Hey y'all, I'm new here so please forgive me if this isnt the place to post this.
Somehow I landed a tour playing steel for some serious players. I've been playing for about two years, I can hold my own but I'm certainly not dazzling anyone yet. Either way, now I'm on the road with an upbeat southern rock band. We're opening for some well known nationally touring acts and I'm learning how green I am in real time. Any vets out there have advice for the new guy?
Some platitudes. Learn all the songs on the songlist well. Play to support the singer and the tune, not to impress the other musicians. Do what you do well, don't get out over your skis. Put your hands in your lap once in a while, sit out a verse once in a while and let the song breathe. Particularly for a rocking band, remember that "one song, one trick" is often sufficient. Congratulations and good luck.
GFI Expo S-10PE, Sho-Bud 6139, Fender 2x8 Stringmaster, Supro consoles, Dobro. And more.
Yep, you don't have to play all the time. If, as he suggests, you lay out for a chorus, it's all the more dramatic when you come back in.
Practical tips? Keep extra finger picks and a thumb pick on the guitar for when one of yours flips off and lands in the middle of the dance floor! Write out your set list with keys. Look up at the audience from your fingerboard once in a while. Keep visual contact with the other guys/gals in the band. Stash a couple of .011s, .014s, and .018s nearby.
Manners, common courtesy and respect go a long way. Sidemen are just that, sidemen, we support the "star" the name people are paying to see, and we work at giving the audience their money's worth. Also, dress better than the folks you are playing to. Some folks listen with their eyes also if they can't with their ears.
Extra volume pedal, cables, string winder/needle nose pliers, bar, fine tune tool, flashlight, small back-up amp, basic tool kit w/allen wrenches, tactical vest, helmet, gas mask (just kiddin')...cash to get home if ya' get fired...have a blast and promote good steel playing to the public. Good luck!
Retired my "Flying Pro III" playin' gigs with the "little bud" in the Northern Shenandoah Valley.
Some good advice here. I would add don't say anything bad about yourself. Don't make excuses or any of that stuff. Keep your self doubts to yourself. They hired you so they must like you already so do what you can and have fun !
I'm sure you're getting the job done, or you wouldn't be there. There's so much more to being a touring musician than being able to play hot licks. Things like dependability, being able to get along, not doing things that embarrass the band, etc... I've always thought that you get the jobs by how you play, but you keep the jobs because of how you work out with the band. Good luck.
Just breathe and stay humble. You landed that gig for a reason. I live by the mantra āthereās a LOT of steel players that are so much better than me,,,,but my boss chose meā. Thereās no advice to give other than be yourself and enjoy the ride.
Oh some alternative advice; never take laxatives on the road. They never work when you want them to. And shower sandals will become your best friend. Always be respectful to everyone, but especially your front of house guy and lighting director. They can make your job hell if youāre rude to them. And lastly if youāre on a bus and you see a sock on the floor that isnāt yours, for the love of all things,,,do not pick it up.
"Hotrod"
Steel guitarist for Cody Jinks
Member CMA
Mullen Artist
The ABSOLUTE BEST set of instructions for being in a band and being "on the road," i.e. traveling out of town with a band, was written by noted eclectic banjo player Danny Barnes, and is entitled how to play in someone else's band. It's about a 10 minute read.
On this blog page he lays EVERYTHING out about band dynamics, attitudes, proper behavior as a sideman, general etiquette, money, traveling, and WAY, WAY more. Its almost a general lecture about getting along as an employee in EVERYDAY LIFE, with focus on band sideman experiences.
Following Austin's mantra, I would tell myself that sure, I am nowhere as good as Emmons/Charleton/Chalker etc. . . . but Emmons can only play one gig at a time, so here I am!
Become professional about it.
Don't booze, don't over-party... stay clean (off the drugs abundant backstage, on buses and motels), EAT healthy. SAFE your money. You always want to keep an exit open, never come back home broke.
That's what I would tell you if you were my son, because that's what my mother told me when I was 16. She told me I would see drugs for the first time of my life on my first day on stage. And sure enough, I did, and I could not believe who took it and how fast people I looked up to musically started to fizzle.
Plus all the good advice above.
Learn to recognize the similarities among songs/tunes. Learn to be able to play all you play anywhere on the neck, off a A&B down as well as A&B up key positions. If there's one thing "easy" about steel guitars, it's that all keys look pretty much the same... it's movements of fourths (I to IV or V back to I, or II to V...) that's most tunes "skeleton",
And while the others "party", play cards or waste time otherwise, PRACTICE... sooner than you think, you'll find somebody sharing the "nerdities" and wanting to practice with you and you'll both come back changed musicians. Changed for the better.
Was it JFK who said: Ask Not What TAB Can Do For You - Rather Ask Yourself "What Would B.B. King Do?"
A Little Mental Health Warning:
Tablature KILLS SKILLS.
The uses of Tablature is addictive and has been linked to reduced musical fertility.
Those who produce Tablature did never use it.
