My buddy from the cruise ship did that gig for nearly 20 years. So my guess is that he did a good job at it and knew how to entertain a crowd and keep the dance floor packed. He was well along that path as an entertainer when I was in a band with him many years before that..... however, the lesson he learned from that band was to play music the people liked, knew and could dance to..... because we did none of those things. We all learned those lessons..... after the fact. I'm thinking that he also saved his money because he was never the kind to blow his money "in port". He bought a house on the other side of Florida's peninsula, and would drive about an hour to get away from the hustle and bustle of the Miami/FL area on his shore leave time.

After having played in a number of bands with varying levels of financial success,one of which was very successful even before I joined them. We traveled and played different clubs always being invited back. We had a stage show, not just playing music, and the people loved our slapstick goofy show. Combined with great dance music and a really, really nice light and sound system, we were building a good reputation with fans and clubs. After that ended, I gigged solo for maybe 6 months. That was fun, and very different and in many aspects freeing to the soul. I left music for about a year and did much of nothing, then... I gigged in a house band for 2.5 years. Now that was a fun, and lucrative gig. Same crowd generally speaking and we got to know the owner and bartenders well. We honed the set list and the stage banter to a fine art. The goal was to keep that dance floor packed and the people moving.... 2 fast, one slow.....never start or end a set with a slow song...People who are dancing get hot, and hot people get thirsty, and thirsty people drink from the bar.....and that makes everyone in management happy, and we keep our job and even got bonuses and raises.

That first gig was the scary one. We were replacing a house band which was very well known and had been there a long time. The club owner was in deep for us. He purchased the stage piano, the PA system (it was really nice) and the lights and provided a rehearsal place. We had 12 rehearsals and one night with about 4 weeks left until we started, Brooks, the owner, walked in and said "Boys.... I'm concerned since I haven't heard you play a full song yet". the rehearsal place was his garage behind his house. We explained that we only needed to work on the intro's and endings to get them tight and everything else in between was easy. He insisted that we "humor him" so we did. He was relieved.

The first night on stage.... we cranked out the first song....an uptempo easy to dance to beat, and.......... nobody got up to dance. Not one person. They all just sat there looking at us. At the end, a few people clapped, most didn't. Geoffry, the drummer, said something to the effect of.... hey, if y'all just wanna sit there and get drunk, that's OK with us, but we came to have a good time and PARTY..... 1,2,3,4.. and we were into the second uptempo..... it was like throwing red meat to ravenous wolves.... the dance floor was packed in 15 seconds and stayed that way for the next 2.5 years.

About 2 years in, I began to see the signs appearing that the band was fixing to implode. So I started to purchase some basic studio gear. When it did finally reach that point, I pulled my gear off stage and bid them farewell. The band crashed and burned just a few short months later.

Yes, you have to treat it like a business. Give the customer what they are paying for. You're not there (in a club) to play for yourself necessarily. You have to enjoy what you are doing obviously, but if you're not making that paying customer happy, they will not be back and neither will you. I've seen band after band in club after club through the years, first come to town and rock the joint and keep it packed.... then over time, they would be working so much that they didn't have time to work up a new stage show, and the crowds only want to see and hear the same songs so many times before they get bored and go elsewhere. Crowds thin out, bands don't get re-booked.

I have a video of the house band: playing in the True Value Country Showdown https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RppltkKsFQA&list=UUvsxe9zrCwjhAjw09YoBw6w

we won first place that day.

My 2 cents

Last edited by Guitarhacker; 04/01/14 05:20 AM.
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