gig contracts

[curly]

How many of you play on a handshake vs. a written contract? Anyone have a simple one pager they'd be willing to share? May have been burned at a gig last weekend... do you typically take money up front? Ask for payment before you leave?

[J. Dan]

Our booking agent handles all the contracts and has a standard one they use: Sample Contract

 

We also have a Technical Rider we sometimes supply: Technical Rider

 

Sometimes clients have their own contracts (such as the Casino Contracts, which are about 10 pages long), and we'll modify our own contract/rider to suit the gig.

[Adan]

I've never seen a contract used for the garden variety bar gig paying up to $500. You might have an email exchange with numbers in it, which is essentially a written contract. But for those types of gigs, I think the real "enforcement" mechanism is word of mouth, because a local band gets screwed, they will spread the word which (in theory) makes it harder for the club to book quality bands.

 

In general, for other kinds of gigs, you should use a real contract.

[J. Dan]

While I agree that it's not likely that you would actually enforce a contract on a bar, I still think they are a good idea. Some bar managers can be pretty flaky, and double bookings and disagreements on agreed upon price are not uncommon. Putting the agreement in writing and having them sign off on it is a great way to confirm the details and make sure you are in agreement. If another band shows up thinking they are playing the same night as you, but you have a signed contract in your hand, guess who's probably going home? At the end of the night, if the manager starts pulling "now what was it I was paying you again?", well according to the contract you signed, $xxxx. Even just clarifying details such as start and stop times, who is providing production - again, it's just a more concrete way to nail down the details. Somebody might say just about anything off the cuff in conversation, but when they have to sign on the dotted line, they are usually more likely to confirm the details first.

[DanS]

I've never seen a contract used for the garden variety bar gig paying up to $500. You might have an email exchange with numbers in it, which is essentially a written contract. But for those types of gigs, I think the real "enforcement" mechanism is word of mouth, because a local band gets screwed, they will spread the word which (in theory) makes it harder for the club to book quality bands.

 

In general, for other kinds of gigs, you should use a real contract.

 

+1. Corp/wedding gigs = contract.

[Adan]

Now that I think about it some more, I have seen contracts for $500 bar gigs. But it's been the rare exception. It would be nice if everyone used contracts. But if you're dealing with someone who doesn't use them and you try to insist, you may get on their bad side. That's a judgment call. It really helps to know who you're dealing with and their MO, which hopefully you can glean from talking to folks.

[J. Dan]

Now that I think about it some more, I have seen contracts for $500 bar gigs. But it's been the rare exception. It would be nice if everyone used contracts. But if you're dealing with someone who doesn't use them and you try to insist, you may get on their bad side. That's a judgment call. It really helps to know who you're dealing with and their MO, which hopefully you can glean from talking to folks.

 

I'd be leery of working with anyone who refuses...that's a red flag. Either they plan on screwing you, or they are so disorganized that they can't guarantee they won't. In either case, I would be cautious.

 

That being said, while we used to be religious about contracts with bars, we haven't been using them the last couple of years as much. Mainly because we have more leverage these days due to demand. If someone screws us, we'll drop the rest of their dates and somebody else will pick them up.

 

But starting out, you need to watch some of these guys. Again, more for communication, clarification, and confirmation than anything.

[curly]

Great comments, thanks. Dan, thanks for the sample contract. The establishment that we were worried about did pay us today. We had played there a number of times before, always were paid promptly, so we never worried about getting paid. Maybe a bit of paranoia this time when the manager told us he :wouldn't have the money until Thursday". That said, I think we'll do contracts on everything going forward. I agree that if a client doesn't want to commit the deal to writing (at least an email), it's a red flag.

[Adan]

An email is a contract. You could take it to small claims court and enforce it. Just to be clear, I'm not saying that signed formal contracts aren't better. They are. I'm just saying you should weigh that against the possibility that you're annoying the person who's giving you gigs. In the world of steady bar gigs, where you're going back repeatedly to the same place, dealing with the same people, using the same setup, etc.. . a signed contract might be viewed as overkill.

[Adan]

I agree that if a client doesn't want to commit the deal to writing (at least an email), it's a red flag.

 

I'd say the fact that they're working in the music business is a red flag. But sometimes it's good practice to work with people on their terms, or at least meet them halfway, even if it makes you nervous.

[Nillerbabs]

I've been sacked twice during the past year, both of which were school (HS/seminary) party gigs. At the high school gig, it simply turned out that due to a set of rules that we were only informed by subsequently, the contract was invalid. Man, was I pissed.

 

The seminary gig, however, is the least professional I have ever encountered; our drummer, who arranged the gig, went out for some beers two days prior to the gig, and a friend of his who studies at the seminary said he was sorry that we weren't going to play at the party - the school had not even cared to inform the band. WTF.

 

 

Well, bottom line - for these kind of gigs I won't play without contract anymore. And I'll make sure it's valid!

[darc68]

Luckily I get a contract in all the bands I play in. Most are from a booking agent wich helps because they aren`t bookin anything w/o a contract and a deposit. My duo gets a contract as well. Most of the time it`s something we do thru e-mail. The wording is such that them responding to my email is a signed contract. It`s the only way to go for me. Nothing worse then not getting paid after a gig.

[Joe Muscara]

I was going to suggest a simple letter agreement until I read what Dan posted, which is pretty much the same thing. When I think, "contract," I think of a multipage thing, anything from a few to many many pages. I would generally not use a huge contract for a gig, of course. I've used a several page contract with clients when I was doing web design, but for simpler jobs, I just used a one-page letter agreement, and this seems appropriate for most gigs people here would encounter.

[Aidan]

Yep, I don't move unless I have a written contract. Mine are based on an MU template and stretch to two pages only (actually only one, as I print them double-sided)