What's the closest you've ever come to making the big time...

[TheRev]

I'm in the second biggest Scrumpy'n'western band on the planet.

As soon as the biggest scrumpy'n'western band on the planet retire, I'll have made it....

[Bluewine]

14 hours ago, Burns-bass said:

 

When I was younger I thought I would have loved to tour the world and all that, but I don’t think I would have really. I enjoyed the booze a little too much and I’m sure I was a total (expletive deleted).

I probably would not be here today if I had money and toured when I was young.

At 65 I'd be great at it.

Blue

[Panamonte]

1983.  We  took a 3 track demo around the A&R departments of CBS, Virgin, RCA & Arista demanding a 3 album deal with a £100,000 non-recuperable advance (because our mates had got that deal from Chrysalis). Stipulated that  they could only listen to the demo while we were in the room. We were offered a £20,000 one-off single deal by CBS after a meeting with Muff Winwood.  Turned it down on the grounds that they weren't showing enough commitment.  Oh the joys of being 19 and cocky! 

[silverfoxnik]

On 11/05/2018 at 18:57, Linus27 said:

The band I was in, Inter managed to get a record deal. We were part of the post brit-pop scene and worked our rears off playing as much as humanly possible to build up a following. Started to get a name for ourselves and released a song on the Pet Sounds label and then later on our first single, Happy Ending in 1997. This got noticed by John Peel who said it was his favourite single of 1997 and gave us our first John Peel Session. This promoted us even further and it got to the point where Virgin were trying to decide to sign either us or The Stereophonics. They chose the Stereophonics in the end but we still managed to get a half decent record deal. We were all about 28 and got about £36k advance each for 3 years plus £5k to buy gear and then royalties from merchandise, sales etc. Going to the Bass Centre with £5k to go buy whatever I wanted was the best feeling in the world. I bought a Stingray, a Status and a massive top of the range Hartke rig 😊

We recorded our debut album at Loco Studios in South Wales which was where Oasis, The Manics, Stereophonics and many others had recorded stuff. The studio was also owned by Geoff Downes of Buggles fame and John Payne of Asia who both played on the album. We lived at the studio for three months in our own cottage and even had our own chef 😊 Our producer was Mark Wallis who has recorded with everyone but is most famous for recording the IT Bites album, The Primatives album, The Smiths, The Travis album and was the engineer on U2's Joshua Tree. Prior to choosing this producer we came very close to going to Seatle and recording the album with Rick Parasher who recorded Pearl Jam's Ten album but we told the record company no as we wanted to sound English still and not end up sounding like an American band. The album, titled Got My Nine sold 7k copies in the first week and we released 3 singles, National Paranoia, Speed Racer and Radio Finland. All got mainstream radio airplay and led on to a second John Peel Session, a live Virgin Radio Session and an XFM session. Also one of our tracks was used to advertise Casio G Shock watches in an advert for Spanish cinemas. We also did other TV stuff with tracks being used on Eurosport and Rebel TV. Q Magazine gave the album 4 out of 5.

We continued to tour which was amazing with our own crew etc. and were doing really well but then things started to go wrong. We were getting offered some big things like going on tour with Feeder in Germany, film soundtracks, gigs in the States but the record company was saying no to it all. To cut a long story short, we found out we were being ran as a tax loss so initially the record company were happy to pump money in to us (the album alone cost £120k to record etc.) but as we started to get more successful they put the brakes on. We were literally being hung out to dry and missing out on great opportunities which at the time made no sense. Anyway, they breached contracts so we sued them and won and that was the end of it. It was incredibly hard work, constantly recording, touring, song writing, promoting, photo shoots, interviews etc. but I have no regrets as I lived my dream for 4 years, the best time of my life with the most amazing experiences. Plus I still get the odd royalty payment now and again 😊 More details below.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inter_(band)

Other things I've done is go on tour with Paul Weller in another band, supporting him for 4 nights at the Roundhouse in Camden and recorded an album at his studio in Ripley. He also played on the album and I had to teach him to play this piano part that we wanted. I've been the Bass player in a video for a charity song that ELO were recording. Played at Brixton Academy using The Levellers back line. Supported Cactus World News and Let Loose and best of all chatted to Andrea Corr whilst making a cup of tea 😍😍

Now I play in an amazing 50s and 60s cover band, doing about 100 gigs a year and totally loving it.

And a very fine 50s and 60s cover band it is too...😊

[Skybone]

After reading that, 2 albums on a "cult" German Indie metal label, a 2 week UK tour and various other gigs up & down the country in the early/mid 90's seems a bit lacklustre.  Not long after, the label folded, the guitarist had the opportunity to join a band with one of his best mates who's main guitarist had just left their band, record an album, go on tour etc., etc. Our 2 albums sold around 3,000 copies (the second album managed to get a second pressing).

 

 

[Lozz196]

13 hours ago, Bluewine said:

I probably would not be here today if I had money and toured when I was young.

At 65 I'd be great at it.

Blue

Pretty much the same for me, Blue, aside from I`m 52.

[Grassie]

Mark King once walked past me in our local hardware shop.

[Conan]

Hoping Neil Murray is going to post on this thread... 

[Hobbayne]

On 5/11/2018 at 16:11, Japhet said:

I walked across the zebra crossing outside Abbey Road once.

You can go inside if you fork out a hundred quid! 

https://www.seetickets.com/tour/abbey-road-lectures

[Hobbayne]

I once played with a friend who was friends with Owen Paul (Who had a one hit wonder in the 80's)

Owen Paul turned up and we played a few of his songs. (Including his hit)

Edited May 15, 2018 by Hobbayne

[MrDaveTheBass]

On 11/05/2018 at 18:29, Roger2611 said:

 I am still playing with the keys player and guitarist of Sack The Drummer 

You decided to let the drummer go then?

[wateroftyne]

I did a couple of US tours with a band I was in in my late 20s. We were courted by Rounder Records, but before anything could happen a combination of band politics and 9/11 brought it all to a halt.

They were great days (I know I sound like him out of Creme Brulee).

[Elfrasho]

Played in a band that done sxsw, played on radio 1, headlined a tent at t in the park, nearly won Scottish album of the year, and played umpteen sold out headline shows.  So much so, I was occasionally recognised on the street by actual real life fans (rather than the usual friends of a band member type fan). 

Done lots of cool things but it never really turned into a chance of doing it full time. That for me would've been the sign of success. 

[Barking Spiders]

When I was a teen back in late 80s Liverpool, John Peel watched a band I was in, albeit we were one of 4 or 5 that night.  We'd clubbed together to get a 45 pressed which we gave  him. Don't recall him actually playing it though he may've used it as a pooper scooper or frisbee for his kids

[ricksterphil]

On 11/05/2018 at 16:11, Japhet said:

I walked across the zebra crossing outside Abbey Road once.

.  My nearly made it story relates to an outdoor festival we opened up for in 1976 in Wales. Alexis Korner was the guest of honour(?) at this gig and said we were rubbish!  The drummer from that band (my first band while at school) went on to be in the Lazers which as all you pop cogniscenti will know was led by Carol Decker and morphed into T'Pau. Trouble is my mate had decided NOT to go with them down to that London and ended up watching them on TOTP 6 months later.  He did redeem himself later on by playing in a band in which Robert Plant would turn up and sit in on as he (Planty) knew the band leader very well.