Must Haves in the Gig Bag

[Aidan]

#14 business cards: a must have if it's your gig.

 

If you're working a corporate event for a big agency or meeting planner, passing out your own cards can be a career ender.

 

We book exclusively through one agent - well, two that have partnered: one covers bars, the other covers private/corporate/weddings. So our business card has them as the point of contact. One side of the card is their logo, the other side is ours with our web site.

 

Most agents over here will insist that the only website potential clients are referred to is a 'white label' one made exclusively for agent bookings, with either their contact details or none.

 

If one side of your card is leading them to a website with your own direct contact details, you could still be very unpopular with many agents if you hand those out, IMO.

[J. Dan]

Over here they insist on an EPK, which is your web site. Booking info on the web site is the agent. The agent doesn't even have a web site.

[Michael Wright]

Why do you need a fan? Just move the Leslie closer

[Joe Muscara]

But I always have a snake within arms length, and fortunately, I can feel it when it starts to drop.

Does the venom clear up the symptoms or something?

[zaj58]

Among some other small hand tools I keep a soldering iron and some solder and I can tell you this , it has saved the day more then once...

[MuzikTeechur]

Instead of carrying all the "extras" (and increasing the weight of an already heavy cord box), I made up a large ziploc bag with 2 extra patch cords, extra XLR cable, extra power adaptors for my Yamaha and Kurz, extra SM-58, and extra power cord for my amp (standard "computer" power cord).

I put it in the spare tire well of the car so it's not in the way, but there if I need it.

 

[JohnH]

Being diabetic, I'll add snacks. Insulin + dancing around stage like a fool = hypoglycemia.

 

I'm a Type II who recently graduated to being insulin dependent - and am now in good control. However, being in control for me means that I no longer have 50-100 points of "cushion" before I gotta worry about "going low". Needing to have snacks within arm's reach is something new for me! Haven't had a "gone low" episode yet - but only because I'm watching it like a hawk!!!! Hard for many to understand!

 

I rarely need them, but all it takes is once and you learn your lesson. I'm type I. All that activity of loading equipment and dancing around all night and it can sometimes be difficult to predict how much it'll drop. But I always have a snake within arms length, and fortunately, I can feel it when it starts to drop.

 

Diabetic or not, (so far I'm not) I think it's important to keep snack food in the car for breaks and also just in general to snack lightly on. I have Planters, Ritz Crackers and raisins. Not eating for hours is not good. As for gig tools, I never leave without gloves, loading in gear and out tears your hands up and sometimes fingernails also. I learned this watching a guitarist every night on cruise ships who would break down his gear every night wearing gloves.

[cphollis]

J. Dan, SpaceNorman -- ditto on food being #1.

 

Recently a Type II -- I won't leave the house without at least 6 hours worth of snacks. Maybe you can eat at the gig, maybe not -- but nothing wipes me out like a bad blood sugar incident.

 

There's this picture of me in the middle of a solo with a snack bar stuck out of my mouth. Hey, when the blood sugar drops, it's time to eat!

[I-missRichardTee]

I eat pizza while on stage... it embarrasses me, yes. but long long sets without food ( after arriving hungry ) is not negotiable.

[hoggernick]

Spare sustain pedal, with normal open/closed switch.

[J. Dan]

J. Dan, SpaceNorman -- ditto on food being #1.

 

Recently a Type II -- I won't leave the house without at least 6 hours worth of snacks. Maybe you can eat at the gig, maybe not -- but nothing wipes me out like a bad blood sugar incident.

 

There's this picture of me in the middle of a solo with a snack bar stuck out of my mouth. Hey, when the blood sugar drops, it's time to eat!

 

I've told this story before, but worth telling again. I had ONE time in my years of gigging where I had an incident. It was a summer concert gig in an amphitheater. Very hot out, and show started at 6pm, which rally interferes with my normal dinner schedule. Initial plan was to get set up, run through a drive through for dinner in time to start the show. Well, setup/sound check ran long and there wasn't time. I brought LOTS of snacks, though as you know, things like rice Krispy treats and breakfast bars don't tend to stay with you as long as a proper meal, plus performing in temps in the 90s don't help. But I figures I had enough, I could just keep stuffing them in my face throughout the show. In hind sight, I should have cut down my insulin significantly. Anyway, kept eating snacks and eating snacks. 3rd set, ran out and blood sugar continued to crash. We're playing a concert for thousands of people and I'm almost done, so I decide to stick it out. I don't remember the last half of the set, but I saw video and surprisingly couldn't tell anything, I crashed on the floor back stage as soon as the show was over. Knowing what was going on, the guitar player started shoving lemon heads in my mouth. I ate a whole large box (movie theater sized). Paramedics arrived, checked me, and measured my BGL in the teens (after the box of lemon heads). Bag of glucose and in 10 min I was tip top. That was the first and last time that happened. In my current band, I told them all about it just to make sure they know what's going on if I flip out. They occasionally ask me if I need to eat, just to be safe if it's a dinner time gig, but I've always compensated appropriately ever since.

[bloodyMary]

I eat pizza while on stage... it embarrasses me, yes. but long long sets without food ( after arriving hungry ) is not negotiable.

 

 

Please tell me you're joking.

[Joe Muscara]

I eat pizza while on stage... it embarrasses me, yes. but long long sets without food ( after arriving hungry ) is not negotiable.

 

 

Please tell me you're joking.

Why would he be? I'm known for having full spaghetti dinners while I'm playing. With meatballs. And bread. And salad.

[MuzikTeechur]

I like to have a nice lobster dinner while playing. Sure the butter gets on the keys, but we all have to make compromises.

[Michael Wright]

I eat pizza while on stage... it embarrasses me, yes. but long long sets without food ( after arriving hungry ) is not negotiable.

 

 

Please tell me you're joking.

http://theupperhandart.com/brian1986_pizzapianosucka.png

[SpaceNorman]

In my current band, I told them all about it just to make sure they know what's going on if I flip out.

 

I think that making sure that your bandmates are aware of your condition, what sort of behavior changes to watch out for - as well as what to do if/when they suspect you're in trouble is critical. We've got three diabetics in my eight piece band (one Type I and two Type II's) - with three of us highly attuned to the issue, there's a lot of support and understanding.

 

Conversely, one of our three diabetics just recently played a "sit-in" gig with some friends who aren't familiar with the condition ... and had a "low" incident. He ended up in the emergency room (complete with all the related costs) - which is something that could have easily been avoided if only one of the guys had handed him the bottle of orange juice that was already sitting on the floor next to his mic stand specifically for that purposes - and insisted he drink it.

 

 

[FJR]

I eat pizza while on stage... it embarrasses me, yes. but long long sets without food ( after arriving hungry ) is not negotiable.

 

 

Please tell me you're joking.

Why would he be? I'm known for having full spaghetti dinners while I'm playing. With meatballs. And bread. And salad.

 

Hey, Rick Wakeman had curry in his Hammond during the show, so there must be something to this!!

[RobP2]

A hand torch for those venues who turn all the stage lights off as soon as you finish playing - and the floor and walls are black

 

Some sort of hand wash and a towel - handling cables off of the floor and also shaking hands with lots of sweaty people :-)

 

Food and drink for way home. Mobile phone charger so I know the phone is charged if I have a long drive back. USB stick for the van stereo - gotta have music when driving!

[Aidan]

Hey, Rick Wakeman had curry in his Hammond during the show, so there must be something to this!!

 

When I interviewed Rick a few years ago for a newspaper, he told me it was actually a misunderstanding between him and his keyboard tech. The guy asked him: "What'll you have to eat tonight, Rick?" Thinking he was talking about after the show, Rick replied: "Oh, I'll probably have a chicken vindaloo and a few chapatis."

 

Next thing he knew, mid show the tech started putting takeaway cartons on top of his Hammond. Rick told me: "Well, I wasn't enjoying the [Topographic Oceans] tour much and since he had brought it, I thought 'what the hell' and got stuck in..."

[hurricane hugo]

In my gig box: gaffer tape, extra power cords, small flashlight, 1/4" to XLR adapter, pencil, pen, extra 1/4' and XLR cables, bottle with aspirin, Excedrin, Aleve, and Tylenol, finger nail clippers, screwdriver, pliers,small knife, extra 1/8" to 1/4 inch cable, extra AAA batteries,ear plugs, ground tester,plug lift, and small breathalyzer (available at Costco for $19.99).

 

Is that last item used before you hit the stage or after you're done?

[curly]

Xanax, so you don't blow a gasket when they show you the postage stamp you're supposed to fit your rig into on the stage...

[I-missRichardTee]

I should NOT be eating on stage.. I seldom do.. but this one gig, is like a 2 hour set short break and another hour and 3/4 set It's a bit crazy. If I neglect to eat before this gig ( it's an Italian restaurant ) I can get weak after about two non stop hours of playing. Screw that. So I take a bite and turn my back to audience who are not too close. It's messed up, I know. I do not want to start a trend here! You know that expression "put SOMETHING in your stomach" that's all I do a few bites of pizza takes the discomfort away.

[I-missRichardTee]

I eat pizza while on stage... it embarrasses me, yes. but long long sets without food ( after arriving hungry ) is not negotiable.

 

 

Please tell me you're joking.

 

The very antithesis of showmanship, as we used to call it. I am guilty as charged.

[richforman]

Extra power strip or extension cord is a must. Otherwise I am going to try to break my gig bag into two different-tiered bags - one with just the right amount of patch cables, ac cords, xlr cables, etc., that comes in to the gig with me, and a second one with spares of those things, that will stay behind in the car unless needed because something in the first bag is found to be missing or not working. Just to keep the weight down on the first bag that gets brought in with everything else, and the number of items in it that have to be fished out of it and put back into it later. Sharpies are often important to have on hand for set list changes and notes but they go in one of my pockets, not in my gear bag. I find the flashlight app on my smartphone is usually all I need and prevents me from having to have a flashlight on me although there will still be one in the car.

[JeffLearman]

I've been guilty of eating on stage. At blues jams I'm sometimes the only keyboard player to show, and I go there straight from work. It's either eat on stage or sit out, and most folks would rather have me there than not. I've taken some well-deserved amiable ribbing from the MC for it.

 

I always have an extra pair of cables, and since I run stereo, I always have twice the minimum number anyway. Still I don't remember ever having to run something mono to save a gig.

 

I also have built-in backups for sustain pedals. I like having a sustain pedal for each tier on each side of my expression pedal, so I put everything in NO mode and use Y cables. If the sustain pedal on one side for one tier fails, I have the other side and can manage it. The worst case is when I have to use the far left pedal for solo piano -- I can do it but it just feels all sorts of wrong. In that case I can swap the inner two (normally for top board) with the outer two (for bottom board) at the next break.

 

If my expression pedal fails, I live without it for the rest of the gig.

 

So the main stuff in my gig bag, other than what I use, is a decent stereo DI box, a small bottle of baby powder, power strip, and a spare standard power cable. (There's a spare power cable for the Nord in the Nord bag. At least, it was there a couple years ago; I suppose I should double-check.)

 

There's also usually a bit of other stuff in the bag, since I use the same bag for several purposes (rehearsal, gig, jams).

[clpete]

...Otherwise I am going to try to break my gig bag into two different-tiered bags -...

I have two gig bags. One of those is full of back-up stuff. This bag usually stays in the truck. I prefer not having a bunch of stuff in my gigging bag to wade thru that I wont be using. However, I have extra cables, chords and pedals at the gig and end up getting it out every so often. Friday night, I had to get it out. I had brought my stereo rig, which includes a snake in my rack, and when I got there I didnt have the room to set it up.

[Stokely]

...Otherwise I am going to try to break my gig bag into two different-tiered bags -...

I have two gig bags. One of those is full of back-up stuff. This bag usually stays in the truck. I prefer not having a bunch of stuff in my gigging bag to wade thru that I wont be using. However, I have extra cables, chords and pedals at the gig and end up getting it out every so often. Friday night, I had to get it out. I had brought my stereo rig, which includes a snake in my rack, and when I got there I didnt have the room to set it up.

 

Great idea, that's why I use it too I have a backup "tub" that has extra cables and adapters of all sorts. I also bring several flashlights and a plug-in hanging worklight for dark stages...this has come in extremely handy a few times.

 

Besides the obvious stuff that I must have, I keep in my main bag;

a bag of Ricola (just say no to menthol, I learned the hard way you can't pop those like candy!)

Extra battery for my in-ears

velcro wraps

 

I need to get some gaffer's tape.

[Musicale]

A pint of Cuervo Gold and some fine Columbian...

 

Musicale

[nickd]

How does anyone organise their gig bag for multiple different rigs for different bands?

 

I've got 3 keyboards and various overlapping permutations of pedals, stands and cables for different set-ups. It gets confusing to try and remember exactly what to take.

 

[Michael Wright]

How does anyone organise their gig bag for multiple different rigs for different bands?

I've got 3 keyboards and various overlapping permutations of pedals, stands and cables for different set-ups. It gets confusing to try and remember exactly what to take.

No. I lay it out in the studio for each change, and go through the set-up as I load the bags. Power cables, pedals, from keyboard cables, from mix cables, to FOH cables, mic, and cable etc. Then I stop a block from home like David and check it again.