"Tribute" acts

FX_Munkee

Bridgehouse said:

bloodandtears said:

Bridgehouse said:

ICBM said:

The pun names are essential - or at least some attempt at humour. Ones like the Australian Pink Floyd are just dull.

(Unless I’m missing a joke of some sort...)

If someone set up a tribute act in tribute to you, would they be Pole Arses or Try Dent?

more like ICBMuk or ICBM-esque

The Australian ICBM?

OYSAYBM?

AlexC

Like any live act I just think it depends on how good they are. As has been said - most live bands are doing other people’s material anyway, so I can’t see it makes much difference. When people start putting on mop top wigs or Freddie moustaches though it does get incredibly naff. Although I’d rather watch a band doing numbers by a band I like than having to endure Sweet Home Alabama, Brown Eyed Girl and Mustang sodding Sally ala most pub bands.

merlin

hywelg

I can (vaguely) remember Free playing a pub gig near me. I can also remember the energy of an early Status Quo gig. You cant get that experience now, but Free At Last are brilliant, as are State of Quo, and the experience of seeing them in a small intimate venue is much better than the remnants of the real bands in huge theatres. 

merlin

I went to see the London Philharmonic Orchestra playing Mahler's 4th Symphony a couple of weeks ago. Bloody brilliant tribute band! 

munckee

I've seen some great tribute acts, silver beatles supporting oasis at earls court, total stone roses, the smyths, the jamm, illegal eagles, brit floyd, took my missus to karen carpenter tribute which was also great.  Nearly all of those are playing stuff you would never otherwise see live.

Bands like the rolling stones I would rather see a group of 20-30 year olds play it with youthful exuberance than the old codgers,

Brit Floyd not far off when I saw roger waters do the wall at the O2

Emp_Fab

EricTheWeary said:
What concerns me is when it becomes the only form of live music you have the option to see - I guess I’d rather that than nothing but some venues seem unprepared to put on anyone now who isn’t a tribute act. 

This is something that bothers me too.  It cannot be correct that there is nothing wrong with tribute acts, because if all live venues only hosted tributes acts, that would kill all new music stone dead.  We'd all be playing the same songs until the rapture!

I get it that if a band isn't touring anymore then it's a great way to hear their music live, but... still....  part of me thinks it stifles creativity.  I'm acutely aware of the hypocrisy of me being in a covers band too !  In that respect, there's little to differentiate between a tribute band and a covers band.  I suppose it's the 'pretending you're actually them' aspect of the tribute act I find weird ! :-)

thermionic

https://www.scotsman.com/lifestyle/couple-mistake-red-hot-chilli-pipers-for-red-hot-chili-peppers-1-4688828

I’ve spent hours on YouTube looking at female AC/DC tribute acts. I don’t know why, but I find it a fascinating cultural phenomenon.

Roland

merlin said:

I went to see the London Philharmonic Orchestra playing Mahler's 4th Symphony a could of weeks ago. Bloody brilliant tribute band! 

I have read that Jagger, Richards and Watts run an excellent Rolling Stones tribute band.

rsvmark

There are a few sweeping generalisations for me.

i play in a 'truly mercenary' covers band. Trust me, for the effort in and cash out, it's absolutely not ready to pay my pension. But we all work, have kids and our own pressures in life. But we absolutely put in every effort to play good music to the highest standard we can. And we enjoy the hell out of it. And so do our audiences.

i would think to play in any tribute, it would be quite hard playing that stuff as 'the artists' would if you weren't totally a fan.

the exception being is if you can make a living at it and it becomes your job.

in my book if you are playing good music, as well as you can, and you have a blast, at any level,  it gets my vote. Money and costumes aren't rally important.

Dominic

I saw the original Abba tribute band ,Bjorn Again,a long time ago ..........they were super fantastic and as good as the real deal.
The production was huge ,........somebody later told me that they make more money Touring than Abba did and I'm sure they said that they're earnings/profits as a band were over £2.5 million a year and that was 10 years ago.
This is serious business not a local working-mans club /Pub tribute act.

horse

If you enjoy playing the material, enjoy being in the band, get to play better gigs for better money than other options, why wouldn't you do it?

mudslide73

I'm in a covers band also.. I think our material selection stops us from getting the usual Saturday night stuff and many weddings. There are some bands who are really successful around here who are just going through the motions.

I've had some top nights out seeing AB/CD, Dirty DC and Fred Zeppelin. I'm quite fond of having a few pints and "forgetting" they're not the real acts. I know a couple of tribute guys (Metallica, Bon Jovi) and they take it super seriously. I can't think of an act I could stand to exclusively play for ever though. 

iseverynamegone

My mates and I knocked out Panama, Hot for Teacher and Ain’t Talking About Love for a friends party a few years back.  We we called ourselves Sham Halen. 

Tributes acts can be brilliant. My band supported Bjorn Again at Liverpool Uni back in the 90s and it was an amazing night. 

 

merlin

There's a band that has played many times in Brighton that does Lez Zep covers in a Bluegrass style. They call themselves "Chicken Shed Zeppelin". 

ICBM

Emp_Fab said:

It cannot be correct that there is nothing wrong with tribute acts, because if all live venues only hosted tributes acts, that would kill all new music stone dead.  We'd all be playing the same songs until the rapture!

You haven't seen too many covers bands, have you...

Why do they all play the same songs? It's as if there aren't literally thousands of great, well-known songs that they could play.

Emp_Fab

.....and the pool of songs they would be picking from would be stagnant.

It ain't rocket surgery squire !

simonk

I was in a Blues Brothers tribute for a while which was fun while it lasted, I’m glad I’m not doing it now though. The covers band I’m in now is probably the most fun, musically, I’ve ever had... the first set is for us (I play lapsteel on a Stereophonics tune for example), and the second set is for them (but still manages to include some stuff you wouldn’t hear in the average cover band set). And really, nobody ever needs to hear Proud Mary or Mustang Sally ever again.

jonnyburgo

I've seen a Hendrix tribute band that were great, a little less loose in the rhythm section but still very good, the recreation of the Hendrix guitar sound was bang on.

Also took my daughter to see the Navi, the Michael Jackson lookalike guy who performed for MJ at his birthday party. A bit weird. He had MJ's guitarist Jennifer whatsername on stage with him for a few numbers, she tore it up.

richardhomer

I saw The Bootleg Beatles at an outdoor festival in the summer of 2016. There were a few people I knew who were going - I thought it would be a laugh.

They were exceptional. Their live version of I Am The Walrus - complete with live string players - was off the scale. 

Yes they pander to nostagia - but they are undeniably great at what they do - one of the best gig experiences I’ve ever had. It’s easy to be cynical about these things - but actually simply enjoying them is much more fun....