As The World Tunes
Never Argue With A Fool!
by Steve Bussey
GeoSynchronous Records
There is an old saying, "Never argue with a fool". The problem is that any one who may overhear the argument may not be able to tell which one is the fool! This is great advice for life in general, and especially so for those in the public eye, such as onstage performers in the music business.
Being in a band requires not only a lot of skill and talent in performance, but also a lot of people skills in negotiating, getting along with others, and handling conflicts and stress. And believe me, there are plenty of invitations out there for temper tantrums. But when it is time to take the stage you have to leave it all behind and concentrate on your performance. The audience came to hear you play, and really is not interested in your personal, business, or other problems. So even if the club owner has refused to pay you, the drummer wrecked your car, the singer is a jerk, or whatever, put that aside and play. Don't cop the attitude "I'm not getting paid enough to play great"; the audience does not know what is going on behind the scene, and they will just think you suck. Give it your all on every performance, you never know who may be listening.
If the band members are having a hard time getting along, then you have to learn how to deal with it. You don't have to love each other to play well together. If there is any friction, deal with it offstage. We have all heard stories of famous bands breaking up because they can't get along. We have also heard stories of the same bands reuniting later on when they find out they are better off together than as solo artists (The Eagles, Oasis, and Fleetwood Mac are a few examples).
And the same goes for equipment problems, too. Learn how to play even if you can only hear one other band member. Most of the time the on stage monitoring environment is going to be less than perfect, so get used to it and stop using that as an excuse for a lousy performance. If you can fix it during a break, do it then.
Yes, this is easier said than done. But it took a lot of time and work to learn you instrument, and this will be well worth your effort, at least for those of us in the audience watching and listening!
About the author: Steve Bussey is a singer/songwriter/guitarist and is currently the owner and general manager of GeoSynchronous Records (http://www.pan.com/geosync, Listening Line 800 235 9193, ask for a free catalog), an indie label handling artists such as Les Dudek, Mike Pachelli, Bong Water Taffy, and Big Red & The Bus. Prior to this, Steve earned Bachelor's and Master's degrees in Electrical Engineering and Acoustics from Georgia Tech, designed sound equipment and guitar amps for Fender, and supervised design of communication systems for the Space Shuttle at Kennedy Space Center.
