Just a frivolous topic brought to mind by a great gig last night--I wonder how everyone else's night went.
I'm playing a couple nights a week in a new club on a nearby lake. It is huge, with seating capacity of maybe 4-500. The audience is very diverse, ranging from early twenties to 70's. Most of the people live around the lake, so many income brackets, lifestyles, etc are represented.
It's very interesting because they can drink as much as they want, and still be very close to home. They don't have to worry about DWI's. Everybody pretty much knows everybody else--it's like a big family.
The common thread is that they do love to have a party, and late in the evening they want some loud, rockin' music.
It has been quite awhile since I was able to really crank up the volume. I have a 1000-watt digital power amp, and it was red-lining most of the night. It's a feeling of real power--everybody dancing to whatever beat you play. They want to feel the bass and sing along with the chorus. Great fun, reminiscent of the old rock-n-roll bands that got a lot of us started.
The arranger let me string medleys together, go quickly between songs, and cater to the requests with no time needed to "call" the song to anyone else in the band or load sequences. Just one button and you go from a rocking "Mustang Sally" to a "Treat Me Like A Fool" and back to "Taking Care of Business".
I was so pumped I forgot to take a break for three hours.
DonM