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BS: Curious gigs
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Subject: Curious gigs From: Sarah the flute Date: 11 Sep 01 - 03:40 AM Over the summer the agent rang me up and said.... You play the whistle would you like to play whistle for an hour at a private party in London I said Ok and agreed a sum of cash Then found out it was for a Lady Williamson in Berkely Square Her husband was of Irish origin and they were having some guests from India to dinner.... so they wanted..... An Irish snake charmer!!! There I was for an hour in this grand entrance hall playing to a load of rubber snakes in a laundry basket Does it get more surreal than this ever??? |
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Subject: RE: BS: Curious gigs From: Aidan Crossey Date: 11 Sep 01 - 03:57 AM Hope you got well paid for it! Sounds to me like there was a bit of (at best) dubious stereotyping going on affecting at least two nationalities. I don't know if I'd describe the scene as surreal so much as offensive. Still (and here I'll indulge in some stereotyping of my own!), trust the toffs to have bugger all in the way of imagination. Hope the Flying Chaucers are going strong and the sessions in and around Catford ... what's the news on THe Blythe Hill Tavern get-togethers? Slán go foill |
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Subject: RE: BS: Curious gigs From: Clinton Hammond Date: 11 Sep 01 - 04:01 AM I actually played a wake for a guy named Timothy Finnegan... With him in the room... I wasn't gonna play 'his' song until his widow requested it... That was pretty freaky... |
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Subject: RE: BS: Curious gigs From: John P Date: 11 Sep 01 - 08:57 AM We were once hired to play a "Folk Festival" at The Bon Marche, a local department store. The money was good, so we went for it. We found ourselves set up in the ladies handbag department, playing Euro-trad music with hurdy-gurdy and cittern. Surreal is the right word for it. John |
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Subject: RE: BS: Curious gigs From: Mrrzy Date: 11 Sep 01 - 08:59 AM Clinton, I hate to tell you, but it wouldn't have been a wake if the guest of honor hadn't been present! But I must admit that an Irish snake charmer is pretty funny. Wonder if the Indians minded, obviously the Irishman didn't... |
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Subject: RE: BS: Curious gigs From: Jon Freeman Date: 11 Sep 01 - 09:18 AM Love it Clinton. I trust the corpse didn't get up and speak! Jon |
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Subject: RE: BS: Curious gigs From: SarahC Date: 11 Sep 01 - 02:42 PM Played a ceilidh in a cow byre once. It must have been only just vacated by its previous inmates as there were wet pools of disinfectant on the floor as well as rain streaming through holes in the roof - times like that when a circuit breaker comes in handy. Stank of cow shit for a week! |
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Subject: RE: BS: Curious gigs From: UB Ed Date: 11 Sep 01 - 03:08 PM C'mon Clinton... Performed as one of three acts for a pre-wedding brunch. The bride was of Irish/Polish descent and the groom was Greek. First there was a Polish dance troup, then myself and our fiddle player knocked out three "traditional" Irish songs (except mum insisted on "I'll Take You Home Again, Kathleen", again, in honor of the bride and I know the source) with a Greek solo vocalist for a concluding hymn. Ain't America grand? |
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Subject: RE: BS: Curious gigs From: Phil Cooper Date: 11 Sep 01 - 03:18 PM We played for the receiving line at a wedding reception, for a decent amount of money. Margaret and I were invited to stay for dinner, I felt like one of the three stooges in the buffet line (no pies were thrown). Then, there was the time we were hired to play at an office furniture place at Chicago's Merchandise mart for a Nouveau Boujalais party (forgive potential misspellings). We had to sound vaguely French. I knew about three french tunes on the guitar at the time. Did Irish and Scottish songs otherwise. A woman dressed to the nines kept walking by us and finally asked if she had seen us at the Battleground Old Time Fiddler's Gathering that past summer (talk about preconceptions being turned on their heads). Have learned to ask for more money when they want musical wall paper. |
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Subject: RE: BS: Curious gigs From: Clinton Hammond Date: 11 Sep 01 - 04:14 PM "C'mon Clinton... "??? huh??? I shit you not... |
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Subject: RE: BS: Curious gigs From: Sarah the flute Date: 12 Sep 01 - 03:56 AM Have to admit that the political correctness of the irish snakecharmer gig was somewhat dubious but the money was good - what a sell out The following night we did a Scottish- Vietnamese wedding which was also interesting. The Scots were all true highlanders and kilted and the Vietnamese were very amused and had a brilliant time. Derry, the Chaucers are alive and well after their summer break and we will probably go for a drink at least at the Blyth a week Thurs. STF |
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Subject: RE: BS: Curious gigs From: Les from Hull Date: 12 Sep 01 - 04:14 PM SarahC - I've played that sort of dance too. In a tin shed from the back of a lorry with the cows pushed into one corner and a barbeque going on in another. It was for some cattle breed association, and they were eating the brothers and sisters of the cows we could see! |
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Subject: RE: BS: Curious gigs From: Sorcha Date: 12 Sep 01 - 04:36 PM Several, and they all seem to center around weddings.....the least weird:
Tiny town of about 400, has SummerFest. Boy and girl,(not brother and sister) both "challenged", both orphans; about 20. Basically, the entire Town raised them when the parents were killed. They wanted to get married, so the Town decided it would be the Big Event on Main Street during the SummerFest......at least we got to play the Mendelsshon instead of the Wagner........
Jewish girl marries Presbyterian boy in Methodist Church.....I did a Vivaldi solo for the Mother's Seating (not so weird) but at the Reception mother of the Bride wanted me to serenade the happy couple with ........Klezmer. I played Funder Chuppah.
By far the weirderst: |
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Subject: RE: BS: Curious gigs From: Deckman Date: 12 Sep 01 - 10:34 PM One of the strangest evenings I had was about seven years ago. This particuliar night, I was an observer, rather than a participant. It was so strange that I almost wrote a goofy song about it. The scene: a small mini mart Japanese restaurant. I walked in, ordered something, and sat down at one of four tables. In walked a family of seven, obviously East Indian. Out from the kitchen came the owner of the restaurant, obviously Japanese. He greeted the new customers, obviously old friends. He served them dinner, then brought out his Italian made accordian and played music for them. The tune was Steven Fosters "Old Black Joe!" So here I am, in a Japanese restaurant, watching East Indians customers being seranaded by the Japanese owner, playing "Old Black Joe" on an Italian accordian! ... let's here for the American melting pot! If you're not ALL careful, I'll tell you of some of the goofy places I HAVE played at! CHEERS, Bob |
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Subject: RE: BS: Curious gigs From: alison Date: 12 Sep 01 - 11:40 PM did one a few months back... open air gig for several hundred Malaysians to give them a "taste of Australia".... there were 3 of us playing... our speakers were a few metres in front of us............. and we were singing "Click go the shears".... at which point a stockman (in full "man from snowy river" gear) on his horse sent his cattledog and a small flock of sheep right across in front of us between ouselves and the speakers (followed by himself on his horse)..... very atmospheric....... and the speakers stayed up...... slainte alison |
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Subject: RE: BS: Curious gigs From: Don Firth Date: 13 Sep 01 - 02:01 AM Deckman, that beats the hell out of my tendency to play Scottish bagpipe tunes on a Flamenco guitar. Don Firth |
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Subject: RE: BS: Curious gigs From: SeanM Date: 13 Sep 01 - 04:32 AM On the "melting pot Roulette" track... Local RenFaire band wound up as part of a concert series being put together by the head of one of the faire's performing arts troupes. The other acts ranged from other faire groups through Taiko (sp?) drumming, Polynesian slack key guitar and a few other nationalities thrown in. The venue for all said shows? A Peruvian/Italian restaurant. M |
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Subject: RE: BS: Curious gigs From: GUEST,Whistle and Bagpipes Date: 13 Sep 01 - 07:00 AM The banjo player in my band is also our booking agent and he got us into a small resort in New Hampshire a few years back. What he failed to tell the rest of us was that we would be playing at a "clothing-optional" resort for 2 nights straight. Having an entirely nude audience was realy strange. My girlfriend at the time came along with us not knowing either but really got into the spirit of the place. To my dismay she was front row center in the crowd for both shows well within sight of my bandmates. I wasn't happy about it at the time but you get over it. Gig was too weird ever to accept again though. |
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Subject: RE: BS: Curious gigs From: GUEST Date: 13 Sep 01 - 08:25 PM Weird story dude. |
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Subject: RE: BS: Curious gigs From: Sorcha Date: 13 Sep 01 - 08:57 PM LOL, Whistle and B.......too funny! |
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Subject: RE: BS: Curious gigs From: sophocleese Date: 13 Sep 01 - 09:53 PM Well my husband last Saturday played for what was billed as a medieval feast, apparently around the time of King Henry 8. But he was playing country and western fiddle for it. I wanted to know if he wore Stetson and hose, but he wore Satnfields and doublet. |