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Playing in multiple bands

#41
capncal said:
Playing with as many people as possible as often as possible will only increase your playing skills all across the board.

I'm putting together a Beatles cover band to try and play this huge Beatles festival we have and I figure there's tons of material in the Beatles library I'll be able to borrow from and incorporate into my playing.

Just gotta be upfront with everyone. My main band knows they get priority and when I get together with these new guys Saturday that's what I'll tell them.

this is my first attempt at playing in another band so it'll be a learning experience! i'm excited about the opportunity to play more!
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Good luck

I've always enjoyed learning Beatles material. Sir Paul is one of the best.

Blue
 
#42
HolmeBass said:
All the pros in my area play in more than one band.
About subs: if it's a cover band, how can you not find a sub? I don't understand Blue's situation, finding a guitarist to cover a blues gig should be pretty damned easy, frankly, unless you just haven't networked enough in your scene to know the right people. .
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In Milwaukee it would be imposible to find a young female lead guitarist that can play blistering 70s style blues/rock lead guitar that has a bueatiful voice, and a personality that our followers love.


Sure we could find a guitarist, but we wouldn't even look if it came down to just that.

Blue
 
#43
HolmeBass said:
All the pros in my area play in more than one band. It's the only way to make ends meet. Most of the semi-pros, like me, also play in more than one project.
.
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That would be true in Milwaukee too. The Daryl Strummer's ( Genisis), Greg Kochs, Steve Kohens all have multiple projects. These guys have all been around for years. It's an elete circle. I can only wish to get a chance to play with any of them

blue
 
#44
I'm in three classic country bands that primarily play the same venue, so rarely have a double-booking. Also do monthly fill-ins for a house band midweek blues jam and occasional pick-up gigs. Usually my schedule is so far ahead I can see who 'gets me first.' I also play guitar in an acoustic duo, but it's usually afternoons at senior living centers, so that's not a problem and often leads to two gigs in a day/night. Played 16 gigs last month, while still holding down a full-time job.
 
#46
I don't have a full-time day job so if you want me to commit 100% to your band there's a simple solution. Put me on salary and all my other bands will magically disappear.

:)
 
#47
I play in a ten piece band and most of the band members do freelance work and/or they are involved in other projects. We find Google Calendar works great. If someone has a gig or isn't available for some reason, they just put it on the calendar and we all get notified. The agreement we have is that if there's a potential date for a gig and no one has updated the calendar to say they aren't available, the gig is good to book. We tend to book pretty far in advance so conflicts don't come up a whole lot but if they do, we've also accumulated a pretty extensive list of first rate musicians who can fill in if it's a gig that we don't want to pass on.
 
#48
Bassin' said:
The agreement we have is that if there's a potential date for a gig and no one has updated the calendar to say they aren't available, the gig is good to book.
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That's how we roll with my "A" band as well. BL is typically booking at least 6-8 months out and will periodically ask us to let him know any upcoming dates we know we CAN'T do, and everything else is fair game. He also has free reign to pull in a sub if it comes down to that vs. the rest of the band missing out on a good gig. Three days (Thanksgiving Day, Christmas Eve and Christmas Day) are always blocked off by default, and we really try to schedule our family getways, travel for day jobs etc. outside the May-Sept window which is our peak season.
 
#49
I tend to think the particular scene / area I'm in makes a lot of a difference, since there's not much money to be made in our genre, so there's a lot of plain ol' support for the music. Most of the guys I know (including myself) are in multiple bands and the best bands in the city are often made up of the same circles of people, just rearranged a little differently. Nothing but support for anyone who want to make more music.

It also helps if more than one member is shared between the bands. My "second" band includes a current member AND an ex-member of my first band (I was said ex-member's replacement in band A).
 
#50
my "A" band is great but not enough gigs so I play with the "B" band too. Everything is fully disclosed and transparent to everybody. The second band knows the first takes priority in the event of a conflict, but there's never been a conflict so far because I know my schedule and manage the communication with everyone involved.

I like it. I don't find it a hassle or anything else negative. The more the merrier, including learning a lot of material with the "B" band that's good to know. Plus I get to sing lead on a few songs with the "B" band, none in the "A".
 
#52
bluewine said:
There are to many of you that play in multiple bands for me to debate that it can't work.

However, I opinion that if your playing in several actively gigging bands you are not (by my definition) in a band or a true member even if it's your band.

I would define you as a hired gun, sub or free lancer.

Blue
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You have a habit of making up definitions, so I'm not sure that carries a lot of weight.

I don't suppose it occurred to you that someone could be a member of one band, and freelance with others? Or that you could be a member of several bands and just work to deconflict by coordinating schedules?

Nah, I didn't think so. :rollno:
 
#53
I think it's very good for your development.

A friend of mine plays in a melodic death metal band for about 3½ years now and since a couple of months also in a jazz band.

The people in the melodic death metal band are about the same age as him, while the people in the jazz band are twice as old as him and have a lot more experience.

It helps him developing himself and he can apply stuff he learns in the jazz band in his melodic death metal band.

Nice idea!
 
#54
Pacman said:
You have a habit of making up definitions, so I'm not sure that carries a lot of weight.

I don't suppose it occurred to you that someone could be a member of one band, and freelance with others? Or that you could be a member of several bands and just work to deconflict by coordinating schedules?

Nah, I didn't think so. :rollno:
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Dave Grohl..
Member/leader...Foo Fighters.
Member...Them Crooked Vultures.

If he can make it work I'm sure us grunts can too.
 
#55
Pacman said:
You have a habit of making up definitions, so I'm not sure that carries a lot of weight.

I don't suppose it occurred to you that someone could be a member of one band, and freelance with others? Or that you could be a member of several bands and just work to deconflict by coordinating schedules?

Nah, I didn't think so. :rollno:
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I can respond to that:

It has occurred to me that someone could be a member of one band, and freelance with others and make it work.

It has never occurred to me that I could be a member of several bands and just work to deconflict by coordinating schedules. Mainly because I only want to play in and be associated with 1 band and one band only.

I understand the whole multiple band angle and why guys do it.

I'm 60 and the whole multiple band thing is not a part of the band culture that I grew up in.

Blue
 
#56
Mr_Music90 said:
I think it's very good for your development.

A friend of mine plays in a melodic death metal band for about 3½ years now and since a couple of months also in a jazz band.

The people in the melodic death metal band are about the same age as him, while the people in the jazz band are twice as old as him and have a lot more experience.

It helps him developing himself and he can apply stuff he learns in the jazz band in his melodic death metal band.

Nice idea!
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I don't really know what melodic death metal is, however I think it's an extremely good idea for your friend to play in that jazz band.

Blue
 
#57
JumboJack said:
Dave Grohl..
Member/leader...Foo Fighters.
Member...Them Crooked Vultures.

If he can make it work I'm sure us grunts can too.
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I'm sure Dave makes it work because it's something he wants.

I'm sure it can work for grunts that want to be in multiple bands too.

It won't work for me because it's not what I want or something I've ever been interested in.

Blue
 
#59
chuck3 said:
my "A" band is great but not enough gigs so I play with the "B" band too. Everything is fully disclosed and transparent to everybody. The second band knows the first takes priority in the event of a conflict, but there's never been a conflict so far because I know my schedule and manage the communication with everyone involved.
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Exactly. I've been playing in multiple projects for years and have never had a problem with conflicts.
 

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