Enjoy the benefits of a premium membership!
Upgrade Account
-
TalkBass has been independent since 1998. Add your voice.
Create a free account to reply to discussions, view embedded media, and browse with fewer display ads.
Join free Log in
Want zero display ads or expanded classifieds tools? Compare plans.
onstage FAIL
- Thread starter Smooth_bass88
- Start date
Something must have changed going from the big band era to the rock n roll era. When did the sheet music go away?
if john Mayer can use a lyric teleprompter then why can’t Jimmy use his iPad at the Elks Lodge bbq gig?
if john Mayer can use a lyric teleprompter then why can’t Jimmy use his iPad at the Elks Lodge bbq gig?
Because we now have multiple generations of folks who believe that being a musician is about posing.
I’ve got nothing against those folks who are content with knowing a handful of songs, and performing them while posing a lot. I just won’t have them in my band.
Not sure why the dislike for music cue products…when a band has a repertoire of around 400 songs, then some charts are a good choice…
granted the positioning in OP is odd, but he might be trying to hide the fact he’s as ugly as a mud fence in a rain storm.
granted the positioning in OP is odd, but he might be trying to hide the fact he’s as ugly as a mud fence in a rain storm.
I admit to being one of those “musicians,” although “eight” seems harsh.
I admire people with the skill and craft to sight read, and the versatility and adaptability to play gigs with unfamiliar people. On the other hand, I could give a rip whether someone uses a tablet, music stand, shoes, cargo shorts or even a gol-durn milk crate onstage, as long as I like what I’m hearing. I am often surprised at the vehemence with which some of these things are talked about here. I guess I’m really on the casual end of the musical spectrum.
I like that everyone has their own way of accessing and presenting musicality. Some more palatable to any given audience than others, sure, but playing music for entertainment seems like it should have room for some variation in presentation.
Last edited:
Do they chant " I am human and I need to be loved...just like everybody else does..." ?
I chose to think of the photo as a "success" rather than as a "fail". We don't know what the actual circumstances were, but I like to think that the bassist found a way to continue to play despite having eyesight challenges. I've played in bands with blind and partially blind musicians, so that's where my assumptions go when I see a photo like this.
I use an ipad or my iphone on every gig. Granted, it's not mounted in front of my face, I keep it low and at a flatter angle to be discreet. I use it for setlists and some lyrics, and also to control my effects. If thats failing,...so be it. It works for me!
Seems kinda Stupid. Youd think some one would say something to him. I think its stagefright!
I once read an advice column in BP magazine about crippling Stage fright! and it got the best of Me, at the next gig the singer had just got some new mounted monitors & put one right in front of my rig! right at eye level, I didnt care. but my GF got mad! that i was happy to hangout in my "bass nook". it was real silly but, thought iwas suffering from stagefright, happy to kind of hide behind the gear on stage.But I got over it was simply a lack of confidence.it was pointed out "you look bored, not having any fun!" which was not the case! I was too pre occupied on not making a mistake! I was shocked because in my younger years I was very animated when playing! so I snapped out of going into my shell, & started to be a little more "Lively" on stage! with in mind, no one wants to watch a scared or bored band! so I learned to relax & have some fun!
every one has a way to deal with Stage fright, Fear in ifferent ways! I like to think decisions made out of irrational fear are always debilating! get over yourself!
I’ve never started a thread attacking as ‘fail’ someone reading, or not reading, a chart onstage. But I certainly will respond to a thread where that occurs, and take the liberty of pointing out that, in all likelihood, someone able to read a part in front of an audience and play it correctly almost certainly possesses a higher degree of proficiency in the language of music than the person starting such a thread.
That said, I grasp that many who do not read onstage, or at all, are quite good at what they do. So yes, there is room for a wide variety in presentation.
I have no problem memorizing 4-hours worth of a bass show.
But for the life of me (and I've been memorizing keys for 50 years) I have a hard time memorizing my keys gigs.
At least a few songs a set. Especially those that are needed to be played note-for-note (tribute acts).
Yes, I use a tablet for my keys gigs, not for bass gigs.
I try to keep it away from face-level with the audience, but I'm usually in the back so not as noticeable.
Everyone's looking at the singer and guitar player anyways.
That's my justification.
But for the life of me (and I've been memorizing keys for 50 years) I have a hard time memorizing my keys gigs.
At least a few songs a set. Especially those that are needed to be played note-for-note (tribute acts).
Yes, I use a tablet for my keys gigs, not for bass gigs.
I try to keep it away from face-level with the audience, but I'm usually in the back so not as noticeable.
Everyone's looking at the singer and guitar player anyways.
That's my justification.
When you play close to 200 different songs and need to be able to react to requests for 4 hours a night, a tablet is a necessity.
Last minute fill-in for a no-show? Meh, as others mentioned, it's the bare feet that grates on my nerves. Damn hippy. ; )
OregonMike
It's definitely more talk than bass . Honestly I think much of the parts of the vibe of TB I don't like are mostly a product of it being 10 or 20 times bigger than a healthy forum ought to be. Much like the quality of discussion suffers with the move from specialized forums to Facebook where 3 million people are shouting in the same room without threads or any meaningful way to categorize, archive and sort threads of conversation. Threads fill up to dozens of pages within minutes and people are discourteous to others who simply weren't the first off the line to get their comment in before someone else said the same thing 3 pages and 11 seconds before.
It's just too big. And rudeness grows exponentially with population density.
