Re: A childish rant

"George" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote in message
news:[EMAIL PROTECTED]
> I just got back into playing in a covers band after almost 20 years.
> It was my dream after taking up the guitar again several years ago. So
> I'm with these other middle age weekend warriors. I'm the new guy so I
> know there's some fitting in I have to do but I have some worries.
>
> Most songs we do fairly well. But there's a few that we do terribly
> either due to screwing up the complicated arrangements or because we
> posses reasonable vocal limitations. Yet the list seems to be written
> in stone.  These are good songs, but we just don't do them well. I
> brought in a CD of songs I thought we could do really well but my
> suggestions have been ignored for now at least.
>
> Then at our last practice, we stopped to retune the guitars a
> half-step down for a few songs "because that's how they are on the
> record". I voiced my reservations about this; about the break in
> momentum in a live setting to tune and retune back again. And so what
> if we have to learn them off the record at home this way, it doesn't
> have to carry over into a performance for paying customers. They won't
> care as long as we do it well. And turns out we didn't do it well - it
> really sucked.
>
> Over the years I developed a simple personal philosophy on what makes
> a good band: get the women to dance. Everything is gravy after that. I
> believe you can make people dance and still bang yer head. But our
> song selection runs from mid 70s AOR to h e a v y tunes from Metallica
> to standard slow tunes. Great for keggers but not dancing. This goes
> back to my submitted CD. Everything on there, from Cougar to Kravitz
> to ZZ Top is for getting those babes on the floor. But....
>
> I feel really frustrated, my time means a lot to me. I missed my son's
> basketball game to go to practice the other night so I want to use it
> wisely. I'm not sure about quitting because it took so long to find
> some other middle age crazy guys to be in a band with and I would hate
> to start from square one. I think maybe if I stick with it, things
> will either turn around or I'll network around and meet some other
> folks I'll be more in sync with.
>
> Thanks for any thoughts
>
> g
==========
Hmm...

Does the band have a manager, good to show this person your post above, in
total.  They could talk to the other members, one at a time in private,
likely there are other beefs from the others.

Gotta get these things out in the open and resolved, otherwise it's a
downer.

Your son is most important.  (If only I had one...)

Sounds like you should start from scratch.  There are a zillion great
musicians out there, many who want to do a great job.  Sans alcohol.

Show your potential new band members your post above, and make yourself
leader.  Rather than a full time manager, a consultant could be a worthwhile
investment.

Having perfect pitch, de-tuning would not work for me, totally screws me up,
can't do it, just like capoing, makes me dizzy, I throw up.

Good luck.

-bg-

www.thelittlecanadaheadphoneband.ca