"You're terrible!"

[Skokiaan]

Band: 80s New Wave/Pop band
Gig: 80s party & mini car show
Location: Assisted living facility (parking lot)

You might be able to tell where this is going.

About halfway through our single 90 minute set a literal little old lady (5'0", 85 years old) walks up onto the stage saying something to me that I can't hear because it was mid song. Maybe she was coming to complain about the lack of hair metal, so I leaned over to give her my ear.

Her: "This is the wrong music for these people. Everyone hates this music."

Me (to myself): It's a Billy Idol song. I hate it too.

Me (to her): "It's an 80s party. This is what they hired us to play."

Her: "It sucks!"

Me: "Again, this is what they hired us to play."

Her: "It's sh*t! And you're terrible! I don't listen to this garbage. I listen to Chopin."

Me: "I don't have an orchestra with me. We can't play that tonight."

This wasn't enough of an answer for her. She now had to tell the drummer how much we suck, mid song. He couldn't hear a word she was saying.

At this point a staff member noticed her and retrieved her from the stage.

She had a point. They shouldn't have an 80s party at an assisted living facility until it's my time to live there. They should have had a band playing 50s-70s music. But her complaint should be directed at management, not us.

She was exceptionally rude, but it was entertaining and I get a good story to tell.

Side note: The mini car show included a 60s Batmobile, the Green Arrow's car (does that have a name?), the General Lee and sheriff car, and a DeLorean with all the Back to the Future equipment. (None from the actual shows/movies).

 

[droo46]

That's such a tough position to be in! I feel like I've played many a wedding where the people we were playing for would have been much happier with wallpaper jazz music, but for some reason they hired a 6-piece party band. It sucks when all that criticism is directed toward you and it's just not your fault and there's nothing you can do to fix it.

 

[JRA]

Her: "It sucks!"

Me: "Again, this is what they hired us to play."

Her: "It's sh*t! And you're terrible! I don't listen to this garbage. I listen to Chopin."

She was exceptionally rude, but it was entertaining and I get a good story to tell.

great story!

but FYI: if you are five feet tall and still standin' at 85 = you can say anything you want!

i'm sure the band was on it, the distractions and the detractors notwithstanding!

 

[WI Short Scaler]

That is an unfortunate day for both band and audience.

Had a lady with a walker do the same to us once when our church/praise group went to another congregation to play. It happens.

 

[Skokiaan]

For the record, a good portion of the crowd enjoyed it, plus the staff. We got a ton of compliments and gave out some business cards.

It was more amusing than upsetting. I get it. I wouldn't like this music if I were her either. But I wouldn't chew out the band.

She must be a joy to live with at the facility.

 

[Kaa]

Well the crowd was in their 80's so the math works.

 

[4SG]

The Green Hornet's car was a '66 Chrysler Imperial called the "Black Beauty."

 

[PDW30]

The Green Hornet's car was a '66 Chrysler Imperial called the "Black Beauty."
View attachment 5190666

Are the guns standard? Asking from England.

 

[bholder]

Time for my "Band Quality Guarantee to our Customers" - "The more you drink, the better we sound!" hehe

 

[STRMan]

Who booked the job? There was clearly a miscommunication. They wanted an 80's band, meaning a band that caters to people in their 80's, not a band that plays 80's New Wave. The car show was right in line with that. Seems like some crossed wires.

 

[rojo412]

I mean, yeah, if you want a band for people in their 80s, it shouldn't be an 80s band.
Then again, if you had Chopin being played at a car show, people would likely be just as confused.

Car show, oldies rock (like doo wop and Elvis), buncha seniors, done by 4 pm for dinner... that's a recipe for success.

 

[Steven Ayres]

When working the care-home circuit it's good to bear in mind that the residents often have mental challenges that can be disconcerting, and not take anything like that personally. You did well to shrug it off and just maintain kindness.

Agree it's still 10 or 15 years before Blondie can start to make sense in this context.

 

[buldog5151bass]

An 80s party seems a very odd choice for an assisted living facility. But not your issue.

 

[Lance Bunyon]

Maths say...
Old biddy was 42 when the 80s began. Sure her prime era was 1960s and 1970s, but she didn't grow up on Glen Miller. When I was 42 I was still rocking hard.
She's seriously uncool.

 

[Michedelic]

Band: 80s New Wave/Pop band
Gig: 80s party & mini car show
Location: Assisted living facility (parking lot)

You might be able to tell where this is going.

About halfway through our single 90 minute set a literal little old lady (5'0", 85 years old) walks up onto the stage saying something to me that I can't hear because it was mid song. Maybe she was coming to complain about the lack of hair metal, so I leaned over to give her my ear.

Her: "This is the wrong music for these people. Everyone hates this music."

Me (to myself): It's a Billy Idol song. I hate it too.

Me (to her): "It's an 80s party. This is what they hired us to play."

Her: "It sucks!"

Me: "Again, this is what they hired us to play."

Her: "It's sh*t! And you're terrible! I don't listen to this garbage. I listen to Chopin."

Me: "I don't have an orchestra with me. We can't play that tonight."

This wasn't enough of an answer for her. She now had to tell the drummer how much we suck, mid song. He couldn't hear a word she was saying.

At this point a staff member noticed her and retrieved her from the stage.

She had a point. They shouldn't have an 80s party at an assisted living facility until it's my time to live there. They should have had a band playing 50s-70s music. But her complaint should be directed at management, not us.

She was exceptionally rude, but it was entertaining and I get a good story to tell.

Side note: The mini car show included a 60s Batmobile, the Green Arrow's car (does that have a name?), the General Lee and sheriff car, and a DeLorean with all the Back to the Future equipment. (None from the actual shows/movies).

There’s one in every crowd…even if you were playing swing or what I call ‘malt shop’ 50’s(not that nasty, hopped-up rockabilly)you still weren’t going to win with her.

When my mother was in assisted living 10 years ago, they would have this flamboyant character come in and do a piano bar type solo act…adult pop of the 50’s and show tunes, and he was impressive. Went over well, but he inexplicably did a Peter and Gordon song, “Yesterday’s Gone”, and I always wondered if any of those people had in that time a teenage daughter who might have played the song to death on her little Wards or Sears record player, and drove mom and dad up the wall with it.

Then, one time when I was leaving the facility, at a private school up the hill there was some sort of outdoor event where they had a Beatles tribute band playing the early stuff, you could hear it echoing down the road. I thought to myself, how long before that outfit does gigs here? Oddly enough, I did an 80’s new wave gig at that school…in the 80’s.

 

[Michedelic]

Maths say...
Old biddy was 42 when the 80s began. Sure her prime era was 1960s and 1970s, but she didn't grow up on Glen Miller. When I was 42 I was still rocking hard.
She's seriously uncool.

Obviously she was a classical fan. Someone of her age is in the “silent generation” group, and while they in part were potentially the fans of the first wave of rock’n’roll, many were not necessarily. There was all the mellower “Your Hit Parade” stuff that she could have grown up on, and Elvis, let alone The Beatles, were a bunch of garbage noise.

 

[Michedelic]

Side note: The mini car show included a 60s Batmobile, the Green Arrow's car (does that have a name?), the General Lee and sheriff car, and a DeLorean with all the Back to the Future equipment. (None from the actual shows/movies).

Sorry, but I just had to ask….did you play anything by The Cars?

 

[pie_man_25]

"you're terrible and I hate you guys!"

"Me too, that'll be fifty bucks!"

 

[Lance Bunyon]

Obviously she was a classical fan. Someone of her age is in the “silent generation” group, and while they in part were potentially the fans of the first wave of rock’n’roll, many were not necessarily. There was all the mellower “Your Hit Parade” stuff that she could have grown up on, and Elvis, let alone The Beatles, were a bunch of garbage noise.

Good point! Both my mom and dad were that age range and were Rat Packers.
I grew up with records like The Lettermen, Streisand, and showtunes. From Broadway. Sinatra.
My parents were anti rockers.

 

[Michedelic]

Good point! Both my mom and dad were that age range and were Rat Packers.
I grew up with records like The Lettermen, Streisand, and showtunes. From Broadway. Sinatra.
My parents were anti rockers.

I had an English teacher(HS)in the 70’s who was in that age range. Still youthful, but…ever heard the put-down of “weekend hippie” or “weekend punk”? Someone who doesn’t walk it like they talk it? He was still being something of a weekend beatnik, all about the bop jazz, man, and even though they had broken up by that point, still couldn’t “get” The Beatles…”all they were was a rhythm section”.