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Brilliant but unreliable guitar player, looking for work…

In: Rocking in the free world Wednesday Mar 26,2008

guitar player under stage lights After watching some of those giants of music behaving totally unpredictable and missing concerts when everybody was expecting them on stage (as an example I had the happening with the lead singer of Velvet Revolver skipping a show when the others were there) my mind jumped to some rehearsals when we were waiting on our drummer and he was not coming.

Calling him at home, his sister tells us he’s sleeping. Well, wake him up!!! She comes back 1 min later to tell us that he said he won’t come! He is tired! Fuck! At least warn us before we come here!

Well, this is a little example where no money were involved, we had nothing to lose than our time cause without the drummer you can’t do much, if you think about it. However, when money are involved it is an other thing. So I was wondering what would come first? (to stick to the subject, I speak about guitar players):

a guitar player that is just unbelievably creative and a technical monster but (as it happens in most of the cases with gifted people) thinks too high of himself and is not reliable in terms of respecting appointments, shows, etc
or a reliable guitar player, not the best in the world but somebody to count on?

Don’t rush yourself to judge, saying that such “unreliable” person would die soon, artistically or socially speaking! Not quite! Think of all the musicians who went up on stage stoned, drunk (see recent events with Eddie Van Halen), think of Axl Rose leaving the scene in the past or not coming to shows, think of Nirvana bass player who is said to have been awaken just before some shows from all the alcohol he drank, etc…

However, in artistic environments, I think that the individual value of an artist is highly appreciated and if you look around, people, managers, everybody around “stars” tolerate some degree of “rebelliousness” if what they receive has a great value in terms of artistic production.

So, how much would you tolerate/accept and where’s your boiling point where you just say stop, up to here, no more? Would such a guitar player be looking for work or his artistic genius will always keep him popular and asked for on long term?

What’s your take on that?

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15 Responses to “Brilliant but unreliable guitar player, looking for work…”

Alan
March 26th, 2008 at 11:55 am

There’s no point being great if nobody gets to see you being great. There’s a video on the internet of a really bad performance by Michael Schenker from last year. You can have played better by choosing notes at random. From a previous incarnation of MSG, Graham Bonnet is reputed to have had his fair share of onstage incidents as well and was quickly replaced.

If a band member continues to let a band down, then the band should be thinking about letting them go. I’ve always thought that a band sounds as bad as the worst band member, tempered somewhat by the fact that people tend to watch the singer and possibly the lead guitarist more, so if they’re bad, then it’s really bad.

I’ve been in bands where one member stops performing or reaches a plateau well before everyone else. Usually we’ve had discussions about it, with and without that band member and then decided what to do. On one occasion, I think we just stopped inviting him. To this day, I don’t know which is the better way of releasing someone from a band. It’s also different when there’s money and kit involved.

And to give you an idea from being the non-reliable person - don’t think I’ve ever been late or forgotten a rehearsal so I can’t talk about that - I played a gig over 10 years ago where I was drunk. It’s the only gig where I’ve been like that. It was a relaxed, charity event and was good-natured (fortunately). At the end of the set, I said to the drummer “wow, we did a really good version of song X”. His deadpan response was “we didn’t play that song”. I remember playing it so what were they playing?

Taught me a lesson, since then I don’t drink anywhere near a gig and I play better for it.

Alan
Ovidiu
March 26th, 2008 at 12:16 pm

Ha, ha! That’s the funniest experience I have heard, “we didn’t play that song”

Alan, you were probably so far away…
But well, in some cases, there are contracts between band members so letting someone go may not be that easy. I don’t remember what exactly happened to the Bon Jovi bass player in the past , why did they let him go? I think that he couldn’t keep up with the evolution of the band…
Dr. J
March 26th, 2008 at 2:13 pm

When I contracted a bass player last year, he managed to attend all the shows until the last one; –he was too scared to face me and the rest of the group and tell me he wasn’t coming. So he sent this 19 y/o “kid” to sub for him and I hurriedly spent 90 minutes before the show going over the book with him. Well, he did a magnificent job and his name is on my list while the other bass player’s name is crossed out. I wish I had a test I could administer that told me if a person was going to be reliable or not! Let’s face it; responsible players get good referrals and build a supportive network while the amateurs who skip out on gigs will always be sorted out of the pack and discarded.
Ovidiu
March 26th, 2008 at 2:23 pm

Well, sooner or later, you’re right, they’ll be out. I also have a story, at the wedding of a friend who’s the bass player in my band, a person that we used to know very well, drummer, offered to play with his band(him + 3 other people).

He was hired, accepted a first payment and then at the wedding, the drums came and the 3 other people. Where’s..C? Well, C isn’t coming, didn’t he tell you? WHAT?!! NO! Well, he is in holiday with his wife! YES, BUT I HAVE AN AGREEMENT WITH HIM TO BE HERE TODAY!Well…he ain’t coming! I can not tell you what this started since then because wedding is an important event and you can’t mess with this.

He forgot he has an appointment, he made the arrangement, took the money and went to holidays and sent 3 people to play as a last resort, people that IMO never played before as a group…
I need a new word! | ControlRoom - Mixin' it with Dr. J
March 26th, 2008 at 2:40 pm

[…] and do their best even when they’re deathly ill, tired, or troubled in other ways. Over at GuitarFlame, they’re talking about performers who don’t show up at gigs, rehearsals, etc… and […]
Pribek
March 26th, 2008 at 3:44 pm

It’s easier to turn a good guy into a good player than it is to turn a great player, who is also a jerk, into a good guy.
Woodshed
March 26th, 2008 at 5:05 pm

I think the post and comments prove one thing: it’s worth having one unreliable member just for the anecdotes. My favourite story is Axl Rose’s excuse for turning up 5 hours late for a gig: “I was taking a shower.”
Ovidiu
March 26th, 2008 at 5:18 pm

Good point, Jack, I think on the jerk you can not rely no matter what so better go with the good guy.

@Woordshed: I didn’t know that one, but I think it’s pathetic.
axlfuckinrose
March 26th, 2008 at 10:09 pm

axl rose is god but alin(thedrummer) is not … i am sorry, i didn’t want to remember this shit.
Sammy
March 26th, 2008 at 10:11 pm

I’ll take a decent but reliable guitarist who can write before a virtuoso anyday! I’ve had the virtuoso and every damn song turned into an excuse to feature the solo. Oh, and the virtuoso was unreliable and uncreative beyond the solo.
Ovidiu
March 26th, 2008 at 10:41 pm

Axl is no God, Costin, Axl is a rock lead singer that was well marketed in a band that had the right songs at the right moment and was managed by the right people. Axl is no God, if you look at the fact that he managed to do quite nothing 10 years after Guns’N Roses broke up. More than that, I think he has some big personality issues that money and fame only made them worse.
Sorry, I love Guns’N Roses, I started to listen rock music due to GNR’s Don’t cry and Patience, doe ti Slash’s guitar and Axl voice, but that’s my opinion.

For Sammy, man, I know this situation
Any song is good for soloing, right?
Sammy
March 26th, 2008 at 10:44 pm

Ovidiu, I had a guitarist quit a band because I asked him to cut a 90 second solo down a few seconds - in a 3-minute song. Yeah, the solo was half the song. Had another who thought “solo” meant “show off shred skills and every conceivable pedal at all times”. I finally found an awesome lead player who knows when/how to play the right solo. Yeah, I’ll take reliable songwriters over accomplished shredders ANY day.
Ovidiu
March 26th, 2008 at 10:48 pm

Well, it’s kind of extreme what you say and specific to early 20’s I guess. Also very stubborn, if he didn’t want to cut the solo and actually quit the band? Man, that’s extreme!
I have seen long solos in epic songs, songs of 20 minutes or more, but there it’s explainable and acceptable.
So’ I get your point!
axlfuckinrose
March 28th, 2008 at 8:29 am

well ovidiu i thought you know what I mean.surley it was a metaphora(u know I’m a poet), of course axl is not God. actually he would be lol
Ovidiu
March 28th, 2008 at 11:03 am

I understood, Costi, but I just think that Axl has not a very high value. When you say he’s a God, you actually say that about people that bring a high value into this world of music by themselves. Since Axl is no longer with GNR’s original members, he has done quite nothing. I don’t know, I can’t dig Chinese democracy. I know you like it, though…

Look at Steve Vai for ex, he had a great personality and contribution in every band he’s been into and when going solo, things went better and better. That’s value, IMO.

Brilliant but unreliable guitar player, looking for work…

15 Responses to “Brilliant but unreliable guitar player, looking for work…”

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