Song Selection Rules

[JM3]

Typed this up for my current band, thought i should share
I've been doing this way too long. He he
Song Selection Process


Just some basic guidelines to help streamline the process and increase the chance of success.

This can be a somewhat complex procedure. Each band kind of has a rough idea how to proceed. Sometimes without a clue as to what to do
With the rich amount of experience this band offers, (LOL) that is not the case, but a good review of the process makes for a better understanding.

We have survived the first step in making a master suggestion list. Yahoo!
VERY IMPORTANT*** This list is fluid, feel free to edit, add, change or delete any song for any valid reason, You may change your mind about a selection over time, (what was I thinking?) this keeps the list fresh. Circulate these changes so we can stay on the same page with one another, discuss often.

The next step, would be for us to ALL kind of agree on the next songs to learn, Several factors come into play.
1) Probably most important, Can we do the song in a way that the crowd will enjoy it, (can we sing it?) Who will sing it? Can we play it at least with a modicum of professionalism?
2) Will it go over, will it be danceable?
3) Is the material relevant?
4) Will it be fun to play?
5) Communicate as a team to agree to learn new material by a specific practice date
6) DO NOT COME TO PRACTICE NOT KNOWING MATERIAL after we agree to do it, We waste everyone’s time this way.
7) I have no problem if a band member does not want to do a song for any valid reason, lets not waste time. Usually this involves singing harmonies, or doing material that has been “garage band materialed” to death, or the unavailability of keyboard work
Doing material just because some one knows the song, is kind of risky, Because it may fall into a “filler” category

If we look at our current list, we can put songs into 3 distinct categories.
Songs that go over most of the time,
Songs that are “filler” sometimes go over, sometimes not
Classics, songs that are standards, usually falling into the “go over most of the time”
These may fall into our “Gone but not Forgotten list
Our best shot would be to try to learn material that falls into the first category.
There are exceptions, If we all agree to do a song just because it’s cool to do, regardless of what category it falls into (fun to do)
Be realistic about setting goals: How many songs can we learn in a given amount of time? One or two per month may be realistic depending on complexity, sometimes more if easier to learn

Hard to do material: Songs such as Sultans of Swing that require large amounts of personal practice. Lets be doubly sure we want to learn, 100% dead balls accurate, because of the time invested

[Telebluesfan]

Originally posted by JM3
Several factors come into play.
1) Probably most important, Can we do the song in a way that the crowd will enjoy it, (can we sing it?) Who will sing it? Can we play it at least with a modicum of professionalism?
2) Will it go over, will it be danceable?
3) Is the material relevant?
4) Will it be fun to play?

I can't tell you how heartwarming it is to see a band policy that actually puts the audience reaction ahead of their own interests.

I play with one guy who really never even considers whether or not a song will 'go over'. He assumes if he likes it and likes to play it, it'll be successful. He assumes wrong.

Lately I think he's been doing a little bit of soul searching on this topic. I've put the bug in his ear that we really need to consider how popular the tune is when we decide which ones to play. We don't have to really apply it to learning new songs as we have way more than enough to cover four hour gigs - but given the choice of two songs we may cover by the same artist, I try to get us to play the popular choice even if that means foregoing the one that is more 'fun' (ie - challenging) to play.

Good for you, I say!

[JM3]

Thanks i could write a book on things bands should know, but I guess thats experience, good luck with your band

The book comes out in May