shizznit Posted January 6, 2012 Share Posted January 6, 2012 I was having a conversation with a work colleague today about missed opportunities during our careers today and it also got me thinking about the same during my musical journey. Have you ever missed an opportunity that you wished you never passed on? Be good to hear your stories (funny stories...let's try and make this light hearted!) My top 3 1. Louise (Redknap) Was offered the gig by a friend that worked with her whilst she was in Eternal, but passed on it to concentrate on my own band as we were closing on a record deal which eventually fell apart. Not that Louise had a fruitful music career, but it could have led to more work and to perform every night with that backside running around in front of you...ugh!! I put that experience down to being young and overly ambitious! 2. Sophie Ellis Bextor I was working at the Depo studios in London for a couple of days. Slipped into the corridor downstairs to have a quick ciggie break and chatted to a pretty, dark haired girl who had the same idea. Asked her what she was doing in the studios that day and she told me she was warming up for her tour. She was practicing to a DAT tape, but she was going to use a live band too. She said that she was looking for a bass player and keyboard player. I asked her what her name was before I said good luck and goodbye. I genuinely did not know who she was! I saw her perform on Richard and Judy a few weeks later and my heart sank! I would have asked for her managers number to arrange an audition! I could have been there! 3. Duffy Much like the Sophie Ellis Bextor story, but this particular missed opportunity vexes me the most! My friend Angie invited me to watch her mate perform in a small club in Cardiff. Went along and there she was...Duffy doing an acoustic gig before she made her first album. My friend Ben was playing for her that night, but was his last gig as he started his own band soon after. I was a free agent at the time and he said that he would give Duffy his first refferal and put my name forward. I joked that I couldn't work with a woman I fancied (which was the truth in reality! Gosh, I thought she was very pretty that evening!) and that I didn't really want to join an acoustic band. 2yrs later Duffy released her first album, was incredibly successful and the music is right up my street! I thought "Dammit, dammit, dammit!!! To add insult to injury, Duffy is my partners fav artist and plays her albums at home all the time...constantly reminding me of my cock up! When mates tell me "Oh mate...you would have been the perfect gig for you!" I cant help but suck my thumb! I have no regrets though. I am a very happy musician and I have worked on some fun projects with very talented artist/songwriters. Would love to go back to doing it full time again, but one thing I have learnt is that you have to have a bit of luck along the way and all of my friends that are full time pro's will tell you that. Don't look back at what could have been...always look forward and have fun! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blademan_98 Posted January 6, 2012 Share Posted January 6, 2012 (edited) I would be distraught if I had missed a chance to gig with Duffy! Never having been in such a position, I don't know how I would feel. Looking forward is all I have to be honest Edit:I can't spell Edited January 6, 2012 by Blademan_98 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
waynepunkdude Posted January 6, 2012 Share Posted January 6, 2012 Telling Bloc Party they were crap and I was leaving, I was right on both count but still...... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shizznit Posted January 6, 2012 Author Share Posted January 6, 2012 [quote name='waynepunkdude' timestamp='1325874969' post='1489294'] Telling Bloc Party they were crap and I was leaving, I was right on both count but still...... [/quote] Wow!!! That's a pretty big miss! But, in retrospect, if it wasn't working for you then it wouldn't have worked for you now I guess. Can't fake it in this business. Never lasts if your heart is not in it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Doctor J Posted January 6, 2012 Share Posted January 6, 2012 [quote name='waynepunkdude' timestamp='1325874969' post='1489294'] Telling Bloc Party they were crap and I was leaving, I was right on both count but still...... [/quote]Hero! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LukeFRC Posted January 6, 2012 Share Posted January 6, 2012 [quote name='waynepunkdude' timestamp='1325874969' post='1489294'] Telling Bloc Party they were crap and I was leaving, I was right on both count but still...... [/quote] their image could have incorporated more black and white checks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
discreet Posted January 6, 2012 Share Posted January 6, 2012 I was asked by Jaz Coleman to play bass in Killing Joke, once in 1978 and again in 1988. I turned him down both times. If he ever asks me again... I'll think about it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bilbo Posted January 6, 2012 Share Posted January 6, 2012 I have played with Jim Mullen, iain Ballamy, Stan Sultzman and a few other renowned jazzers. Once each. If I have studied properly, practiced more, got my s*** together etc, maybe i would have got to play with some of these guys twice. Be ready, people. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wateroftyne Posted January 6, 2012 Share Posted January 6, 2012 Declining the opportunity to be flown out to Lima, Peru, to do a dep. I said no because I didn't want to 'waste' any of my holidays. What a tool. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Clarky Posted January 6, 2012 Share Posted January 6, 2012 I once bought Noel Gallagher a pint just after the first bass player (Guigsy I think) left and foolishly didn't offer my services. I would have been bloody good at 16th root notes by now ... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blademan_98 Posted January 6, 2012 Share Posted January 6, 2012 (edited) [quote name='Clarky' timestamp='1325876969' post='1489336'] I once bought Noel Gallagher a pint just after the first bass player (Guigsy I think) left and foolishly didn't offer my services. I would have been bloody good at 16th root notes by now ... [/quote] But I thought that you ARE good at 16th root notes Edited January 6, 2012 by Blademan_98 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Clarky Posted January 6, 2012 Share Posted January 6, 2012 I play them in a jazz way, mixing 7th, 9th and 23rd notes in PS, one opportunity I was glad to have missed: there is a dwarf who is a regular member of the London 'alternative' metal and punk scene and - after a gig with my old death metal band back in 2006 - he approached me and asked if I wanted to join his putative band, "C*ntslurp". I had to decline Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
discreet Posted January 6, 2012 Share Posted January 6, 2012 (edited) [quote name='Clarky' timestamp='1325877816' post='1489355'] ...asked if I wanted to join his putative band, "C*ntslurp". I had to decline... [/quote] Now that really was a missed opportunity! . Edited January 6, 2012 by discreet Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EdwardHimself Posted January 6, 2012 Share Posted January 6, 2012 I went for a practice with someone who ended up being in Sworn Amongst. I wouldn't have got the gig anyway I don't think but I f***ed it up for non musical reasons that I will not discuss at this time Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shizznit Posted January 6, 2012 Author Share Posted January 6, 2012 [quote name='Clarky' timestamp='1325877816' post='1489355'] I play them in a jazz way, mixing 7th, 9th and 23rd notes in PS, one opportunity I was glad to have missed: there is a dwarf who is a regular member of the London 'alternative' metal and punk scene and - after a gig with my old death metal band back in 2006 - he approached me and asked if I wanted to join his putative band, "C*ntslurp". I had to decline [/quote] You're mam would have been proud! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigRedX Posted January 6, 2012 Share Posted January 6, 2012 (edited) [b]1. Turned down the opportunity to work with William Orbit.[/b] In 1985 my band were joint winners in a competition in a music magazine where the prizes were either a Yamaha KX5 MIDI keyboard or a day in William Orbit's studio with him producing. However we had entered the competition with the express desire to win the keyboard and at the time we didn't think much of William Orbit or his band Torchsong (this was before Bassomatic never mind Madonna). Also another member of the band had been involved with a similar deal with Dave Stewart of the Eurythmics which had promised much and delivered little. The magazine wanted to give the keyboard to the other joint winners and we had to threaten them with legal action before we got it. At the time the keyboard was definitely more useful than a day in the studio with a producer who's music we felt had little to do with ours. In retrospect who knows what it could have led to? [b]2. Failed to persuade Zoe Bonham to join my band[/b] In the mid 90s I was playing bass in a band doing dance/rock. Literally days before we sent off the artwork and tapes to produce our first single our singer quit. We decided not to let this set us back and rather than simply sticking a few ads up in the usual places in Nottingham we would cast our net wider and bought some display space in the musicians wanted sections in NME and Melody Maker. These attracted a good share of no-talent weirdos and a couple of really good tapes, one of which was from Zoe Bonham daughter of the late John Bonham. Her demo was fantastic both from a songwriting and singing PoV and we really hit it off on a personal level. Unfortunately she thought that our music was too "pop" for her tastes and we were unable to persuade her that it could be changed to suit her... I still have her tape somewhere. Edited January 6, 2012 by BigRedX Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jazzneck Posted January 6, 2012 Share Posted January 6, 2012 Not me, but a drummer I played semi-pro with for a few years turned down Marillion "coz I did'nae think they would be famous and I wanted tae be!" He's a blxxdy good drummer and a great bloke, too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lollington Posted January 6, 2012 Share Posted January 6, 2012 Wow, these are all really impressive stories. I've naff all on this! Jealous that the OP has a career [i]and[/i] missed music opportunities to talk about in separate instances! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gafbass02 Posted January 6, 2012 Share Posted January 6, 2012 (edited) So many. :-/ The Levi's commercial. Billy J Kramer Sky clad (all turned down?!!??!) The £250,000 deal - turned down by the singer - given to catatonia instead :-/ (I only found out years after, they wisely hid it from me for his safety!!) Lessons with Fred T Baker, The 2nd DoubleCross album The chance to play Glastonbury These were all as an arrogant and foolish youth ! I'm sure there's lots more but having the new baby means its taken an hour just to type this much! Edited January 6, 2012 by gafbass02 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OliverBlackman Posted January 6, 2012 Share Posted January 6, 2012 when i was 15 i was being taught by a player called nathan rainer. One lesson he tried to teach me intervals. I had no interest and forgot it the second i was out the room. Fast Forward 3 years and first lesson in ACM, intervals........ sh*t. It took me 2 months just to get my head around the most basic of music theory and chord substitutions. If i had that together before i went in i have no doubt i would be much better now and probably doing bigger gigs instead of practising. Not so much a missed opportunity in terms of gigs but a good lesson for anyone thinking of studying music Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thor Posted January 6, 2012 Share Posted January 6, 2012 A few years ago my band was playing for George Martin at his birthday bash - went down a storm and was introduced to one particular chap who liked us so much he wanted to know if we'd be interested in working with 3 ladies from the USA, explained we were more interested in our own current project....turned out we passed up the chance of working with The Dixie Chicks. I reckon that would have been a pretty cool experience. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EmmettC Posted January 6, 2012 Share Posted January 6, 2012 I don't have any missed opportunities as such, and no real regrets either, my only kind-of regret was taking my first full time job at 21, it lead to great jobs and I'm happy in my (non musical) career, but at the time I was playing with a very succesful cabaret act, a moderately succesful indie pop original band, playing for 4 singer song writers (of varying degrees of success) and playing & singing in my own hardcore band with 2 Bass players!!!! I left most of them soon after getting a job, and although none of them got very famous a few of them make a living playing music, and who knows what a few years of playing all the time could have lead to. A full time job meant a better basses and better motorbikes, I just wish I'd given music about 4 more years than I did. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wolverinebass Posted January 6, 2012 Share Posted January 6, 2012 Some of these are sickening. I turned down a signed band about 10 years ago. I won't bother to name names and they were pretty successful. I just didn't think I'd be that into it. Can one get any more idiotic? The arrogance of youth. I promised myself that I'd never do the same thing again if there was even a chance that I might enjoy it. It could be easy for one to become bitter and twisted and if you've been brushed (however lightly) by the fickle hand of fame. Playing on the same bill with bands that became famous and were utterly crap (and seriously up themselves to boot) on the night.It does make one question the default setting of the universe in terms of sanity. The only opportunity that I'd have been gutted to have turned down would have been taking the bass slot in The Who instead of Palladino. Sadly, that wasn't to be as disappointingly I wasn't asked!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gafbass02 Posted January 6, 2012 Share Posted January 6, 2012 Can't tell you how frustrating it's been over the years. To have skirted around things, if everything had come off that was 'definitely' going to, I'd be a Fekkin global megastar by now. :-/ Let's talk about my old support band, - now kasabian, or the other group of Kids that used to play with us that went on to become the new happy Mondays. The guitarist mate that left the band, took our songs to London and signed a huge deal two weeks later. The missed Bon Jovi support, the oh so So so so close to having Brian May guest on the Double Cross album. (We had Bob Catley from Magnum instead!) The enormous Japanese distribution deal, (fell foul of an idiot record co guy and strict Japanese protocols) countless tv shows that never happened etc etc, all sorts of heartache lol These days I'm a strict pessimist ! On the plus side I have also done some very cool stuff, that many people will only ever dream of, so not all bad. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dandelion Posted January 6, 2012 Share Posted January 6, 2012 I once nearly bought a nicely playing bass at Crackconverters Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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