MSG's NJ-NY-NYC gigs

[nomsgmusic]

For the 8 years I spent on the road, I had some serious "run ins" with some guys playing in "tribute bands." And that left a real bad taste in my mouth. So many of them went OVERBOARD in the "look-alike" department. And many of them seemed to put themselves on a pedestal right next to the band that they were paying tribute to, which seemed just stupid to me. I don't have much patience for inflated egos.

But I was asked to join this band last month, it has been a ball, so here are some NJ-NY rock dates
http://www.stoneflowerlive.com/schedule.html
(I'm channelling my inner Mike Shrieve, Graham Lear, Ndugu, Walfredo Reyes Jr ...)

I had never played much of the Santana music (except for the obvious ones) so learning 50ish tunes in a couple of weeks was a bit of a challenge. And playing with 2 percussionists is a new and cool challenge as well. It's a fun gig with some great players, good guys, NO EGOS, and LOTS of work

I am also playing a cool jazz gig this Thursday in NYC at Cafe Vivaldi (Bleecker and Jones) with pianist Fredrick Gilde, 9:30 hit!
http://caffevivaldi.com/

Hope all is well to my HOD brethren,
MSG

[Julián Fernández]

I learnt a lot playing with a Blues Brothers tribute band... The Santana repertoire should be a blast to play! I say, go for it, Mark!
Post a clip when you can!

[nomsgmusic]

Julian,

I played in a Blues Brothers Band at the Jersey Shore when I was fresh out of High School, it was a BLAST, full horn section, all older cats, we played all of the exact arrangements as the BB! I learned a lot from those guys in that band.

Believe me, I'm going for it with this band, they re all good guys and GREAT players! I just had some really bad experiences with some "popular" tribute bands around the country.

One time somewhere in Georgia (some big college town,) when I was on the road a local promoter offered the band I toured with (for 8 years) to fill an off night with an opening slot for the "official" Dave Matthews Tribute band. The band I was in talked it over with our mgmt, and decided to do it. When you are on the road off nights are KILLERS (all the same expenses but NO income,) Anyway...

We show up to open for the DMB (I think that's what they were called.) And the drummer tells me that I HAVE to play his set for our show. The clincher was that he had Carter's IDENTICAL set, set up open handed etc. I said cool no prob! (I love a challenge.) I asked him if I could just put my ride in the place of his RH crash for our set, not change any heights, angles, nothing. He got really cocky and said "NO WAY DUDE, no one touches my set except my tech." I told him that his tech could make the single cymbal switch, he replied with the same "no way. "

I pulled him aside and explained to him that I wasn't some snotnose kid, this is what I did for a living, and had been for 20+ years, I gave him my card, and explained that I would be completely responsible for anything that got "messed up" of his during my 45 min set. I did this whenever I played someone else's set, just to set their mind at ease, "professionalism." He got more pissed. Telling me how they were the "official DMB" blah blah blah, and that they really didn't even need an opener.

I told him that I would leave him some new heads (I travelled with extras) for his trouble, if I could just set up a RIDE cymbal (in the "normal" position.) He waved his hand at me, and walked away from me mid sentence.

OK, looks like I am playing this gig open handed, on this huge Carter Beauford wannabe drum set. Splashes, jam blocks, cowbells, and toms EVERYWHERE! I love a challenge! This kid sat side stage the whole set with this little smirk on his face (as if to say, let's see how you deal with this) as I played the whole set open handed! (I had been practicing that for a while, it really is a cool approach, but this was the first time I pulled it out on a gig.) With all humility, I gotta say, I killed it! I asked my bandleader if he would mind if I "overplayed a bit" on this particular gig, to really make my point to this little punk. He told me to go for it! I did.

After the set, this little punk walks up to me, and says, "I didn't know you played lefty," and that he didn't know I could "really play." I told him I had never "really" played open handed and that this was my first time. He and his bandleader were standing next to me after the set, asking me questions about being "on the road" etc etc etc... He actually asked me to "show him how I did some stuff" after their set. Their whole attitude changed. He instantly got real buddy buddy with me... He actually then asks me about helping him out to "hook up some endorsements."

I asked him to give me the business card that I had given him. I think he thought I was going to write some contact info down on it. He gave it to me.

I ripped it up in tiny pieces right front of him, his tech, and his bandleader. I said very loudly, "I want to assure myself that I NEVER hear from ANY of you guys EVER again! I told them that I was going to let Carter know how truly unprofessional that these guys were, since they wore this "official DMB" label like some kind of prize, suddenly their whole demeanor changed.

"You know Carter?" I told them how I had been writing for MD for the last 10 years, that Carter and I had had some mutual friends, and one of my techs had worked for Carter as well, we had met a few times, and I knew that (unlike him) Carter was a REALLY good guy. His attitude changed yet again. "Maybe you might want to write a feature on me in MD?" he asked.

I gave him a pair of sticks, and a SD head (since I was an endorser) and told him that I hoped it would be the last free gear he ever got, and that every time he paid $8 a pair for sticks at GC to remember when he had "blown it," with someone who would have helped him out if he acted like a "humble" human being, not like a wannabe rock star punk kid!!! And that I would remember him "fondly" on our next 6 week tour of Canada, and trip to Europe.

Every time I see a huge set of Recording Customs on ebay, I secretly hope they are his!

That was probably my worst run in with a tribute band, but there were a few others at some festivals in the mid-west. That's why I was soured on that whole "scene." But when this gig came along, I listened. These guys in Stone Flower are all really good guys, great musicians, there's lots of work, no attitudes, and the gig is a ball! I had never really listened to much of the Santana music, so as I said, I love a challenge, and I'm learning a lot!

MSG

[Jim Richman]

Julian,

I played in a Blues Brothers Band at the Jersey Shore when I was fresh out of High School, it was a BLAST, full horn section, all older cats, we played all of the exact arrangements as the BB! I learned a lot from those guys in that band.

Believe me, I'm going for it with this band, they re all good guys and GREAT players! I just had some really bad experiences with some "popular" tribute bands around the country.

One time somewhere in Georgia (some big college town,) when I was on the road a local promoter offered the band I toured with (for 8 years) to fill an off night with an opening slot for the "official" Dave Matthews Tribute band. The band I was in talked it over with our mgmt, and decided to do it. When you are on the road off nights are KILLERS (all the same expenses but NO income,) Anyway...

We show up to open for the DMB (I think that's what they were called.) And the drummer tells me that I HAVE to play his set for our show. The clincher was that he had Carter's IDENTICAL set, set up open handed etc. I said cool no prob! (I love a challenge.) I asked him if I could just put my ride in the place of his RH crash for our set, not change any heights, angles, nothing. He got really cocky and said "NO WAY DUDE, no one touches my set except my tech." I told him that his tech could make the single cymbal switch, he replied with the same "no way. "

I pulled him aside and explained to him that I wasn't some snotnose kid, this is what I did for a living, and had been for 20+ years, I gave him my card, and explained that I would be completely responsible for anything that got "messed up" of his during my 45 min set. I did this whenever I played someone else's set, just to set their mind at ease, "professionalism." He got more pissed. Telling me how they were the "official DMB" blah blah blah, and that they really didn't even need an opener.

I told him that I would leave him some new heads (I travelled with extras) for his trouble, if I could just set up a RIDE cymbal (in the "normal" position.) He waved his hand at me, and walked away from me mid sentence.

OK, looks like I am playing this gig open handed, on this huge Carter Beauford wannabe drum set. Splashes, jam blocks, cowbells, and toms EVERYWHERE! I love a challenge! This kid sat side stage the whole set with this little smirk on his face (as if to say, let's see how you deal with this) as I played the whole set open handed! (I had been practicing that for a while, it really is a cool approach, but this was the first time I pulled it out on a gig.) With all humility, I gotta say, I killed it! I asked my bandleader if he would mind if I "overplayed a bit" on this particular gig, to really make my point to this little punk. He told me to go for it! I did.

After the set, this little punk walks up to me, and says, "I didn't know you played lefty," and that he didn't know I could "really play." I told him I had never "really" played open handed and that this was my first time. He and his bandleader were standing next to me after the set, asking me questions about being "on the road" etc etc etc... He actually asked me to "show him how I did some stuff" after their set. Their whole attitude changed. He instantly got real buddy buddy with me... He actually then asks me about helping him out to "hook up some endorsements."

I asked him to give me the business card that I had given him. I think he thought I was going to write some contact info down on it. He gave it to me.

I ripped it up in tiny pieces right front of him, his tech, and his bandleader. I said very loudly, "I want to assure myself that I NEVER hear from ANY of you guys EVER again! I told them that I was going to let Carter know how truly unprofessional that these guys were, since they wore this "official DMB" label like some kind of prize, suddenly their whole demeanor changed.

"You know Carter?" I told them how I had been writing for MD for the last 10 years, that Carter and I had had some mutual friends, and one of my techs had worked for Carter as well, we had met a few times, and I knew that (unlike him) Carter was a REALLY good guy. His attitude changed yet again. "Maybe you might want to write a feature on me in MD?" he asked.

I gave him a pair of sticks, and a SD head (since I was an endorser) and told him that I hoped it would be the last free gear he ever got, and that every time he paid $8 a pair for sticks at GC to remember when he had "blown it," with someone who would have helped him out if he acted like a "humble" human being, not like a wannabe rock star punk kid!!! And that I would remember him "fondly" on our next 6 week tour of Canada, and trip to Europe.

Every time I see a huge set of Recording Customs on ebay, I secretly hope they are his!

That was probably my worst run in with a tribute band, but there were a few others at some festivals in the mid-west. That's why I was soured on that whole "scene." But when this gig came along, I listened. These guys in Stone Flower are all really good guys, great musicians, there's lots of work, no attitudes, and the gig is a ball! I had never really listened to much of the Santana music, so as I said, I love a challenge, and I'm learning a lot!

MSG

Great story. I hate delusional egotistical wannabe musicians. It's easy to find them at jam sessions.

[langmick]

Congrats on the gig!

Being in a tribute allows some marginal personalities the experience of losing their minds. I have seen shit you wouldn't believe.

The guitarist for Furthur came from the Dark Star Orchestra, which are a good group, been around for years. Not sure how delusional he is.

These guys have an interesting spin.

http://www.tributosaurus.com/

[Paul Marangoni]

That's cool Mark. I played a bunch of Santana years ago in a band and it's really a lot of fun. I used to listen to that double live album with Graham on it all the time. Man, I need to go back and check that stuff out. It's been a while.

[gretsch-o-rama]

Hands down, one of my favorite albums of all time is Oneness- Silver Dreams Golden Reality. I wish that kind of fusion still happened today.....

[Patrick Tiglao]

http://www.thedmtb.com/


I reckon this is drummer Mark is talking about....Benny Montgomery?

[Julián Fernández]

http://losangeles.craigslist.org/lac/ms ... 70718.html

[gretsch-o-rama]

http://losangeles.craigslist.org/lac/msg/4392070718.html

He may seem like a nice guy at first, but once you get to know him, he has douche written all over him.......hahahahaha