[atlantaprog] Re: bandleading 101

great topic phil!  i'd like to add some random thoughts - haven't posted much 
here in a while since lord only broke up, so howdy 
everyone :-).

i'd like to add that people rarely change.  trust your first impressions 
implicity, and don't have expectations from a person that 
run counter to their obvious nature.  remember the frog and the scorpion.   
people are what they are, and they are not going to 
change for you or for your "killer band".

this not only goes for their personalities, but it also goes for their playing 
- if they suck when you meet them, don't expect them 
to get better.  after all, why should they? they've got the gig already.  shoot 
for playing with folks that are better than you, 
this way you will improve.

like phil said, you also need to find people who respect you, both as a person 
and for what your own personal musical vision is. 
someone with the inability to do this is going to be a net loss to work with, 
both on the project as a whole and on one's own 
spirit.

they also need to have respect for what they themselves are trying to do as 
well (i.e. folks who practice and prepare properly for 
performances or rehearsals beforehand, have quality -working- gear that's in 
good condition, etc.).  otherwise their lack of focus 
and commitment can be contagious and you can end up looking like donuts on 
stage.

beware of folks who's nature's dictate that they have to blame someone else for 
every thing bad that happens - not only is this 
indicative of a complete lack of respect for their cohorts but it also 
indicates a total lack of maturity and responsibility.  folks 
like that are hard to get along with since they force others around them to 
coddle them, and are never satisfied, regardless of 
accomplishments.  further, they tend to be willing to do very little to improve 
the situation or fix the problem since, after all, 
it's not their fault anyway, is it?  notice, though, that the responsibility 
for the accomplishments and successes will then have to 
be shared - that's when these kinds of folks are willing to take the 
responsibility- when there's accolades to be had.

run the other way.

about the control-freak comment -   if you feel  like you are required to be a 
control freak (and to therefore assume much more of 
the responsibility for the project's success or failure than is your due) to 
accomplish anything, because of your bandmates' 
unwillingness or inability to take responsibility for more than just the bare 
minimum of their own personal bandly duties then you 
are playing with the wrong people.  bail now.

that's not to say that being a benign dictator is a bad thing, it has worked 
for a lot of musicians in the past. just make sure the 
musicians you are playing with understand and agree with the fact that that's 
the way things are.  if the band starts out as an 
equal  partnership and then one person starts getting shackled with all the 
work, and gets blamed for all the failures, that's a bad 
situation.

on phil's point about communication, i'd only like to expound on this one by 
saying that there's a huge difference between 
communication and gossiping.  nothing can ruin a friendship or a band quicker 
than mary whining to peter about paul.  paul's going 
to end up hating both of them.   again it goes back to responsibility and 
maturity.  it takes a lot of maturity to look someone in 
the eye and say, calmly, "i don't like what you're doing and this is why, so 
what can we do together to rectify this?".  it's common 
in the workplace, but it's almost unheard of in bands.

on the point about having a life...

professional musicians live their music, as much as anyone lives their job.  i 
don't see what's "scary" about that.

i'd rather work with a 2 dimensional musician-only kind of person than someone 
who's idea of extracurricular activities involve 
something with potentially detrimental effects in the long term to themselves 
and to you by proxy.

here too, be sure to look for people who are serious about what they are doing, 
and put the music -first-, not as just one of many 
activities, when its time to do the music.  folks who come to rehearsal ready 
to bullshit about politics or religion or some other 
useless topic don't have the right priorities and aren't going to accomplish 
much.  it's either a band or a social club.  i haven't 
heard of too many social clubs that gig successfully.

the folks that i've been working with lately are pros, and it's been both 
exhilerating and challenging to adjust to their level. 
they are friends, sure - we get along great, we have a good amount of stuff in 
common, and we have a great respect for each other's 
differences, but the reason we work together is to make music.  it's not a 
priority that we all agreed to have, it was something 
that was there before we even met each other.  the genetic imperative to make 
music is what drew us together.  that's the kind of 
people i want to work with.

there has to be that commitment there or else it will never rise above the 
level of stamp collecting, imo.  it's the difference 
between a group of drinking buddies getting together every sunday to watch the 
game and the team on the field.  the drinking buddies 
may go out and toss the football sometimes, and the guys on the team may watch 
sports together, but the difference lies in the 
priorities.

________________________________
john turner - Atlanta, GA

Endorsements : Conklin Guitars, SIT Strings
Check out http://www.talkbass.com

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