Poll: How many shows have you played?

[Dougflores]

First gig was a local coffee shop. Family and friends came to see us play for the first time. It was a very simple and special time. Four of us cramped up in the tiniest of corners. I was basically stepping out of the front door with how small the space was. Just an all around fun time.

 

[Mark_70]

First gig was in the backyard of my girlfriend at the time; back in '87. We graduated from highschool and she threw this party in her backyard. Still recall the first song we played: "Fire" by the Pointer Sisters.

Ah - feels like many years ago..

oh wait..

Regards
Mark

 

[noeinstein]

View attachment 3419284 My first gig was , ironically, at a school for the deaf in 1983
My first paying gig was as my high school's Sadie Hawkins dance.
I've probably played over 3000 shows since

This may be the ultimate first gig.

 

[WebJunk]

I thought I was probably one of the older members on here. But thankfully, the dates of peoples' first gig makes me feel more like a kid I would have to do some research as I am awful with dates (names & faces too) but just remember my first real gig being at a bar at a bowling alley. We thought we were great but now I'm embarrassed thinking about it.
Those gigs were the easiest though. Plop down my amp, pull my bass out of the case and play. Now multiple basses, amp, cabs, effects, wireless for IEM's scanning freq's, wireless for bass, sound check and a few hours later I play. I miss the early gigs

 

[staurosjohn]

My first 'real' gig was a Sadie Hawkins dance at my high-school (I was a senior) in 1980... was fun- playing in front of my classmates! (the guitarist in front of me currently plays with Mercy Me- a Christian group). Life-events kept me from playing as much as I would have liked to, over the years, but have managed a few hundred gigs!
(bought my RIC when I was 15- 1977)

And... had the pleasure of playing in front of many of those same classmates at our 35th reunion!

 

[JGbassman]

First concert was when I was in 5th grade, playing trumpet. First gig playing bass was in 1981, at the Jerry Lewis Telethon. Over the many years I rose to the professional level, playing in road bands, then actually performing on tours with signed artists.

Over the years I've probably played well into the 3000 plus.

The best part is I'm still going, and working with three separate bands, all with shows this summer. Until my hands stop working, I can't see stopping.

 

[ezstep]

I don't remember the absolute first paying gig - back around 1966? I would have been 13 at the time. Fast forward a whole year (age 14) and I was gigging regularly in clubs and bars. Louisiana has a "Louis Armstrong" law which allows musicians to play venues where they normally are not old enough to enter. IF there is a "back entrance" (through a kitchen or what-not), then we had to use that entrance. Otherwise, just go play and make money. I would say easily 3000, but I haven't really calculated it out.

 

[packhowitzer]

1000-1500 over the last 27 years

 

[basshawk21]

My first gig was 1974 at a VFW on a Sunday afternoon, so it was a band practice in front of 15 - 20 people. Probably made $5 apiece after trailer rental. Then a high school talent show. At that time I was making $24 a week washing dishes. In the summer we got a gig at a public swimming pool on a Friday night. My mom was furious because i called off work "to play music?!" When I got home from the gig I showed her the $25 I made in one night opposed to $24 a week. Didn't matter, I was still "wasting" my time. I have lost count of the gigs played in the 45 years since that first gig. And that's just playing within 5 - 6 counties of where I grew up.

 

[lermgalieu]

If I remember it's in Angola, NY. They had a bungalow for us. At about 4am after our gig, our pianist asked me to give his pick up of the night a ride. Me assuming it was just a ride to the club to get her car, and when I pulled in the parking lot she asked me why I was stopping there. I told her to pick up her car. She said her car wasn't there it was at here house, well it turned out her house was halfway between Buffalo and Niagra Falls..LoL...

Yeah we played a lot of clubs in western NY during that time. I really miss that part of the country.... in the summer.

Yeah - I know what you are talking about but this was another Mickey Rats on Main St in the city near the SUNY campus and next door to Broadway Joes where moe (later) got their start.

 

[Marcus Willett]

What's your best guess as to how many shows you've done?

Not counting my first 5 or so years living in Miami...I worked sporadically so I don't think I was doing more than like 70-80 gigs a year....I would say very roughly 10,000. I worked for several years doing shows wherein the work week consisted of 6 days/week, 2 shows/day.

And/or where was your first gig?

The Musician's Exchange, Ft. Lauderdale FL. Sometime around summer 1984. I did a couple high-school concert type gigs before that, but that was my first actual paying gig. $25 lol

 

[T-boneParish]

I call ******** on this poll.
One-third of the respondents played more than 1000 gigs? I don't buy it.
One out of every three respondents played, on average, EVERY Friday and Saturday for at least a DECADE? I don't think so.
I know there are some dedicated cover-band bass players on this forum. And some veteran journeyman players. And a few road warriors. And some longtime faithful church players. But 1/3 playing that many gigs? When I see these results, I think there's some self-selection bias (many young players choosing to not respond) and some over-exaggerators ("I played 200 gigs that decade but it felt like 1000!").
This reminds me of the statistics of online dating sites: although less than 20% of women are natural blondes, 40% of respinded so SAY they are natural blondes.

 

[Marcus Willett]

I call ******** on this poll.
One-third of the respondents played more than 1000 gigs? I don't buy it.

1,000 gigs isn't necessarily a large number. Even for a non-pro player; if you started playing in your late teens and are now in your mid 40's...you'd only need an average of around 1 gig/week to hit that number.

 

[jerry]

First gigs were boys clubs/CYO dances in 1971, been very, very lucky ever since.

 

[pbassjbass]

Somewhere north of 1500. I played trumpet in the school band, but started on bass, for money, in 1967. I think it was some kind of a high school dance, but the specifics have fled.

 

[Rayjay]

I had tons of work from when I started playing to about 2006 when I took a hard break. They used to tell me ''good for you wanting to play bass, you'll always be in at least 5 bands!"

Well, they were right, back in the day.

Then I took 8 years off. I started playing again in 2015. I've barely been able to get any work since. The local scene has been taken over by horrendous AG or uke players, some using loopers, butchering their way through modern pop songs on solo gigs. Bands are practically like dinosaurs. Still, there are a select few bass players around my area that get steady work, but the chances of anyone giving any crumbs to me is slim to none. It's a pretty depressing time to be a bass player!

 

[keto]

I'm mid 50s, my first paid gig was less than 2 years ago. Been thru a couple bands since then for various reasons, but should add substantially the back half of the year. The best band I've ever been in is about to hit the stage next month. It's like @BassCliff but classic to modern dance rock, played pretty heavy and high energy, young lady with a big voice fronted. A show.

 

[zachoff]

Heh, heh. First gig was a house party in college (1995). "Seriously, dude, there are going to be so many people at this party it's going to be ridiculous." At 9PM, there were maybe 10 people there not including us... 10PM, maybe 12 people... 11PM, maybe 8 or 9 and we were like eff it... We're going. By that time we were hammered. Our 'payment' was free beer and we did it up cause there was a keg.

Two songs into our 'set' our drummer threw up all over his kit and passed out knocking everything everywhere. Guitar and I finished that song and then played one more song just for fun while standing over the drummer pretending to hump him. It was super terrible and we made it terribler. College... blah.

 

[biguglyman]

First gig was on the ASROC (Anti-Submarine ROCket) deck of the USS Barry DD933 on or around 1976. Jamming with shipmates on everything from Robin Trower to Fleetwood Mac. We learned the Beach Boys version of "Sloop John B." and played it whenever we did an underway replenishment as we pulled away from the replenishing ship.

 

[bucephylus]

How many gigs?

A bunch. Not enough.

First gig?

1972 High School Auditorium. Buddy Weiser and the Hops

Was using coil cords at the time. LOL