TShakazBlackRoots Posted September 12, 2005 Share Posted September 12, 2005 Blessings all. The largest beer company in this region through one of it's niche brands is sponsoring my band to do a city tour in 'upmarket'clubs...the first of it's kind (my idea ). It'll be 5 gigs in December. Man, we have about 30 songs to play...all cover versions in Soul and Funk. I'll also be launching my next album 'Reggaeology - Bass IV The Chill'. Half of it is songs with me soloing (can you believe it? ) I'm trying, I'm trying....hope it works. I'll really appreciate any tips you may have as t's my very first 'tour'. I'm practising bass techniques like mad by the way! One Love It Began In Afrika. https://www.facebook.com/BlackRootsUNLIMITED/ https://www.facebook.com/TanquerayAllMusicSafari/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davio Posted September 12, 2005 Share Posted September 12, 2005 Awesome TShaka! Good luck with everything. A word of warning: if you don't have "roadies" or helpers to load/unload/setup/tear down for you...take it easy. Especially if the gigs are close together. A strained back gets worse exponentially if you keep doing the same things you did to injure it. I've had mini tours before where I played in several venues over the course of 3 or 4 days (no roadies for us small-timers ). On one of these trips I pulled a muscle in my back loading equipment the second day. Needless to say, I wasn't at the peak of my game for the rest of the tour and in a lot of pain. After we got back home I was laid up for several days. I was only 20! Congrats on the gig. I'm sure you'll knock 'em dead! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phil W Posted September 12, 2005 Share Posted September 12, 2005 I guess the obvious stuff: spare fuses, batteries, gaffa tape, leads, maybe an extra long mains cable as you never know where the power will be. Keep your bass right by your side as much as you can. Expect lots of traffic congestion everywhere. I'm sure you will enjiy it! Let me know where you're playing in London. (Though I'm not sure they would let me into an upmarket club! ) http://philwbass.com Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Bear Jew Posted September 12, 2005 Share Posted September 12, 2005 Ok... my advice: You wouldn't be in this position if you didn't already know how to play your bass (I hope)--the playing is the easy part. The tough parts happen when you're not playing. Make sure you eat right. When you first start touring, it's SO much fun to eat crap fast food every day... until about the third day, when you haven't slept, your back is sore and your gastrointestinal system ain't working like it oughta because you've been eating crap food everyday. So... Take it from me. Eat right--skip the burgers and fries sometimes and just eat a nice salad or something that didn't come off of a grill or out of a deep fryer. You'll thank me later. Also... try to get some sleep. Again, it's SO tempting to "party like a rock star" when you tour, but, again, you'll be hating life in about three days or so... because you'll feel like crap from the lack of sleep. So.. use your brain. If you have an eight-hour drive to the next gig in the morning, and load-in is scheduled for 7pm, it's wise to try and be asleep by 3am or so (at the latest) in order to have enough energy for the drive and the show. Granted, you can usually sleep in the van, but everyone knows that kind of sleep is never really good, restful sleep. Try to be nice to everyone... You'll be dealing with a lot of strangers, including sound engineers, stage managers, club owners and bar tenders, etc. Don't get touchy, freaked out or overly concerned about anything. You know what you're doing, and they know what they're doing, so if there's a moment or two of confusion over something, just step back and look at it calmly. They're usually easy to solve. This also extends to your bandmates... be nice to them, give them their space and don't worry if you clash a little... it's part of the experience. There will be times when you are cruising along, listening to your fave tunes in the van, and you'll feel like there's no greater fun... and then you'll have times when you want to kill every single last one of them. Twice. Just relax and be nice. Of course, being relaxed is a lot easier when you've slept and eaten well. So there ya go. \m/ Erik "To fight and conquer in all your battles is not supreme excellence; supreme excellence consists of breaking the enemy's resistance without fighting." --Sun Tzu Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nosamiam Posted September 12, 2005 Share Posted September 12, 2005 I'm thinking dietary supplements might be a good idea. Even if you're eating well, it can't hurt. You're going to be possibly sleeping off hours, lifting heavy stuff, stressed all day (even if it's only a little), and in closed rooms full of lots of people. And if there is cigarette smoke... If you get a cold, you're likely to keep it for a while. So I'd look into a bottle of multivitamins, some extra vitamin C, some echinacea/goldenseal complex, and a bottle of tylenol. At least that's my cocktail. I haven't had more than the sniffles in years. I only take it when I feel that tiny tickle in the back of my throat, but in your case, I'd start with day one of the tour. 1 dose of each at night before bed, then a dose of egc in the morning and one in the afternoon. Works like a charm!! I don't actually know if the Tylenol helps or not, but I've always taken it and I don't want to stray from it since it works. Good luck and have fun! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bassaddik Posted September 12, 2005 Share Posted September 12, 2005 NEVER more than 3 girls in one night. Hide the ganga from the roadies, hide it WELL. Actually, CMDN and nosamiam gave great, great advice. You can always tell the FNG ( F***ing New Guy ) because he will be partying and hanging out. The old dogs get their rest and pick and choose wisely when to hang. Bring Immodium and Vitamins- have a great time! God bless... Praise ye the LORD. ....praise him with stringed instruments and organs... Let every thing that hath breath praise the LORD. excerpt from- Psalm 150 visit me at: www.adriangarcia.net for His glory Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jeremy c Posted September 13, 2005 Share Posted September 13, 2005 Bring extra everything: cables, strings, extension cords, batteries, fuses, condoms. Free download of my cd!. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave Martin Posted September 13, 2005 Share Posted September 13, 2005 Never pass up the chance to sleep, shower, or go to the toilet. Dave Martin Java Jive Studio Nashville, TN www.javajivestudio.com Cuppa Joe Records www.cuppajoerecords.com Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Big Red 67 Posted September 13, 2005 Share Posted September 13, 2005 That all covers it. We did nine dates in ten days and surrived. It can be done. One night I was so tired I had to meditate for an hour just to be able to stand up on stage. It was on of the best nights. The best comes from the worst sometimes. Big Red's Ride Blog Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TShakazBlackRoots Posted September 13, 2005 Author Share Posted September 13, 2005 Hey hey hey....guys, ours is a small city. So no tour buses or vans. We'll all find our way to the venues Enough about the condoms and cables (what is it with the availability of nuff women on tours ) What I plan to do is hire a PA company so they'll do all the setting up. All we'll do is sound check. Talk about the liftin....what a pain . Btw, have you noticed that when you have ladies in the band they never lift a thing but still get equal pay!!! Atleast down here. I'm listening to another bassist I'd never heard of...Bunny Brunnel! Damn wicked playing. It Began In Afrika. https://www.facebook.com/BlackRootsUNLIMITED/ https://www.facebook.com/TanquerayAllMusicSafari/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave Martin Posted September 13, 2005 Share Posted September 13, 2005 Originally posted by TShakazBlackRoots: Btw, have you noticed that when you have ladies in the band they never lift a thing but still get equal pay!!! Atleast down here. Then you need a better class of ladies Seriously, those I work with are (If it's our PA) rolling up cords and carrying out monitors and mic stands, or (if it's a house system) carrying instruments out to help the guys. Dave Martin Java Jive Studio Nashville, TN www.javajivestudio.com Cuppa Joe Records www.cuppajoerecords.com Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davio Posted September 13, 2005 Share Posted September 13, 2005 Originally posted by TShakazBlackRoots: Btw, have you noticed that when you have ladies in the band they never lift a thing but still get equal pay!!! ...and they want to be the first off the sinking ship! What's that all about?!? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phil W Posted September 19, 2005 Share Posted September 19, 2005 Bunny is great! Check out his old stuff with Lockwoods in France if you get the chance. http://philwbass.com Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Flemtone Posted September 19, 2005 Share Posted September 19, 2005 Avoid the clap. Play. Just play. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phil W Posted September 19, 2005 Share Posted September 19, 2005 This is the one! http://philwbass.com Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TShakazBlackRoots Posted September 19, 2005 Author Share Posted September 19, 2005 Thanx Phil W. I've tried Amazon but it ain't on it. I'll try elsewhere. I'm listening to Jaco samples at the moment. His rendition of Potrait of Tracy....AWESOME!! Bass Extremes version is good too. Hopefully, I'll be good enough soon to play this stuff at my gigs! It Began In Afrika. https://www.facebook.com/BlackRootsUNLIMITED/ https://www.facebook.com/TanquerayAllMusicSafari/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phil W Posted September 19, 2005 Share Posted September 19, 2005 The site linked to is selling it for 9.90 Euros which can't be bad. However, I've never used that particular site and I guess you'd need French to get around it. http://philwbass.com Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DWBass Posted September 19, 2005 Share Posted September 19, 2005 The best advice I can give is to get plenty of rest! Never ever play under the influence! Eat healthy! Warm up at least an hour before playing! Be in constant communication with your bandmates! Never overplay, play what's best for the songs! Be mindful of volume levels. Blend in! www.myspace.com/thefunkfather Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Prague Posted September 19, 2005 Share Posted September 19, 2005 Originally posted by TShakazBlackRoots: a city tour in 'upmarket'clubs... It'll be 5 gigs in December.All in the same city? 5 gigs inside a month? This can't too demanding. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TShakazBlackRoots Posted September 20, 2005 Author Share Posted September 20, 2005 Bless Mr Prague. The 5 gigs....probably 6 will all be in 8-10 days not a month. It ain't a big city...about 1.5 million people in our capital. However, traffic is murder ! Thanx all for the advice. I'll represent. Meanwhile, I've got a couple of sponsors and companies to fund production of the next album. I'm happy and thankful about that. It Began In Afrika. https://www.facebook.com/BlackRootsUNLIMITED/ https://www.facebook.com/TanquerayAllMusicSafari/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
abaguer Posted September 22, 2005 Share Posted September 22, 2005 Most important SLEEP AND WATER. Probably nothing else will have as great an effect over the span of the tour as these two. A poster before talked about eating right; that's great advice. Besides that make sure you've got strings, fuses, batteries, tools; whatever you need, and don't forget something to read. Enjoy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TShakazBlackRoots Posted September 23, 2005 Author Share Posted September 23, 2005 Thanx all . I'm writing down all the advice. I start rehearsals next month after mixing the new album.....fingers crossed. It Began In Afrika. https://www.facebook.com/BlackRootsUNLIMITED/ https://www.facebook.com/TanquerayAllMusicSafari/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.