Fingers
225 posts
Dec 23, 2012
12:44 PM
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I played a stand in gig last and recieved a great compliment,
somone said to me you are a real harp player keeping the blues alive! i realise he had had a drink or 2 but it was great to hear especialy as i nearly pulled out,
also the landlord slipped an extra £40 into my pocket!!
i am not trying to sound flash!! and sorry if i do but it shows that even when you dont feel like gigin the music takes you over.
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Jehosaphat
392 posts
Dec 23, 2012
12:50 PM
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Good on you Fingers.
A night like that can make all the hard work seem more worthwhile.
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Rick Davis
1046 posts
Dec 23, 2012
12:52 PM
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Nice!
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-Rick Davis
The Blues Harp Amps Blog
The Mile High Blues Society
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Mojokane
635 posts
Dec 23, 2012
4:26 PM
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Nice thread, thanks for posting...
Respond graciously, and never follow with a negative..
There is no substitute for hard work. You will eventually succeed.
It's more how one practices and the need to streamline your time to fit the study habits.
That is, if you don't find yourself progressing fast enough. Say after a year or two...
My aim now is to target a different audience now. I am tired of playing to other musicians. Who often don't drink or eat anything. And come to sit in...
It is fun, for sure, and it uncovers talent in the process.
Nothing sweeter than a full house of drinkers and eaters...and dancers.
The scene here is looking good, but far from the point I'm working toward. In time...fortunately I do not depend on music for my bread and butter. And neither do my band mates. We all have a common goal.
Two goals actually. One for the locals, and one for the out of towners..tourists. And the locals are pretty supportive, but only when it's good.
The Japanese/Asian market is yet untapped. And blues are very popular in Japan. I would even go so far as to say, they are crazy about the blues.
I'm trying now to put a 3X5 card together for the Concierge at my hotel.
The classic Battle Star Galactica saying, "never surrender, never give up".
Why is it that we all just can't get along?<
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Joe_L
2258 posts
Dec 23, 2012
4:29 PM
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Cool. You reached someone!
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The Blues Photo Gallery
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Mojokane
636 posts
Dec 23, 2012
4:41 PM
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the concierge idea was Liz Mandevilles. It was right in front of me for years..Yup
Might be cool, too...for the biggest bang! to list all blues acts in Honolulu.
Though, my competitive side says no. ??
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Why is it that we all just can't get along?<
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KillerJoe
64 posts
Dec 23, 2012
5:58 PM
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Great story! Good job.
Thanks for keeping the blues alive, for all of us.
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Mojokane
637 posts
Dec 23, 2012
6:18 PM
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...your welcome, if any of you guys ever make it out to Hawaii...Look me up. I'll buy the first drink, and dinner.
And if you feel like it, you can dance all you like, too.
The Flat Five Blues Band is sounding better than ever.
Aloha!
Why is it that we all just can't get along?<
Last Edited by on Dec 23, 2012 6:20 PM
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KillerJoe
66 posts
Dec 24, 2012
11:02 AM
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Great story! Good job.
Thanks for keeping the blues alive, for all of us.
(directed to Fingers, the gentleman who started this thread)
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Fingers
226 posts
Dec 24, 2012
11:33 AM
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Thanks Killerjoe!! and thanks for all who commented!
i had retired from live gigs but got talked into playing as a favor for a friend! i am glad i did as it may have re-ignited a spark!! Merry Christmas all and long live the Blues,
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Mojokane
638 posts
Dec 24, 2012
2:20 PM
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funny....had to laugh. Thanks, KillerJoe.
And, your welcome Fingers.
Your story inspired me to tell mine.
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Why is it that we all just can't get along?<
Last Edited by on Dec 24, 2012 2:21 PM
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garry
309 posts
Dec 25, 2012
12:03 PM
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i always record video when my band plays. the best compliment i ever got was a brief blissed out smile on the face of my guitar player during one of my solos. didn't notice it at the time, but it's loud and clear on the video. i smile everytime i think about that.
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Last Edited by on Dec 25, 2012 12:04 PM
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KillerJoe
68 posts
Dec 25, 2012
4:47 PM
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The best part of playing out, (and by out, I mean outside of the house), is the connection you can create with your audience...whoever they may be. I'm not a pro...maybe someday...but I've played at open stages enough to have garnered praise on many occasions. To me, that's the coolest thing in the world. I always feel so honored and humbled when people say nice things about my playing.
I especially love drunk people who are so drunk that they think I'm really great. I had a guy practically falling off his bar stool once after a set, trying to tell me how impressed he was. He couldn't get the words out too well, but I could tell by his gestures, facial expressions, general enthusiasm, etc., that he thought I did something spectacular. This particular gentleman was of Asian descent and I assumed he was some sort of tourist. He was certainly inebriated. I patted him on the shoulder, thanked him, smiled, told him how much I appreciated his kind words, etc. People like that are so cool! I always make a point to tell someone I like their style when I see something I like, too. We all love that, don't we?
One time, a great looking woman told me and a great singer named Marc Bilker that, "For white guys, you guys are the best!" After laughing my ass off (on the inside), I thanked her graciously and felt so fortunate that someone like that took the time to come out to the club that night.
I always feel like I'm representing the blues in some small, local way when people at clubs, who aren't musicians, comment and compliment. I always try to make them feel like the real stars for appreciating good music and for coming out to support it. To me, that's some of the best karma in the world.
Sorry fellas, I've been drinking and I'm probably rambling.
Merry Christmas all!
Last Edited by on Dec 25, 2012 4:51 PM
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Jehosaphat
394 posts
Dec 25, 2012
11:52 PM
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I must admit that at the end of the day(why did i say that..so corporate)its those sort of moments i drag my sorry ass out to play.
It's not the money..most of the time it only covers the Bar tab ^.
Yep i'm a slut,arm round my shoulder,drunken fans tellin' me i am the best harmonica player they have ever heard..Luv it.
Because they have never heard another amped Harp player does nothing to spoil it.^
For a while i'm not just another desk jockey,wage slave, I am a Star!
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Fingers
227 posts
Dec 26, 2012
11:53 AM
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Many true words here!! I have another memory from my younger days!! after a gig a stuning woman came up to me and said that was great i would blow your organ!!!!
being a married man i declined but that was a great gig lol
Ah those were the days.
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Rick Davis
1061 posts
Dec 26, 2012
1:10 PM
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A couple weeks ago at my blues jam a local harp player whom I respect told me I was among the top 5 players in the Denver area. He even listed off the players.
While I was really flattered that he said this, my brain immediately counted several more local harp players who I think might fall ahead of me on that list. Way ahead of me. Denver is rich in great players.
Still, I was bursting with pride to hear it even if I doubt it is true. I didn't argue with him about it. To be honest, it made my day.
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-Rick Davis
The Blues Harp Amps Blog
The Mile High Blues Society
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JD Hoskins
353 posts
Dec 26, 2012
1:32 PM
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I'm probably like Rick a little, if someone compliments my playing I actually start pointing out how many better players there are out there. My old partner had this mindset that anyone he heard that played a lick he didn't know or couldn't do was a better player, even if that was his only cool lick.
I always act gracious when someone says something kind, but I think I'm quick to think they are most likely drunk or don't know what they are talking about.
We played a wedding one time years ago, there were relatives from all over.. When we were setting up I had chatted a little with an uncle from Texas that was drinking and claimed to have not only known Buddy Holly, but worked in radio and the recording industry and had been one of the early promoters of BH's music. I politlely listened and let it roll out my other ear.
After our first set, which he danced with girls and women from ages 5 to 70 all through, he pulled me aside, said very kind things about my guitar playing and singing, and said we played one of the best renditions of Stormy Monday he'd heard. I pointed at my partner and said, "no man, there's THE guitar player in this band," and made my way to the food. After our second set, he walked up thanked me again, was certainly feeling the booze and stuck a bill in my pocket. I was surprised when I got home that it was a $100 bill, I expected a 10 or a 20, I felt bad that this drunk had given me that much cash. I found out later he was indeed who he said he was, he was wealthy, and that it was him who had actually paid for the band and helped pick us from the tapes they auditioned. So it just goes to show you never know. I still assume he was old and losing his hearing, but everybody loves a hundred bucks!
Last Edited by on Dec 26, 2012 1:54 PM
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Rick Davis
1062 posts
Dec 26, 2012
4:41 PM
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JD, great story. I've never had a person give me a $100 tip, but there were a few times somebody slipped a $100 bill in the tip jar. We split the tips evenly.
It always feels great when people go above and beyond to express their appreciation of our music. Like you guys, I've had my share of wobbly drunks who hang on me and tell me I'm the greatest player since (insert name here) but that is just the booze talkin'.
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-Rick Davis
The Blues Harp Amps Blog
The Mile High Blues Society
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garry
310 posts
Dec 26, 2012
5:24 PM
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i once sat in on a few tunes with a local blues band that has a great harp player. we both played on those tunes. we were talking later when the bass player came up and said "you some harp playin' motherf***ers!". that was a pretty cool compliment...i think.
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JD Hoskins
356 posts
Dec 26, 2012
7:15 PM
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Rick, ( We split the tips evenly) heh heh heh, it was a good paying gig for everyone, he was clear on his intentions with the tip. He tipped the band also, as did a few other people. And trust me I treated those guys well, as I said in another thread I have often gifted great vintage gear to my band mates, try to buy a vintage P-bass, or a telecaster, or a radio king snare drum for a hundred bucks. Everyone went home with two or three hundred bucks, plus ate and drank to their hearts content. No animals were harmed.
My point was that I didn't really take the guy serious, and although I was polite, I could have been more gracious, and have tried to be since.
Last Edited by on Dec 26, 2012 7:54 PM
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Jehosaphat
396 posts
Dec 26, 2012
8:15 PM
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Yeah i've learn't through experience that you never really know who is behind that often slightly pissed exterior.(hey we all play bars)
I mean it isn't like i'm some stuck up asshole who wouldn't deign to talk to anyone....it's just those times when you are trying to set up..fetch a beer..or breaking down at the end of a long night..you know, some guy wants to tell you about his cousin who is a whizz on the harp.
Moral of the story(hey i have some morals ^)
I just didn't take some guy seriously one night..talk of gig on a cruise boat..he had friends who he knew would love us to play their bars etc etc.
"Thats great mate..just gotta put this gear in the van and then we'll have a chat"
'Course we put the gear in the Van and headed off home.
Long story,but two weeks later we found out that he was the real deal and not happy at our brush off.
Tired as you are make the effort..you just never know who they are.
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Joe_L
2265 posts
Dec 26, 2012
8:35 PM
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I've had some good stories over the years, but there is one that sticks with me.
I went to the jam in Redwood City, CA at the Little Fox. Greg was there. I don't remember who the host band was, but it was RJ Mischo, John Nemeth or Mark Hummel. Someone that's a really, really good harp player.
I just came off stage. A pretty young woman walked up to me in tears. She asked me if I was the harp player who just left the stage. She said that I sounded great and that she had something for me. She opened up her purse and pulled out a box. She opened it. Inside was a post war or early 1950's, Hohner 64 Chromonica. She said that it belonged to her grandfather who was in a harmonica band. It was fairly well used.
She told me she would like to give it to me provided that I kept it and didn't sell it. She wanted to give it to a person who would appreciate it. I told her that I would keep it and not sell it. She handed it to me. She thanked me and hugged me. She walked away.
I stored it away for a couple of years. I remembered it during a phone conversation with a friend of mine who recommended a harp tech who does all of his work. I shipped it to him.
He repaired the comb, replaced the wind savers and tuned the entire instrument. It's probably the best sounding chromatic that I own. He charged me next to nothing and did a ton of work to it.
The inside of the box had been signed by a bunch of people. I assumed they were people in his band, but none of the names were familiar to me and nothing showed up in a Google search.
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The Blues Photo Gallery
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capnj
75 posts
Dec 26, 2012
9:10 PM
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So many wonderful people out there who appreciate live music,uncut and raw.Compliments are given,and I stay humble,cause I always feel I can do better.
Our band got relieved after a set and a half,at a xmas party with 90% black,and under 40 crowd,who wanted the DJ.No biggy pays the same,also had a half dozen older folk compliment our efforts,very nice.
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