Anybody do a Solo gig?

[Coque]

Hey All,

I was curious, do any of you do a solo gig regularly? If so, what works for you? Just a guitar and mic? Backing tracks? Midi gear? I play in a trio, quartet and duo but want to try my hand at a solo act. Covering a 4 hour gig seems like a tall order. Do any of you play a solo gig and have any input you care to share?

[buckaroo]

I do solo gigs sometimes (maybe 8 a year). They are more formal gigs: corporate cocktail and dinner gigs, quiet receptions and a few high end eateries.

I take a small gig bag, one electric guitar, and one small to medium size amp (tweed Deluxe or tweed Super). I used to take an ES 175 but now I just take a rosewood board Tele. The gigs are instrumental. I play a variety of tunes (jazz, pop, blues and country) from the 60's but play them all in a bluesy jazz bag.

If ever a vocalist is requested, the singer brings a small "all in one box" powered PA (QSC brand; 1x10 or 1x12) that either sits on the floor or on a stand. The mic plugs right into it.

It is nice to play with less gear after a younger music life of hauling too much gear!

[Gravity Jim]

In the 1970s, I played a solo act full time - four hours a night, six nights a week at union scale - for almost five years, and semi-professionally for a lot of years before that. Are you talking about doing the "singer with a guitar" thing, or more a jazz-dinner-music thing like buckaroo describes?

I never used backing tracks, although I was there for the dawn of that kind of gig: when my booking agent told me I should get a drum machine so "people could dance" I quit the road. I liked playing good songs in simple arrangements for cocktail crowds, and had no interest in turning into one of those poor saps I'd met who got a bar crowd going by playing organ with one hand and trumpet with the other.

My only advice is to pick good songs that sound great with one guitar. I used to play in that percussive one-man-band style that is so prevalent now, and ended up doing solo versions of songs by Little Feat, Steely Dan and even Genesis, but the majority of my act was material like James Taylor, Paul Simon and every Don McLean song that wasn't "American Pie." :)

I would also say you should learn to trust silence and space in your arrangements. You don't have to fill the room like a band does.

[Kap'n]

I've not done the solo thing, but a lot of duo gigs. Those are bad enough if you get a 'cold' audience, but I can imagine that a solo gig as audio wallpaper has got to be one of the least satisfying musical experiences ever, unless you can somehow keep it fresh and challenging to yourself.

[Rickenjangle]

I would also say you should learn to trust silence and space in your arrangements. You don't have to fill the room like a band does.

I just did one recently (banked some good coin, too...$300 for 2 hours of playing) and found that I was really TRYING too hard - my hands actually became sore - and that Jim's advice is something I wished I had before the set.

When you stop playing rhythm and try to do a "solo" it seems mighty naked.

But what I've learned? Most people are already impressed by what you can do - and aren't sitting around critiquing your every move (like, ahem, us guitar nuts do!).

If you really feel like you need more instrumentation, do what Bobby Dylan did - learn to play harmonica on the rack...it can be a pain to get used to singing with the racked harp in between you and the mic, but a little harp, applied judiciously, will give you some different sound textures to work with.

the Drum machine idea might be cool to some, but I don't have the time to figure out which preset works for each song...and I sure as heck don't have time to tweak each preset and figure out an A and B sequence for each song. Yikes!

Looping is one way to garner interest, but again, it takes a LOT of practice to do that well...and a little of it goes a long, long way.

[buckaroo]

learn to trust silence and space in your arrangements. You don't have to fill the room like a band does.

Ahhh, I could not agree more! Think like Joe Pass or Jim Hall. Space is your friend.

[Coque]

This is all great advice! I've played cold rooms with every type of band and it sucks no matter what. That said, I'd be playing at a resort on the water so jazzy is right out. My singing is very strong and I want to rely on that but 4 hours of singing with nobody to share the load with is rough.
I agree with a light setup as lugging gear for me is a 3-4 times a week adventure that I've earned my merit badge in and would love to enjoy less gear to haul and setup.
I really wanted to do the gig just singing and playing, but I thought backing tracks and/or a looper would help spice things up. That said, the looper seems gimmicky and (since it's a digitech jamman) the audio quality is a bit lackluster.
Perhaps the best piece of advice that I had not considered was "Learn to trust silence and the space in your arrangements" that was a great concern and I tend to beat the guitar to death to coax every bit out of her, but i suppose I should just embrace the lack of band mates.
Anybody use backing tracks with any success? I'm curious to know if anyone of you have any strong opinions on the matter.

[Coque]

Additionally, although i can google bad ideas until the cows come home, what solo guitar/voice songs would you all recommend?

I have a host of them, but good ideas are always welcome!

[Gravity Jim]

I've never heard a solo guy with backing tracks that didn't sound kind of cheesy IMO. I'll bet there are plenty of them out there that sound great: I just haven't heard one.

If you haven't already, take up fingerpicking. Even simple patterns will get you a long way, and break up the sound of a flatpicked guitar (and vice-versa).

Great guitar/vocal troubadour songs are everywhere. All kinds of Lyle Lovett ("If I Had A Boat"), Bonnie Raitt's version of "Nobody's Girl," Miranda Lambert's "The House That Built Me," early James Taylor (the "Walking Man" album is great), John Hiatt, Elvis Costello (I used to open a set with "Welcome To The Working Week" sometimes just to wake up the room), about half of "There Goes Rhymin' Simon," Elliot Smith, mid-60's pop songs ("Daydream Believer") mid 70's pop songs ("She's Come Undone" and "Wichita Lineman" were two that never failed to grab)......

One night in a place in a Detroit suburb, I got a request for some Neil Diamond and didn't know any... so I played "Brother Love's Traveling Salvation Show" off the top of my head, and got about half the room singing the "Hallelujah" part under the "sermon." Tore the place apart. Try anything.

[Rickenjangle]

I've never heard a solo guy with backing tracks that didn't sound kind of cheesy IMO. I'll bet there are plenty of them out there that sound great: I just haven't heard one.

If you haven't already, take up fingerpicking. Even simple patterns will get you a long way, and break up the sound of a flatpicked guitar (and vice-versa)..

Great advice here...


I've been trying to come up with a neat arrangement of Elvis Costello's "Everyday I Write the Book" just to shake things up...he's also got some great material on his King of America album.

Sometimes it's cool to take a keyboard song and make it a guitar song. Or a female's song and make it for a male (not "It's Raining Men" mind you, unless that's your bag, baby...)

[FrankJohnson]

My Friend Joey is THE best solo performer I know in these kinds of gigs. He uses some kind of looper station and uses it well.

He entertains the crowd, but also sets the background for people to talk, have a great time - eat - etc.

His think is that he can step into character of MANY of the artists he is emulating, while still being him.

He has been at it for a long time, but the thing I think puts him on another plane from many others is....that he does it well - seamless and with a lot of spontaneity.

One of his bits is about 25 minutes of pieces of OLD tv show scores, cartoon tunes, etc. including a block of spy music, western themes, etc.

make em smile - and enjoy it
you will be called back -

[jilaw50]

Despite the criticism above, a solo using backing tracks does not have to sound cheezy.
When performing solo, I use a Digitech Jamman loaded with tracks for each song I do. The tracks are recorded by a professional studio musician on a real drum set and bass guitar. Drum and Bass ONLY. I have sometimes added my own rhythm guitar track when I thought it was needed.

What I do NOT use on my tracks is backup vocals, horns, keyboard, violins, computer generated music or full orchestras, which turn your solo performance into kareoke. I also actually watched a duo once where the drummer wasn't really drumming and the guitarist turned his back on the audience during guitar solos because it was ALL on their tracks! Very Bad!

With the right drum/bass tracks your solo (voice and guitar) can fill the room with anything most bands can do and sound better than some bands I've heard. Your amp and PA are important. If you want "light and easy to carry", don't expect much.

Solo will actually pay better than band gigs, but limit the venues. Some places only want bands, but you need to charge more to pay your live drummer and bassman, or take a pay cut for the privilege of having a band. That said, I've been playing more and more as a 3 piece band because it's more fun for me, allows for more improv (like trading solos or dueling), and if the other guys have good stage presence it is more fun for the audience. But GOOD backup players are hard to find and some have commitments to another 1, 2 or 3 other bands, so scheduling isn't always as easy as solo. I won't even get into "ego" issues with bandmates.

So I have played, and still do play, both as a solo and a band. I have lot's of you-tube videos (solo and band) for those who would like to compare the differences for me. Some on this forum have criticized my posting video links as spamming or self promotion so I will let those interested do their own You-tube search : Mike Imbasciani

I hope my input and experience is helpful to others.

[gibsonjunkie]

I've been to a couple solo gigs by Jeff Pevar and he does amazing things with loopers, recorded backing tracks and a variety of other effects. He doesn't depend on them to make the song - he does that by playing guitar like nobody's business... but enhances what he is doing. It is definitely NOT cheezy.

... but I've also seen the organ guy and that is depressing. While I haven't done solo gigs for money, when I play it is pretty much only me and a guitar. You need to redo the song so it stands on its own. A solo arrangement can open up your imagination - like Eva Cassidy doing "Fields of Gold" - a totally different song - better in my opinion...

[Rickenjangle]

A solo arrangement can open up your imagination - like Eva Cassidy doing "Fields of Gold" - a totally different song - better in my opinion...

Yes. Yes! YES!

Great comment, and great arrangement.

[Wilko]

Lots of good comment in here.

About backing tracks: Jilaw50 has it right. Only use tracks that seem like they might actually be happening. Heroic efforts to put in stuff that obviously is recorded just falls flat.

Don't go crazy with them. A little goes a long way.

An iPhone or iPad will carry everything you need, including the software to make or record the tracks! You can even gt a stand that will hold either right in front of you for easy, tiny control.

For PA, I've had great luck with the Bose compact personal. The bigger L1 systems do a great job too.

[Rickenjangle]

Rick, I used an L1 compact at my last solo gig and I loved it - except for the whole "no reverb, dammit!" feeling. At that price point they could at least include an effects loop (or spring for a $20 integrated reverb effect!)

But I agree - a little of the backing tracks and/or looping, and/or the sytho-harmony vocals - goes a long way. On the other hand, doing it all by your lonesome is a wee bit daunting!

[ch willie]

Don't forget Tom Petty songs. A lot of his are made for acoustic. I used to play solo in German bars. Tom Petty, James Taylor, The Beatles, and Clapton used to go over pretty well.

[Wilko]

Rick, I used an L1 compact at my last solo gig and I loved it - except for the whole "no reverb, dammit!" feeling. At that price point they could at least include an effects loop (or spring for a $20 integrated reverb effect!)

I just use a 1/4" out of a mackie with full digital effects.

When I'm lazy, a stomp box in-line.

I'm so impressed with the technology of line array, that I'm building some passive mini-line array speakers out of bose cube drivers using ABS pipe as the boxes:

[Coque]

Thanks for all the great responses! For the record I play in a trio for about 150 gigs a year and a quartet for another 20 or so. I also play in a duo for at least another dozen or so gigs a year. That said, my biggest concern in a solo act is the stamina required for 4 hours of singing on top of a very busy work-load, and the subsequent havoc it will inflict upon my throat.

Alas, with several more gigs this week I have decided to play tomorrow's solo gig as a duo. I was adamant about playing the gig solo. I tested backing tracks, guitars, new songs and prepped quite a bit. But the my duo partner offered to play the gig with me and all along my wife thought it was too much crap for a nickel considering how much I already sing. So I took the easy way out.

I supposed I dodged that bullet, but there will come a time...

On a side note, I played a festival gig last week called the Treasure Coast Music and Beer Festival. It could have been great but the promoter made a series of mistakes, and then it rained. It was a big stage and huge sound system that I didn't have to set-up, and a pro video made it worthwhile (even though we got stiffed on the gig).

If you'd like, check out the first video from the show that I've posted. The sound is bone dry as it's a board feed but the video is cool, especially since I was broadcast onto a jumbotron screen. They even got a shot of my foot playing the wah! during a solo!

"Come on" by Earl King and "Smoking Gun" by Robert Cray


So thanks again for all the advice. Ultimately, I think a mix of backing tracks and solo guitar/vocals was my plan. Like others have said, the backing tracks don't have to be cheesy (but can be) if one looks for drums and bass only. There is much to be found if you search long enough.