Enjoy the benefits of a premium membership!
Upgrade Account
-
TalkBass has been independent since 1998. Add your voice.
Create a free account to reply to discussions, view embedded media, and browse with fewer display ads.
Join free Log in
Want zero display ads or expanded classifieds tools? Compare plans.
You opened for WHOM???
- Thread starter BIg O
- Start date
Kraken said:
There was nothing cool about Cold, there were a bunch of whiney bitches. They were passing through and someone added them onto our show, we were the headliners, we sold the tickets, there was no promotion mentioning them, and they expected to just walk in and headline. It was even more amusing when they got booed and people chanted our name during their set, after 4 songs the singer left the stage in a huff.
Petebass said:
OK... I have to tell my Billy Idol story! It was 1982, and my band at the time, The Jetsonz (not the one from Arizona! We were first) were starting to open for a bunch of pretty big names at the time. So our manager calls and says we got the opening slot for Billy at the Fast Lane (or Hotel California.. same place, different name, I don't remember which it was) in Asbury Park, NJ. We played there all the time and had a good following.
So we get there that Saturday afternoon to get our gear loaded in, only to discover that Billy's crew took the club's stage monitors and put them in our dressing room! They had brought their own monitors, and of course had the big dressing room on the other side of the club. Oh well, not a big deal as we had a hotel room across the street, where we always stayed when we played there.
Steve Stevens was up on stage playing. This was the first time I ever heard of him, and he was really good! He had pretty short hair back then. He was playing with some sort of delay line, layering his parts to the delay. Funny thing is our keyboard player Andy, looked the way Stevens would eventually look, with the spiky black hair and all. We say he copied Andy! They even played in a band together at one point.
Billy was no where to be seen. The whole band was ready for a sound check at this point and he was late. Then Billy comes walking in, and the whole crew had to stop to greet him!
We hung out and watched the sound check and afterwards talked to Steve and Judi Dozier the keyboard player.
When it came time for the show, we did our thing, which involved an encore where we played the theme from Batman, complete with "POW" and "BLAM" signs that our singer Debby would toss around. Since there was a lot of "our" crowd there anyway, we went over really well, and people were excited because Billy was next.
Earlier Steve and Judi invited us to the big dressing room, since they had food and stuff. So we headed over there and I knocked on the door. Judi answers and says "hi, you guys were great, come on it" and just as I start to walk in the door, Billy comes up and slams it in my face!
Jerk! Seems he didn't like that we went over so well...Later he has the nerve to send over one of his crew to say he liked my playing and did I want to audition for the band...
I said unprintable things! I probably should have said yes... Other less dramatic bands we opened for were:
The Violent Fems
Our Daughter's Wedding (with Mars Williams on saxophone!)
The Bongos (2x)
Wall of Voodoo
Ebn Ozn (our keyboard player was in their band too)
The Waitresses (only Patty Donahue and some hair band)
Peter Tork! (also with a hair band!)
Alien Sex Fiend
And some others I can't recall at the moment...
We were supposed to open for the B-52's, but Ricky got sick...
Alright, so I didn't open for Gwar, but I did play the same venue the night after them. The reason why this is a story I like to recount is my amazement at the amount of fake blood, urine, and semen that I had to stand in and play on.
Icky.
Icky.
My old band didn't open for Damage Plan, Hatebreed, Unearth and Drowning Pool but we did get to meet all of them. They were the nicest people you could ever hang out with. Jamey Jasta (lead singer of Hatebreed) took our demo and put it on the cd player they had sitting out while Damage Plan was signing autographs and listened to the whole thing right in front of us and then gave us his honest opinion. I'm not a huge fan of Hatebreed but I'll respect Jamey forever for doing that. Most people would of been like "Yeah i'll check it out." then as soon as your back is turned it goes into the garbage. Damage Plan were amazing too, Dime was cracking everybody up, I talked to Bob for about 20 minutes about bass playing and gear. I don't care for Drowning Pool but it was cool that their guitarist was standing out in the crowd watching the rest of the bands perform and all the while talking to people and telling everyone thanks for coming out and to have a safe drive home. It was great.
R.I.P. Dime
R.I.P. Dime
Well, me and couple of guys did a variation on one of Philip Glass' piece back in may when he was invited to local community college as their artist in residence (somehow we got listed as the "Alumni jazz ensemble")
didn't really get to talk to Philip Glass after the concert though
he was on a tight schedule and had to leave right away
didn't really get to talk to Philip Glass after the concert though
he was on a tight schedule and had to leave right away
Any bands I've played in (cover bands) only opened for other cover bands: some we smoked! lol But my brother-in-law played a gig with HOC. (hamsters on crack).
kelbrihan said:There was nothing cool about Cold, there were a bunch of whiney bitches. They were passing through and someone added them onto our show, we were the headliners, we sold the tickets, there was no promotion mentioning them, and they expected to just walk in and headline. It was even more amusing when they got booed and people chanted our name during their set, after 4 songs the singer left the stage in a huff.
well that is a shame, cos I quite like their Music, but hey I guess good music doesn't always equal good people
hiderebirth said:
I was always a big Glass fan. Well at least he didn't throw tomatoes! So he must have liked it.
freakbass
"Pile-drivingly Heavy" since 1983
.....eh
Opened for Staind at a local festival. Didn't meet them, didn't see them, didn't look for them, didn't stick around to hear their set. We had another show that evening so my guys and I went and setup our gear early instead of hanging around for Staind.
Powerman5000 next thursday for us. I'm curious to what they're gonna be like live.
Opened for Staind at a local festival. Didn't meet them, didn't see them, didn't look for them, didn't stick around to hear their set. We had another show that evening so my guys and I went and setup our gear early instead of hanging around for Staind.
Powerman5000 next thursday for us. I'm curious to what they're gonna be like live.
I once opened for Maynard Ferguson on percussion.
And I played with conguero great, Giovanni Hidalgo, both on drums and electric bass.
Does that count?
I think it should...
And I played with conguero great, Giovanni Hidalgo, both on drums and electric bass.
Does that count?
I think it should...
jamiefoxer said:I once opened for Maynard Ferguson on percussion.
And I played with conguero great, Giovanni Hidalgo, both on drums and electric bass.
Does that count?
I think it should...
Very cool! My ex's dad was a trumpet player and thought that Maynard Ferguson was the sh*t (i.e. number one) on fluegelhorn! I have a bunch of his old LP's still (I think.....)
