Making a living in the music business by performing?

[jules metcalfe]

The smoking ban has damaged the pub/bars here in England.  I think we've taken the shrink to fit approach.  If we do a wedding or a big party we take a 3 piece, 2 electro acoustics, 1 with more bass and 1 more treble and a small drum kit with a vocal pa.  Most of the time the drums dont need mics, it seems to work out.  And I dont want to sound lazy, but its a lot less gear to carry!  As for money, things over here have reduced.  We dont get paid as much for regular bar work, but the other stuff is ok.  Its become a matter of reducing numbers, which is a shame.  But its only rock n roll!  Tip!  If the bar has reduced your pay try and get free beer on the ride! Tends to work.  Enjoy. J

[chip]

The smoking ban has damaged the pub/bars here in England.  I think we've taken the shrink to fit approach.  If we do a wedding or a big party we take a 3 piece, 2 electro acoustics, 1 with more bass and 1 more treble and a small drum kit with a vocal pa.  Most of the time the drums dont need mics, it seems to work out.  And I dont want to sound lazy, but its a lot less gear to carry!  As for money, things over here have reduced.  We dont get paid as much for regular bar work, but the other stuff is ok.  Its become a matter of reducing numbers, which is a shame.  But its only rock n roll!  Tip!  If the bar has reduced your pay try and get free beer on the ride! Tends to work.  Enjoy. J

If we don't get free beer we don't play and we are out the door. We usually play

[phantasm777]

i'd be in a different situation. i dont drink so i wouldnt want that as part of pay or i would feel like i was getting ripped off.

[Farrell Jackson]

i'd be in a different situation. i dont drink so i wouldnt want that as part of pay or i would feel like i was getting ripped off.

You are a stellar man phantasm777...good for you for not drinking! I, on the other hand, don't have that much will power but usually I drink nothing more than pop....it's a good thing that my pop drinks a lot 

Most venues I played/play at do provide a house drink per set, per member.

Farrell

[Tony W]

Reading this thread confirms even more that I've got to work on my presence. I have a brother who can sell ice to an Eskimo. That's not me, and it's even more prevalent when I'm on stage. I've developed zero personality yet. I'm still struggling to remember the next chord, so I won't be fisting the crowd anytime soon.... (thanks for that Satch)

I had not considered other types of gigs than bars, any recommendations on how to get your foot in the other venues?

[Flash Harry]

Tonight, I'm hawking our recent CD around Sheffield where I work, I have a business card to go with it and I know that it will be a largely fruitless task.

Still if I get us one gig, it will be worth it, it's not the money, it's the sheer fun of it.

[Oldrottenhead]

my mate stix gets a lot of work from youtube recordings of his gigs, he gives out his card to pubs with his youtube address on it.

[Pete C]

Its about 10 years now since I played in a soul band playing "commitments" and stax stuff. Our agent usually got us bookings on the labour club circuit ( uk members will know what I mean ) in the Liverpool/Manchester area. The going rate at the time was £300 for 2 45 minute sets. Split between a 6 piece band this meant about £50 each which after petrol, a couple of drinks and a new set of strings didnt leave a lot. Not surprising that most other acts on the circuit were duos or solo acts with recorded backings. We used to charge more for private function when we could get about £100 each. Miss those days - I'd be happy to play for nothing just to get that feeling of playing to an audience again.

[Farrell Jackson]

I had not considered other types of gigs than bars, any recommendations on how to get your foot in the other venues?

Tony, having a decent demo cd of a couple of your songs is a good way to get the word out. I put together promo packages with a cd of one minute clips of four cover songs with a band business card, group picture and a short description of each member.  Each song on the demo was a different genre which showed the versatility of the group's music. They were a Pop song, country/country rock, harder rock, and an easy listening slow song. I figured that would appeal to a greater variety of likes and ages for the other higher paying gigs, like wedding receptions. It worked fine and reduced the request for people to want to audition us at rehearsals.  I think the real key is to play a good variety of music (that you also enjoy) in order to appeal to a greater audience. It will work in bars but also at other types of gigs as well, like wedding receptions and divorce parties  

We played the bars to get access to the other gigs....everybody in a bar has a connection...just ask them, lol!

Farrell

[Tony W]

I just bought my old BR-1600 back so I can cover a lot more terrain when recording the whole group. I'm back to owning The Micro BR, BR-80, and BR-800 as well. Roland better love me in the same sick way I love them.

I started working on the demo CD with the 800, but time has been the problem. Our drummer works out of town, so getting him to lay tracks while we're not practicing is difficult. I'm sure I could use some of the live recordings with the BR-80, and try to convince myself that club owners will dig the "live sound". I honestly can't wait to get some decent recordings put together though.

I thought about using the CD case as the business card, but quickly realized that it's not as easy to file away as a business card, so I'll go that route.

Everyone in a bar has a connection... isn't that the truth? too funny

Great info here, I really appreciate all the feedback, even though I'm hijacking the original thread contents.