…I got so tired of pulling up my pants so they didn’t fall off my ass, I bought a belt today. It’s not like I haven’t had one all this time. I had one, all right, until my son stole it from me and moved to SoCal. And, while that might be a funny place to begin talking about the day, I’d like to focus on this January 25th afternoon by writing about music, in particular, cover bands, because tonight I am heading out on the town with friends to see a live performance of The Wanna B-52’s, Candy-O, and the DEVOtees. My friends and I play in a cover band called SuperWave that plays primarily 80’s music; we do some B52’s, we play a Cars tune, and a Devo song, among lots of other things. These bands we’re seeing tonight are a special breed of cover act, they are tribute bands, groups of musicians that have decided to play the covers of only one artist or band. There are a billion of them out there, maybe a dozen or two in this town even. There are some that earn notoriety for being particularly creative or irreverent, like the KISS cover band in which all of the musicians are little people–MiniKiss, I think they’re called, or Hell’s Belles, an all female AC/DC tribute band. It seems that if the musicianship is sound and professional, a little gimmick only helps the group along. So we’ve decided to do a little research and have a little fun by seeing a few of our local tribute bands tonight who happen to be playing music that, for the most part, we grew up loving, some of which we play in our own variety focused cover band. Only one of these bands have I seen before. I saw the Wanna B52’s one other time, and I saw them only as a kind of bonus feature to the band I came to see that night, the R.E.M. tribute band called Rockville. I’m not a huge R.E.M. fan, but I wanted to see a friend of mine play the drums. At any rate, I liked the Wanna B52’s a great deal. They were campy, pretty authentic (down to the beaufont wigs), and all of them could really play and sing.
I really haven’t seen very many tribute bands play live. Up to this point, I hadn’t really been interested. It’s fair to say that up until I started playing in one about seven or eight years ago, I had no interest in cover bands, period. I kind of turned up my nose at them. I was a bit of a snob who believed that real musicians played their own music, or at least they supported songwriters or bandmates that were playing their own music. I played exclusively original music from the moment I graduated from the garage until I was in my 50’s. And I was even critical of music listeners who preferred cover bands to musicians playing their own music. Still–to this day–I wish more people supported their local independent original songwriters and bands. But I no longer make fun of them for liking a good cover band, and I no longer look down on musicians who play covers exclusively. In part, this is because I am now one of those musicians. I have kept up my chops. I have played more drums in the last decade than I have in the two preceding decades. I’ve made some money. And I’ve made some new good friends. All to the good.
I’m thinking about what it would be like, how it would be different, better or worse, to be in a tribute band as opposed to a variety band. My guess is that a straight cover band is gonna get more gigs, simply because of the diversified set list, you know, something for everybody. But the tribute band might get better gigs, in that the audience, one would guess, is going to be more committed. They know exactly what they’re looking for, and if the tribute band is a good one, they’re going to have a great time basking in their nostalgia and reverential worship of this particular artist’s repertoire. I’m guessing that a tribute band’s fans are a little more rabid and enthusiastic. From a musician’s point of view, I’d think that you would really have to be all in; you’d have to sincerely love the music that you’re playing, otherwise, the experience might be torturous. Unless the earnings were stupendously good. Then, I imagine, a musician’s personal aesthetics might easily take a back seat. But also, from a musician’s point of view, being in a tribute band might be more fun, more of a spectacle, kind of like an acting job.
The jury is out. I can’t answer this question from experience, only from speculation. All I know is, that right now, I’m really looking forward to seeing all three of these bands, maybe in a way that I would not be as excited about seeing any other straight up variety cover band. All three of these bands in tribute tonight had a pretty significant impact on my young preteen brain. They all contributed mightily to what would become my key musical sensibilities. I’m stoked to see them–maybe not as stoked as I was to see Arooj Aftab, or as stoked as I would be to see the original bands play their own stuff–but nevertheless, I am stoked. Beggars can’t be choosers. But choosey Mothers choose Jiff.
michael jarmer 