Clichéd songs you feel you got to play, but don't want to

[Buddster]

Being in a covers band (any style), are there songs you hate playing but feel the situation demands it? Ie weddings, post footie drunken pub nights, that sort of thing. 

Not because the part is too easy/hard, but because it's obvious /crowd reaction /cringe worthy. You might even enjoy playing them, but hate the reaction. 

Examples being

Wonderwall

Mr Brightside

Ruby

Etc etc

[casapete]

When I was in a function band, I detested 'Chelsea Dagger' . Didn't like the song or even worse the crowd reaction.

Football chant type rowdy pis*ed up singalongs are one of my worst nightmares.

[Nail Soup]

In my now defunct punk / new wave covers band we said we wouldn't do Teenage Kicks, Pretty Vacant etc as they are too obvious.

But we did end up doing them and of course they went  down well with the crowd.

[Mykesbass]

My old 'americana' for want of a better word band used to play Dylan, Neil Young, Little Feat, and for birthdays/anniversaries we always ended up chucking in Enrique Iglesias Hero. Went down a storm and was fun to play- to hell with credibility!

[TimR]

Sweet Caroline.

[BigRedX]

Play only songs that you have written yourself. 

 

If you end up writing an anthem taken up by stupid drunken punters, then at least you can take comfort in the amount of royalties pouring in!

[Newfoundfreedom]

Rocking in the Free World was the reason I left my last covers band, or at least the straw that broke the camels back. I decided I would rather not play at all than play utter dross. 

 

I highly doubt I'll ever play in a covers band again. 

[Lozz196]

In an old glam/rock covers band we did Born To Be Wild, I hated it but it always went down really well.

[Woodinblack]

1 hour ago, Buddster said:

Wonderwall

 

No, I won't play that.

 

But there are a few that we have to play apparently, like 'i get knocked down' or whatever ever it is called. And Sex on fire - why does anyone like that, its not that its actually bad its just.. well, nothing special. Mustang sally, but honestly, I don't actually mind that for some reason.

 

Oh 'Run' by.. whoever that is by, so dreary, luckily the rest of the band got bored of that too.

Need your love so bad, and other blues songs.

[Franticsmurf]

Many years ago when I played in a duo, 'Alice' and 'Hey Baby' (will you be my girl) were particular offenders. I understood the need to play them but never enjoyed the experience. During the line dancing craze (late 90s ish) 'Achy Breaky Heart' was a miserable point in the set, lightened only by the alcohol fuelled line dancing attempts of the audience. More recently I found that repetition of the most popular songs means I get tired of playing them and it's increasingly harder to perform them with any enthusiasm. Wonderwall, Sweet Caroline, Hotel California, Take It Easy - all great songs that I like but that for the last 6 months or so I don't enjoy playing. 

[chris_b]

32 minutes ago, Woodinblack said:

No, I won't play that.

 

Wonderwall? Played it last Saturday. It's not a song I'd play at home, but it went down a storm, which was the point.

 

The only songs I would suggest a band didn't consider for the set are the ones that don't get a positive reaction from the audience. 

[Lozz196]

5 minutes ago, chris_b said:

 

 

The only songs I would suggest a band didn't consider for the set are the ones that don't get a positive reaction from the audience. 

That’s pretty much it for me too, Chris, whilst a song/songs might not be my personal choice it’s audience reaction that dictates if they’re in the set or not. In my old punk covers band there were so many great album tracks we could have done but most of the audience wouldn’t have known them, so we stuck to the Punk Top 40 in the knowledge pretty much everyone would be familiar with the songs, if not the original artists.

[gafbass02]

Mr Brightside and Dakota make me cringe, especially when the inevitable muppets take to the floor, all preening and pointing as the songs on their apparent inwardly ‘approved’ list come on. Once upon a time id’ve maybe voiced my dislike, but these days I have a different approach. 
Firstly, as a covers band I’m aware that the crowd mostly see us as essentially little more than a glorified jukebox. We’re there to entertain, and if they like the songs, then fine, I imagine they probably wouldn’t like my choices much! 😝 So I just crack on. 

My method to wring enjoyment out of those sort of tunes is to concentrate entirely on my tone and technique and locking in with mr drums, I make that my sole focus for those few tracks.. (Made easier by being in IEMs). It sounds odd, but I don’t enjoy the crowd going nuts bit, because it feels like ‘stolen valour’. Not my songs an’ all. Instead I guess I’m inwardly imagining that there’s someone in the room thinking something along the lines of ‘blimey, that rhythm section’s tight!’ Or ‘that bassist’s timing/technique/tone is bang on.’

it gets me through 😅😂

Edited May 26, 2022 by gafbass02

[Woodinblack]

27 minutes ago, chris_b said:

Wonderwall? Played it last Saturday. It's not a song I'd play at home, but it went down a storm, which was the point.

 

Good for you, I won't play it.

 

18 minutes ago, gafbass02 said:

Mr Brightside and Dakota make me cringe,

I have no problems with brightside, but dakota I do, not specifically with playing it, just that it is a very dull song that I have never really heard a covers band done well (although in this case, done well isn't very high praise). So I avoid it for that. Luckily noone has suggested it in a while.

 

[Buddster]

Thankfully no-one in the band has mentioned any of the above. I couldn't bring myself to inflict Sweet Caroline, Freebird or Hotel California on an audience I was playing to. 

When I was doing the sound for a covers band, the amount of times someone would ask "do they know any Oasis? (hic)" 

When they did their House Martins number I would walk away from the desk and refuse to mix it (tongue in cheak obvs) 

[Leonard Smalls]

2 hours ago, Lozz196 said:

it’s audience reaction that dictates if they’re in the set or not

I remember talking to an amazing jazz drummer I briefly played with... His attitude was "f#*k the audience! I play because I need to, the music's inside me!"

I'm not quite as black and white - though if I was doing a Dead Kennedys song it'd be "Stealing People's Mail"... If it was a Bowie cover it'd be "Yassasin" and requests for "Summer of 69" would tempt me to wield a guitar as a club... (Not one of my basses, obvs)

[GrowlyBassDude]

Summer Of 69 

Sex On Fire 
Wishing Well 

 

if I never have to play those songs ever again, it would be twenty million years too soon 😂

[Chienmortbb]

3 hours ago, Woodinblack said:

Mustang sally, but honestly, I don't actually mind that for some reason.

Its a crossover song between blues and soul but has enough in it to keep a simple soul like me happy. I know a lot of musicians hate it though.

[markbunney]

Most of our set has been mentioned in the posts above 😂

[Barking Spiders]

Over the last six months I've occasionally been depping on bass in a mate's band, well not his band but he got me the gig. Unfortunately much of their material comprises many of the offending articles already mentioned i.e. Mr Brightside, Dont Look Back in Anger, Sex on Fire..yawn. Other than the Oasis c@ck I don't have any problems with these songs per se. As others have said it's the predictably moronic response we get from large parts of the audience..the tuneless chanting along etc. 

[pete.young]

I drew the line at anything by Coldplay. But really, if you're playing that kind of music you don't have much say in what you get to play.

 

I've just rejoined my old brass band. If you think the modern covers band repertoire is a problem, wait until you hear Frank Baernarts take on it. There's no point in being precious about it, if you are then as BigRedX says stick to originals, or traditional music.

[chris_b]

1 hour ago, pete.young said:

. . . . But really, if you're playing that kind of music you don't have much say in what you get to play.

 

But. . . . you have a huge choice.

 

There are a massive number of hits and popular songs to choose from. You could play a different set for a week and not repeat a song.

 

The real problem is lazy bands or band leaders. If they chose to play the same limited list of songs then boredom can set in.

[gjones]

I'm starting up a covers band and most of the suggestions are really good tunes, from Blondie to AC/DC.

 

No Wonderwall, or Mustang Sally.

[uk_lefty]

Proud Mary seems to be too well worn. Others from my old band: Sharp Dressed Man, Sex on Fire... It's like "what's the easiest song by....insert band name?". Problem is audiences in pubs and even music venues want this and will go mad for it, so you have to play some of these "classics". I think the trick is to play them really, really well and not many covers bands can! Then also to have a rotation of these so if people see you more than once you can swap a "sex on fire" for a "Mr brightside". 

 

My new band has loads of songs that I cringed at when first reading the setlist: Dakota, Seven Nation Army, Mr Brightside... There's more. But. This band plays them bloody well and structures the set well. When we rehearse we concentrate on the details in the songs to keep it interesting for ourselves and elevate the song above a pub band bashing around at it. Makes it work for us. I still hate some of the songs though, I'd gladly never play Seven Nation Army ever again.

[Mykesbass]

15 minutes ago, uk_lefty said:

so you have to play some of these "classics". I think the trick is to play them really, really well and not many covers bands can! 

This. I used to play rhythm guitar in a swing band. We loved playing Duke Ellington, Count Basie, Stan Kenton, but the audience loved Glen Miller. We played In The Mood in a very slapdash way as it was really the big band equivalent of Sex on Fire. We then decided to absolutely nail it - everyone learning their part with no chart. Still don't like the tune but we ended up playing it really well