Is it bad form to...

[I am Soma]

I agree it may be in bad taste but sometimes you gotta do what you gotta do....

sunglasses on stage would be the bigger offense although it does look blindingly bright out there

 

[brianrost]

Drinks are OK, but requests for oxy, molly or blow are discouraged

I used to work with a drummer who did this so often I finally just brought some extra drinks onstage and handed one to him when his current one was empty.

 

[guy n. cognito]

When it's done advertisement style. Plug some new micro brew, for example.

IMHO, still tacky. You can pimp a drink without placing an order.

 

[Liam Wald]

Very bad form IMHO.
Would you yell across a room at the bartender or waitress to bring you a drink?
Buy your drink before you go on stage.
If you can't make it through a set on one drink then there may be other issues to visit.

 

[Tom Henry]

Not necessarily tacky, if you are playing in a pub/bar, you are there to help them sell alcohol. It isn't about you and how classy/tacky you are. If you played horribly, but the bar noticed sales went up, you'll get invited back. If you were amazing, but no one bought any booze, good luck playing there again.

Make your audience thirsty.

 

[sean_on_bass]

I think there is a classier way to handle this. If you need a drink on stage, ask an acquaintance in the audience to go grab you one from the bar. Don't request it over the PA...although i've seen it done a few times. I just feel it's a bit arrogant, but then again some bars have that homely feel where that sort of thing is commonplace.

 

[SFH]

I've only seen this at punk and a few metal shows. I think it depends on the environment

 

[Goatee]

If you doing a payed gig then you are an employee of the establishment just as the bar staff are, and the employees are there for the benefit of the paying customer not each other

If I was a barman and some dude in band thought I was his personal skivvy expecting me to take him drinks I'd tell him where to go

Sounds like typical lead singer ego thing where they think they are doing the club and the customers a favour in being there

 

[petrus61]

Bad form. The staff probably has enough to deal with without being barked at over a mic to bring (likely free) drinks. The best thing to do would be to slip them a $20 before hand and ask them to swing by the stage occasionally.

 

[Rocktometrist]

Actually, in my band you get funny looks for ordering a drink at all, and if it's not fourth set, and your drink is not a beer, you will be asked to explain how you plan to continue to play the correct part once the alcohol hits your brain.

People love that.

If this music thing doesn't work out for you, at least you have the skills to be a professional babysitter.

 

[Muttleybass]

I would NEVER order a drink over the PA! Unprofessional.

However, if it's a bar gig and someone bought us shots and the waitress lined them up across the front of the stage, we might do them as part of the show. Just as part of the party atmosphere and a toast to the crowd.

 

[mellowinman]

If this music thing doesn't work out for you, at least you have the skills to be a professional babysitter.

All I can say is, after your third drink, you are not someone I want to be on a stage with. I've put a lot of time into making a good show, and I've busted my ass getting the gear set up. Having someone come in late, or play sloppy just isn't something I can deal with. I have never heard a good band that was half drunk. And I've never heard an even fairly good band that was more drunk than that.

 

[Gaolee]

The band is supposed to be selling drinks, not buying them.

 

[soitainly]

Actually, in my band you get funny looks for ordering a drink at all, and if it's not fourth set, and your drink is not a beer, you will be asked to explain how you plan to continue to play the correct part once the alcohol hits your brain.

People love that.

I have to agree (somewhat). Everyone has a different tolerance for drinking, and I guess people have a different opinion on how much is too much.

If I am playing a gig for pay, I treat it as if I am a pro. I want to do whatever it takes to give my best performance. If I am drinking more than a drink a set, then that's not going to be my best playing. I also know that having a drink relaxes my nerves substantially, and makes my playing better.

Sometimes it's a fine line between having fun and doing your job. So far I can only think of a couple of times where I noticed my playing suffered, it didn't really matter because it was on those nights where the crowd was really into us and kept buying the band drinks. But I made note to show constraint. I want to have fun as much as the next guy, but again, I treat gigs like the real deal. I wouldn't want to be playing bad on that one shot where you could have "made it".

 

[sean_on_bass]

The OP's question does the bring up the point of, should musicians be drinking at all when on stage? I think the logical answer is that no, you probably should not be drinking on stage. On the other hand, i've been to countless pro touring band shows where the musicians had beers on stage, and it never really bothered me as a audience member. Tough call on that one, and it probably comes down to how well the person in question can handle their alcohol without becoming a sloppy *******.

 

[PJSShearer]

One Band I was in, we used to parody the old (British) joke:

"All requests should be written on the back of a 5 pound note" to

"All requests should be written on the back of 4 gin and tonics" - both of which usually got a laugh, but no money or drinks.

I believe the joke came from a story of a famous dance orchestra from the 1930's- a waiter arrives on the Bandstand with a request for a song and a 5 pound note - in the 1930's we're talking 2 weeks pay for a normal working man. The leader sent it back, together with a another fiver of his own as the requester was obviously too poor to afford his request.....

When I played professionally there was never any drinking of anything - including water - at all on stage, you did your drinking in the breaks and/or before and after the gig.

I do recall a two week gig I had at a restaurant that we could drink all the tea and coffee we wanted (for free) or order (buy) a beer from the bar. Once I didn't feel like a beer and so tried to order a scotch and ginger ale - to which the cashier looked at me strange and I got a warning from Maitre'd via the band leader the I was told NFW and don't ask again.

 

[walterw]

What's worse is a band member asking people in the crowd to buy them or the band drinks. Seen it happen more than once.

what? no way, that's what you're supposed to do, especially if the band gets a discount for what they buy themselves. (obviously for rowdy rock & roll gigs, not upscale stuff)

every drink the band orders at a discount is a loss for the bar, every drink the band gets bought for them (at full price) is a win for the bar. on a good night, when the crowd is riled up and on your side, that often means smiling, accepting yet another round of shots and hiding them behind your amps because you don't want any more

One band I was in would occasionally take shots on stage (we'd arrange for them to be delivered before the show, or have a friend bring them to us at a certain point). Then we'd make a toast to something stupid and try to get the crowd involved with that.

that's how you do it! face it, if you're playing in a bar you're liquor salesmen, so make it part of the show.

 

[Luke19Boarder]

that's how you do it! face it, if you're playing in a bar you're liquor salesmen, so make it part of the show.

Exactly, we made it part of the show. We'd do a round of whiskey shots with a "Michigan chaser," which is when you take a shot and have someone slap you across the face instead of chasing with soda or whatever. Usually went over quite well.

 

[bassbully]

what? no way, that's what you're supposed to do, especially if the band gets a discount for what they buy themselves. (obviously for rowdy rock & roll gigs, not upscale stuff)

every drink the band orders at a discount is a loss for the bar, every drink the band gets bought for them (at full price) is a win for the bar. on a good night, when the crowd is riled up and on your side, that often means smiling, accepting yet another round of shots and hiding them behind your amps because you don't want any more

that's how you do it! face it, if you're playing in a bar you're liquor salesmen, so make it part of the show.

Sorry bellowing your drink order and demanding staff to bring it to the stage is highly unprofessional. This is not only my opinion but the clubs owner states it is forbidden in the rider for our next gig.
Treat the staff as professionals. To many bad musicians make it hard for the good ones to gain respect with clubs.

 

[f.c.geil]

It's bad form, at best. Rude, more like. Certainly unprofessional. Order your drinks during your breaks, in person, at the bar. Anything less is demeaning to the staff, IMHO.