Reasons to not join / quit bands

[Offshore Angler]

man, i LIKE mustang sally.
damn you MS haters!

and the wives/gf's were ok as long as they stayed in another room, on another floor (preferably w/ a different addy )

The most misplayed song in history. When done right, it's a joy. If you use the original WP arrangement it kills. Just bass and drums for the verse with the bass going dum dum dum da dumdum.

Somehow, it's been bastardized to have bass and guitars kicking out dum dum dada dum dum through the verse and it kills the song.

The original is all about a groove. The garage band classic is all about noise. I swear, if I owned a bar, I'd make every band audition that song. If they got it right, they'd get the gig.

[dirtdog]

I once took on a geezer band gig. My stipulation up front was "I will play Wild Night if it means we don't play Brown Eyed Girl. I will only play Mustang Sally if Wilson Pickett sings it with us."

LOL - Brown Eyed Girl is my other deal breaker. I like the retort on Mustang Sally. I'll be sure to use that one in the near future!

If I'm going to play a WP tune, it'll be something like Funky Broadway or 634-5789.

DD

[cooltone]

The original is all about a groove. The garage band classic is all about noise. I swear, if I owned a bar, I'd make every band audition that song. If they got it right, they'd get the gig.

Band: "Man, we NAILED it!!"

OSA: "Up until the point you said that."

[Offshore Angler]

cooltone, go dig out the original and tell me that song ain't great.

I just can't stand the garage band versions. Actually, the live WP version sucks too. But the studio version - that's what we all aspire to groove-wise.

[pc]

Phooey. It's a great song that can be done any number of good ways. If others don't like it, they don't have to play it. I like it. I play it. My way.

Believe me, there are plenty of trite bar tunes I'm tired of too, and I'm totally down with everyone having their own opinion of what songs those are for themselves. But me... If I even thought about letting one particular song dictate whether or not I was going to play with otherwise good musicians, I'd need to rethink why I do this.

I is I, y'uns is y'uns, YMMV, etc., ad infinitum.

[cooltone]

cooltone, go dig out the original and tell me that song ain't great

I wasn't dissin' the tune, I was referring to fezz's list (#10) and your audition criteria. Thought it would be funny if a band passed muster and then blew it by breaking that rule...

[dirtdog]

Phooey. It's a great song that can be done any number of good ways. If others don't like it, they don't have to play it. I like it. I play it. My way.

Believe me, there are plenty of trite bar tunes I'm tired of too, and I'm totally down with everyone having their own opinion of what songs those are for themselves. But me... If I even thought about letting one particular song dictate whether or not I was going to play with otherwise good musicians, I'd need to rethink why I do this.

I is I, y'uns is y'uns, YMMV, etc., ad infinitum.

I see what you're saying pc. For me it's not about the musicianship. It's about the attitude behind HAVING TO PLAY THAT ONE TUNE at the expense of millions of other great tunes that haven't been done to death.

A bit of an aside - what would I put up with in order to play with a band? My main band at the moment jams in the drummer's Mom's basement. And we're all in our 40's!!! But there's a story behind that....

DD

[dirtdog]

Somehow, it's been bastardized to have bass and guitars kicking out dum dum dada dum dum through the verse and it kills the song.

Two words: The Committments

[boobtube21]

Two words: The Committments

That's exactly who I thought of as soon as 'Sally' got mentioned. I heard that song enough times in that movie to last me the rest of my life.

That and this crazy broad I met years ago who claimed to have a '65 Mustang with 13" Daytons and hydraulics. She said it was a show winner, and that everybody at shows called her "Mustang Sally".

I don't know about that, but I know she did have a '65 Mustang with 13" Daytons on hydros. I saw it, and she bounced it for us.

[Kap'n]

Sure. I've heard a zillion versions of Mustang Sally. I've only heard one person other than Wicked Pickett do it in a way I liked. And it was nothing like Wilson's.

I have no idea why it became the Freebird of cover band tunes. But there are so many OTHER excellent tunes out there, but 90% of the crowd asks for it. Even though every version they've ever heard sucked.

The aforementioned Brown Eyed Girl and Margaritaville are the other two major offenders.


Mrs. Kap'n did clue me in to one of the reasons for the popularity of BEG. It's the song for zillions of women out there who don't have their name in a song.

[frank thomson]

The aforementioned Brown Eyed Girl and Margaritaville are the other two major offenders.

OMG...just the other night, we hand a few people a set list...waht do they friggin pick?....aarrgghh!


ANOTHER QUESTION IS...do you find some of these songs bad, or just sung badly?...)this was not just asked of Kap'n...its a general question....it just got me to thinking!.)
....isn't it the who who say "it's the singer not the song that makes the music move along"?

i mean, how can u eff it up musically?/////lol

[Kap'n]

ANOTHER QUESTION IS...do you find some of these songs bad, or just sung badly?....isn't it the who who say "it's the singer not the song that makes the music move along"?l

I think Townshend wrote that as an ego boost for Daltrey.

[frank thomson]

yea, maybe....but......a good singer could do it accapella and make it work....no?

i dunno, i guess its just the other side of the coin.

[frank thomson]

and i kinda think pete was saying it ironically like *go figger, i write the best stuff in the world, and that asshole is singing it....it should be me!*
and he's right, but.....

thats my take

[refin]

Phooey. It's a great song that can be done any number of good ways. If others don't like it, they don't have to play it. I like it. I play it. My way.

Believe me, there are plenty of trite bar tunes I'm tired of too, and I'm totally down with everyone having their own opinion of what songs those are for themselves. But me... If I even thought about letting one particular song dictate whether or not I was going to play with otherwise good musicians, I'd need to rethink why I do this.

I is I, y'uns is y'uns, YMMV, etc., ad infinitum.

Word..........
We used to do a version of Mustang Sally with 3 guitars,bass,drums,and percussion that was a funky mess....enjoyed every second of it,and it is still one of my favorite tunes.

[bonefish]

we've got this gal that shows up at our gigs all the time and screams "MUSTANG SALLY!!!" at ten minute intervals the entire freaking night. so what we do is play about 10 seconds of it at a time, every time she bellers it. i've learned that song piecemeal, and never played it start to finish!

[Plugger]

FWIW, I liked the Commitments' version of "Sally".

Just thought I'd say that.

My pet hate done-to-death cover song is "Summer of '69". Oh, how I hate that song.

Trying to steer this back on topic, one really good way to _not_ get offered a spot in a band is to casually mention how much you think a particular song sucks/is overdone/is trite or just plain cheesy, only to discover that the band considers it their "signature" tune.

-Mark

[Coque]

My pet hate songs are: "What I like about You" and "Margaritaville". People seem to love those tunes but man, I can't bring myself to sing/play them again...though I know I will, damn it!

(I get a creepy feeling just thinking about playing 'em.)

[franchelB]

IMO, some of us ARE the reason some of us quit bands! For whatever has happened, some of us have become jaded about being in bands...whether is because of working with musicians with certain "quirks", song material, or having "paid our dues"...that WE're not getting our way! C'mon, let's be real here...

Call me a "bum", but I joined bands because I think I'm a better musician than anything I can do in this world. My wife takes care of the children AND the bills. I can do housework, yardwork, and all the other stuff that life hands you all the time; but where is the fun in that?

So the singer, guitarist , or whomever has an "attitude"? So what if I have to play, "Freebird", "Stairway to Heaven", or whatever song that one's played for a "hundred" times before?? So what if I've been involved in music since I was 3 and have perfect pitch??? So what????

It's "escapism"! Playing in a band is not only fun, and not only about the music or playing it to the best to our abilities, but it's also about socializing...being able to get along with people, whether it's your bandmates (which is learning about being a team), or the audience.

Again, IMO of course!

[Kap'n]

If I even thought about letting one particular song dictate whether or not I was going to play with otherwise good musicians, I'd need to rethink why I do this.

Sure. If the music's great, I'll do just about anything.

However, usually a band's decision to play those tunes confirms the beliefs I already have about them. They do them not because they think they're great tunes, and can do them justice, but because they're three chord lowest common denominator songs. They're the Old Country Buffet of music. Full of salt and trans-fats, but little actual flavor or nutritional value. Would you like some jell-o with that?

[Gary Gray]

In my opinion, my playing in a band boils down to two questions I ask myself while driving to the show.

1) Am I excited about doing this, and have I been looking forward to it all week?

2) Did I encourage my friends and family to come check us out?

If the answer to either one or both is "no", then I'm in the wrong band.

[pc]

Sure. If the music's great, I'll do just about anything.

Everyone has they're own reasons why and how they do things, and they're all good. Which again is why I said, "I'd have to rethink why I do this."

For me, your sentence would read like this, "If the musicians are great and the listeners are happy, I will do any song." Playing with great musicians and making my listening audience happy is where my fun is.

If I join an established band that plays songs I don't like as much, I figure they're doing that because it's what their target audience wants to hear. Like the songs or not, I'll play the hell out of them and have a great time doing it as long as the band is great and the audience is happy.

Now, if I want to join a start-up band who wants to do a bunch of songs I don't like, well, they'd have to be literally amazing musicians who already have a lot of booking leads for me to still want to join. For me that's a different situation.

As for Mustang Sally or any of the other songs mentioned here, here's my belief, like it or not:

There are no intrinsically bad songs, just personal opinions and personal taste. If anyone thinks they know enough to decide what's bad for someone else, they lost something important along the way.

Beyond that, I think we should all do what makes us happy in our musical lives. If only playing certain songs makes some folks happy--go for it. If there are other whore-like weirdos like me who will play anything a crowd wants to hear, well, so be it.

[Guitar_Mc]

pc, you're kind of weird, but you're not a whore. If you were, you'd be playing a purple amp or something.

[pc]

Well, factually, only the face plate is purple. And the back plate. Oh, and the logo. And the footswitch. And the speakers. The rest is black.

[frank thomson]

so when someone from the crowd shouts *SWeet home alabama(SHA)* or *MS* or *HeyJoe*, ...this is really what they wanna hear.

good or bad. wrong or right....it involves the crowd.
and yea, we def play 3 chord songs.
but we also play 5 chord, 8 chord songs. we're a bar band. very blue collar. ....biker bar band, as it were.

to me, this epitomises(sp?) why i do it. i dont wanna play for suits. or ties, or beemers, or furs......i wanna play for flannel and leather.
..and if they wanna hear SHA, then dammit, i'll play it for them!

now...if you get a chance to play w/ SteeleyDan, well then, you're not gonna play SHA for anything b/c you play ORIGINAL music. God bless ya. Good work if you can get it.

this thread clearly has 2 camps; the extra-cash/weekend warrior, and the pro/sole-form-of-income kinda guy.

i'm the former, so i'm able to have this attitude.
xoxoxoxo

[dirtdog]

Mrs. Kap'n did clue me in to one of the reasons for the popularity of BEG. It's the song for zillions of women out there who don't have their name in a song.

NOWI know why the Irish traditional tune "Black Velvet Band" is so popular in the pubs - it's the Brown Eyed Girl of celtic bands!

"Her eyes they shone like the diamond
You'd think she was queen of the land
And her hair hung over her shoulder
Tied up in a black velvet band"

DD

[dirtdog]

...one really good way to _not_ get offered a spot in a band is to casually mention how much you think a particular song sucks/is overdone/is trite or just plain cheesy, only to discover that the band considers it their "signature" tune.

-Mark

and so it goes... in my experience, an abrupt parting of the ways was best for all involved....

Fun or not, for a living or not, for socialization or not. Bottom line for is that I gotta have SOME standards. "No Mustang Sally" is one of them. I've even got a T-shirt with that logo.

DD

[dirtdog]

to me, this epitomises(sp?) why i do it. i dont wanna play for suits. or ties, or beemers, or furs......i wanna play for flannel and leather.
..and if they wanna hear SHA, then dammit, i'll play it for them!

I'm a weekend warrior/poseur as well. We play bars, the divier the better.

At the risk of sounding sexist and puerile, my band's formula is to play for the women, who attract the men, who buy the booze, who allow the bar to profit, who book us again.

But...I...just...can't...play...Mustang Sally no matter who asks for it.

DD

[KevinWaide]

Oh, hell, if someone asks for it and I know it, I'll play the thing. Doesn't matter what it is. If I don't know the lyrics, I ask for someone in the audience that does know it to come sing it. I live in redneck hell, so there is NO shortage of drunk rednecks that think they can sing to come up and do a song. :-P

[franchelB]

For some of us, it's making a living; for others it's "escapism" or a weekend type thing.

Life's too short to play crap, or to play with people who play like crap. And if I have to play crap, you better pay me really good. I've done this music thing for a living, and to have fun. I have the most fun (and make the most bread) when I play with non-delusional musicians who know how (and when) to play. I've made the least amount of money (and had the least amount of fun) when I've had to play with people who don't get it.

Well, at the very moment, it's also my only source of income! And as for me, I've had more $$ playing with less "talented" musicians...but to each his own.
As my friend so eloquently stated, "We're glorified alcohol salesmen"!

[Offshore Angler]

Poor Mustang Sally. It's the HRD of songs!

[pc]

To you.

[Kap'n]

Well, if OA meant it in that it gets no respect, he'd be right.

It's certainly the Rodney Dangerfield of songs.

[Guitar_Mc]

Well, if OA meant it in that it gets no respect, he'd be right.

It's certainly the Rodney Dangerfield of songs.

Not to the audience. It always seams to go over great with the audience. This thread is the first time I've ever heard anyone complain about MS.

[Kap'n]

As my friend so eloquently stated, "We're glorified alcohol salesmen"!

It's a long-standing tradtion for musicians.

[frank thomson]

poseur?
i'm OLD, and I remember when *gangbanging* meant a TOTALLY different thing.

what's *todays* definition of poseur?

or maybe poser, and poseur are diff words?

edumacate a brotha

[dirtdog]

poseur?
i'm OLD, and I remember when *gangbanging* meant a TOTALLY different thing.

what's *todays* definition of poseur?

or maybe poser, and poseur are diff words?

edumacate a brotha

LOL - same thing brotha - just Frenchified a bit. We use that term in the mountain biking world. "Schwag" instead of "swag". We're complete geeks in that community, too....

DD

[dirtdog]

Not to the audience. It always seams to go over great with the audience. This thread is the first time I've ever heard anyone complain about MS.

Another long-standing tradition with a modern twist:

http://www.cafepress.com/nomustangsally

[frank thomson]

well, DD, then i think you're dissin yourself by calling yourself a poser.

-you're on stage, right?
-you're physically playing a tuned, amplified guitar so the crowd can hear, right?
-you're performing a song from beginning to end, right?

well, my friend, you are NOT a poser.
you may be a weekend warrior(<term;yuk!), but you're NOT a poser.

and a true weekend warrior ONLY plays on the weekends. (eg;like the guys who play flag-football).
We practice during the week for a weekend performance, right? Maybe we should be considered semi-pros?...or Triple-A players?

are the Dallas Cowboys weekend warriors?....

sorry, not too fond of that term(WW)

JMO.[/rant]

[pc]

I'm with Frank. Nothing "posing" about gigging on weekends. It's live music--that's as real and cool as it gets.