• 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.

Should the guy pulling the trailer get gas money?

#41
Robdrone said:
Damn! You use a 16 foot trailer? How much stuff do you have? I have rented a 6 footer on a few occasions and I could fit all my bands gear in it twice, and i play a fridge and the guitar players both use 4X12 cab halfstacks. With a normal 5 piece drum kit. Granted our PA is on the smaller side and we have no light rig to speak of, but we rarely need to take that kind of stuff anyway.
Click to expand...

This is it right here. In our market, 9 gigs out of 10 you bring your own production or you have to hire it out. And the gigs don't pay enough to cover hiring it out. Our band's trailer is about 16'... but we roll a pretty substantial P.A. (4 to 6 subs at 2x18 each, 4 tops and 16,000 watts of power amps), a full light show (trussed backlights, crank stands, moving lights and an LED curtain), and all the power cords, XLR cables, brackets etc. to hook it all together. That stuff is heavy, and takes a lot of space. We put on a hell of a show, but it's not cheap to do... and we charge accordingly.
 
#42
Maybe Myth Busters would do an episode to solve this. How much extra fuel is actually required to haul the trailer. If it's a small trailer, it can't be much, really. This really shouldn't be such a big deal. If it were me, I'd just make the guys buy me a couple of (top shelf) drinks at the gig.
 
#43
jarrydee said:
I would walk away! The day a band member starts throwing out the :I own this and that" card would be the day I leave, and I bet others would over time! Damn people, get along and stop being so petty, "I own this and that", "someone touched my bass rig and I almost punched him"....man..... I am so happy to not have to play with a lot of these people! :hiding:
Click to expand...

Well that was my point. The driver complaining about a few bucks in gas money does set a precedent in which everyone can then start asking for what they think their services are worth to the band. A lot of nonsense will follow and ultimately lead to either the band breaking up or everyone once again agreeing to split things evenly.

This actually happened in a band of mine. My guitarist started to want a bigger cut of gig money because he was booking the majority of gigs for a couple months. My singer and I said, "Sure, but if that's the case then we're going to need to take all of your (meaning the guitarist's) gig money for the next several gigs to cover our gas costs for driving you around for half a year (because for half a year our guitarist was without transportation and we had to drive him everywhere)."

He moaned and groaned for awhile about that and said that wasn't fair, but we told him it wasn't fair for him to start demanding more when he had already gotten a lot of charity from the band without us ever asking for payment from him for those services. Eventually we agreed to just keep things split equally like they were before.
 
#44
When our drummer pulled the trailer that he owned and toted us around, he deducted all his expenses, told us what we were getting, and we could either take it or quit the band. That, it appears, is the only way to have a band when the workload/band investment is unequal among members. When I lead a band, I tell everyone else what they're getting and what I make is immaterial. Same with 95% of the gigs I take where I'm not the leader. If someone makes more than me, that's how it go.
 
#45
when reading these threads I feel like so many people on these boards treat a band as a free for all rather than a group effort.

the reality is it does cost him more and while I personally wouldn't ask for a dime many people would. ask him for an estimate of what he needs for pulling the trailer decide if that's too much or if it's okay.

did this guy suggest he pull the trailer or was it just decided "you have the capabiltiy, you're doing it?"
 
#46
DwaynieAD said:
did this guy suggest he pull the trailer or was it just decided "you have the capabiltiy, you're doing it?"
Click to expand...

As I interpret the original post, the guy who's been pulling the trailer inherited that job cause he 1) has a truck to pull it with and 2) is the only one in the band with a place to store it.

Ideally the person who owns the trailer (the OP) would also tow and house it, but in this case that's not possible so they've landed on an arrangement that gets them by and apparently was working until this gas money issue came up.

What I'd be more concerned about than the gas money issue is, what happens liability wise if something happens to the OP's trailer while it's being towed by the bandmate or at his place? I assume the OP has insurance on the trailer (and hopefully the contents), but if that trailer is in somebody else's possession and control the majority of the time I'm not sure how an adjuster would rule on that.
 
#47
jmattbassplaya said:
He moaned and groaned for awhile about that and said that wasn't fair, but we told him it wasn't fair for him to start demanding more when he had already gotten a lot of charity from the band without us ever asking for payment from him for those services. Eventually we agreed to just keep things split equally like they were before.
Click to expand...

This story relates to the thread very well.

I'll say it again: from what was posted it appears that no one else in the band complained before. No one offered gas money to the trailer-haulers before, or rent money to OP for buying the PA, or blah blah blah. No one asked for extra money or cried about unfairness before this guy.

He is the one opening the can of worms where gnat eyelashes have to be counted and parsed. If he had realized he was being a twit and was only asked to do his "share," whether gnat-hair-fair or not, and kept his mouth shut, we wouldn't have this crisis.

In my band there is some pretty hefty imbalances in who paid for what and who does what. We still split income evenly, because that's the way everyone wants it. But if someone doing less were asked to do something more, and then they asked for some kind of compensation, I would be pretty ticked.
 
#48
the main thing that's wrong is not having all this sorted before making the investment. no use crying over spilt milk though, so best to get everyone in the same place at the same time and focused on this situation until an agreement is reached. at that point, whatever is agreed to is right.
 
#49
If your band is established and your out there making money, you want to keep the band together.

It's the equal split that keeps a band together.

I have found that replacing members is a tough thing to do.

We have a drummer with timing issues that at times drives me nuts, but when he's on he's on.

But in our situation he would be next to impossible to replace. He's a team player, professional and an all around "good Guy".

Blue
 
#50
DwaynieAD said:
when reading these threads I feel like so many people on these boards treat a band as a free for all rather than a group effort.

the reality is it does cost him more and while I personally wouldn't ask for a dime many people would. ask him for an estimate of what he needs for pulling the trailer decide if that's too much or if it's okay.

did this guy suggest he pull the trailer or was it just decided "you have the capabiltiy, you're doing it?"
Click to expand...

That's the point of the OP. It has, up until now, been a group effort where everyone throws in when and where they can to help the band. The driver asking for money is him putting himself before the band. I can understand where he's coming from, but when he's been getting a free PA and trailer to haul stuff around in then he can't really complain about spending (literally) a couple extra bucks per gig when he could be spending $50+ to rent a PA from a shop and when others have totted stuff around for free, too.
 
#51
As 'gas' is a band expense, it should come out of any money paid to the band as a whole.

I can't understand why there seems to be a lot of this sort of thing on these forums.

Arguing over minor details like gas money is the surest way for a band to split up. Without gas, you or the band wouldn't be going anywhere... Surely it should be factored into the overall expenses? Who is behind the wheel is irrelevant.

Can you imagine if a guitarist in a band demanded more money because he played 'more' notes than other players?
Try a bit of democracy people. If everyone is happy, ultimately it will show in your performance. And that's the point isn't it??

This sort of attitude is laughable!!!!
 
#52
Tell driver #2 he is absolutely right. Pulling the trailer is an added gas expense.

Give the trailer back to driver #1 even though it's a PITA and charge driver #2 for the gas.

Obviously, I've never been a band leader.
 
#55
I can't see paying him all his gas costs as he would still have to get him and his equipment to the gig. I probably should have started out with a clear plan of who would ghet paid for what but his attitude is what kinda rubs me and driver 1 the wrong way.
If I had a vehicle able to pull the trailer, I would and it would all be non issue. I can't afford another vehicle as I drive for work and need something that gets good mileage.
 
#57
jmattbassplaya said:
What about the actual gas costs he would if been paying anyways just to get there? How do you determine 'trailer gas' vs 'gas he would of been spending anyways'?

Seems like someone else already calculated it :D
Click to expand...



Well, since none of us are pricks, we just guess. If it's within 20 miles or so of the pad, we give him $10. Any further and we give him $20. Considering he would not have to drive his big truck if he wasn't pulling a trailer, we figure that is fair compensation for gas and wear and tear on the truck. The fact is he never puts that money in his pocket anyway. The last batch of band stickers he paid for with his "Gas money".

Like I said, none of us are pricks and to us this is less of a business venture and more of a "Gear hoarding" venture. lol
 
#58
I understand your point and your not wrong at all. I guess we all know that being in a working band has its up's and downs. Sometimes we make decent money, sometimes it costs us money. But with my band, we do deal with alot of crap like that, and worse people canceling practice sometimes. Normally I'd quit, but the band is really good. We all play well together and add something to the equation. And people come to the shows and dig it.
I guess my point is, is the band worth it? And you kinda already answered that to you its not. I don't blame you then.
A good chunk of us bass players do this because we love it, and know that we will take a hit here and there with money.
I took lessons with a guy who studied with Jaco in Fl. You'd think that'd be enough on his resume to assure him work all the time. But it's rough for him sometimes too. Not that rough though.haha. If these dudes are getting on your nrves find a better situation.
 

Latest posts

Top Bottom
Back