Hey, Do You Play In A Band?

[Unknown_User]

Frankly I couldn't even get arrested if I tried!

[Crusoe]

13 minutes ago, Trueno said:

Fame is overrated. Would you really want to be recognised when you're in Boots buying your Anusol Plus?

I buy it in my local chemist so that scenario would never play out.

[Twigman]

Just now, Crusoe said:

I buy it in my local chemist so that scenario would never play out.

I order it online and it gets delivered in a plain brown wrapping.

Nobody's any the wiser.

[Monkey Steve]

1 minute ago, Twigman said:

I order it online and it gets delivered in a plain brown wrapping.

Nobody's any the wiser.

recently had a similar discussion with band members, all men of a certain age, about whether we could get the promoter to put viagra on the rider, to save the singer's embarrassment in having to show his face in Boots and ask for it, and ordering on line was agreed to be the preferred solution

[Trueno]

Anusol is more embarrassing than viagra. Anusol Plus is off the scale.

I have to 'fess up and admit that Mrs Trueno buys mine. (Anusol, that is)

[redbandit599]

Years ago I played in a metally/rocky/punky covers band called Dumper (drunk in the pub band naming not a good idea)- my first band and we were all mates.

Anyhow, we ordered 50 band t-shirts, 3 went wrong and we sold the remaining 47 at gigs - we thought we knew everyone who bought one.

Sitting with some of the guys in the middle of the crowd at an outdoor gig (Metallica Milton Keynes I think), crowd parts and a young lad stumbles into our group, fresh from the pit in a very moshed up Dumper t-shirt. Says, "Alright lads! How you doing?" and disappears - to this day we have no idea who he was but seeing one of our t-shirts being worn by a stranger was pretty cool for a bunch of chancers like us 🙂

 

[Cat Burrito]

At a festival that I played at recently I was drinking at the bar and a guy came up and asked if he could chat. Of course. He liked the band and ended the conversation with "I think it's really cool that you hang out with us like you are just normal"... er?!?

I've been recognised on holiday (impressed my now wife, no end!) and been asked a number of times if I have a day job too. People are funny.  

[Lozz196]

Yeah we often get asked if we have day jobs or asked what its like to be in a professional band. I suppose it’s down to the workload of the band, we do a lot of gigs all over the country, plus Europe. Probably the assumption is how can we manage that and be in regular employment.

[T-Bay]

Not quite the scale of above but two of us were bought a burger in the kebab house around the corner from one of our gigs by someone who had enjoyed their night (a lot of liquid enjoyment by the sound of the voice), as it was only an hour after we finished playing and 200yds from the pub we had played it’s hardly a chance encounter. We were about to order and he came and said what do want lads? I’ll get it as you lot were amazing tonight’. It was a very nice gesture.

[uk_lefty]

Only done signatures once, even the sound and lights guy got asked to sign the poster! Makes you feel a bit less special.

Edited June 5, 2019 by uk_lefty

[odysseus]

I was at a Saxon gig with a mate, getting a couple of pints in before the set and some guy comes up to me and says, "Hey, you're the drummer from Saxon, ain't ya?"

P*ssed me right off.... Nigel Glockler is about 20 years older than me... 😠

[jezzaboy]

I was standing outside a hotel in Frazerburgh where we were playing a small festival last year. I was talking to the lead singer of The Stones, a very nice chap who looks like Jagger a bit, surprise surprise.

2 women came up to us and asked who was the "Jagger guy in the band" Me, I replied and they proceeded to speak away to me until I had to fess up, it was the other guy. I look nothing like Mick by the way.

Fame is such a fleeting thing.

[Bluewine]

21 hours ago, Bluewine said:

Signing CDs for people at gigs always seems awkward to me. If I ask for a signature they better be famous.

Blue

When someone wants me to sign a CD, my response should be;

" You don't get out much, do you?

Blue

[peteb]

31 minutes ago, Bluewine said:

When someone wants me to sign a CD, my response should be;

" You don't get out much, do you?

Blue

But Daryl, personally I don’t think that is the right attitude. If a punter has come to a show and liked it enough that they are prepared to shell out another ten quid for a CD, then I’m always happy to sign it for them if they ask. Deep down they know that you’re not Keef Richards, but for that moment you are something vaguely close and if they are putting money in your pocket by buying a CD and you signing it helps to personalise it in any way then that’s great as far as I’m concerned. They’re the ones who will be back for the next gig you play in their town.

I’ve signed CDs, gawd knows how many cassette tapes (back in the day) and countless setlists. I always joke that people come across them when they’re clearing out shoe boxes when they move house years later and wonder who the hell peteb was and why on earth they asked him to sign something 30 years ago! But who knows, it might spark a memory of a good night from their youth and as a musician, you can’t really ask for anything more than that…

[Monkey Steve]

10 hours ago, Bluewine said:

When someone wants me to sign a CD, my response should be;

" You don't get out much, do you?

Blue

I'm with Pete B - if somebody asks I'm more than happy to do it

Though I did once have a somewhat odd situation at a gig where both us and another band had put out a load of demo CDs for the punters to take for free.  We played, got a nice response from the crowd, and then one punter comes up and asks just me and the rhythm guitarist to sign a CD.  Ignoring the rest of the band, which was a little odd because we were a classic/hard rock outfit so lead guitar and lead vocals were the most prominent part of the band. 

He presents us with the other band's CD.  We point out that it's not ours and that there is still a small pile of our CDs on the bar so why doesn't he grab one of those and we'll be happy to sign it for him. 

No, he insists that we sign the one he's got in his hand, and is looking quite upset at the suggestion that we won't, like we're being incredibly rude and he doesn't understand why.  He either had learning difficulties or was somewhere on the autistic spectrum, so we smiled and signed it for him

[cheddatom]

My band sells loads of merch at gigs all over. One day at my day job a customer walked into the showroom wearing one of my band's shirts so I (assuming she'd recognise me) said "Nice shirt!". She looked a bit freaked out and just said "thanks". I said "did you buy that at a gig?" and she said "Oh yeh we've seen them loads of times at festivals". I was going to explain that I play drums for them but figured it'd come across a bit needy

We sign loads of CDs, vinyl, set lists etc. I did have someone climb up on stage after a gig once and demand some drum sticks. I'd actually broken one during the set so passed it to her but she said "No, I need a pair, I always get pairs". I explained that I don't have a lot of money and my sticks are expensive and she got really sh*tty with me, like I owed her a pair of sticks. I just packed them all away and ignored her until she walked off

[borntohang]

We're at that awkward phase where there are enough people coming to shows that we get recognised, but not so big that it isn't still awkward when they find you at the next one and ask why you declined their friend request! 

On our last tour we pulled up at a service station at about 3 in the morning feeling extremely weary and the instant we opened the van doors got mobbed by teenagers who apparently had nothing better to do than hang around a McD's on the M6 in the early hours. They didn't know who we were but there's only so many options for people travelling in vans at that time of night and we weren't dressed like brickies. "Are you in a band? What are you called? Who's the singer?!" We told them we were the Arctic Monkeys and that our roadie was Alex Turner, then legged it inside while they mobbed him for pictures. Sorry lad, but someone had to go under the bus and you're getting paid to be here...

On a separate note, my singer is extremely distinctive so she gets recognised a bunch. Her dad is also a well known soap actor - not exactly rich or famous but you'd probably recognise his face if you've watched much British TV in the last twenty years or so. We've really enjoyed watching his growing discomfort as people have started stopping him in the street... to ask if he can take a picture of them with his daughter!

Edited June 6, 2019 by borntohang

[Newfoundfreedom]

I live abroad in a relatively small ex pat community so everyone kind of knows everyone (or at least knows of them anyway). So the being known for being in a band thing is kind of irrelevant. Although our first official gig is fast approaching, so I live in hope. 

Edited June 16, 2019 by Newfoundfreedom

[NancyJohnson]

Flew out to Italy for a couple of dates in 2017.  One of the security guys at Heathrow recognised us from somewhere we'd played, he was an old punk bloke.

That was nice.

 

[MacDaddy]

Not me but my basses.

Punter asked me at a gig "why aren't you using your zebra bass?"

 

[josie]

Someone I met at a blues festival (not in Manchester) once remembered seeing me play in a blues jam in Manchester. It must have helped that he's also a bass player, and I remembered seeing him (at different venue), too.  We've stayed in touch, and my band is opening for his band tonight  (and I'll be using his Trace Elliot rig) 🙂 

[NancyJohnson]

On 05/06/2019 at 14:41, Cat Burrito said:

I've been recognised on holiday (impressed my now wife, no end!) and been asked a number of times if I have a day job too. People are funny.  

I was on holiday in Minorca a few years back and this guy walked past me and said, 'You look familiar, I think I know you.'  We had a beer that evening and tried to work out from where.  

We didn't live in the same area but after a few minutes, we both admitted to playing bass; turns out we both used to frequent the same rehearsal place in Lambourne, near Swindon and he recognised me from load in/out periods.

[Cat Burrito]

10 hours ago, NancyJohnson said:

turns out we both used to frequent the same rehearsal place in Lambourne, near Swindon and he recognised me from load in/out periods.

I used to rehearse there too circa 2004 / 2005 😻

Sadly my holidays are less exotic. 

[NancyJohnson]

9 hours ago, Cat Burrito said:

I used to rehearse there too circa 2004 / 2005 😻

Sadly my holidays are less exotic. 

The Lambourne place was part-owned by our guitarist...from memory it was called Sounds Good?  The exterior resembled something off Dad's Army, right at the back of this old trading estate.  I have video somewhere.