How was your gig last night?

[casapete]

Saturday night I played at The Alexandra Theatre in Birmingham, which was my final gig with

The ELO Experience. Another grand old venue which first opened in 1901, capacity just under 1400

with two large balconies , the upper one being very high and steep.

The gig went well, a good onstage sound despite a change of rig as I’ve sold my usual one!
Used my GK800RB again, this time with my old standby cab - a Loud Inc 4x10. Really enjoyed

using it, and pleased it was enough for such a big venue/stage.

It was a near sell out gig which made it great for my last one, as well as being my 800th appearance

with the band. I first played with them as a dep at Glasgow Royal Concert Hall in May 2009, and then

joined permanently in 2011 - first gigs were a short tour of Northern Ireland which were very memorable.

I couldn’t have found a better bunch of people to work with, starting out as a 5 piece & then adding 2

cellists and a violinist.  It’s been an absolute pleasure throughout, and I really will miss the band and

crew (pictured below) who have become like family. I’ll still be playing with the acoustic duo though,

as well as any deps that may come my way so will hopefully be gigging more locally for many years

to come.

 

 

 

 

 

 

[dmccombe7]

6 hours ago, casapete said:

Saturday night I played at The Alexandra Theatre in Birmingham, which was my final gig with

The ELO Experience. Another grand old venue which first opened in 1901, capacity just under 1400

with two large balconies , the upper one being very high and steep.

The gig went well, a good onstage sound despite a change of rig as I’ve sold my usual one!
Used my GK800RB again, this time with my old standby cab - a Loud Inc 4x10. Really enjoyed

using it, and pleased it was enough for such a big venue/stage.

It was a near sell out gig which made it great for my last one, as well as being my 800th appearance

with the band. I first played with them as a dep at Glasgow Royal Concert Hall in May 2009, and then

joined permanently in 2011 - first gigs were a short tour of Northern Ireland which were very memorable.

I couldn’t have found a better bunch of people to work with, starting out as a 5 piece & then adding 2

cellists and a violinist.  It’s been an absolute pleasure throughout, and I really will miss the band and

crew (pictured below) who have become like family. I’ll still be playing with the acoustic duo though,

as well as any deps that may come my way so will hopefully be gigging more locally for many years

to come.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Congrats on a wonderful time with the band Pete. Glad i got to see you with them. Look forward to your Duo band posts on BC.

Dave

[Steve Browning]

The rather magnificent St Luke's in Glasgow.

 

Brilliant crew, and sound, too.

[Mickeyboro]

3 minutes ago, Steve Browning said:

The rather magnificent St Luke's in Glasgow.

 

Brilliant crew, and sound, too.

Who are you playing with Steve?

[dmccombe7]

22 minutes ago, Steve Browning said:

The rather magnificent St Luke's in Glasgow.

 

Brilliant crew, and sound, too.

Forgot all about it Steve. Sorry i didn't manage to come along. About 50miles from me so not far at all.

Hopefully next time.

Dave

[cetera]

6 hours ago, casapete said:

Saturday night I played at The Alexandra Theatre in Birmingham, which was my final gig with

The ELO Experience. Another grand old venue which first opened in 1901, capacity just under 1400

with two large balconies , the upper one being very high and steep.

The gig went well, a good onstage sound despite a change of rig as I’ve sold my usual one!
Used my GK800RB again, this time with my old standby cab - a Loud Inc 4x10. Really enjoyed

using it, and pleased it was enough for such a big venue/stage.

It was a near sell out gig which made it great for my last one, as well as being my 800th appearance

with the band. I first played with them as a dep at Glasgow Royal Concert Hall in May 2009, and then

joined permanently in 2011 - first gigs were a short tour of Northern Ireland which were very memorable.

I couldn’t have found a better bunch of people to work with, starting out as a 5 piece & then adding 2

cellists and a violinist.  It’s been an absolute pleasure throughout, and I really will miss the band and

crew (pictured below) who have become like family. I’ll still be playing with the acoustic duo though,

as well as any deps that may come my way so will hopefully be gigging more locally for many years

to come.

 

 

Well done Pete! I've so enjoyed reading your tour venue diaries on here and I've been living my dream vicariously through you.

 

Congrats on a fantastic run of years/shows and all the best for the future mate

 

[Chienmortbb]

18 hours ago, stewblack said:

Who knows? I wasn't supposed to know but the venue owner paid me before we started. So now I know the total and how much we all got. 

I'll be looking for another job.

Sometimes I get hacked off that everyone gets the same especially as I lug and set up the PA most gigs but it saves any hassle.

 

Mamy years ago I was acting as roadie, PA hire co and sound man for a local band. I also attended every rehearsal. As a result I got 1/5 share, they were a 4 piece. At some point one of the WAGS got to hear of the arrangement. 
 

The result, I was asked to do it pro-bono. Needless to say we parted company. 

[Woodinblack]

6 hours ago, casapete said:

It was a near sell out gig which made it great for my last one, as well as being my 800th appearance

with the band.

 

That must feel odd leaving after that long!

[martthebass]

7 hours ago, casapete said:

Saturday night I played at The Alexandra Theatre in Birmingham, which was my final gig with

The ELO Experience. Another grand old venue which first opened in 1901, capacity just under 1400

with two large balconies , the upper one being very high and steep.

The gig went well, a good onstage sound despite a change of rig as I’ve sold my usual one!
Used my GK800RB again, this time with my old standby cab - a Loud Inc 4x10. Really enjoyed

using it, and pleased it was enough for such a big venue/stage.

It was a near sell out gig which made it great for my last one, as well as being my 800th appearance

with the band. I first played with them as a dep at Glasgow Royal Concert Hall in May 2009, and then

joined permanently in 2011 - first gigs were a short tour of Northern Ireland which were very memorable.

I couldn’t have found a better bunch of people to work with, starting out as a 5 piece & then adding 2

cellists and a violinist.  It’s been an absolute pleasure throughout, and I really will miss the band and

crew (pictured below) who have become like family. I’ll still be playing with the acoustic duo though,

as well as any deps that may come my way so will hopefully be gigging more locally for many years

to come.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Good luck in your 'retirement' Pete....I'm sure it will be a busy one.

[casapete]

10 minutes ago, cetera said:

 

Well done Pete! I've so enjoyed reading your tour venue diaries on here and I've been living my dream vicariously through you.

 

Congrats on a fantastic run of years/shows and all the best for the future mate

 

Thanks Gary. It’s been a hard decision to make, but I’ve recently turned 66 and feel the time is right 

to sit back a bit now. Played in bands for 50 years, 30 of which have been professional so can’t 

complain! 
 

9 minutes ago, Woodinblack said:

 

That must feel odd leaving after that long!

It does! Just feel blessed to have been with such a great set up for so long.

 

(Must have been great though, as I’ve never been a number one ELO fan either!j

[asingardenof]

8 hours ago, casapete said:

Saturday night I played at The Alexandra Theatre in Birmingham, which was my final gig with

The ELO Experience. Another grand old venue which first opened in 1901, capacity just under 1400

with two large balconies , the upper one being very high and steep.

The gig went well, a good onstage sound despite a change of rig as I’ve sold my usual one!
Used my GK800RB again, this time with my old standby cab - a Loud Inc 4x10. Really enjoyed

using it, and pleased it was enough for such a big venue/stage.

It was a near sell out gig which made it great for my last one, as well as being my 800th appearance

with the band. I first played with them as a dep at Glasgow Royal Concert Hall in May 2009, and then

joined permanently in 2011 - first gigs were a short tour of Northern Ireland which were very memorable.

I couldn’t have found a better bunch of people to work with, starting out as a 5 piece & then adding 2

cellists and a violinist.  It’s been an absolute pleasure throughout, and I really will miss the band and

crew (pictured below) who have become like family. I’ll still be playing with the acoustic duo though,

as well as any deps that may come my way so will hopefully be gigging more locally for many years

to come.

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Alexandra is a lovely venue, I think I saw Bill Bailey there many years ago.

[Stub Mandrel]

8 hours ago, casapete said:

Saturday night I played at The Alexandra Theatre in Birmingham, which was my final gig with

The ELO Experience.

 

Must have been quite emotional Pete, always gobsmacked and a bit envious to see the glorious venues and crowds you've been playing to!

[casapete]

4 hours ago, Stub Mandrel said:

 

Must have been quite emotional Pete, always gobsmacked and a bit envious to see the glorious venues and crowds you've been playing to!

Thanks, I hoped it hasn’t seemed like showboating though - just thought it may have been of interest

to see what being in a theatre band was like. All through my time doing this I’ve also kept playing pubs,

cafes and private gigs ( mainly with my duo), so I’ve always loved the contrast between the two scenarios. 

Doing the smaller gigs has meant I’ve never taken the wonderful old theatres for granted, and I will miss

playing them a lot. 

 

( Tonight though I’m in an ordinary town pub on the outskirts of Hull playing requests for a small and often

inebriated crowd. 😆) 

[taunton-hobbit]

😃  welcome to my world !

 

😎

[casapete]

2 minutes ago, taunton-hobbit said:

😃  welcome to my world !

 

😎

What, you play in Hull too? 🤣

[Steve Browning]

6 hours ago, Mickeyboro said:

Who are you playing with Steve?

 

It's a band called Fullhouse plays Frankie Miller. It's effectively Frankie's old backing band but with a new singer (Frankie is unable to perform any more). Remarkably similar voice.

[peteb]

23 minutes ago, Steve Browning said:

 

It's a band called Fullhouse plays Frankie Miller. It's effectively Frankie's old backing band but with a new singer (Frankie is unable to perform any more). Remarkably similar voice.

 

That's a pretty cool gig to have! 

 

A guitarist that I play with was up for, what I assume, was an earlier version of that gig. However, he came as a package with a (really good) singer, who at the last minute they decided didn't sound quite similar enough to Frankie. So they picked someone who's voice was more like the great man, presumably your guy! 

 

Edited April 30 by peteb

[Lozz196]

56 minutes ago, casapete said:

Thanks, I hoped it hasn’t seemed like showboating though - just thought it may have been of interest

to see what being in a theatre band was like. All through my time doing this I’ve also kept playing pubs,

cafes and private gigs ( mainly with my duo), so I’ve always loved the contrast between the two scenarios. 

Doing the smaller gigs has meant I’ve never taken the wonderful old theatres for granted, and I will miss

playing them a lot. 

 

( Tonight though I’m in an ordinary town pub on the outskirts of Hull playing requests for a small and often

inebriated crowd. 😆) 

Never seemed like showboating to me Pete, your gig reviews have always been great imo, especially when including things like the long hours on the road afterwards, something that can often be forgotten about, details like these made the reviews nicely balanced.

[dclaassen]

3 hours ago, casapete said:

Thanks, I hoped it hasn’t seemed like showboating though - just thought it may have been of interest

to see what being in a theatre band was like. All through my time doing this I’ve also kept playing pubs,

cafes and private gigs ( mainly with my duo), so I’ve always loved the contrast between the two scenarios. 

Doing the smaller gigs has meant I’ve never taken the wonderful old theatres for granted, and I will miss

playing them a lot. 

 

( Tonight though I’m in an ordinary town pub on the outskirts of Hull playing requests for a small and often

inebriated crowd. 😆) 

Well done you! And…there’s no such thing as a small gig.

[dmccombe7]

9 hours ago, Chienmortbb said:

Sometimes I get hacked off that everyone gets the same especially as I lug and set up the PA most gigs but it saves any hassle.

 

Mamy years ago I was acting as roadie, PA hire co and sound man for a local band. I also attended every rehearsal. As a result I got 1/5 share, they were a 4 piece. At some point one of the WAGS got to hear of the arrangement. 
 

The result, I was asked to do it pro-bono. Needless to say we parted company. 

I would agree with the 1/5th share if you are doing all that then you become part of "the band" as far as i'm concerned.

WAGS should be seen but not heard. So many times they kill a good band.

Dave

[Paul S]

10 hours ago, cetera said:

 

Well done Pete! I've so enjoyed reading your tour venue diaries on here and I've been living my dream vicariously through you.

 

Congrats on a fantastic run of years/shows and all the best for the future mate

 

 

3 hours ago, Lozz196 said:

Never seemed like showboating to me Pete, your gig reviews have always been great imo, especially when including things like the long hours on the road afterwards, something that can often be forgotten about, details like these made the reviews nicely balanced.

 

Yeah, what they said.  But, of course, there will still be tales from Scarborough and 'ull to look forward to  Onwards and, erm, sideways?

[Stub Mandrel]

5 hours ago, casapete said:

Thanks, I hoped it hasn’t seemed like showboating though

 

Not at all!

[Bluewine]

On 29/04/2024 at 09:38, Woodinblack said:

 

Yeh, I think I would be a bit miffed by that, all the groups I have been in have just been a wad of cash split n ways. Unless you have been employed by some organisation as a hired help, not sure why it would be different.

For the past 15 years it's always been an equal 4 way split. Tips can be huge

( I've seen as much as $ 900.00) over here and we split that equally, however we will share some of our tips with the bar staff.

 

Daryl

[Bluewine]

On 29/04/2024 at 20:18, casapete said:

Saturday night I played at The Alexandra Theatre in Birmingham, which was my final gig with

The ELO Experience. Another grand old venue which first opened in 1901, capacity just under 1400

with two large balconies , the upper one being very high and steep.

The gig went well, a good onstage sound despite a change of rig as I’ve sold my usual one!
Used my GK800RB again, this time with my old standby cab - a Loud Inc 4x10. Really enjoyed

using it, and pleased it was enough for such a big venue/stage.

It was a near sell out gig which made it great for my last one, as well as being my 800th appearance

with the band. I first played with them as a dep at Glasgow Royal Concert Hall in May 2009, and then

joined permanently in 2011 - first gigs were a short tour of Northern Ireland which were very memorable.

I couldn’t have found a better bunch of people to work with, starting out as a 5 piece & then adding 2

cellists and a violinist.  It’s been an absolute pleasure throughout, and I really will miss the band and

crew (pictured below) who have become like family. I’ll still be playing with the acoustic duo though,

as well as any deps that may come my way so will hopefully be gigging more locally for many years

to come.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

That looks like our Pabst Theatre in Milwaukee. 

 

Daryl

[Bluewine]

On 28/04/2024 at 15:09, Bluewine said:

"After a bit of time off, we look forward to returning to Thelma Sadoff Center for the Arts on Friday May 3rd! Get your tickets and join the party!"

 

Ticket sales, that always scares me.

 

Daryl

 

 

 

 

 

You guys know I get worried about ticketed events. We're not that kind of band. We do fine when we stay in our lane, festivals and fairs.

 

Anyway I got a text from our band leader yesterday. 

 

" Hi guys:) It’s looking like Thelma is going to postpone the show Friday🙁 not enough tickets sold. I’ll keep you posted but wanted to give you a heads up. I’m emailing with the event coordinator.

 

We sold 13 tickets, doesn't seem like they have a built in crowd. I'll confirm when they give me a definitive."

 

 

The same organization has a roof top summer music series. Every Thursday night they have a band, food trucks, booze vendors and it's free. Now that gig has a huge built in crowd. That gig would be in our lane .

 

Oh well, I guess it goes with the territory. 

 

Daryl