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Spouse/Girlfriends and Cover Charges

#21
HolmeBass said:
Wives, girlfriends, and family members should always get in free.
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Married to a 6ft redhead as I am, I'd love to see someone try to get her to pay a cover just for the show that would inevitably ensue!

OP, if you are playing for free (or paying) and you're not at a school concert - STOP! What you do has value (I'm making some assumptions about talent etc of course), but if you act as though it's worth nothing, the venue owners will never disagree.
 
#22
Haha, mine's a 5'4" red head. You say the wrong thing and you will regret evolution giving you a tongue, though awkward social situations are my responsibility. Aparently we have the tandem bicycle of the pants-wearing world.

Thanks for the replies everyone. I stood my ground back then and I will too in the future. Luckily that was the only place I ever had any issues with, and since it's gone I don't have to worry about it anymore. The guys that I'm playing with now are also much more accomplished gig bookers than that last band and our overpriced hiney-hole of a manager. A lot of lessons learned, and probably more to come. There's a definitely an uphill self-esteem battle for most of the groups that I've known. Maybe this time will be different. Although this time around I'm not trying to pay rent and groceries on 6 hours a week of minimum wage pizza shop management. Three cheers for CNC programming/machining 60 hours a week!
 
#23
Yes Mackluth. Only those of us with redhead significant others can know the endless entertainment value that they offer in so many ways!

Sounds like you are in a better place now - Go Forth and Rock (and never pay covers!)
 
#25
hernameisrio said:
Why so hetero-normative over in TB Land...the title of this thread should be "spouses and significant others"...duh. You know, to allow for boyfriends and the like. Stop assuming everyone on this forum is a straight dude. Shame on you guys!
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Thanks for pointing that out. I just picked the title based on my specific situation; I didn't really think of it as a generalization. This is a good point, and even one I've noticed and which has personally irked me. I'm quite disappointed in myself for missing this when I made the post, and I'm going to make sure to put more thought into future posts.
 
#26
tycobb73 said:
If you don't negotiate this up front iit is no one's fault but yours.
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+1

I don't understand the hostility of some of the posters here. This is not a matter of what "should" or "shouldn't" happen, it is a simple business transaction. For example, say a festival offers to pay you $400 for one set. General admission to the festival is $5 a person. You have 5 band members so UP FRONT you ask for 5 comps, one for each band member to give to the person of their choice. If the venue says no, you then say the price for the band has just become $425 for the set. If the venue still refuses, you have a choice; play the gig on their terms or don't play the gig. It is a simple choice and a simple transaction. Why the fuss?
 
#27
I recall very clearly a gig with a previous band of mine where we were booked as one of the opening acts on a multi-band bill with a quasi-big name headlining. This was by far the most high-profile, well attended gig our band had ever played and understandably, many of us had our significant others in attendance.

In the course of only a couple of hours leading up to our slot the a**hole local promoter managed to insult and/or pi** off every one of my band member's wives/GFs with the exception of mine (and that's only cause she wasn't there). My band was extremely angry by the time we took the stage and thankfully we translated that into a best-ever performance but we never forgot that clown and took every opportunity to spread the word.
 

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