What does it take….

[Smooth_bass88]

It all starts with really, really good players. All the promotion, social media BS, sexy looks and great gear in the world will not make up for this most important of aspects.

 

[mike o]

Lots of great ideas. Please keep them coming. Not only for me but all those folks looking for things they can do better. I’m one of those who is in continuous improvement.

 

[mike o]

Song selection was mentioned a few times. Play what the audience wants to hear! Do you focus on only well know songs? danceable? Sing along? Variety? decade or genre specific? What is the filter up you use for song selection?

 

[Sid Fang]

And be sure to look like members of the SAME band! Not one suit guy, one leather rocker, and one country outlaw.

 

[cassanova]

Actually you need a booking agent, not a manager, although there are people out there who do both.

Yeah the one we had years back did both.

 

[kjp360]

• Make your show a fun "event". This can mean many things to many people, so try to cater to as many senses as possible.
• Make set lists diverse, but within what is expected given the venue/patrons. Then add a couple of tunes that most know, but that no one expects.
• Learn the 10 songs that get requested over and over again at your gigs. You don't have to play them all every time, but you should know them.
• Play songs that can be well sung by the talent that you have. Show emotion when singing. Choose songs that you can connect with again and again.
• Don't crank up the volume in set #1...Maybe in set #3, but don't lose the gig by turning off the crowd, and/or event staff with your volume. Cymbals and guitars are often the main offenders.
• Thank the event staff often and publicly.
• Plug, smile, look like you belong there.

Most of all, have fun. Cover bands are a great way to make cash, network, and keep your chops up!

 

[Vitrius Humor]

To have a successful weekend cover band? Successful meaning, people (general public) have a lot of choices what they can do any given night. Why do they come and see you over another band, movie or just getting their butts off the couch. Why are you the preferred band at any venue? What are you doing that works?

Because we are a fun, entertaining band! Slainte!

 

[Bunk McNulty]

IMO, in the 80's Metro Detroit, in most cases it was the reputation of the club to draw people that came first, then the reputation of the band was second. PR from those better clubs was available in the local rags and Radio ads. The better clubs usually stayed away from crappy bands. Cover bands were usually found in the smaller bars. Once I come across a band that is entertaining to me, I'll drive further to see them.

Without your own PR and a bunch of shows, its rough drawing a crowd in todays market. Your basically at the mercy of the clubs regulars.

I’m old enough to remember that world, when the venue itself was a draw, not just the bands. Now? We end up doing all the social media work for ourselves and the club. And the clubs know it. In my experience to date, the key to repeat bookings is being good buddies with club owners. Seriously, it’s always nice when the boss stops by to chat while you’re loading in/out.

 

[51PRI]

...Most weekend cover bands (in my area)...do "good enough" versions of songs... Play good songs and play them WELL. Don't half @$$ your way through them....

This is a sore point for me. I think the audience knows if you're doing a proper cover of a song or just half fasting it. I'm all for N4N covers but the band I'm in can't/won't/doesn't do that. The lead guitar players shows no interest in even doing the key parts correctly. He just wants to jam through everything at a volume that blows his pantlegs.

Anymore, I think it comes down to who you know.

If you're a young band who has a lot of young friends who like to party and drink you can do well.

...Have a great set list (ours is loaded with hits that nobody else touches any more).....

Examples?

...IMHO cover bands that do well all have the same thing. Killer vocalist and great harmonies....

Most bands here do not have great lead singers. Good lead singers, yes, but not great. I only know of one here. I used to play in a band with him.

 

[Slough Feg Bass]

I think there are two types of venues for this situation:

1. Can you bring a crowd?
2. can you HOLD a crowd ?

if you have a lot of friends who will come out and support your band every weekend, then great, you will find many open doors of venues/bars/clubs that are looking for just that. Bar wants to sell beer, you bring people that drink, you are a success ! In this case, you play whatever your friends like to hear if they show up.

on the other hand, if you are playing in spots where there is already a crowd, then the venue wants you to keep them there, drinking and eating. So, you play popular songs, act like you are having a great time, so that people want to have fun with you. Dance, smile, dress smart, be personable, and read the room. if you start playing Megadeath and 8 tables get up and leave, then don't play another Megadeath song.
If you are playing the latest BTS song and people are dancing, then play another BTS song!!!

and as most have said, ya gotta have someone who is actively booking events for you to play.

 

[groovepump]

View attachment 4387838
In addition to everything @two fingers said above, play what the crowd wants to hear.

I just lost my entire post, and don't want to to re-type it.... rats!

 

[backin82]

Song selection was mentioned a few times. Play what the audience wants to hear! Do you focus on only well know songs? danceable? Sing along? Variety? decade or genre specific? What is the filter up you use for song selection?

I would assume this is fairly venue-specific, but we got hired for a wedding specifically because we played a super wide range of kinda random songs. Most of them I'd never heard before joining the group.

"Popular" can be a really nebulous thing today, where people have infinite selections via Spotify, etc... Sure, there are still your top 40 over the air radio songs, but there's also a WAY larger spectrum than that these days. We've seen a lot of positive feedback by basically emulating a random Spotify playlist.

 

[51PRI]

I would assume this is fairly venue-specific, but we got hired for a wedding specifically because we played a super wide range of kinda random songs. Most of them I'd never heard before joining the group.

"Popular" can be a really nebulous thing today, where people have infinite selections via Spotify, etc... Sure, there are still your top 40 over the air radio songs, but there's also a WAY larger spectrum than that these days. We've seen a lot of positive feedback by basically emulating a random Spotify playlist.

Sure, there's LOTS of music out there, but what have most of the people heard? How does a band pick songs from Spotify that they think a large portion of their crowd will have heard?

I just lost my entire post, and don't want to to re-type it.... rats!

Well, THIS is a good post, too.

 

[backin82]

Sure, there's LOTS of music out there, but what have most of the people heard? How does a band pick songs from Spotify that they think a large portion of their crowd will have heard?

Honestly, I'm not sure. Our lead singer curates our lists, and they seem to work for the venues we play. He's an urban 30-something, and we play venues that other urban 30-somethings frequent. Seems to work ok.

 

[micguy]

Different people have different notions of “success”.

There are folks that want to make a living as a cover band, and some who would be happy playing a gig a month as a cover band at the local watering hole. How to approach things depends quite a bit on what you actually want.

If you're really wanting to make a living out of it, I have a friend who does just that (well, at least until Covid shut them down). It's entertainment, and the definition of what people will pay for is something you have to work at - do your clients expect virtuosos, or is it high energy fun music they want? That varies a bit by location, what kind of gigs you're taking, etc. It never hurts to be a great player, but that's not always required to be successful, and the pursuit of perfection in the chops department may take away from effort that could be more productive in terms of building your business. You have to look at what works in your market, and put your efforts there.

Everyone I know in our local scene that makes their living out of music plays a LOT of different kinds of gigs - even the most successful cover band in a big city may not make you enough money to support yourself and your family well - you have to say yes to lots of things, some of which are probably not your ideal gigs.

 

[Sid Fang]

There are folks that want to make a living as a cover band, and some who would be happy playing a gig a month as a cover band at the local watering hole...

...and still others who have songs/music that they have written and want to perform, whether or not it's lucrative. "Success" there is less in dollars gained and more in new audience reached.

 

[micguy]

...and still others who have songs/music that they have written and want to perform, whether or not it's lucrative. "Success" there is less in dollars gained and more in new audience reached.

The OP was asking about cover bands, which is why I didn't discuss that aspect of things.

 

[tgriley62]

There was list that I wish I could find that listed the top reasons bars hire bands. it had something like:
1. Women like to dance
2. Women dancing attracts men
3. Men & Women dancing get thirsty
4. Thirsty patrons buy more drinks

 

[Steadfast]

Eff what they want.

 

[Feral Feline]

Well, not living during a pandemic helps

I don't think that helps at all, I'd rather be alive during a pandemic than not living during one.

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I think the whole concept of the band supplying the patrons (ie friends) for the venue is the biggest steaming pile o' sh¡te!

Rankles right down there with pay-to-play; any venue expecting the band to supply the crowd is not a venue I'd want to play and thus far I've never had to and never will.


I am not about to impose on my friends and cajole them into attending my every show so they can empty their pockets into the venue's coffer. If you gig frequently and are pestering your chummies to attend, you'll quickly run out of friends. If friends are interested, they'll come if/when able, but that's entirely up to them. If the band's any good it will develop a following, but that shouldn't be the pre-req for a venue to hire the band.


Of course, there are no hard and fast rules for any of this. Every situation is different. If you're in a corporate-minded money-maker cover band you're not going to be hitting your friends up to attend a gig as would a bunch of college kids in a casual play-for-beers cover-band attempting to win a frat-house sponsored Battle of the Bands competition; or you're doing something like dbsfgyd1 suggested, ie producing your own dinner show or similar event where you're selling the tickets to your own event etc...