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Tribute bands - looks

#23
buldog5151bass said:
To make the point more clear - I understand the need to look as close to the original band as possible. I have appropriate gear, I can dress the part.

For those who have seen good tribute bands, is it necessary that the bit players look like the band members? Obviously it is good if the front people do. I"m not sure the average Journey fan knows what Valory looked like, or even knows the name of the Foreigner original/current bassist.

Thanks.
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it's situational. For same bassists, no it doesn't matter. it depends how iconic the band AND the members. I don't think anyone cares if you look like Ross Vallory or not, but your singer should be able to cop Steve Perry. yes, in a U2 tribute, you DO need a Bono and The Edge to look the part. Hardly anyone but uber-fans care if you cop Larry Mullins and Adam Clayton look-wise. Other bands, everyone should look the part (Beatles, ACDC, Fleetwood Mac come to mind, among others). Again, it's so situational depending on the tribute
 
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#25
Spidey2112 said:
John Glascock, Jethro Tull, '75-'79

RIP, John... from the videos I've seen, he wore a lot of puffy pirate shirts, too. I'll play his bass lines, but I'm not wearing the duds.
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The Brits always did seem to have a far better awareness of stage “look” and performance than their US counterparts did during that era. Whenever I went to see bands like Tull or the Moodys or earlier bands like the Beau Brummels, Left Banke, Faces, etc. they were all dressed to the nines.
 
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#26
RichSnyder said:
Maybe that's why it dried up?
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40Hz said:
The Brits always did seem to have a far better awareness of stage “look” and performance than their US counterparts did during that era. Whenever I went to see bands like Tull or the Moodys or earlier bands like the Beau Brummels, Left Banke, Faces, etc. they were all dressed to the nines.
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That was the youth culture there. We had the hippies - they had the mods v. rockers. That's how the Who/High Numbers created their whole image (and got their core audience).
 
#27
For the full tribute experience, I say yes. To me a tribute is a faithful copy where everyone steps up to copy as much as they can. But it's true that some bands have more iconic and unified looks than others. Some bands from that era you'd get away with just dressing in vintage clothes whereas others you'd need the hair and look down solid. Just depends on how much the bassist was a part of the whole visual thing and how important those visuals were to their stage show.
 
#28
saabfender said:
Since people listen with their eyes to the extent that they do, I would think dressing up to be a critical part of the presentation of a tribute band.

I’ve never been in a band where costumes were a part. Kinda like to, though. Looks like fun.

The tribute thing I most want to do is a Boston one. How cool would it be to have the drummer wear a giant ‘fro like Sib’s?
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A guy I went to college with, Jeff Neil, has played drums for Boston on their summer tours for years. He has a big fro and a stache as well.
 
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#31
If you are doing a tribute band. I would opt to be as authentic as possible.
Having the look and sound can make all the difference when it comes to the gigs you get.
The Rolling Tones
The Rolling Tones 2.jpg

The Rolling Tones 3.jpg
 
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#32
buldog5151bass said:
To make the point more clear - I understand the need to look as close to the original band as possible. I have appropriate gear, I can dress the part.

For those who have seen good tribute bands, is it necessary that the bit players look like the band members? Obviously it is good if the front people do. I"m not sure the average Journey fan knows what Valory looked like, or even knows the name of the Foreigner original/current bassist.
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Why don't you ask the band you are auditioning for? They will be the ones paying you, not us, it doesn't matter what our answers are.
 
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#35
micguy said:
I was alive (and playing music in the 80's) If I wanted to look like I did back then, I'd need plastic surgery (facial) and a wig. I do weigh about the same, though. Is this helpful?
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Weighing “the same” doesn’t mean much.

I’m just as smart as I was 10 years ago—-
I’d still get my butt kicked on Jeopardy.
 
#37
If you want err on the side of caution, yes, you would dress/wig up. Of course it depends on the act in question, but the tributes that get the good gigs are the ones that offer the right experience, through a perfect presentation (whatever that means for the act in question), and that is more important than having the best musicianship, IME
 
#40
I've seen some tributes get so close to the look, but unfortunately at the expense of the sound.
I've also seen some that did not get the look but if you closed your eyes you would of thought it was the original band.
99% of the people are there for the music , not the look, but there are a few brain dead people that value the look more than the music.
 
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