Last Night!

[Mr P 0]

Hi Guys/Girls

 

Worked last night and it was my best gig in over 5 years. Worked with a Group covering 1960's.

Talking to the group after i had set up and they informed me that their Gig last week was terrible as the lead singer had flu and he lost his voice towards the end of the night. He came over to me telling me this and said we will be short and swift tonight. Well throughout their first set he was struggling and kept drinking water in between tracks. End of the first half and i took over, well i put on the rock 'n' roll as usual and the floor just filled over 100 people on the floor, managed to keep them up for 32 minutes to be precise and followed the RnR with The Elgins - Heaven Must Have Sent you, well they still stopped on the floor dancing, anyway called the band back on and it was a case of strted where they had finished, the singer was really struggling, so when they finished i did the applause thing etc and i could tell the people out there wanted to continue dancing so i just brought a track in straight away - Tavares/Heaven Must Be Missing An Angel. The floor filled yet again, after about 3 more tracks the groups Sound guy came over and said the guys wanted to do 1 more!.

 

Well i could not understand how this could be and i began to feel guilty, but the singer himself told me short and swift etc, so i presumed that meant no extra songs.

 

My reason in writing is i felt pretty guilty after about this, but i thought i was doing the right thing by keeping the floor full, the Entertainment Secreatry came over and complimented me and said it was the best night they had had in months, he told me not to worry but i do worry and i felt guilty - but i suppose they should have told me sometime throughout the night what they planned to do.

 

Sorry to bore you all, but what would you have done?

 

Thanks

 

Chris

 

[robbiedj 0]

Don't feel guilty.

 

You played what the crowd wanted and followed whims of the others. That's what you were there for.

 

The band was obviously struggling with their singer losing his voice. It wasn't your fault he couldn't cope. The main thing was keeping the party going .......... and you did. Job done, mate. :good:

[nigelwright7557 0]

I aways have a good chat with bands to get to know them and find out what they intend doing.

 

A good DJ will introduce the band and ask for a warm reception for them.

 

You can get a band member to give you a nod when they want to finish.

 

I have had some great nights backing bands.

 

One band finished at 12:00 and I went on until 6PM !

They kept paying me to play longer.

 

I play guitar so have an advantage when chatting to band members.

I say right off that I play guitar and have played in a band and they respect that.

I have even got up and played a couple of songs as guitarist for one band.

It doesnt get better than that !

 

 

 

 

[kenny wisdom 0]

Don't worry at all!

 

I've worked with live bands before and what they tell you at 6pm when you're setting up goes out the window at 10pm when their adrenaline is pumping, they're buzzing off the crowd and they've got a good reception...and even when they're not as good as they think they still regard the DJ as a mere filler for what they consider themselves to be - the "Star Attraction".

 

I've seen DJ's do a better job than the band in keeping the floor full - so for you, it was a job well done. You maintained the energy on the dance floor which the band sparked off - if the floor had emptied the energy and general atmosphere would have dropped.

[nigelwright7557 0]

 

I've seen DJ's do a better job than the band in keeping the floor full - so for you, it was a job well done.

 

Oh come on !!!

A DJ has a choice of thousands of songs !!

A band probably knows 30 !

A band is never gonna compete with the current number one artist.....

 

I play guitar and run a mobile disco and believe me the talent is very much with the guitar player and not the DJ. The DJ just stands there while playing a copy of someone elses work.

 

Sit down and work out all the notes to "Sweet child of mine" on guitar then I will be impressed.

 

 

[vokf 0]

I can hammer out the easy (one finger slide) version of "smoke on the water" does that count? :dan+ju:

 

One my fav live bands is "scam69" (essex/herts based new wave stuff), and I'm happy to travel a bit to see them, I know I wouldn't do the same for any DJ playing in the same pub.

 

Jason

[davemoody 0]

Have to say that a good live band will always do better than a mobile DJ I am afraid.

 

Saying that I have seen some awful ones lately. Yes we have loads more tunes at our disposal but a professional live act will and should be able to interact with an audience better.

 

The only times I see it not working is when the bride and groom have a particular taste in music which is a bit left field and the guests just want a party.

 

Have got one this weekend. The couples playlist has things like...Killers, Kooks, 80's 90's Dance and party stuff on it. Just found out I am playing alongside a band. Turns out they are not a band but a duet who play Jazz!!

Apparently they are doing 2 one hour sets. Should be a good fun night then!!!!!!

[kenny wisdom 0]

"I've seen DJ's do a better job than the band in keeping the floor full - so for you, it was a job well done" does not translate into "DJ's are more talented than a GOOD band" by any stretch of the imagination. I was offering a few reassuring words to the original poster.

 

I've played gigs with more than one band listed to play. Some of the headliners have been awesome, and they had such a good mix of rock n roll crowd pleasers that I don't think anyone could complain.

 

Some of the other bands though, regrettably, don't get it right or are not suited to the crowd, and the crowd to them, and they're never ever going be entertaining that night no matter how accomplished the guitarist.

 

In these circumstances the DJ does more than just flick a few switches.

Edited April 7, 2008 by kenny wisdom

[GREG'S MOBILE DISCO 0]

Oh come on !!!

A DJ has a choice of thousands of songs !!

A band probably knows 30 !

A band is never gonna compete with the current number one artist.....

 

I play guitar and run a mobile disco and believe me the talent is very much with the guitar player and not the DJ. The DJ just stands there while playing a copy of someone elses work.

 

Sit down and work out all the notes to "Sweet child of mine" on guitar then I will be impressed.

 

I was a pro guitar player/entertainer for over 23 years (still play a lot in the studio) and have been fortunate enough to have worked with some excellent Bands and Acts over the years -especially in the 70's /80's when they didn't rely too much on technology - but it's a different ball game altogether compared with DJing.

Any serious band / Act will have a very large selection of songs to cover most occasions / requirements - if they only know 30 songs they will be out of their depth in no time!

There are 1000's of guitarists out there who can pick out 'Sweet child of mine' which is a great track but just because a guitarist knows all the notes doesn't mean that he / she has the necassary skills to play it well........

 

To insinuate that a DJ doesn't have any talent and 'just stands there while playing a copy of someone elses work' is running down your fellow professionals :lame: and is really the typical type of thing that the inevitable 'superstar' (there was always one!) would say because it made them feel important even if they weren't really that good in the first place - and they usually weren't.

 

A DJ cannot be compared with a good live band, they provide a different kind of service in that they 'hold' the event together and hopefully make sure that there is a smooth transition between the Live act and themselves. The have a unique talent and deserve the utmost respect. Granted,anyone can stand there and play one track after another but it's all down to how it is done and the way they entertain & interact with the crowd and the other professionals they are working with at any given time.They often have to work much harder than the band/act and any act that has an ounce of professionalism see the DJ as an asset rather than the support act and will work with them rather than try to compete.

In the end, it's all about making sure that the audience has a good time and in order to ensure this the act and the DJ have to work together - not try to outdo each other.

 

There are good live Acts / DJ's and those that are not as good but we are all in the same industry - entertainment so why anyone should want to belittle another 'performers' skill at whatever they do is beyond me and is very unprofessional! ;thumbdown:

 

Well done to the original poster for keeping the night going under what must have been difficult circimstances.

 

Respect!!! :good:

 

Greg.