

[coy garcia]

All of the above... I'll take it anyway I can get it.

 

[StudioGC]

You know you can play different songs each set, right?

Well, dagnabitt, you are a smart fellow. Not sure why non of us in the band thought of that! Actually we did....but we have a dep guitarist so going to keep the list down to a manageable size. We do have an hour of material the deep can handle so we can mix it up a bit.

 

[hrodbert696]

Depends. Most of my gigs are the typical cover band 3-hour bar gigs. The Blues Bros. tribute normally plays about an hour and a half. Sometimes it gets parade gigs where we loop about six songs over and over on a float for... I don't know... a couple hours?

 

[Slevage]

Depends on the contract (which can be verbal).

 

[dan1952]

We almost always play shows that are 2 hours, and we play straight through.

 

[dalkowski]

THAT'S RATHER A PERSONAL QUESTION, SIR.

 

[JW56789]

So Anyway, having been to Festivals Acadiens 'et Creoles several times, the Blue Moon in Lafayette and a dance hall in Opelousas, I heartedly agree. People 'South of 10' really know how to have a good time. They dance to have fun without any other intensions. Plus most of the folks know how to play 5 or 6 instruments.

In the past, we usually played about 10 crawfish boils a year. I'd take home some boudin or andouille...but no crawfish. Their shelf life out of the pot is just too short.

Maybe some day I'll be lucky enough to get invited to a boucherie.

And to answer the original OP, our 4-hour gig is three one hour sets with two 30 minute breaks. We don't play many bars, mostly outdoor events. Our community concert gigs are usually 2 hours total, so we'll play 2 sets with a 20 minute break. Our BL plays a 30 lb accordion...he needs the downtime!

'Cane Jimmie, it will be one of the minor regrets of my life that despite growing up in Beaumont, TX, right on the fringe of the Cajun country, that somehow I never lived over there. One of the few places where if you tell someone you're a musician, they think that's great, and not some automatic knee-jerk that you must be some kind of flake. Terrific people, great food, and they really love to have a good time without getting stupid with it.

One of my favorite parts of the world. And different from New Orleans, which is very different from the rest of the 'South of 10' world, Acadiana. People think it's all the same, but it really, really isn't. Drop me off in Breaux Bridge, Lafayette, Church Point, Jennings, anywhere over there and I'll call you if I need you, but don't . . . . sit by the phone !

 

[WI Short Scaler]

Our cover band typically books 4 hr gigs. Usually the first set is about 50 mins, a sort break than the second set is usually 1 1/2 hrs, short break and then finish the night off. We found that on a typical 8-12 gig playing through the 10 pm window keeps alot of folks around when they might otherwise find that a good time to vacate.

If 2 hrs or less we'll play straight through. On the rare occasion that we are booked for 3 hrs, we'll do 2 sets with a short break somewhere in the approximate "middle" of the gig.