Hell you never know, that gig might work out for 3-somes
Now that's looking at the positive side! I like your attitude, son!
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Strangest gigs?
- Thread starter bassman1185
- Start date
Now that's looking at the positive side! I like your attitude, son!
I haven't played much of anything that's really out of the ordinary. But seeing as there's a few funeral gig stories, I might as well share mine. Just last summer there was a pretty bad car accident that a group from a nearby church got into and a few people died. The memorial service for one of the kids was to be held at the church I go to, so I got a call from a guy who helps organize some of the worship asking if I could play for the service. The catch is that I was informed the night beforehand and it was a late morning thing. Fortunately it was just one song (and Switchfoot at that) so it was pretty easy to pick up. Little did I know that there would be around fifteen hundred people attending (the sanctuary could only hold maybe seven hundred) and I wouldn't be able to hear myself at all. Luckily I think that most people were focusing more on the whole event to notice if the group was less than perfect.
haha a few of these storys remind me of in the movie BLUES BROTHERS when they play at Bobs Country Bunker lol. that would b a strange gig.
i played for the closing dinner of the deaf olympics in L.A. . everyone was deaf. they only put a mic on the bass drum.it ended funny also. the people at the end were a little drunk and they grabbed all the balloons and rubbed their hand palms on them which made this very loud anoying squeak. they did this to annoy the wait staff and other hearing people.
.Agreed. I'm a little confused as to why there were deaf olympics though... the only reason I can think of is not being able to hear the starting gun in some events.
While playing gigs through California with my band back in the summer of 2002, we played a gig at a place called Harbin Hot Springs Resort which is in the coastal mountains north of Napa and Sonoma valleys. The place was clothing optional, and we set up in the dark up a bumpy forest trail next to an abandoned swimming pool, away from the main part of the compound. The proprietors were all hippie / New-age / Old-age / meditation / organic Earth people, and as we played our sets of original psychedelic rock with some appropriate Grateful Dead covers sprinkled in, the freakier elements of the population there whirled and danced all over the deck and in the sloping surface of the empty swimming pool, with strings of lights hung all through the trees. It was very surreal.
They let us spend all the next day and night there, which was one of our few days off from the tour, with free access to all of the hot springs and various amenities. And for the first and last time, all of us in the band (5 guys and 2 gals) saw each other in the buff for the better part of a day.
They let us spend all the next day and night there, which was one of our few days off from the tour, with free access to all of the hot springs and various amenities. And for the first and last time, all of us in the band (5 guys and 2 gals) saw each other in the buff for the better part of a day.
We played a engagement party for a friend of a friend of a friend of a cousin of our keyboard player at a Holiday Inn banquet hall. The couple getting married was about 21. The whole crowd was made of tough-guy meat heads who've never touched an instrument and their dumb little girlfriends.
They didn't know who we were, or why we were there. It was VERY akward. Needless to say, they hated us right off the bat. We're all original, so couldn't play their drunken requests. The whole time before we played, dudes we didn't know were asking to jam on our gear and have their friends band play songs...who was there at the party...(why they didn't just have them play in the first place boggles my mind).
After about 3.5 songs, one of the guys (who looked like The Rock) tried to grab the mic from my singer as he juked and jived out of his way. Some other meathead tried to unplug my rig and a fight almost broke out.
The worst part was - we had to bring our own PA, so it provided the "DJ" to jam his music for the rest of the night while we sat and waited to leave. Ugh.
They didn't know who we were, or why we were there. It was VERY akward. Needless to say, they hated us right off the bat. We're all original, so couldn't play their drunken requests. The whole time before we played, dudes we didn't know were asking to jam on our gear and have their friends band play songs...who was there at the party...(why they didn't just have them play in the first place boggles my mind).
After about 3.5 songs, one of the guys (who looked like The Rock) tried to grab the mic from my singer as he juked and jived out of his way. Some other meathead tried to unplug my rig and a fight almost broke out.
The worst part was - we had to bring our own PA, so it provided the "DJ" to jam his music for the rest of the night while we sat and waited to leave. Ugh.
About as close as I can get to genuinely bizarre, playing for the wrap-up/cast party of Harvard University's production of the German comic opera Der Fledermaus (I NEVER thought that operas could be comedic, much less German ones).
Anyways, it was supposed to be a jazz quartet thing organized by a very good friend who's a kick-ass trumpeter, with keys, drums and meself on fretless bass, doing Real Book tunes they asked for "danceable jazz" which you'd think would mean an emphasis on swing, right? Easy enough you'd think.
Well about three songs into the set, one of the folks approaches the stage and tells us half-apologetically that we were supposed to play waltzes the whole time.
Of course they NEVER told us that beforehand.
Next thing you know we're scrambling through the Real Book playing ANYTHING in 3/4 time we can muster at sometimes ridiculous tempos (the participants were fond of a style called "Viennese Waltz" which is danced at sometimes whiplash inducing tempos, the opera is peppered with them apparently).
After what seemed like an eternity, it was over, they actually liked us and we packed up and headed home ( the handsome paycheck came a couple days later.
Biiiiizzzzzzaaaarrrrrrrrrrreeeeee.
Anyways, it was supposed to be a jazz quartet thing organized by a very good friend who's a kick-ass trumpeter, with keys, drums and meself on fretless bass, doing Real Book tunes they asked for "danceable jazz" which you'd think would mean an emphasis on swing, right? Easy enough you'd think.
Well about three songs into the set, one of the folks approaches the stage and tells us half-apologetically that we were supposed to play waltzes the whole time.
Of course they NEVER told us that beforehand. Next thing you know we're scrambling through the Real Book playing ANYTHING in 3/4 time we can muster at sometimes ridiculous tempos (the participants were fond of a style called "Viennese Waltz" which is danced at sometimes whiplash inducing tempos, the opera is peppered with them apparently).
After what seemed like an eternity, it was over, they actually liked us and we packed up and headed home ( the handsome paycheck came a couple days later.
Biiiiizzzzzzaaaarrrrrrrrrrreeeeee.
oh and there was pizza in the other room so no one watched up but everyone came out for the break dancing.... it didn't pay and I was kinda P-ed
I had a gig for an area bank that would stay open late and do customer appreciation nights (munchies, and live jazz) so we did a bunch of the branches, and one place we actually played in the vault .. It was their idea to boot! - and we always got paid cash though.
I also did one 'opening' for the Porche Cayenne - it was pretty funny - they had smoke machines and lights, the whole shebang.
And waaay back I played for a new parking lot opening at a shopping center. It was a nice parking lot, but customers were pissed because it was closed for the celebration, and it is a very busy place.
I also did one 'opening' for the Porche Cayenne - it was pretty funny - they had smoke machines and lights, the whole shebang.
And waaay back I played for a new parking lot opening at a shopping center. It was a nice parking lot, but customers were pissed because it was closed for the celebration, and it is a very busy place.
I played double bass in a Jazz Mass for a retiring bishop.
Now first off, I'm not great a double bass, secondly I'm not religious and thirdly it was the best paying gig I've had.
Now first off, I'm not great a double bass, secondly I'm not religious and thirdly it was the best paying gig I've had.
A couple of my worst, from 1994-1995:
My first band in college, a classic rock band, was asked to play an outdoor party at a farmer's market in Salem, VA. A few weeks before the gig, our singer quit, leaving us no time to find someone with the range to sing some of the covers we did (AC/DC, Queensrych). We took the first guy who auditioned and used him. He was so bad, that he gave up halfway through the AC/DC song and started rapping the lyrics.
When that band broke up, I made the mistake of joining a heavy metal/alternative band. Then, I made the mistake of getting us booked at a Cancer walk to raise funds to fight lung cancer. Our genius of a singer decided to make a public announcement in support of his favorite store - a tobacco shop that sold pot smoking gear. He let everyone know that they had been raided by police and could use your financial support. When I confronted him about supporting a tobacco shop at a CANCER benefit, he didn't seem to understand my problem.
My first band in college, a classic rock band, was asked to play an outdoor party at a farmer's market in Salem, VA. A few weeks before the gig, our singer quit, leaving us no time to find someone with the range to sing some of the covers we did (AC/DC, Queensrych). We took the first guy who auditioned and used him. He was so bad, that he gave up halfway through the AC/DC song and started rapping the lyrics.
When that band broke up, I made the mistake of joining a heavy metal/alternative band. Then, I made the mistake of getting us booked at a Cancer walk to raise funds to fight lung cancer. Our genius of a singer decided to make a public announcement in support of his favorite store - a tobacco shop that sold pot smoking gear. He let everyone know that they had been raided by police and could use your financial support. When I confronted him about supporting a tobacco shop at a CANCER benefit, he didn't seem to understand my problem.
Our last Gig was for the volunteers of the european soccer world cup in june in austria. We sat in for a national pop-artist who couldn't make it.
We played 2 Songs, there were people helping us with everything, even parked the cars for us, and we went away with 1k. Was quite "strange"
We played 2 Songs, there were people helping us with everything, even parked the cars for us, and we went away with 1k. Was quite "strange"
In about an hour my band is going to be performing in a 24 hour book sale.
Also, a local hardcore emo band recently won a competition to perform at KFC.
Also, a local hardcore emo band recently won a competition to perform at KFC.
