Last Night's Gig: trust your instincts

[bitflipper]

We had a strong suspicion that last night's venue might be disappointing, but we went anyway. Unfortunately, our intuition was right. Righter than we could have imagined.

It was a new venue for us, and we're always on the hunt for new places to play. The previous week we'd been to a new (to us) place and it turned out great - full house, appreciative audience, very cool owner, wants us on regular rotation. So we were hoping for a repeat of that experience last night.

We knew we'd be playing for the door, which is always a risk, but were willing to play for gas money if it opened up a new opportunity. What we didn't expect was a house policy of waiving the cover charge for anyone claiming poverty. Very noble, but the consequence of that was only 7 people actually paid to get in. How those broke folks were able to subsequently drink beer and eat pizza is a mystery.

Of the $70 they took in for the night, 20% went to the sound guy and half the remainder went to the opening act. Our take was $16. Sure, the sound guy made out worse, but only later did we discover that he was the bar's owner!

Turns out, this is actually the bar's business plan: sucker bands into playing for free. Granted, we don't do any of this for the money but nobody likes to get scammed. 

The evening started at 5:30 PM, when we showed up to load in. Sound check was scheduled for 7:00, and we need at least a solid hour to set up. The opening band started at 7:45 and proceeded to play for 2.5 hours. They were dreadfully bad. Imagine 2.5 hours of an acoustic singer-songwriter duo singing original three-chord songs about heartbreak. They were actually nice folks who got scammed same as us, but they also drove out half the audience.

I am proud to say we delivered the same level of professionalism that we'd have given at an actual paying gig. The audience was enthusiastic. I'm sure they left feeling they'd gotten their money's worth, lol.

As did the owner, who immediately asked when we could return. I guess once a grifter has found his mark, the grifter's code dictates that he squeeze them for all he can. Needless to say, we declined his offer and gave him an earful about his shady practices.

But the adventure continues. Next week, we're playing at a shopping mall. For actual money.

[hockeyjx]

Some things never change. I don't miss that part of the band thing.

[kennywtelejazz]

Dang Bit ! 

"Club Owner Entitlement  " It sure has gotten a lot worse  over the years .

all the best ,

Kenny

[Amberwolf]

Sounds like the long-defunct Mason Jar here in the Phoenix area.

[Sock Monkey]

I only got scammed once It was a brew pub and when they first opened they paid $200 to who and what ever played. It was a 2 hour gig post Happy Hour to see if people would stick around after the price of Beer doubled. 
I played there and there was 3 of us so not bad for 2 hours and free beer. 
It became a popular spot for local and touring small groups and singer songwriter stuff. 
A few months later I stopped by and we set up a booking for a few months down the road. Fine. 
 

A week before the gig the owner phoned me and asked why I wasn’t setting up yet? I told her that’s next week. Oh she said , guess I screwed up and you are correct.  But the place is packed Do you think you can come tonight? 
My instincts told me to say sorry. No. But I thought I’d be kind to my possible source of future income and said I’ll pack my PA and get there as soon as I could. She said we just bought a PA So you can use that.

My instincts were now stressing to the limit knowing full well what to expect. 
Anyhow I grabbed a guitar and my laptop and a suitcase that I kept packed with emergency supplies. 

I was on the air exactly 30 minute later. The crowd had thinned out, No one brought me a beer, the PA was 1980  Peavey stuff. No monitor and it’s a super noisy room. 

I didn’t play my best because I couldn’t hear and it sounded so bad I was embarrassed. They were all hosed so didn’t notice. 

When it was over and as I packed up I asked to be paid the said that they no longer had needed to pay for performers anymore. They had stopped paying a while ago. 

All these performer from out of town were just showing up and passing the hat. 
I was expected to pass the hat if I wanted to be paid! 
Bad Karma paid off and they went bankrupt a few months later. The beer wasn’t very good. 

[T Boog]

5 hours ago, bitflipper said:

Our take was $16

Did your band drink for free at least?

[craigb]

34 minutes ago, T Boog said:

Did your band drink for free at least?

No, but glasses of water were discounted to only 50 cents!

[kennywtelejazz]

I have played these type of places before and no matter how bad the deal turned out to be  , I could always bank on  both the waitress and the bartenders tip jars being stuffed 😉

Kenny

 

[bitflipper]

4 hours ago, T Boog said:

Did your band drink for free at least?

No. Then again, we never drink before or during a performance. I actually played a place once that charged me $4 for coffee! Not from an espresso machine or anything, just poured from a pot of drip Folger's.

4 hours ago, Sock Monkey said:

...the PA was 1980  Peavey stuff

Most of the gigs we play that have a house PA are comparably equipped. Last night, it was Mackie. It's gotten to the point where I'm tempted to just tell them we'll use our own mains, no matter how proud they are of their jury-rigged pile of garage sale speakers. Unfortunately, there isn't always physical space to do that.

I do, however, always tell them that we mix ourselves. I try to present it as a positive for the FoH guy, telling him he'll have an easy night. But some of those guys are incredibly arrogant, saying nobody mixes themselves, that's crazy. Truth is I couldn't possibly do a worse job than 99% of those posers. At least I'm listening to the band.

[Notes_Norton]

Sorry to hear that. I hope your next gig is much, much, more profitable. Playing for the door is always a gamble, but if that's the agreement, everyone should pay, and if someone comes in free, the club should pay for him/her.

It's one of the reasons why I started doing mostly private parties.

We played at an old mobile home park. I mean old, probably 1960s or 70s, judging from the construction of the clubhouse. Our first time there, referred by another client.

There was a mix of old and newer trailers, and some new RVs. Although the clubhouse was old, it wasn't run down. There was a small stage, and it was decorated for the party. 

The guests started coming early, a lot of French Canadians spending the winter here in Florida and some English-speaking folks as well. The place was packed with extra folding chairs brought in to accommodate the crowd. 

Second song, they hit the dance floor and never left. We played an hour overtime, and they were still on the floor. We could have played another, but at midnight they had to shut it down - park rules. 

They already reserved another date.

♫

The night before that was another 900space RV Resort. We do this one once or twice a month. Even though it was cold (by Florida Standards) the place was full, and we had a great time.

♫

The afternoon before that we did a concert at an Assisted Living Facility. We've done this one before, too. One hour in the afternoon, and they want us back next month.

It's the tourist season here in Florida, so there is a lot of work. 

 

Notes ♫

[bitflipper]

Thanks for that positive note, Bob. 

It's kinda refreshing to play for an older audience. Nobody's told them it's not cool to get up and participate. Not that they'd give a sh...hoot anyway.

[pwalpwal]

22 hours ago, bitflipper said:

Next week, we're playing at a shopping mall. For actual money.

yep, if there's a place to find money it's a shopping mall, hope it goes better

[Notes_Norton]

1 hour ago, bitflipper said:

Thanks for that positive note, Bob. 

It's kinda refreshing to play for an older audience. Nobody's told them it's not cool to get up and participate. Not that they'd give a sh...hoot anyway.

When I was in my 30s, I decided to pitch my efforts to the adult communities in Florida. There are a lot of them, so I figured it was a good market. Our audience is from 50 to nearly dead.

Grey hair and glasses in the audience. At first, it was Frank Sinatra, Glenn Miller, the Gershwins, Duke Ellington and zero rock and roll. As  years passed, we started getting requests for Elvis Presley, The Platters, Chuck Berry, Buddy Holley and the other early rockers. As time went on, The Beatles entered, along with their era. Then Jimmy Buffett, Miami Sound Machine/Estafan, Cyndi Lauper, etc., And the music eras keep on progressing. Elvis and the Beatles are old now, to be played sparingly. We also mix in country, Latin American, Reggae/Soca, and newish songs that the older generation takes a liking to, like Bruno Mars, Pharrell Williams, Zac Brown, Chris Stapleton, and so on.

We have over 600 songs in our songlist https://www.nortonmusic.com/cats/songlist.html, although we don't often play the pre-Elvis ones, and even the early rock songs need the right crowd. 

The advantages are that if I play 3 days a week, I make as much money as I would in a bar for 5 or 6 nights (one-nighters pay better). Since there is a party, there is always an audience - no Thursday night snoozers. By that age they are self-confident, and not reluctant to show their appreciation. Unlike top40 night clubs, when we learn a song, it's good for at least 10 years, it won't drop off the charts (it's already off) and become out of style to play.

There are some cons as well. We have to move gear every night. But I don't have to go to a gym to work out, I do “speakercise”. There isn't as much 'star status' in the gig, often there is no stage, we play on the floor. Sometimes we are background music. The usually ladies who organize these things like to create themes. We may have to learn a couple of songs for those themes, like a few Hawaiian songs for a Luau, a couple of Polkas for Oktoberfest, a few Christmas songs, or whatever. But we get to reuse them from year to year. Then other themes are easy, last Saturday was simply Black And White, so I wore a black shirt and white tie, no special tunes needed.

Here in Florida, the work can be furious from November to Easter, then it slacks.

All and all I'm glad I chose that we never lack for gigs.

 

Notes ♫

 

 

[bitflipper]

43 minutes ago, Notes_Norton said:

By that age they are self-confident, and not reluctant to show their appreciation.

Plus the denominations in the tip jar are larger. Sure, they may remember when 25 cents was a reasonable tip, but something about a hundred makes them feel particularly philanthropic.

I have a buddy who mostly does nursing homes. You'd think that would be depressing, but he actually connects with the residents (more so the older he gets). Plus gigs are 1 hour and he gets $300-400 for each. He's a solo act who books himself, so that's 100% take-home pay. Sometimes, he does as many as 4 of those in a day. His rig has been trimmed down to just an acoustic 12-string and an amp that also serves as his PA. Several of those places are near me, so he'll often call up and say he's got a couple hours to kill before his next gig and wants to come over and shoot the breeze or grab an espresso.

The next logical step, I suppose, is playing funerals. I read an interview with a pianist who was asked to play at a friend's funeral. She didn't know what to play so just quietly improvised some slow tunes. Afterward, guests congratulated her on the performance and asked if she had a CD for sale. She didn't, but wisely set about making one and began actively seeking out funeral gigs. Today she is the queen of funerary music, making more money from selling CDs to funeral homes than actually performing at them. She had inadvertently created a new genre. And yes, today it has become a recognized genre. Not sure if they have a Top Ten.

[craigb]

54 minutes ago, bitflipper said:

Not sure if they have a Top Ten.

More of a Bottom Six? 😁

 

(Cool story though! 😉)

[57Gregy]

1 hour ago, bitflipper said:

The next logical step, I suppose, is playing funerals.

I didn't know your band played death metal.

Sorry.

[Notes_Norton]

22 hours ago, bitflipper said:

I have a buddy who mostly does nursing homes. You'd think that would be depressing, but he actually connects with the residents 

We do a few of those, and it's nice to see people who are definitely challenged brighten up. Some can't talk, but will sing along with the words to the songs of their youth.

It makes me feel like we are doing something important for them.

[Xoo]

I sang at some when I was a young lad (we're talking 10-12ish) and they loved it - just carols and the like, but the warmth of the feedback was great.

[Notes_Norton]

On 1/27/2025 at 2:06 PM, bitflipper said:

Plus the denominations in the tip jar are larger. Sure, they may remember when 25 cents was a reasonable tip, but something about a hundred makes them feel particularly philanthropic.

And well drinks were 35¢, top shelf drinks 49¢ and you could get a cup of coffee for a dime at a diner.

But ever since one particular president and his party took us off the gold standard, inflation has gone crazy.

Things generally cost 10 times as much now, but we make more, too. The only loss is our savings. While it seems to grow, if that $1,000 you put away in the 1960s isn't $10,000 now, you've lost buying power.

 

Insights and incites by Notes ♫

 

[RobertWS]

30 minutes ago, Notes_Norton said:

But ever since one particular president and his party took us off the gold standard, inflation has gone crazy.

The only thing that causes inflation is pumping additional money into an economy.