Hey guys. I'm in a cover band, well, several actually, and the same problem keeps arising in all of the bands. Some in the band want to play to the crowd, and some want to play what they want to play. I don't see a reconciliation to the problem, but my question is: In a cover band situation in a small town, should a band try to play what they already know is working for other bands, or stick to what they want to play. The unspoken thing here is that if the band sticks to what they want to play, there's no market for it, and the band will eventually wither and die. What would work in NY or LA or Austin won't work here. Thoughts?

There is a middle ground to be had.

Your band needs to have an identity, something that sets it apart from "all the other bands" - that doesn't mean abandon the tried and true, but it does mean that you need to find some gems that no one else is using that will really set off a crowd. Gives you a personality that makes you more in demand.

The "I want to play what I want to play" guys will be satisfied if you throw them a couple bones, provided that they're not trying to play speed metal at a country bar...

It's an age-old problem. The real question is this: what do you want to do with your band?

If you want a band to make a little money, get gigs, and have some local adulation, then play what the crowd wants to hear.

If you want to have a band to express yourself artistically and truly enjoy the music for the sake of the music, play what you want to play, even if it means not getting hired as much.

It's hard to step back and examine your goals, even as a solo artist. It's much harder getting 4-5 people to all want the same thing at the same time. But that's the important thing... deciding why you want to be in a band. Once you do that, the rest of the choices will come naturally.

In my band's case, we recognize the importance of playing well-liked, well-known cover tunes to get the types of gigs that we're trying to get, but that is a VERY LONG list of songs. It's from that very long list that we choose more of the songs that we like to play and try to avoid the ones that we don't. Take a band like the Beatles. There's tons of material to mine there for a classic rock cover band (as we are), but we choose to play stuff like "The Night Before" and "Get Back" instead of "Twist and Shout."

Noah

Ummm - me think that bar better have some real thick chicken wire between the drunks and the band.

A big key to success in ANY business venture is differentiation. Another big key is selling what the customer wants instead of what you want to sell. I live in a small town - a group here that plays only what they want to play winds up playing in someone's living room or basement.

If playing in several bands, all with that attitude, I'd pick the one I thought was most likely - focus on that one and put forth effort to do whatever was needed to play what the people want to hear. If you succeed in that, the other groups are gonna be playing in someone's living room before long, and that one group will keep you as busy as you want to be.

If you're smart/careful, you can sort of do both.

Of course the crowd has to want to hear what you are playing, or you won't have gigs. Unless you're really picky, I'm sure you can find enough material that you want to play that people want to hear.

I like playing Rush songs, but they aren't going to go over in a club - you'll get a few guys coming out, but that's it. I also like playing Journey - that absolutly KILLS in the clubs. See?

Now, everybody ends up having to play some stuff they don't like. That's going to happen no matter what. You're not going to find a whole night of songs that EVERY member of the band loves to play. Somebody won't like playing certain songs - that's just part of being in a band (unless you're a solo or duo act).

It is definitely a balancing act, but the more songs you play that people want to hear, the more successful you'll be. Just try to limit them to the ones you'll mostly enjoy playing. And if you want to throw in something obscure here and there every once in a while for fun, go for it. But for me, personally, watching everybody leave the dance floor takes the fun out of it.