Well tomorrow evening my band has been booked to play for the Dallas Cowboys Training Camp Kick Off Party in Oxnard CA. We have to move the gear to side stage in the afternoon while the cheerleaders put on their show on the stage. We then get to setup but then have to wait for the Cowboys practice to finish at 7PM when we play a straight 2 hour set. We aren't allowed to make a sound while they practice.

All the same it should be a fun gig and a good place to get attention as ESPN and a lot of press will be there. They looked at our set list and their only request was that we DON'T play Mustang Sally. I guess they must have something against that song. It's the first time we've had a request from a client to not play a particular song.

Nigel,

Congratulations on what sounds like a great gig. Please take LOTS of photos of the cheerleaders :-)

We frequently get requests not to play certain songs, especially at weddings where the bride and groom do NOT want typical chicken dance and cotton eyed joe stuff.

Let us know how it goes!!!


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Al Giordano
www.al-giordano.com

Tyros 2, Yamaha P-250, Korg Triton Extreme 76, Roland VK8-M, DW Collectors Series Drums

Sweet! Nice gig Yeah, please feel free to include "many" pictures of those cheerleaders.

Squeak

Nigel .... sounds great, man .... hope to see some live video ... of the BAND, of course ...
t.

We didn't get a chance to take photos of the cheerleaders as we were hauling gear to the stage in the heat while they were on stage for a brief 15 minutes. Here are the official Dallas Cowboys pictures from the event http://dallascowboys.com/camp_photos_2006.cfm . Needless to say my band isn't included.



We followed the cheerleaders and Cowboys training practice. Most of the crowd moved out after practice finished but some stayed around to watch the band. Who'd have guessed we wouldn't be the main attraction lol We started the set with "The Boys Are Back In Town" by Thin Lizzy which we figured was appropriate for the Cowboys moving back to Oxnard for training in 2006.


[This message has been edited by Nigel (edited 07-30-2006).]

Nigel,

I hear ya man. I've played a lot of gigs where we were so stoked about playing with a top notch act and were disappointed they weren't there to see us!

Nevertheless, it's great exposure and just being on the same headline is a great thing to have on the resume. How the heck did you keep your concentration with all those pretty women around?

I played a gig yesterday (7/30) in 93 degree heat and I think I perspired my entire body weight. I got home and jumped in the pool and I think my body acted like a sponge, because the water level of the pool actually went down when I got out!

Anyways, hope you keep getting great gigs like that!

Regards,
Al

[This message has been edited by kbrkr (edited 07-31-2006).]

...... no pics of the BAND ?!?!? ... I hate the cowgurls even more...
NY GIANTS fan,
t.

There were some pictures and video taken by some friends of the band but I haven't seen them yet. I will post some when I get them.

Boy was it hot there though. I sweated gallons just getting all the gear up onto the stage. The Cowboys should have felt right at home in the blistering heat. I bet they were sweating as well practicing in uniforms.

Nigel....I want to know how you were able to concentrate on what you were playing??
Now...That's....a fun gig !!

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...shboom

[This message has been edited by shboom (edited 07-31-2006).]

Even though it was a pity the cheerleaders all went straight back to the hotel after their appearance, it was probably much better for our concentration that they weren't around to distract us when we started playing. I'm sure the band would have made mistakes if we were able to see them as we performed.

The Dallas Cowboys officials that hired us were very happy with the way it went off anyway so hopefully they will use us again for similar events. Besides, it's a nice gig to have on the band's resume. Plus they pay very well like those sort of corporate gigs do. I hope it opens the door to more of those types of jobs. It was a nice change from playing in the corner of local bars like we usually do. We are back in Las Vegas at Ballys in October playing a corporate party so that is the next one I am looking forward to. Getting paid to go to Vegas with a suite provided is always a buzz. Though I somehow think most of the money I make will stay in Vegas.


[This message has been edited by Nigel (edited 07-31-2006).]

..... along with everything ELSE that happens there...
t.

COOOOOOOOOL !!!!!!
t.

..... but since you guys seem to travel so much, I think a sign with the name of the band and your home town would be in order ...
t.

[This message has been edited by tony mads usa (edited 08-02-2006).]

Actually we weren't allowed to. We asked but the Cowboys official organizing the event said "No!". We usually do hang a banner with the band name behind us. Though Oxnard is one of the places we play regularly. We did a gig in a bar there the night before just a few miles down the road. It was the Cowboys that were a long way from home, not us. They just have their training camp here in Southern California.

Apart from the occasional corporate gigs in Las Vegas, San Diego and Big Bear we pretty much restrict our working area to Ventura and LA Counties.


[This message has been edited by Nigel (edited 08-02-2006).]

Nigel ... is that gear all your band's? ... did they have a 'main' PA system set up? ... do you have a front sound guy? ... how do you guys travel to a gig? ...
"Inquiring minds want to know"
t.

They just had a small PA setup for announcements and music during the Cowgirls appearance. That is the small Yamaha box on a pole you can see at the back edge of the stage but we didn't bother trying to use that. All the rest of the stuff is ours. And that also includes about 10 lights we drag around with us in case there is no good house lighting.

We all travel in our own vehicles and carry our own gear. Three members have SUVs, one has a pickup and I cram all my stuff into a Camaro Z28 ( my stuff is guitar amp, powered PA cabinet for keyboard, Motif 6, keyboard stand, 2 electric guitars plus cables, pedals etc ). People are amazed when they see me pull all that stuff out of a Camaro. It's just good that I can lay the back seat down flat so I can use then entire back of the car for loading everything into.

And no we don't have a front sound guy though we wish we could afford that, but we can't. The singer and bass player are using wireless setups so they go out front when we do a sound check and try and set things to suit the room. We have the Roland V-Drums going through the PA and some reinforcement of the 2 guitars. Of course we all have our own on stage amp systems including a sub woofer on the electronic drum kit. Bass and keyboard are just using onstage amplification.


[This message has been edited by Nigel (edited 08-04-2006).]

... WOW .... while I really miss playing with a band, I don't miss the need to lug all that gear ...
... thnx for the info ...
t.