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Thursday, January 13, 2011

Don't Smack Your Guitarist - Hire The Right Guy

Here's a video that's both funny and sort of sad at the same time. It shows a lead singer so fed up with the solo that his guitar player is playing that he smacks him in the head. Take a look.




I've gone over situations like this before in various posts and especially in my book How To Make Your Band Sound Great, and it always comes back to professionalism.

1) The guitar player may or may not have deserved it, but take any argument off the stage. Regardless where you're at in the entertainment food chain and how outraged you are over the performance (or lack thereof), iron out your dirty laundry somewhere else.

2) This wouldn't have happened if the band rehearsed more and determined the song wasn't ready, or made sure that the guitarist could play something that made them all look good.

3) This wouldn't have happened if the band hired the right guy in the first place. Too many musicians settle for players who don't fit the direction or musicality of the band.

Playing music is more than just playing music. It's about entertainment, and unprofessional behavior is not entertainment. How do you learn professionalism? Having a mentor is the best way, but if one isn't available, you can learn a lot just by looking at any act that's making a living from music. They don't get to that point by shoddy performances onstage in any way. Remember, how you act is how you're perceived.
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4 comments:

Gian Nicola Beraldo said...

Look at the good videos Bobby! Good ones only please. I am glad to read you, but this video... next time a beautiful girl ok?
Than you
Gian Nicola

Bobby Owsinski said...

Sorry you didn't like this, Gian. But it was meant as a teaching moment more than for amusement.

Gian Nicola Beraldo said...

I know it Bobby, thank you for your reply. Fifteen years ago I saw some videos that were showing animals, meat, and what usually happen in slaughterhouse. So much violence, but I carried on eating meat. Two years ago I discovered how good is food cooked in the right way without meat, and since then I stopped eating animal. I think it's important "illuminate the light", and the shadow will disappear consequently.
Thank You
Gian Nicola

Brad said...

How could the guys in the band NOT have known that the guitar player couldn't play? LOL I'm almost positive that these guys hade never rehearsed with this guitar player. If they had heard him play before they would have known he couldn't play a simple scale. When it came time to solo, he didnt have a clue as to play ANY kind of scale. LOL

Maybe they picked him out of the audience after the bands regular guitar player passed out drunk before the gig?

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