BOOKING THE GIG.

1. The Club and Club Owner
   a. The reputation of the group
   b. The tape and press kit
   c. Your sales pitch
   d. Professional attitude and personality
   e. Timing
   f. Knowledge/Understanding
   g. Patience

2. Your First Bookings
   a. Appoint one person
   b. Hook up with a local established band
   c. Look for a club in your area
   d. Call the club and inquire
   e. Call back at the time you're instructed

3. The Event
   a. Payment/Date/Time
   b. What are you entitled to?

4. What to Expect from the Club
   a. Pay to Play
   b. No Pay
   c. Percentage of Admission: Redeemed Passes
   d. Percentage of the Admission Price
   e. Set Pay
   f. Set Pay Plus a Percentage Over
   g. The Door

5. Negotiation

THE CLUB & CLUB OWNER

A nightclub, a bar or any small size venue that you are going to call upon is first and foremost a business. The owner is someone who has invested a good deal of money and is working long hours so that after the overhead (bills) is paid, there's some profit left over for themselves. They are probably in the business because they enjoy music, but if music were their only motivation, they would be in some other job listening to the radio while they work. They are in business to make money.

The way clubs make money is by charging admission and/or selling drinks to their clientele. The amount of patrons a club can attract is a result of the type of entertainment and atmosphere the club provides. When a club owner looks to hire a band to perform, the decision on hiring revolves around the entertainment value the band can provide. A band's value is based on (a) How many people will they draw? (b) Will they entertain the regular clientele?, (c) Does the band have a following and are they big drinkers?

Ask any club owner and they will tell you that a great band is one that brings in a big crowd. A band that plays great but doesn't draw anyone is an out of work, great band.
The days of clubs working hard to develop an act are for the most part long gone. Locally, you might find a place that will give you a start on an off night like Sunday or Monday, but it's up to you to bring the crowd. Due to the high cost of rent, insurance, liquor and security just for opening the doors, club owners will not offer you much in the way of pay to just come in and perform for no one.

Many clubs today will put anywhere from 3-6 bands together on a bill to maximize the audience. If each band can draw 25 people, then 6 bands can draw 150 people on the night. Of course it doesn't always work out this way and some bands will draw more than others. But unless you can pack the house on your own, sharing the bill is a fact of life.

There are many different types of clubs, bars etc., and for the sake of this conversation, we need to concentrate on the type of place you will first be looking to play in. Whether you live in a big city or a small town, chances are that you can find a small drinking bar that has at least a 75 person capacity, a small stage, some lights and a small dance floor. This should be a room that aside from a regular clientele of bar flies, younger people go there occasionally to see a band.

The owner of this establishment like every other club no matter what size, is probably inundated with requests from more bands to play than there are available dates. The decisions on who to book are usually based on the following:

The Reputation of the Group

If you are an already established band, the word on the street and through the club circuit on how well you play, or what size crowd you bring, will determine whether you have a good reputation or not. Usually club owners know of each other and due to their competitive nature are always checking who's playing at the other guy's club. If the band has a good reputation they will be preferred by the clubs over a new untested act, especially if they're vying for a booking on the same date.

The Tape and Press kit

These are the two most important marketing tools your band has. They serve as proof of your accomplishments documented in a professional manner for everyone from club owners to the press, all the way up to the record labels. The press kit contains a bio on your group, band photo, press clippings, along with any other vital booking information. This will be accompanied by a demo tape of your music. The club owner looks at this material, listens to the tape and determines whether they want to offer you a gig. If your band is new or has never played in the area before, the club owner takes a very big risk in booking you. The reputation of the club is based on many things including the kind of music it features. Having never seen you before will supersede any guarantee you make as they take a financial gamble by hiring you.

Your Sales Pitch

The fact is, some of the most successful people in the world are salesman. Whether you're selling computers, cars, ideas or yourself, to truly be successful at it, you will need to possess certain communication skills and concepts. Club bookers are very busy people and do not have a great deal of time to look for quality in a band if it is not easily found. Furthermore, due to the vast amount of phone calls club bookers receive it helps if you can offer something that makes you and your group stand out.

To develop an edge so that you can get through the maze of tapes and press kits on their desk you will need to possess the following traits:

Professional Attitude and Personality

First you need to come off like a winner, but without being cocky and arrogant. You are not the first group in the world that writes their own music and you need not try to sell yourself with the line “we're the best band you've ever seen.” Trust me you are not the best band they've ever seen and you never will be if at this stage of the game you already think you are. The club booker has seen and heard it all. Allow them the chance to come to that conclusion on their own. Let your music do the talking.
Allow yourself to take criticism. Club owners are just one of the many people who you will be approaching for help and in turn they will offer their opinion on what you need to do to improve. You should not change yourself with every opinion thrown your way, however, if enough people comment on a particular characteristic of the group, consider its conquest to be the next rung you need to climb on the ladder to success.
Upon calling me, many musicians open with the line “we are so much better than everybody else out there, we just need a break.” When I hear that, I get turned off. My feeling is if you are better than everybody else, the breaks should be and will come. I prefer that you let your music do the talking and not words of bravado. If you feel you are better than everyone else that's great but keep it inside as an inspiration for yourself. A healthy positive attitude is magnetic and it draws people to you.

Timing

They say this is everything but they are only partially right. If you look at most successful people and listen to their story, you'll find out that when they hit it big, yes timing was everything , but you should also realize all the times that they tried and failed. Like a baseball player, the more times you get up to bat the more chances you give yourself to hit the ball. But not every time up at bat will yield a base hit. Eventually if you keep at it you just might get that pitch that you will meet with the perfect swing and boom, it's outta there. So really it's not just timing, it's putting in the time that is everything. When making your calls, don't call one club. Call five clubs. Make it your goal to book at least three shows a week and don't stop until you do. If you call 15 clubs and book five of them, you are batting 300, and that, my friend, will get you in the Hall of Fame.

Knowledge/Understanding

Know your opponent. It's war out there. If you're going into battle without knowing your enemy, then to whom do we send your belongings?

Before you attempt to book a club, try to find out as much about the place as you can even if it means going there at night and hanging out. The worst thing you can do is book yourself into a club that is not right for your music. It will happen sometimes but each time it does, you will learn something from it.

Learn about the booking habits of the owner. Find out what the minimum draw is. If the owner expects bands to draw 100 people at the worst, do not even attempt to contact this place until you are at 75 people.

I keep stressing to you that the people who book and own clubs are inundated with phone calls. Your window of opportunity is 60 seconds on the phone at best. You better know what you're going to say and minimize what you have to ask so you can get right to the point and make your pitch. Unless you can talk your talk and walk your walk, do not dial that dial.

Patience

Last but not least, something all bands need to have is a little bit of patience. You are not going to get booking agents or club owners on the phone the first time you call. Or the second or third. Just keep leaving your name and number and continue to ask when is it a good time to call back.

Do not get frustrated. If after ten calls you don't get a response move on. It's not meant to be. Use your time and energy on your next conquest. Just do not take it personally. These people do not know you! In time when your reputation is stronger you will come back to this club and find yourself pleasantly surprised as to their willingness to work with you.

YOUR FIRST BOOKINGS

Appoint one person in your band to assume the role of making contacts and bookings.

It is important to split up jobs within the group. But it is equally important that the jobs do not cross each other otherwise it will cause conflict. The best choice of individual to assume the role of band booking agent should be the one member that is comfortable on the phone and able to do what it takes to sell the band. It helps to have a likable personality as well as some knowledge of the music business. With that I am not just referring to the way business is conducted but to also know what is going on in the industry as a whole. It would certainly help your conversation skills if you read issues of Billboard magazine, R&R, CMJ, etc.

Hook Up With a Local Established Band

Inquire if they have a local show coming up and if you can be the opening act. This will help break the ice with the club allowing them to see what you've got without a press kit. It also gives you that chance to play in front of audience, and hopefully pick up new fans.

You should have a prepared set that has at least 40 minutes of music. If you consider audience applause and time in between songs, you can possibly push the set to 45 minutes which is the usual time allotment for an opening act.

If the group is willing to let you open up for them do not discuss money at this point. Most bands need every penny they make and they are already doing you the favor by getting you in the door. This is something you can't buy. If you bring up the money there is a good chance you won't get the gig.

Look For A Club In Your Area

If you do not know a band that can help you, this is the way to proceed:

Look for a club, preferably in your home area conveniently located, so that all of your friends can come.

Make sure the admission age is low enough so that it doesn't exclude many of your fans. Don't forget, that for this first show you are going to want to bring in as many people as you can, so that you can begin developing that good reputation.
Make sure that the club features bands so that they are used to loud volume levels. The last thing you need is to be constantly reminded to lower your volume or in a worse case scenario, be told to stop playing altogether.

Call The Club And Inquire

Call the club and inquire as to who does the bookings. Get their name, the club address and the hours in which the booker works. Ask how long after they receive your tape should you call back for booking information. It is not necessary to speak to the club booker at this time. All you will get out of the call is instructions to send your tape and press kit and call back in two weeks. So why waste your time and theirs. First mail in the tape and then ask for the booker. If you live close by you can consider dropping off the tape. For one thing it gives you a chance to step into the venue and see it, especially if this is your first time. If you're lucky, the booker will be there and might even listen to the tape right away. If not, then perhaps the person behind the bar who you will leave the tape with will become a good contact and if you enter into a good conversation that could be an asset to you.

Call Back At The Time You've Been Instructed

It would help if you remember or even jotted down the names of the people you met when you were at the club or spoken to on the phone. If they should answer the phone and you remember their voice and refer to them by name, you will have made a very big impression. Ask to speak to the owner or the person that books the shows. Do not lie or exaggerate the size of your following. Be honest and let them know you are just starting out and would like the chance to open for a more popular group so that you can start adding on to your following. If this is indeed your first show you still should be out telling all your friends, family members and whoever else you can about this event so that you can count on some kind of initial following.

THE EVENT

If the club has received your tape and you are now in conversation to book the show, there are three main points you need to address.

Payment/Date/Time

Thursday, Friday and Saturdays are by far the best nights of the week. Depending on where you are, Sunday might not be so bad (but is usually affected by people having school or work the next day), and Monday and Tuesday are terrible.

If this is your first show, you are somewhat at the mercy of what the club booker offers you. Chances are it's not going to be on a Friday night at 11:00 for $500. It could be a Monday at 7:00 PM or worse at 2:00 AM.

Though you may be able to come up with many reasons why this time slot won't work for you, you need to understand that there is no reason why the booker should offer you anything different. You have no reputation and he has no way of knowing for sure what kind of crowd you will bring so why should he take any chances. Remember the club has to pay its bills. Unless you can supply him with documented proof like a press kit legitimizing your group and describing your drawing power, I'd say take what you are offered. Consider it an audition for the club to get in and impress whoever is there with your ability to turn it on in the face of adversity.

What Are You Entitled To?

As far as pay is concerned, unless you have a reputation and have established a going rate for your band (based on what you've been paid for the past five shows), the deal they offer is the deal you take. Payment is based entirely on how many people you draw and not just for the first show. You will need to prove that you can bring in good business every time you play. Once you prove yourself, you should be getting your area's going rate for bands. The most useful tool you have negotiating your pay is the amount of people you bring through the door. Based upon admission price, times the amount of people, you can estimate how much money the club is making on your crowd.

SAMPLE 1 -
$5.00 admission x 75 people who came to the show = $375 amount made at the door

What are you entitled to?

That will depend entirely on the club policy, your area's going rate and your reputation. If you are asked how much you are looking for, you should take the equation from sample 1 and receive anywhere from 25% -100% of that money. To figure out the percentage use the equation in SAMPLE 2.

SAMPLE 2 -
Gross x percentage = amount or   $375 x 25% = $93.75

Your job will be to negotiate this, based on many factors including: your reputation, club policy and going rate. You will have to because the club will certainly never offer you your value.

WHAT TO EXPECT FROM THE CLUB

Basically the club functions as a room that you are borrowing to put on a show. Don't depend on the owner for anything other than maybe some advertising. It is your job to bring in the crowd.

It is important that you understand this fundamental rule. Although ethically you should be paid every time you play because it is work, you are really working for yourself so who in reality should be paying you? As with any new business starting out you have to develop a clientele. This is usually done through advertising which for any new business can be a costly undertaking. In this case your advertisement is your performance, a pretty cheap way to build clientele if you ask me! Besides, get used to it, throughout your career there are going to be other types of dates where you might play for free like seminars, agent/record company showcases etc. just to gain exposure.

The following are some of the many types of pay structures offered in clubs:

Pay To Play

In this scenario you will be asked at the time of your booking to purchase in advance x amount of tickets from the promoter of the show. This amount ranges from city to city and in NYC where I'm from, it's around $250 - $500. Once you get the tickets it then becomes your responsibility to sell them to fans not the club's. In the case where you purchase 100 tickets for $500 that makes each ticket cost $5. This insures the promoter and the club profit for that night. For you to make profit on the show you will have to raise that cost to let's say $7.00 a ticket.

This is a sleazy way for promoters to do business and I advise you to steer clear of these deals, however as these promoters put it, they are offering you a place to play and an opportunity to make money taking some of the pressure and financial liability off themselves. It definitely gives you some insight into the workings of the business and it puts the pressure on you to succeed. So it's not altogether horrible, but if you can find a reputable promoter who isn't lazy and works to promote the show, you are better off.

No Pay

Sometimes a band needs to play out live to showcase themselves for a club owner or booking agent. Due to the high cost of running a business, a club won't take a risk on paying a band that they have never seen or heard of. Many clubs offer open mic or audition nights on a certain night. You'll get around a half an hour or so to play and the club will see what kind of crowd you bring in and if you're good enough for a pay gig.

I don't often recommend that bands give their show away for nothing but at times under the right circumstances, if you really want to get into a place on a regular basis, this is a very good way to do it.

If you are not going to get paid there are some trade offs you can ask for. The willingness of a booker to concede to some will give you some indication as to the type of club and individual they are:

Ask the owner if the club regularly take ads out in the paper.

If so they can give you some mention in an upcoming ad. This alone is valuable in your press kit.

Try to get some perks out of the club like a guest list.

Try to book a tentative future date at the time of the show.

This way should there be a good crowd happening and they are giving you a good response, you can advertise your return date right there, maximizing the potential draw for the next show.

Percentage Of The Admission Price: Redeemed Passes

Passes are those 4"x 5"postcards used by bands and clubs the world over to advertise the show. They are passed out at clubs, on the street and through the mail giving friends and fans alike information about an event. On the night of the show the club will have someone at the door collecting passes and admission money. At the end of the night the club will then count up all the collected passes and pay you a percentage of the passes with your name on it. Fair deal, right? .......wrong!!!

First, unless your father owns the club or the door man is Mother Theresa, you can't really trust the club to account for every pass redeemed. Imagine over the course of a busy night how easy it is for a doorman to misplace 15 passes and not realize it. Are you going to be the one to accuse this 8-foot gorilla who eats steroids for breakfast and punks like you for lunch, that he purposely threw some away in the garbage? I think not. And if you try to convince the club owner that you drew more people than cards collected and therefore expect them to fork over more money, you will be attempting a kind of surgical procedure that even Dr. Beverly Crusher has not heard of.

You will therefore need to take the following precautions:

Find the biggest, baddest, but level headed friend you can and post them near the doorman.

Have them collect the passes as they are handed off to the doorman. If that isn't permissible they should carry their own counter and check off the amount of people redeeming your passes. Sometimes having this person looming in the background who is not easily intimidated is enough to keep an otherwise dishonest club owner or doorman straight.

Try to be original in the style, color and even size of your postcard.

If you have a disagreement with the owner after the show, you might want to look around the front door area, dance floor or even in the trash for your very recognizable postcards.

Percentage deals are the standard in the club circuit but here are some tips on negotiating them to work in your favor.

To start with, your cut of the passes will usually be around 20% of the admission price. So if the admission is $5 you'll get $1 per card. But what if you draw 200 people? Shouldn't you get a higher percentage than the $1 per ticket? Yes you should. What you need to do here is negotiate an accelerated percentage per amount of people you bring in. So that after let's say you draw 50 people you get 25% and after you bring in 100 people your entitled to 30% and so on. A club should be open to this negotiation at the onset, when you book the gig.

In some areas of the country, admission prices to these shows are somewhat expensive.

And if you're appearing on a bill with other acts chances are you are not going to get a lot of time on the stage. In order to entice some of your fans to come down you might want to work out a deal with the club owner that offers your friends a cheaper admission price. In return you will accept either a slightly lower percentage or what I recommend is a larger draw amount before your percentage goes up. So instead of a $7 cover charge you can offer on your postcard a $5 charge. In return the club will only pay you $1 on your pass or bump you up to 25% after you go over 80 people instead of 50.

What you are hoping to accomplish is showing some business smarts as well as an appreciation for his club. After all, you are trying to draw the most amount of people. The booker might be more interested in getting a true count of what you brought in. You also cost less money and in showing you their appreciation they might be more prone to doing right by you. Keep in mind, many of the clubs have themselves been burned by plenty of bands ripping stuff off from the clubs and defacing their property. You've got to show them some respect before you can expect them to show you some back in return.

Percentage Of The Admission Price

A slightly better deal usually reserved for more reputable bands. The club will pay you at the end of the night a percentage of all the door receipts.

Depending on how many bands appear that night and at what spot your band played in (opening act, middle acts or headliner) will determine what your percentage will be.

So let's take a $5 ticket price and 6 bands. It's three o'clock in the morning and you finally sit down with the booker. Your told that 95 people paid all night to see all the bands. 95 people on a $5 ticket comes out to $475. If you were promised 50% of the gross receipts then you would get 50% of $475 or $237.50.

Set Pay

Some clubs that have a good reputation will usually offer to start a new band at a set price. Usually around $50. If you are just starting out trust me it's decent money and take it. Until you develop a following and begin to make the club money, you have nothing to bargain with. In most cases a club that offers you a starting pay is a club that cares about its acts and will do more to help develop you a following. These types of venues will advertise you in the local papers and if you ask them nicely might give you the names of music reviewers so that you might invite them down to review your band.

Set Pay Plus A Percentage Over

Now you are starting to get in with the club or have a good reputation as a band that draws a big crowd. Let's say the deal is the club will pay you a set salary of $500 plus 50% of the collected door money over 400 people. So, in effect you will get $500 no matter what happens. If the club draws 575 people on an $8 ticket you will get 50% of 175 x 8, (175 being the difference between 575 and 400) or 1/2 of $1400 which equals $700. So now your total pay for the night will be $1200 (your contracted price of $500. plus $700 over). Of course you have to rely on the club's honesty as always but keep in mind that if you are doing the club this much business, they themselves are making good money and will not try to do anything to upset you. The tides do turn as you get more popular and you'll notice the clubs will become like home to you and your fans.

The Door

This very simple arrangement is where your group will supply someone at the front door and he'll collect the admission as it comes in. At the end of the night you keep everything that you collected. You usually get this kind of deal only if you are a fairly popular band with enough of a reputation to demand it and the only band on the bill. It is more common in suburban areas and college towns than in bigger cities where there is more of a tendency for the clubs to do the door themselves and give you a percentage.

There are many other deals that will incorporate a little of each one of these with perhaps a new twist of its own. I know a promoter in Colorado who books a number of popular clubs in the Denver area. For many of the new acts that are booked, their pay (regardless of their draw capacity) is $100. But included with that they get a big ad in the main music newspaper as well as a 1/2 page write up!........ Brilliant!! To me, this is promotional material that in most places, money can't buy. In fact the $100 seems almost a bonus when you consider how valuable the write up and ad is to their press kit.

Of course all good deals are not without some drawbacks and in this example, the promoter only books bands that have their own CD out. They need not be a signed band, just a band that has reached the level of marketing their own merchandise. That as we will see later on in the book is a positive signal in the industry that the band has made it through some of the first stages of development.

NEGOTIATION

What is your recourse in the event that you feel you have been unfairly handled be it pay or otherwise? When it comes to pay you are at a disadvantage especially in the beginning when you have very little performance options and are at the mercy of the club. Each negotiation is unique unto itself. To be successful you must not attempt to outsmart your opponent but rather match wits with a good argument based upon facts and a good sense of business etiquette.

Supposing you go to settle a show that you were promised 50% of the gross door receipts. From the stage you can see the 350 capacity room is so packed that the line by the door needs to be manned by two bouncers instead of the usual one. As you now sit in the office watching the clock turn 3:00 AM, waiting to get paid, the booker enters and after offering you a drink says you did okay drawing 95 people. Your pay is $235. You stare ahead wondering which one of their two heads you should address.

Instead of hitting the roof, inquire how that is possible when the club was obviously filled to capacity. The booker will no doubt combat that with all kinds of excuses ranging from half those people were regular customers and do not pay, to you must be blind and don't tell me how many people were in my club. What you must keep in mind is that if you honestly drew a huge crowd, the booker would be a fool to piss you off to the point where you vowed to never perform there again. So with an armful of confidence you can offer this possibility.

There are other clubs in town that would appreciate your 300 fans and if there is no way to settle with you then you will happily play for the competition. A fool would end the conversation here so they will respond one of two ways. If your bluff is called you know what you have to do. If on the other hand you're asked what you think is fair, let me offer you one solution.

You were offered payment on 95 people and you feel that club maxed out at 350. Offer to split this down the middle and have him pay you the percentage on 222 people which is roughly the difference. You arrive at the difference by adding 95 + 350 then dividing the total in half.

The booker's reaction may be positive or they may come back to you with an offer which might end up being another split down the middle. The argument might be that x amount of dollars was spent on advertising and there is no way that you drew that many people. Explain that you also spent x amount on advertising. Proceed to show the mailing list pages from the night with the multitudes of signatures to drive your point home.

What you are hoping to achieve here is much more than financial. Let's face it, neither of you can really prove how many people came in through the door unless there were tickets sold and the show sold out in advance.

In a courteous tone you want to establish that you are not to be jerked around and that you are not a fool but rather someone who is taking care of their business. In the end you will get more respect from the club, keeping them honest in the future. The final result of this negotiation should put a bit more money in your pocket, raise some respect for you and hopefully culminate in a better arranged deal for the next show you perform there.

I want to point out that although this may happen from time to time there are many very reputable clubs where it is a pleasure to play at and where the bands are treated very fairly.

As far as the many other circumstances that bands find themselves disadvantaged by, the same level headed techniques need to be assimilated. Always direct your problem to the person directly responsible for correcting it. Yelling at the bartender because you are being denied drink passes is not proper procedure. As you will see later in this chapter and chapter 6, there are methods to booking a show, documenting and confirming all the things you discussed with the booker on the phone so that you are in less risk when you arrive at the club.

Peace
Bluezman

Hope this helps youngsters keep on rockin