Really Bad Open Mic Experience

[Garrison314]

Originally Posted by Photojeep

I once went to a concert and the country singer Clay Walker was opening for Alan Jackson. He had a hit on the radio at the time and the band was playing the intro when he bounded on stage, strummed along but didn't start singing. He turned to the band and tried to get them to stop with a flourish on the end of a musical phrase but they kept on playing. He went back to the mic, took a couple breaths and sang his hit song. As the audience was applauding very loudly he said kind of quietly into his mic, "It's bad when you forget the words to a song you wrote!" He just needed to remember the first line and then it all seemed to fall into place.

Mistakes happen all the time to professionals too. They just don't make a big deal of them. In this case, either the band didn't see his attempt to end the song or simply didn't want to stop. It was a great show and he did great after a sort of rough beginning.

Best,
PJ

And the audience probably didn't know the difference.

[robrick]

If you fail a lyric, you can always do what John Lennon did, but then again, he was John Lennon and was cool no matter what.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u7e0R75jV8U

[jeanray1113]

My first open mic, in my opinion, was pretty much a disaster. I was almost paralyzed with stage fright, so my hands were shaking, and I'm sure it affected my voice too. I forgot words, notes, all of which I knew well, and I tried to forget the audience was there! A friend told me later I looked like I was in a trance! I somehow stumbled through my set and was just relieved it was over. But, the host and the audience were so kind and gracious. Several encouraged me to come back. And for the past almost three years, I have been a regular. My Playing has improved, I've made awesome friends, and I actually enjoy myself on stage. I still mess up once in a while--everyone does. But when I have a performance I'm less than thrilled with, I can analyze it without judgment or negative self criticism and use it as information to make next time better. And almost always, the next time is better. If I realize I was under prepared, did a song that wasn't quite ready, I can do something about that. Sometimes it's just a matter of having had a stressful week, not enough rest, and we're not quite at the top of our game. Get back out there as soon as you can. It will be better.

[mkitman]

Yeah; if I mess up a number that I'm very familiar & comfortable with, as soon as I get home I take the guitar back out & play it correctly (and with no audience, you know that it just flows effortlessly!).

Nothing proves your competence more than just realizing that it was only a case of the 'jitters'...

[MikeBmusic]

Chalk it up as a 'learning experience'.
There are many types of open mics out there, some good, some not-so-good - for those who have had bad times at some, move on and try a different one.

Some open mic experiences:
Battery die literally in the middle of a song (Taylors get all distorted, lose their volume, too).
Totally forget the lyrics to a sung I've sung for 40 years. (I only bring lyric sheets for songs I've not sung for that long).
Playing guitar accompaniment for a singer with a song I had just learned and had 4 pages I had spread out on a table behind me. Sheets 3 & 4 got swapped and I didn't know it until half way through sheet 4 (that should have been sheet 3).
Totally forgetting the chords on a new song I had just learned (and only had the lyrics with me).

You learn to 'just keep going', to make up words if you forget them - or ask the audience for help!

Song choices - no matter how many songs they let you do (some are 2, some are 3, some 5 or 15 minutes), have a few extra ready 'just in case' - someone else might do one of your songs right before you, for example.
In a bar situation, 'happy' fast songs are usually the best unless you think you can get people to sing along on an older 'standard'.

[Charmed Life Picks]

To All: I just say keep your chins up and it will get better. As human beings everything we learn to do is built upon practice and failure. As an infant learning to walk, we fall on our can several thousand times before we take our first steps.

Don't we admire most those who have been rejected and thrown down a thousand times, yet still rise to succeed? Dr. Suess's first book was rejected by something like thirty-seven (37) publishers before acceptance.

It WILL get better if you keep plugging away at it.

scott memmer

[Earl49]

Memory is a funny thing. If I have been working on a song for the last three weeks, I am far more likely to mess it up during the performance. But when someone requests a song I haven't played (or reviewed) in a year or more, that song usually goes flawlessly. I guess it is the difference between sort-term and long-term memory.

[jeepnstein]

It happens. I laid an egg leading in church this weekend. Nobody knew but the rest of the band.

An old standard hymn we've played a million times it seems. So what do I do? Yep, start by playing a rhythm part that probably was a reggae song or some such thing. My singers didn't flinch, they made it fit. Our lead guitarist just tossed his hands up in the air and switched to playing keyboards. I don't know exactly what was going on but the congregation got a kick out of it. As long as they're laughing with me and not at me I'm just fine with it. I did have to promise to not do that again.

The worst playing environment I was ever in was playing a packet show for a charity. There were quite a few "serious" musicians who were desperately clawing their way into the pro ranks. The venue staff was uniformly nasty towards all of us. I still remember the cold dead stare of the sound man as I walked up on stage with a Seagull guitar for a thirty second sound check. He didn't approve of "non-professional" equipment on his stage. I acted like I didn't notice or really care. That guitar sounds better plugged in than about 87% of what passes for "Pro" instruments these days. A few shows later there and I was friends with the sound man because I told him on that first night that I trusted his ears.

The key is to never let them see you sweat.

[6L6]

When the audience is primarily other performers, remember that most of them are worrying about how THEY will do, not how YOU are performing.

Mistakes, brain farts, etc., are all part of the human experience. Wait until you're 71 like me!

Open Mics are all about having FUN! At our weekly Thursday night O/M at Cameron's Pub & Inn, Half Moon Bay, CA, performers cover the whole gambit of ability. But I guarantee you that the poorest performer will get just as big a round of applause as the best performer!

Think FUN! Here's a couple pics from one of our O/M's:

[Kalani]

Yes, we all experience this. Just try to enjoy the performance as much as possible---it will show in your playing. The trying times make us stronger and better players!

[C.F. Angee]

I got back on the horse, my friends. I picked solid gold standbys and nailed it.

Back. On. The. Horse.

[Kalani]

Yes! Now we're talkin! You just rose to another level!

[Jambrose]

Twice, like 8 years apart but I remember like yesterday.
Had to get back on the horse!

[C.F. Angee]

Originally Posted by Kalani

Yes! Now we're talkin! You just rose to another level!

Thank you, sir. It really felt good.

[Goat Mick]

Originally Posted by C.F. Angee

I got back on the horse, my friends. I picked solid gold standbys and nailed it.

Back. On. The. Horse.

There you go!! Remember this...EVERY performance comes down to song selection. Always keep that solid gold stuff in your back pocket because they can turn a disaster into slam dunk.