gigging - rant and rave

[Andy Vermiglio]

deseipel, I auditioned for the Navy many years ago when I was 17. I played my rudiments on a pad and read down some simple 6/8 and 2/4 march tunes. Next, they asked me to sit in with the band. I thought I was going to strap on a snare and play some marches. Instead, they took me into a rehearsal space where I found a kit with double kicks, Marshall stacks and a horn section. I asked, "What's this?" and they responded "oh, this is our rock band." Cool! So, I sat down at the kit and read down a bunch of Chicago, Blood Sweat and Tears, and Tower of Power tunes. They liked my playing and said that I would be accepted for entrance into the Armed Forces School of Music.

So, before signing on the dotted line I had a guaranteed entrance into the military's music school. There was no guarantee that I would successfully complete the school. If you don’t graduate from the school you’re still in the military for the next 3 or 4 years. You’re just not going to be assigned to a band. They can assign you according to the needs of the military (so, there was a lot of motivation to do well). The school had ear training, music theory, marching band, concert band, big band, jazz combo, rock combo and percussion ensemble classes. They kept track of our practice hours and you had auditions and exams to pass. It was only 6 months but it was an intense 6 months! After graduation, I was assigned to Navy bands in Japan and in San Francisco.

After my first 4 years in the Navy, I was offered a faculty position at the school of music. I primarily gave drum set instruction to Army, Navy and Marine Corps students. It was a great gig!
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[Kurtis]

[Andy Vermiglio]

Hey Kurtis, The military music route is definitely not for everyone. There are clearly pro's and con's just like any other work situation. When I joined, the Navy was a great gig if you wanted to do a lot of drum set playing. Some of my student's went on to play in the jazz trio at the White House. One had the rock band gig at the Naval Academy in Maryland. Another went to the Army band at West Point. When the leaders are good and the players are good it can be a very rewarding gig! And yes I went to basic training. Not a lot of fun, but it really pushed me mentally and physically and showed me that I could get through some intense pressure situations. Historically, the musicians in the Marine band in Washington, D.C. have not gone through basic training, but they're the only ones.

So, getting back to this thread, I've experienced a lot of the same things that the other guys have posted about. In the military we didn't worry about our next pay check or if the gigs were coming in. All that was taken care of for us. Seems like some of the guys on here are coming to the conclusion that if you want a better situation you need to do it yourself; be the manager, and do all those "non-musical" tasks so that you can get better gigs and better pay.
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[robhaerr]

I don't want to give the impression that my only income is from playing in a cover band...I have another career that allows me to play in a cover band.

Probably goes without saying...by definition...
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Rob
The Ravelers
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[Rhythmatist]

[chriscawthray.com]

It is disheartening to hear that it's bad all over, but I think the worst part is hearing that we're all stuck playing the BS cover band repertoire.

I usually try and retain some levity with regards to the repertoire grind ("Relax, this one'll be over in 2:50...", but gig pay and gig quality are a constant challenge.

I live in a major city (Toronto) with way too many skilled musicians in it. We have sprawling suburbs, so there is plenty of $100-$125 bar work for cover bands or hosting jam-nights (minimum 5 hour call from load-in to load-out), but when you factor in the cost of getting to these gigs (Toronto are traffic is brutal), your take-home is less than $100.

So, these gigs are only viable as income if you do them 4 nights a week or more. Then, while it is a miserable wage, you could eek out an existence and have your daytimes free. This is suitable for students or single adults with no designs on lifestyle advancement.

Weddings and corporate work still pay great, and with some effort you can cultivate good clients and decent gigs. For all but the busiest bands, though, the work is seasonal (weddings in the summer, corporate work around Christmas); the best and busiest bands are usually aligned with event planners and other types of consultants who steer the work their way. If the average pay on these jobs is $500 for often a 6-8 hour call (from load-in to load-out), you can do quite well, one a week puts $25k in your pocket and you have the rest of the week free to pursue other gigs or types of employment. Keep in mind that these gigs are highly sought-after, so if you plan on subbing out regularly to tour with your jazz-fusion project, you'll get fired pretty quick in favour of someone who wants the gig more.

I recently left a cover band that I had been in for 10 years, and was the bandleader for the last 7. We had a really solid run for the last 5 years, and it was a really strong financial complement to my other income from original music (royalties, and some small scale touring), and a smattering of sideman/session work. (Disclaimer: I am married to a spouse with a day job with health benefits, and I am a stay-at-home Dad during the day when I am not on the road. So, the pressure on me to earn $ is reduced slightly and the savings I deliver by allowing us to avoid childcare costs allows for a little breathing room.)

Anyway, I decided to give the band over to the existing members, and leave things on a positive note. I was ready for a change, and I was the last one in the band without a dayjob. With all the players doing day jobs, their preference was for weekend-warrior type gigging instead of corporate/wedding that often requires long calls/learning new material/etc. For them, getting to leave the house after dinner on a Friday or Saturday, make $100-$200 at a place they can invite their friends to, was much more desirable than "working". My goals changed, and rather than try and convince a group of grown men to change their goals, I have taken the summer off and am pushing RESET on my cover-band activities.

Long story short: the ideal model for me is to have a covers/commercial band that plays fewer gigs for more money (so, weddings/corporate. etc.). Furthermore, when the pay is low, the artistic-control has to be decent. So, I have booked the new band into some hipper club/lounge venues where the pay is low (sometimes ever door/tipjar), but we can play whatever we want, and they are willing to give us a run of nights (i.e. every Tuesday for a month). Setting up a gig like this allows me to use the gig to work in new material, keep the band tight and musically satisfied, and with the consistency of a weekly hit, invite potential clients and partners out to hear the band. So, the artistic and marketing benefits outweigh the lack of pay. The hope is that the gigs generated from these efforts will easily compensate us for the trouble.
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Chris Cawthray
chriscawthray.wordpress.com

[cjbdrm]

Here's something amusing...

I responded to a Craigslist ad for a band looking for a jazz/jazz fusion drummer. We're now a Blues/Rock band learning Van Halen tunes to please a bar owner so we can get a gig...


"Just when I think I'm out..they pull me back in."- the Godfather part III
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[matricks]

[benrand]

Nice post Chris, I agree with a lot of it.
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[cjbdrm]

[matricks]

Oh yeah, I read that wrong (long day). I was thinking doing 5 of those a week for 2.5k a week. Now THAT would be nice!!!
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[robhaerr]

Surf cover band Papa Doo Run Run has been playing covers/surf band tribute band and making a living at it since 1964...still going at $8,000-10,000 per gig...guys are in their 60s...they played at some of my school dances in the 70s...

http://www.papadoo.com/playdate.htm

...it's nice to get a referral from them occasionally!
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Rob
The Ravelers
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