stingrayPete1977 Posted February 9, 2013 Share Posted February 9, 2013 [quote name='gapiro' timestamp='1360399586' post='1969732'] There are two routes in my opinion Either pick a genre and base Your set list around that as much as possible. Then throw a couple of tenuous songs to the genre to entice other groups of people Eg an indie rock band can do some classic rock like the who etc This means people who like the genre of music you play will book you and they know what to expect Or make yourself as wide and varied as you like , and advertise as a function band. Unfortunate I think this route tends to require leaning about 5 times as many songs and having someone capable to call out things to go with the current dance floor and mood. You tend to appeal to more range of clients but might e a bit more boring or end up playing the same stuff week in week out ( mustang Sally etc) Either way you need to define wht you are going to be doing [/quote] I could not agree more, I was in an indie style wedding/pub/function band for about 5 years and we did just that where it was mostly early 90's (James etc) right upto the current stuff which was popular then and still being played now (Killers etc), the only problem was that as the indie chart scene went quiet a few years ago with the last new stuff being things like the Wombats it sort of killed our desire to do it. The latest band I have joined/formed fall much more into the latter anything goes category which should make it more future proof but maybe less fun? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JayPH Posted February 9, 2013 Author Share Posted February 9, 2013 Thanks everyone for the suggestions, links and a bloody good laugh. I'll jot them all down into a list. Not sure I want to go through with it now. We play Sex on Fire too and I hate it already even before we've played it live haha. We'll have to break it up with a good pub gig now and then. Noticed all the old songs are still popular so we might as well try them although we are just a 5 piece guitar bass drums job so we might struggle to do some of them. Interesting to target a specific genre. It would certainly be easier to do that. Lots to think about really. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gapiro Posted February 10, 2013 Share Posted February 10, 2013 [quote name='JayPH' timestamp='1360446854' post='1970739'] Thanks everyone for the suggestions, links and a bloody good laugh. I'll jot them all down into a list. Not sure I want to go through with it now. We play Sex on Fire too and I hate it already even before we've played it live haha. We'll have to break it up with a good pub gig now and then. Noticed all the old songs are still popular so we might as well try them although we are just a 5 piece guitar bass drums job so we might struggle to do some of them. Interesting to target a specific genre. It would certainly be easier to do that. Lots to think about really. [/quote] It gives you a target and makes it easier to promote yourself. Eg we are an 80s band and so all sorts of 80s imagery is used in promoting ourselces Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ben Jamin Posted February 10, 2013 Share Posted February 10, 2013 (edited) Correct me if I'm wrong but no-one's mentioned Superstition yet? Must. Put it at the end of the set for our last wedding gig and it was groooovy. Edited February 10, 2013 by Ben Jamin Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gapiro Posted February 10, 2013 Share Posted February 10, 2013 [quote name='Ben Jamin' timestamp='1360458635' post='1970888'] Correct me if I'm wrong but no-one's mentioned Superstition yet? Must. Put it at the end of the set for our last wedding gig and it was groooovy. [/quote] When done well. Seen it done terribly by so many bands around here. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tonybassplayer Posted February 10, 2013 Share Posted February 10, 2013 [quote name='JayPH' timestamp='1360446854' post='1970739'] We'll have to break it up with a good pub gig now and then [/quote] Until you get really established you will probably need to do this and in my previous band we got lots of good paying weddings etc from people who saw us playing a relatively low paid pub gig. It's the best shop window going. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bassfunk Posted February 10, 2013 Share Posted February 10, 2013 Nobody has mentioned Stevie Wonder? I've played it in both function bands and your more typical pub rock / indie bands. Superstition is a must imho! Also Valerie always gets them dancing as does all right now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JTUK Posted February 10, 2013 Share Posted February 10, 2013 [quote name='tonybassplayer' timestamp='1360487226' post='1970985'] Until you get really established you will probably need to do this and in my previous band we got lots of good paying weddings etc from people who saw us playing a relatively low paid pub gig. It's the best shop window going. [/quote] But they don't get it when the fee goes up 4-fold or so.. FWIW, we don't take cold calls on weddings as we wont play a wedding set or do the hours. They need to have seen us before ... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BassBunny Posted February 10, 2013 Share Posted February 10, 2013 [quote name='bassfunk' timestamp='1360488711' post='1971006'] Nobody has mentioned Stevie Wonder? I've played it in both function bands and your more typical pub rock / indie bands. Superstition is a must imho! Also Valerie always gets them dancing as does all right now. [/quote] Correct. Forgot those. We do both and Uptight works well as everyone can join in. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jacqueslemac Posted February 10, 2013 Share Posted February 10, 2013 This has been a very useful thread, thanks. I've decided I no longer want to do the wedding gig we've been half-promised. I don't think the extra money is worth having to play those songs! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Big_Stu Posted February 10, 2013 Share Posted February 10, 2013 [quote name='Jacqueslemac' timestamp='1360404389' post='1969791'] We're going to add White Wedding by Billy Idol for a wedding we should be doing in June.[/quote] The BBC kept playing that for that Royal Wedding & wondered why they got complaints. I asked the DJ at my mate's wedding to play it, never having listened to the lyrics properly, and wondered why there was only tumbleweed on the dance-floor within seconds. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
icastle Posted February 10, 2013 Share Posted February 10, 2013 One that we've been looking at recently is XTC's 'Senses Working Overtime'. I have a suspicion that the '12345' part leading into each chorus might be just a little bit catchy. It's a bit of an odd one to dance to though, so we've tweaked the timing of the verses just a tad. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coachcbg Posted February 10, 2013 Share Posted February 10, 2013 Get the 'Commitments' CD and cover the lot. Boring as hell but drunk wedding goers love it! (Sorry, a little cynical I guess.) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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