elmerthegreat

Over the course of any performing musician’s career, there will be gigs that do not go over as well as hoped. There can be a variety of reasons, personal performance, adverse conditions, and/or technical difficulties. Of all possible ways a gig can go bad, the absolute worst is when the crowd is simply not into what you are playing. Depending on the venue, this can manifest itself in a number of ways. If it is a concert hall, the crowd will fidget, check their watches, roll their eyes, look around the room at other attendees, or fall asleep. If it is a church, they will page through their hymnal or the Bible, let loose a whisper or two, and possibly excuse themselves to go to the bathroom. At a bar, they will simply ignore you, watch the television, and talk over whatever you are playing. Unlike the other two venues, at the bar, you will not even receive a polite clap at the end of each number. If anything you might get a sneer over in your direction, implying “Are you done yet?”

There could be a number of reasons that the bar gig goes wrong. Perhaps you are just not the right act for the venue. For example, if you’re a Pantera cover band at a disco bar, you might not go over very well. Maybe you suck. It’s even possible that the crowd just doesn’t want to hear any music (especially true during the football playoffs). Wednesday’s gig was one such gig. While there were a few people that enjoy what we were playing, by and far, the crowd was there to drink beer and talk with one another. They could have cared less that a rock band was playing. When the DJ in the room adjoining us started to play dance music, some people were happy, others were still more content drinking and talking.

This particular gig was for charity, so I cannot get too upset. Time was given for a good cause without desire for compensation. Nevertheless, I have to wonder why they wanted to book a live band. If the crowd does not particularly want to hear a live rock band, the presence of one is simply an annoyance. However, for the people that did enjoy what we were playing, I am grateful that they made their presence known by personally thanking us after the set. As long as there are an appreciative few from the audience, the gig is a success.

Anyway… here are some pictures from the gig:

Created with flickr slideshow.

It was fun to play with the boys from Moonspank again. The last time was quite awhile back in Boston. This outdoor event was for the Westchester Oyster Festival. This will be the last outdoor gig for me until the thaw.

Here are some photos from the event:

Created with flickr slideshow.

Last night, I was rehearsing with Sick Logic. We were putting the final touches on songs for our next show. Since we only had two hours booked, time is of the essence. We called out song after song in an effort to get ourselves more familiar with new material.

Among the new songs we’ve added is “I’m Eighteen” by Alice Cooper. As we’re getting into the second verse, the door opens and a few guys check us out. We think nothing of it since they have smiles on their faces and they’re bopping along. We think, “Cool, they like us.” After we’re done, they come back in and introduce themselves. Turns out, one of them is Dennis Dunaway, Alice Cooper’s bassist! He was in the studio recording his new project 5th Avenue Vampries.

Dennis is a very nice guy. He chatted with Joe, Guy, and I about opening for Black Sabbath, opening for Ike and Tina Turner, and seeing Yes in the early days. He even let me play the bass he used to record “School’s Out“, a very nice Fender Jazz.

The other fellow in the picture below is Richie Scarlet, bass player from Mountain, guitarist alongside Ace Frehley, and other assorted projects. Also a very cool guy.