yea... but that's the crap stuff imho. Last night? I like the idea of band meeting to agree on how to handle those situations.... good call. Not something to fret about otherwise, though.
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Morning-after regrets/ just venting
- Thread starter Goatrope
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yea... but that's the crap stuff imho. Last night? I like the idea of band meeting to agree on how to handle those situations.... good call. Not something to fret about otherwise, though.
Not sure why you played it in the first place if you guys didn't book it? I would have said you most have called the wrong band we don't have you on our schedule, and asked who they talked to? or just hang up at that point.
Hardly. They are paying you to sell tickets and/or sell alcohol. As long as the seats are full, dance floor hopping, and taps pouring they're happy. If one could do it with a kazoo and an accordion they'd be OK with it.
well sure, but unless you draw an audience to cart equipment around, the point stands.Hardly. They are paying you to sell tickets and/or sell alcohol. As long as the seats are full, dance floor hopping, and taps pouring they're happy. If one could do it with a kazoo and an accordion they'd be OK with it.
As it was happening, I wasn’t sure if it was somebody making a request, but turned out to be a manager asking him the question.
We could hear it unfolding. I could have stepped-in and forced the pay issue at that point, but it was done.
In retrospect, I could have intervened at several points, so lesson learned: If I don’t want to have regrets tomorrow, trust my own instincts and act decisively.
The post was cathartic in nature, and it’s helped.
You could consider:
Itemizing your fees separately in the contract. You agree to x dollars for music for x hours. You charge x amount to show up, and the performance fee isX, so when you agree to cut in half you’re only agreeing to cut in half your performance pay, not the work which doesn’t get any easier leaving early.
or add that you at least keep them on the pay clock til you’re loaded in if the show ends early. So if you would’ve played 4 hours and get cut off at 2, but it takes 30 minutes to load up, they owe for 2:30. That’s probably the better way to do it.
Itemizing your fees separately in the contract. You agree to x dollars for music for x hours. You charge x amount to show up, and the performance fee isX, so when you agree to cut in half you’re only agreeing to cut in half your performance pay, not the work which doesn’t get any easier leaving early.
or add that you at least keep them on the pay clock til you’re loaded in if the show ends early. So if you would’ve played 4 hours and get cut off at 2, but it takes 30 minutes to load up, they owe for 2:30. That’s probably the better way to do it.
buldog5151bass
Kibble, milkbones, and P Basses. And redheads.
Good luck getting most bars/clubs to accept this. Unless you regularly pack the venue, it's not exactly a seller's market...
Yeah, no doubt.
I come from Corporate America, and if I had started this band, or had my own, I’d probably be overly particular about bookings.
As it stands, I joined these guys 5 years ago, and it’s been a joy. Downside is that there’s a tendency to not be detail-oriented. Some folks are just not good at that, and others are incapable.
I accept my brothers for who they are, and in the context of nearly 90 gigs per year, I can only think of 3 over 5 years that we’re really shaged up. This one was frustrating, but not a total disaster.
“How do you get a musician to complain? Get him a gig.”
I would be inclined to look more closely at the fact that this gig was just announced to you by the venue on short notice without being on anyone's radar, there were expectations that you would bring a crowd which you knew you could not do, and was accepted this way. If it were in a good area where some people might come out on short notice, maybe accepting it would have been appropriate.
But driving a distance to a show like that, knowing that your people aren't going to make the trip, on short notice? I'd do it only if I thought the venue wouldn't care or if I were splitting the bill with someone else who might have fans there. Heck, I did it just a couple of Fridays ago when a friend posted that he needed a second band for a show. But there were zero expectations that anyone would come that (45 minute) distance to see us, and we had a rehearsal scheduled for that night anyway, so we got paid to rehearse.
This venue owner decided to book you at the last minute and still expected you to be able to draw to an area that's distant from where your core audience is. Those expectations were unreasonable on their part but your band agreed to do it, so it's on you. I'd make sure that doesn't happen again.
Sorry you got hosed, but this sort of thing is why there are booking contracts. I agree with your opinion you get paid for travel , set up, and tear down. There is no reason why you can’t or shouldn’t itemize the contract services to prevent or at least limit potential loss. Just an idea.
I'd just chalk it up to "lesson learned" regarding this particular venue. That the booking came out of the blue means they obviously mismanaged their calendar. (What? A bar that can't manage a booking calendar? I'm shocked! Shocked, I tell you!
) You might consider yourselves lucky that you weren't double-booked.
There's no point in assigning blame within the band, and the fix is simple: Next time they book you, get paid the agreed upon amount prior to date. You did your part; the rest is on them. No money, no show.
) You might consider yourselves lucky that you weren't double-booked.There's no point in assigning blame within the band, and the fix is simple: Next time they book you, get paid the agreed upon amount prior to date. You did your part; the rest is on them. No money, no show.
Morning-after regrets/ just venting
could've been worse. you learn. better luck next time!
When the venue originally approached you about the 19th gig, for which you didn't have a contract, that would have been the time to push back. What if the band was already been booked somewhere else? What if one of the band members was previously booked with another band? If you normally do have a contract in place with this venue, why didn't you this time?
This smells fishy. BL or whomever handles your booking should've pushed deeper before agreeing.
This smells fishy. BL or whomever handles your booking should've pushed deeper before agreeing.
My response to being offered half pay to stop playing would have been to simply ask for what you wanted in the first place, i.e., a spot at one of their well promoted and well attended events. You would say something like, "Yeah, sure, we can do that for y'll tonight. In return, we would like a spot opening that show with Zoom Baby And The Hot Rocks where the joint is going to be full of people. That's the only reason we agree to play here like this anyway, to get a shot at one of your big shows. So, how about it? How's $5,000 sound for us to open that show?"
Booking a band is an art. It's usually a give and take situation. A little humor never hurts. You have to establish a relationship with people, and at the same time, take advantage of every opportunity to leverage your bands interests. If I was going to be mad about anything, it would be that I missed a perfect opportunity to possibly get into the inner circle with this venue. Ever wonder how some groups seem to be in good with venue owners and get the cherry gigs? There you go. Good luck.
Booking a band is an art. It's usually a give and take situation. A little humor never hurts. You have to establish a relationship with people, and at the same time, take advantage of every opportunity to leverage your bands interests. If I was going to be mad about anything, it would be that I missed a perfect opportunity to possibly get into the inner circle with this venue. Ever wonder how some groups seem to be in good with venue owners and get the cherry gigs? There you go. Good luck.
Learn from your experiences. If you do. things will improve over time.
A simple no thank you to the FB message would have avoided the drama
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