Your touring Horror Stories

Dave_Vader

As some of you know, I wrote a book about a covers band a few years back that featured some gigging horror stories lifted straight from the pages of this and other forums.

Sad to say, I had an idea for a sequel, and it's now taking form. I need to steal more stories, but this time, from tour buses, hotels, backs of vans and the service stations of this great country's motorways.

I promise to credit the original posters this time, rather than nicking their ideas and claiming them as my own, and would very much like it if you could share the worst/best/funniest things that have happened to you on tour.

Thanks very much, and the more cringe-making the better.

p90fool

Touring can feel like a war zone sometimes - a teenager got stabbed in front of the stage at a casino gig we were playing in northern France in the mid 90s, we didn't know he'd died until the police shut us down. 

A couple of weeks later I grabbed a suicidal girl by the wrist as she tried to throw herself off one of the harbour towers in La Rochelle, I happened to be outside having a cigarette between sets and she didn't notice me getting close enough to grab her. Her boyfriend had just dumped her and he was walking away about 80ft below her while she screamed at him. Luckily she was very light.

I'm sure I have some funny stories too, I'll have a think. The best thing about it is the lifelong friendships you can form under pressure. 

Dave_Vader

Flipping heck. I might not use those to be honest, but you never know. 
Good on you for stopping the girl

Roland

Not my tour, but might be useful. I was doing building security for a Focus gig. I spent over an hour at the side door talking to Pierre Van Der Linden (drummer). Thijs and Jan had been arguing all through the tour, culminating in a raging disagreement. They had then gone to a pub to make up over a drink. We didn’t know which pub, whether they would turn up, and if they did whether either would be injured or too drunk to play.

They did turn up, and continued their rivalry by trying to outplay each other. Absolutely blistering gig.

FarleyUK

Had a couple of incidents...

1. On a tour of Belgium (!!!), we left it to the drummer to book the channel tunnel crossing. We arrived on time, only to then be told he'd booked the wrong day. We were put in the 'naughty queue' and had to wait 10 hours before we could cross. We arrived at the venue 30 mins before we were due to start....

2. Playing in the UK (Hemel), we started playing to an empty venue. A random guy comes in, stands by the PA speaker in front of me, and starts jumping..... and promptly loses his balance, knocks the PA speaker over which lands on me and my pedalboard. Managed to catch it all on video as well (posted a thread on here about it too).

3. At the same venue as number 2 - and this made us cancel all gigs there - a massive fight kicked off while we were playing after someone was helping to protect the speakers (after incident in number 2, above). A group of pissed-up women took offence, and lots of screaming, hair pulling, slapping and throwing drinks occured.... also caught on video. Resulted in 12 people being barred, and a mass punch-up going on outside the pub.

Teyeplayer

Drummer with what can only be described as ‘sleep issues’ or in his own words ‘a 36 hour body-clock’. Three weeks into one particular tour he fell asleep half hour before we were due to go onstage...there was NO waking him -believe me we tried it all. 

The lead guitarist who dropped acid just before a gig and then decided to go for a walk. Turned up during the final song of the set, walked on stage, picked up his guitar and played the final note of the song, guitar down and off. Still insists to this day that it’s the best gig the band ever did.