Gig wear

Subject: RE: Gig wear
From: Juan P-B
Date: 23 Sep 04 - 05:45 AM

When it comes to sartorial stage elegance I always find that you can't beat the open-toed flannel trousers and a bowler hat with long sleeves

Juan

Subject: RE: Gig wear
From: Rapparee
Date: 23 Sep 04 - 09:19 AM

Thong underwear, support hose, ski boots, and a cowboy hat.







I don't get many gigs....

Subject: RE: Gig wear
From: Roger the Skiffler
Date: 23 Sep 04 - 09:40 AM

DOH!
I've just seen another RtS CRS Boo-Boo. The tailor in Brum in the '50s was Zissmans! Zellers did our double glazing in Stanmore in 1970s! (and very good they were,too, not like A****n Windows....). I'm definitely a few camels short of a caravan these days!

RtS

Subject: RE: Gig wear
From: GUEST
Date: 23 Sep 04 - 10:54 AM

Here's a Question for the lot of ye on this one....should a band dress similar?..(not the same, but follow the same concept..)..example...I go with kilt/black tshirt/combat boots/spiked hair...our fiddle player wears the nice "come hither boots" a nice tight skirt, and a ..ummm...very nice top usually..hehehe.....but our guitarist goes with shoes, a pair of slacks, and usually some sort of button up shirt....does this jive or should he go for more of the same wave as the rest of us???...thoughts????.....Slainte!

Subject: RE: Gig wear
From: TS
Date: 23 Sep 04 - 11:01 AM

dammit..that last post was me...stupid computer..grrrr.....Slainte!

Subject: RE: Gig wear
From: GUEST,ClaireBear
Date: 23 Sep 04 - 11:23 AM

The most visually memorable band concert I ever attended was Malicorne's visit to San Francisco. This would've been, oh, 22 years ago or so. There was no uniform STYLE of dress -- everything from full ethnic garb to muscle tee-shirts was on stage that night -- but there was a unifying color: everything they wore was white.

It was very effective. And the concert was utterly memorable.

Subject: RE: Gig wear
From: Chris Green
Date: 23 Sep 04 - 11:31 AM

I used to play in a punk band when I was 16. Our singer was a thalidomide kid with half his arm missing - to which he used to attach a silver hook.

Subject: RE: Gig wear
From: Vixen
Date: 23 Sep 04 - 12:15 PM

Thanks for all the insight, folks! And thanks to Foolstroupe for posting the link to the previous threads. I'm getting the sense that most all of us consider our appearance to be important to our performance, regardless of "genre". I'm also getting a sense that a performer's appearance is important to the audience also.

Fascinating to find out what-all you're wearing to play in these days!

V

Subject: RE: Gig wear
From: Uncle_DaveO
Date: 23 Sep 04 - 01:04 PM

I'm a solo folk-song act. My main approach (although I'm not always, for practical reasons, able to do it) is to wear dark pants, a white or colored but not patterned shirt, either short sleeved or with the sleeves rolled up, and WIDE red suspenders (braces, to you UKers). Playing outdoors, but sometimes indoors too, I wear a somewhat floppy cloth hat that I have. Shoes? Well, I guess anything except dress shoes.

Dave Oesterreich

Subject: RE: Gig wear
From: M.Ted
Date: 23 Sep 04 - 03:13 PM

When you need to be the center of attention, it really helps to wear something quirky, big, bright, and fun--I used to tell people that I dressed so I could be easily spotted from the air--

A number of years ago, when I didn't know any better,I used to take my old Gibson ES-295 to those Tuesday night Jazz Jams where fifty musicians hang around waiting for the chance to play three choruses with the band. As dumb as it sounds, I would wear sunglasses, and a bright yellow silk shirt with large black polka dots so people would recognize me--I got a lot of compliments afterwards, while people who played better didn't, because once they were off the stage, no one recognized them--

Subject: RE: Gig wear
From: The Fooles Troupe
Date: 24 Sep 04 - 09:42 AM

I'd say, Vixen, after much cogitation, and allowing the others to rush in first, that the most likely thing to wear on a gig would be the axles, so lubricate them very well with lard.

Subject: RE: Gig wear
From: Vixen
Date: 29 Sep 04 - 11:29 AM

Aye, indeed, Foolestroupe. *Bearing* that in mind, I'll be sure to drape my *chassis* in *gear* that won't *shock* the audience!

V (holding her nose and running for cover)

Subject: RE: Gig wear
From: PoppaGator
Date: 29 Sep 04 - 07:18 PM

Guys -- what's with the hats? It seems to me that many "member photos" of male folkies in performance feature headgear. A distinctive topper probably *is* a way of making oneself stand out.

Of course, I was always taught that a gentleman never wears a hat indoors. And I know of at least one barroom, notable for its "redneck" clientele, where men *must* uncover their heads before entering, because (this is a quote, I'm not making this up), "Hats starts fights."

And yes, the bouncer in question was very clear in his pronunciation of that ungrammatical phrase, insofar as he left a long, significant pause after the first word:

"Hats
[deep breath/lifted eyebrow]
Starts Fights."

Subject: RE: Gig wear
From: Blissfully Ignorant
Date: 29 Sep 04 - 07:55 PM

It depends on how i'm feeling- i might plan to wear something utterly outrageous, but usually resort to something i can hide in, or maybe just add a pair of sunglasses (i can't see them , they can't see me, i can't see them, they can't see me!). I probably shouldn't do that, but hey, i like to let my songs do the talking for me, not my appearance, which leaves a lot to be desired however i dress it up! Seriously, i think small children, when they see me in the street, say 'mummy, what happened to that ladys face?':)
So i usually wear jeans, a t-shirt, a shirt over it, and trainers. It confuses people when they see someone dressed like Kurt Cobain who sings folk, and i like to screw with pre-conceptions at any given oppertunity. And this way i don't feel like mutton dressed as lamb!

Subject: RE: Gig wear
From: The Fooles Troupe
Date: 30 Sep 04 - 01:17 AM

I find that I often need to wear some sort of eyeshade (even in the audience) because of the lighting angle from mainly overhead lights - a baseball style cap or even just a cap with a brim does the trick... The contact lenses seem to get upset sometimes.

I've *absorbed* that, Vixen... :-)

Robin

Subject: RE: Gig wear
From: Roger the Skiffler
Date: 30 Sep 04 - 04:15 AM

Tuesday night I saw a band called Blues Express (not very bluesy: Beatles, Kinks & Wilson Picket numbers included-I left at the interval, reducing the audience to 8!). The singer wore a black tux, white shirt without a tie and a headscarf (he'd probably call it a bandana but it always reminds me of my ma & her generation doing the housework!).
I've noticed in pop/rock bands there is usually one member (lead singer or guitarist) who feels the cold, and however sweaty the venue needs to wear a parka or anorak and woolly hat. Conversly, another member, usually the drummer, can't stand the heat, so wears shorts and plays bare-chested or in a singlet. This summer I saw a couple of bands where the drummer actually had a fan mounted on his rig while the singer asked for the floor-mounted fan facing the stage to be turned off.

RtS
(still mostly wearing black)

Subject: RE: Gig wear
From: Steve Parkes
Date: 30 Sep 04 - 05:19 AM

Roger, amateur drummers get very hot because they bash the drums so hard. Your anorak, on the other hand, is probably a drug addict, embarassed by the needle tracks in their arms. As for fans ... Ithink we can all think of appropriate comments!

Steve
(also inblack, apart from the grey dust on the shoulders!)

Subject: RE: Gig wear
From: twoeyes
Date: 27 Jan 05 - 07:44 PM

As usual my wife says she hasn't got a thing to wear and she's doing a gig tommorrow. Help me out guys. Thing is its in quite a big venue and she's the only folk act. Should she wear something more formal/glitzy (others are doing jazz, dancing, comedy) or go with a folky top that relates to the fundraiser its for? She wants to wear big boots and cords with it.

What do you think?

URGENT HELP!

Subject: RE: Gig wear
From: GUEST,folk trousers
Date: 27 Jan 05 - 11:56 PM

http://www.mudcat.org/thread.cfm?threadid=75552&messages=47

Subject: RE: Gig wear
From: GUEST
Date: 28 Jan 05 - 04:06 AM

When I perform I wera a condom as it safer.

Subject: RE: Gig wear
From: GUEST
Date: 28 Jan 05 - 04:07 AM

oops not a bs listing. sorry

Subject: RE: Gig wear
From: Don(Wyziwyg)T
Date: 28 Jan 05 - 06:16 AM

I wear slacks, short sleeved shirts, trainers or similar, and the ubiquitous waistcoat for the same reasons as above (unpatterned fabric in a colour to suit the rest).

I try to ensure that I look fairly smart out of respect for the people I am trying to entertain.

Bottom line:- Neat, clean, professional. This makes me feel comfortable, which may enhance my performance.

Don T

Subject: RE: Gig wear
From: Vixen
Date: 28 Jan 05 - 09:23 AM

Dear Two-Eyes--

Let your wife know you hear her anguish. She wants to look her very best for the performance. Let her know she is beautiful regardless of what she wears, that her music is phenomenal no matter how it is clothed. Then, with "big boots and cords" in mind--help her find a top she likes to wear. The other acts will wear what they will, and play what they play, but she should feel confident, comfortable, and stunning on stage!

Just my $0.02, fwiw, your mileage (and hers) may vary!

V (who wears flannel with big boots and cords... when that's the kind of music I'm playing!)

Subject: RE: Gig wear
From: Roger the Skiffler
Date: 28 Jan 05 - 09:38 AM

If I've learned one thing from 34 years of marriage, it is never to criticise what Herself wears or dare to suggest anything clothes-wise. If she does occasionally ask my opinion, she always ignores my suggestion! Probably as well, as I usually look as if I'm dressed by "Man at Milletts".
If she ever sked "Does my bum look big in this?" it's time to feign deafness!

RtS
(devout coward)