The Real Reason Why Bands Play the Same Old Tired Covers

[SuperK]

Some "b" sides my classic rock band covers that aren't too cliche-
Ledo Shuffle, The Ocean, Lawyers Guns and Money, Those Shoes, I Just Want to Make Love to You.

I love The Ocean. A clearly recognizable Zeppelin song but everyone insists on playing Rock and Roll and Whole Lotta Love instead.

So basically we're talking about 150-200 new tunes in the repertoire every year. Nobody ever got tired of seeing us.

That was my old band's problem. We had a hard time getting people to come back and see us time and time again because our act never changed.

The key is to pick a recognizable song that everyone isn't sick of.

Exactly. There are hundreds of songs out there that fit this description. Find them!

 

[jjk2007]

I don't think Jive was suggesting playing all unfamiliar "artsy" tunes, but rather choose different songs from the same genre. Skynyrd has more to play than Sweet Home Alabama and Gimme Three Steps. Songs that may surprise your audience.

Agreed. My band does a lot of the standard covers that the crowd likes to hear, but we also throw in some stuff that may not be as well known too. (bands like Skynyrd etc) We also try to bring in 1-2 songs about once a month to start working on. Might be country, might be rock or even something a little more modern.

 

[hopsbb]

My band plays mostly southern rock and 90's country for the simple fact that that is what the audience wants.Plain and simple.We do throw in some newer pop songs.We covered All about that bass and it was an unbelievable hit with the crowd at a festival about 3 weeks ago.Its almost like ppl just expect to hear certain songs from bands.I wish I had a dollar for everytime I heard someone in the crowd at a gig yell "Freebird"

 

[Tgb]

What's worse than cover bands that are too lazy to learn new songs is when they're too lazy to learn the songs that they are playing.
The aforementioned "Mustang Sally" is a perfect example. The Swampers killed on that track, the groove is deep and dynamic. Every cover band I've ever seen play that song, just runs through the changes and ****s all over it.

 

[Spent]

My band gigs 2-3 times a month and we generally add new songs every other gig. The first time we play them, they're usually in the third set. The audiences are typically more forgiving at that time. By then they have bought into us and they've had time to get their libation on. There are a couple of places we play monthly and more than once I've heard comments about a song being new. We play mostly top 40 so the songs get old fast. I'm cool with that since I dislike most of them, but the excitement of doing something new keeps it fresh. That and watching young women attempting to outdo each other on the dance floor helps (yeah, I'm that shallow). Coincidentally, my take after expenses is generally $125 - $160 per gig, but as high as $325 depending on the venue. Much more than my more classic rock oriented previous band. Maybe there's a connection? I don't know if it's being lazy as much as it is being misinformed. What I as a musician think is good music is often very different from the typical audience member. There's a reason it's popular, and IMHO, good and popular are two very different things. My current band gets that and it's working very well for us.

 

[lfmn16]

The key is to pick a recognizable song that everyone isn't sick of.

Most musicians don't understand that the audience isn't tired of these songs, musicians are. We need to remember that they are who we are playing for.

 

[G-MonRV5]

If I understand the OP correctly, I have to agree. There are lots of covers that can be done that are interesting and, for the most part, recognizable. I've always thought that Sly & the Family Stone were underrepresented in cover bands, and even lesser-known Beatles tunes ("I'm Only Sleeping" could KILL in a softer acoustic set.)

Thing is, anything beyond the 'tried and true' - the tired, same ol' classic rock crap - is a tough sell in today's local live music scene.

So, yeah, it's a combination of lazy musicians and a difficult market. It can be done, but it's hard to do for both of those reasons.

 

[smogg]

Sorry jive but I disagree. The number one reason is not lazy musicians, although there are plenty of us out there.
The biggest reason BY FAR is that That's what bar patrons want to hear...

Don't underestimate an audience's wish to recognize a song and sing along. People out partying don't want to hear or dance to creative but unknown songs all night long. Boring as they may be, Mustang Sally and the like fills the floor with happy customers every time, and puts a smile on the bar owner's face. You can be artsy on your own time.

I disagree with both of you on this subject.
Around here Good ole Sally will empty a club. I have never ever had anybody request that song in 30+ years of gigging. The average age of my current band is 59 and we are easily 15 to 20 years older than the average age of our audience. We choose carefully selected tunes from the 70's-80's-90's & 2000's. No one ever requests those beat to death "standards" when we do a show.

It's easy to forget, we musicians get older the audience does not. Other than the band when was the last time you saw a pack of 60 year olds partying down till the wee hours of the morning on a weekly bases? The average age of the "bar fly" audience is under 40 and sally on the dock of the bay with that brown eyed girl is not what they want to hear.

It is the younger crowd that patronizes the clubs on a regular basis. They are the ones spending the money on Friday and Saturday nights. They could care less about the Beatles or the Stones. Give them som Lit or Candlebox and you own them.

As always this is just my opinion based on my own personal experiences and a weekend warrior.

 

[skwee]

I would certainly first blame the industry side before I'd blame the musicians (who likely are just working on their hirers' inclinations), but I understand the sentiment. Either way, I believe there is an artistic balance you can find that combines quality and commercial appeal, and helped to build a musical company on that principle. I'm glad you point out other hits from the big artists--digging deep (or actually, not even really that deep) can bring in lots of great material.

 

[morgansterne]

partly true. the classic rock cover band I play in was too lazy to do "subdivisions." There were four of us but nothing for the lead singer to contribute on that tune so I was pulling a proper Geddy, singing lead, playing keys and bass. It was a serious pain in the butt. (both the keyboard part and the bass part are pretty easy as Rush songs go, but switching back and forth between them is tough) I simply couldn't do the keyboard solo and left hand bass at the same time, (tho I could probably do it now, this was a couple years ago) so the guitar player did both solos. Our drummer, not really a technical guy, put in a lot or work on it. Of the three times we performed it, one was really good, but the audiences didn't care. When we play "reelin in the years" or lido shuffle" (both of which we can totally nail, tho we don't always ), they don't get a great response either.

We play Jane's Addiction "been caught stealing" which I sing and there's songs like that where I think audiences dig both the novelty of hearing the song and the musicianship involved. These are hard to find!

 

[Smoove-Groove]

I can agree. I haven't been in a band for a while but will be soon hopefully. And I kind of dread playing all the same bar Standards. It's not what I want to hear when I go out for a drink.
Here's an example, and I have seen this over and over. Im at the local pub having a drink.There's a bar band playing classic rock/blues all night. In walk a crowd of young attractive females. They stop dead in their tracks in the doorway. They glance at the band playing sweet home alabama. Each girl all of a sudden has that look on their face. You know the look....like someone farted. Faces all scrunched up. They look at each other, exchange a few words, turn around and leave.
I see this all the time. And I hate it when it happens because, there go the girls. Or at least the attractive ones. Now if a band was covering something like Daft Punks 'get lucky' then they probably most likely would stay and drink and dance. This is why I think set lists should be geared towards age groups for the younger and older crowd. Even if you hate Daft Punk or some other new crap pop, play it! Everyone here is saying it's what the patrons want to hear, but what patrons are we talking about? The 50 and up crowd? A lot of bars host young and old crowds so the music should please all. Im hoping when I finally join a band again, we'll play a lot of new stuff with some classics mixed in. Hell, I'll even play some Hip hop stuff if it could be arranged. It's all about getting the ladies to dance. Young and old.

 

[kenfxj]

Gotta give the people what they want.

If you're a professional musician playing in a cover band and you're playing songs people don't want to hear and/or don't want to dance to you're not doing your job. Playing in a cover band is not about you. Everybody is sick of playing Mustang Sally.

 

[EastCoastThump]

The real reason why bands play the same old tired covers? Lazy musicians. Over the years, I have been surprised at how many musicians cannot put in the time to learn a tune. It could be that they don't have time, don't have the ability, don't want to learn one for whatever reason, think they can wing it, etc. But, in the end, they don't learn the tune, so we have to punt and do a tired-old cover instead because everyone already knows it.

Three separate issues here: players who haven't put in the time on the songbook and the basic vocabulary of the gig's genres , a canon of rock-era songs that's 20-50+ years old, and the dwindling overlap between rock-era songbooks and the listening preferences of bar and club audiences.

Sure, it sucks to be the guy (or to be on stage with the guy) who can't play even the vanilla version of the most-called standards. But sometimes groups made up of ambitious players gig on standards because they can pick up work with the cast of the usual suspects and have 100+ songs (or way more) in the repertoire on day 1. I don't mind *still* playing "Sir Duke" and "Peg" and "Ramble On" if the players are at least capable, and I actively enjoy it if they're good enough to take the songs someplace interesting on the spot.

When good players "wing it," they've put in the time not just to learn 30-40 songs. They've put in time to be able to hear a song's parts *and* its possibilities—what makes it unique, as well as what deeper structures it shares with bits and pieces of other songs. There are still audiences for players like that tearing it up, whether busting open antique Stevie Wonder tunes or recent rock or pop hits.

 

[jive1]

I hear ya, but have a different slant. I can get paid to do the same old covers week in and week out ... it's what our audience(s) want. I make $100 every gig, and don't need to rehearse. Ka-ching! Or I could spend several hours a week learning, then another 4-6 rehearsing with the band, to play to the same audience(s), and make $100 every week. Easy choice for me. I can let my creative juices flow in the studio.

I get what you're saying, and I would agree that today's payscale makes it less motivating to put in the work, especially when your limited time conflicts with the job that puts food on the table. But, I've also seen this happen on gigs where guys are getting paid $3-400 a gig, and to me that is an amount worth putting a little time to, especially if want another gig that pays that amount again. 40-50 songs is fine for a bar band, but it won't cut it for bigger money gigs like weddings and corporates.

 

[Liam Wald]

Successful cover bands are customer driven. Customers want to go out to clubs and dance to the cover tunes that they know. If you play lots of obscure songs in a cover club venue where people want to drink and dance you will not succeed in being a cover band in the cover band venues. Simple as that.

 

[jive1]

I disagree. These tired old tunes are the tunes the masses want to dance to.

The biggest reason BY FAR is that That's what bar patrons want to hear...

Do you really believe that in a room full of 21-35 year olds that 'Brown Eyed Girl' will get them dancing moreso than 'All About that Bass', 'Gangnam Style', or 'Happy'?

I do weddings, where people will specifically request songs. My wedding clients are around the same age as most club goers, and nobody requests those tired old covers, unless it's for one of their parents or grandparents. I'm sure they would dance to 'Mustang Sally' at a bar, but they sure don't ask for it when they are shelling out thousands for a special day.

 

[buldog5151bass]

It all depends. In my modern coutry band, we have a sheet for people to list songs they want us to play (or learn if we don't know it). Guess what song has been requested at EVERY gig? Wagon Wheel. Guess what song we just added to the playlist, over my gritted teeth?

 

[Lesfunk]

Vibe, you're totally right about the wedding/age thing. That's a different gig altogether .
Trust me, if I could get out of playing MS I would. I can't. People BEG for that. I think geographical location as well as age demographics play into this as well

Also, happy and blurred lines have the potential to be this generations tired cover for future bands? I dunno...

 

[jive1]

Miracle of Miracles, Mustang Sally has fallen from grace here. But Wagon Wheel is twice as popular as 'Sally ever was.

Very true, and that's not an old song, but it's on it's way to being a tired old cover. Lots of songs that are tired old covers had to start with a band taking a chance on a tune. There was a time that if you played 'Don't Stop Believing', 'Livin on a Prayer', and Talk Dirty to Me', you'd be considered a novelty for playing these cheesy tunes. Today, they are standards that many bar bands cover.

 

[jive1]

I don't think Jive was suggesting playing all unfamiliar "artsy" tunes, but rather choose different songs from the same genre. Skynyrd has more to play than Sweet Home Alabama and Gimme Three Steps. Songs that may surprise your audience.

Exactly, I'm not talking about obscure covers or overly technical songs, I'm talking about hit songs that are dance tunes. There's a lot of them, and a lot of them are left on the table. We treat iconic Rock bands as if they were one hit wonders.