Audience stories

[mandoplyr70]

We were playing for senior citizens at the YMCA I was doing Rocky Top. This one woman got so excited she went into hysterics. It took 3 staff workers to calm her down to where she quit shaking all over. Have you got an audience story ? http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/mandosmiley.gif

[John Flynn]

I have posted this anecdote elsewhere, so apologies to those that have heard it, but a string band I was in was playing for a block party and right as we started into "Fly Around my Pretty Little Miss," as if on cue, a really cute little girl, with red sno-cone juice all over the front of her T-shirt, came up right in front of the band and started dancing with wild abandon for the whole tune. When the tune was over, we got the audience to applaud her, then she took off and we didn't see her again. It was a magical moment.

[cooper4205]

We were playing for senior citizens at the YMCA I was doing Rocky Top. This one woman got so excited she went into hysterics. It took 3 staff workers to calm her down to where she quit shaking all over. Have you got an audience story ? http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/mandosmiley.gif
It happens to all Volunteer fans, no matter what age! http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/biggrin.gif

[John Flynn]

Oh, one other one. We played an assisted living facility and had an audience of about 50. We were scheduled to play from 3:30 to 5:00. They were really getting into it, some even danced. But at 4:25, almost all of them just got up and left in the middle of one of our tunes! We thought we might have said something wrong or they found the tune title offensive or somthing, but neither explanation seemed to fit. The guy who invited us later told us that the dinner line opens at 4:30 and they are never late for chow!

[MikeEdgerton]

But at 4:25, almost all of them just got up and left in the middle of one of our tunes!

Think of it as a "Walking ovation".

[Doug Edwards]

Playing at a nursing home and leading singing. One dear lady couldn't decide what to do. She kept taking her teeth out and placing them on a table, then putting them back in. It was a little hard to stay focused for us.

[John Rosett]

The vintage country and western swing band I used to play in was playing at a bar in Seeley Lake, MT a few years ago. For some reason, the audience seemed to think that they had come to see Lynyrd Skynryd (SP?). This cute, young blond girl with her arms crossed and a big frown on her face comes up to the stage and says "Why don't you lose those banjos and play some hip hop we can dance to?".
I should mention that there were NO banjos on stage. I motioned for her to come closer and said "Honey, I'm sure that the song you want to hear is on the jukebox next door. Why don't you go there and listen to it." She was pretty mad, but I was glad that I finally got to deliver that John Duffey inspired line.
Another time, we were setting up to play in a bar in Hot Springs, MT. This absolutely wasted little guy comes up to us and says "You got a banjo in your band?" We said that we didn't. He smiled broadly, revealing one rotten tooth (I'm not making this up.) and said "You want me to jump in there?"

[Gail Hester]

"The guy who invited us later told us that the dinner line opens at 4:30 and they are never late for chow!"

It's a good thing it wasn't Bingo time or you would have been trampled or run over by those motorized chairs. http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/biggrin.gif

[farmerjones]

i wuz playing for a birthday in a motel lobby. Little kids going to and from the pool would either come to a dead stop & stare, or start dancing like little kids do, flailing around til they get dizzy. Maybe as many as fifteen or twenty at one time. All bouncing around like popcorn.

[Dena Haselwander]

I played Orange Blossom Special in a bar, and a particularly rowdy table started throwing loose change--ouch! They must've realized what they'd done; after the next set, one of them very gently placed a baggie full of change on the edge of the stage.


Dena

[tango_grass]

i wuz playing for a birthday in a motel lobby. Little kids going to and from the pool would either come to a dead stop & stare, or start dancing like little kids do, flailing around til they get dizzy. Maybe as many as fifteen or twenty at one time. All bouncing around like popcorn.
http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/laugh.gif I can only imagine the sight...

[salleyann]

I learned the hard way that you don't critisize political candidates from the stage. Playing a "freebie" for our local old-time music assoc., I made a comment about a certain candidate that had changed an earlier promise and a woman in the third row promptly crumpled up a paper bag and hit me with it. Glad she didn't have anything to put in it.

[Bruce Evans]

I learned the hard way that you don't critisize political candidates from the stage. Playing a "freebie" for our local old-time music assoc., I made a comment about a certain candidate...
Are you that Dixie Chick singer? #http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/biggrin.gif

[salleyann]

No!!! My error in judgement was not near as costly.

[Greg H.]

We were playing at a biker bar in Tulsa in the late 70s. Between songs a girl came up and said to me 'Could you play "Will the Circle be Unbroken" for Loser, he just got buried today' so I turned to the bass player next to me and repeated her request. He then got a smile on his face, walked up to the mike and said "We're going to play 'Will the Circle be Unbroken' for loser, he just got married today. Congratulations Loser!" At that point a biker probably weighing between 300-400 lbs stood up knocking his table and pitcher of beer to the floor and yelled "buried #$% #$%@*&"

Well, after profuse apologies, a new pitcher of beer, and a very heartfelt rendition of 'Will the Circle' we survived, but for a while begging, running, and praying all seemed perfectly sensible options.

[Dave Gumbart]

Well, when I first saw the thread title, I thought it was if you were in the audience. This is more along those lines. I went with a friend to see New Grass Revival in the summer before they finished up their run as a band (1989, I think). They played an early and late show in Torrington, CT, at a low-key place called the Yankee Peddlar Inn. In between shows, some folks were chatting with the band members. My friend is talking with Bela Fleck, and asks if New Grass plays Natchez Trace, a tune off of Bela's Drive album, then only about a year old. Bela responds, somewhat confused by the question: "You want some nachos?" Too funny.

As for playing to an audience, some friends and I played at a party of our circle of friends. We weren't a band, but 5 of us did jam from time to time. We played maybe 45 minutes before taking a break, after which someone responded enthusiastically "hey, they didn't suck!" Good enough for me.

Dave

[bgjunkie]

My band was playing our first gig, an outdoor small scale awards ceremony at someone's house. Between songs a lady says, "Hey, my daughter can play the fiddle. Can she try one with ya?" Of course everyone, but the band, joined in to get the young girl up to play something. We kind of felt like a karoke backup band without the vocals. Luckily she wasn't that bad.

[mandofiddle]

I once played a house party on a hot summer day. They decided to set the band up in the living room and have all the windows of the large front picture windows open so we could play to everyone who was sitting on the front lawn. The entire inside of the house was empty. So it was like we were on a stage, but separated from the audience by windows. That was in itself kind of weird. To top it off, during our set break a father and his 2 kids asked if they could use our mics and PA to play a couple tunes. Sure, we said. So, first they were all beginners, out of time and the like. But what really did us in was that EVERYONE from outside packed the living room to listen. When they were done and we came back on, everyone went back outside and we continued to play through the giant picture window. REALLY a weird gig.

[Steve Williams]

We were playing a show on Blennerhassett Island on the Ohio River one evening, when the humidity/moisture started causing my mandolin to go out of tune. Thankful that it was towards the end of our last set, I leaned into my vocal mic while tuning and told the crowd that I was doing "an ancient Chinese folk song...Tu Ning". We finished the show and were headed towards the ferry to take us back, when two ladies approached and informed us that they had been waiting for us to " do that there old Chinese folk song"...

Since we had a couple of minutes to kill before the ferry left, our banjo player and I uncased our instruments and did a quick version of the "Chinese Breakdown"...our two "fans" were delighted and never knew the difference... #http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/biggrin.gif

Steve Williams
http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/mandosmiley.gif

[jk245]

Not my gig, but
remember in the 'Blue Brothers' movie where the 'boys' played behind a chicken wire fence and beer bottles were thrown at them.

[John Rosett]

I once had to play at a bluegrass festival with Pete Martin in the audience. He kept yelling "play one more!" after every song.

[Eddie]

Years ago, I was playing guitar in a country band. One night this ol' barfly lady came up the the singer after one set and asked if she could touch his butt. He responded in a serious Tennessee drawl "NO!!! Get away from me"! Anyway, he was coming out of the restroom and I heard him yelling "hey man, getter off o' me! She's bitin' me in the a$$"!!! I yelled back "burn her off with your cigarette, bro"!!!

[sbarnes]

doing a regular every nite club gig back in the 80's....
one nite/week some of our 'friends' would usually show up and want to sit in.....one week we decided that just for fun we wouldn't ask 'em up....we did just that and one got up from his table and left the club - we thought we'd pi#$ed him off....he cam back into the club w/his sax and proceeded to 'sit in' at his table.....probably one of those 'had to be there' stories but funny at the time

[Steve Ostrander]

Before I reinvented myself as a mando player, I played bass in a blues band called "DJ and the Blues Gurus". We played a gig at a VFW hall that started badly when they announced us as "The Blues Goobers". Then an old lady came in and sat at the table closest to the band, even though the joint was empty, and complained that we were too loud.

[Ivan Kelsall]

The singer in the band that i used to play with years ago,decided on a new technique to get the audiences' attention. He'd pick out a pretty girl/woman in the audience & sing his song to her. He did this one night when we were paying our weekly 'house-band' gig
& the girl he was singing to gave him the finger. He nearly choked & we dissolved into gales of laughter,which i'm happy to say the young lady in question & the rest of the audience joined in. Ahhhhhh !! - memories,
Saska

[Mark Walker]

A few of us played at a 'Positive Directions' facility for mentally handicapped individuals in a neighboring county. #The theme was 'Autumn Festival Hoe-down' so we did a lot of old standards. #One individual got so excited he came up front and grabbed a microphone and started singing at the top of his lungs (and from the bottom of his heart.) # #When we finished the song (and I believe it was 'This Little Light of Mine') he got a rousing ovation from everyone there - including us. #

He had tears coming from his eyes; very moving and touching moment. #

Sometimes we take the things we're so blessed with for granted...

[mandolooter]

A few weeks back at the weekly "Alive after 5" outdoor concert series the guitar player was jamming away, eyes closed when he backed right off the side of the stage. Luckily for him a few manly fellows were standing there and they sorta caught him and redeposited him on stage. From then on he was having trouble making eye contact with the audience tho.

[Mark Walker]

Jeff - too funny! Glad he wasn't hurt. Makes your signature line even more appropriate! 'Look up (to see what's comin' down...) http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/biggrin.gif

[Fred Keller]

My favorite so far is OBWAT-related.

About a year ago we played a threshing bee in Minnesota that has a mini-bluegrass fest as part of the entertainment. The other band that played features lots of Jimmy Martin stuff. After the show we were jamming until all hours back in the campground and had a good crowd of fellow revelers listening on.

From one side of the darkened crowd comes the inevitable call: "Play that song from Oh Brother...you know, the big song...from Oh Brother...you know."

Well, we're pretty bushed and our voices are cracking from beer, dust, and overuse, but the ripple spreads through crowd. We steel our resolve and launch into "Man of Constant Sorrow." The pickers do a fair job of kicking it around the circle and we all have a great time. The crowd gives us a warm hand except for the guy who requested the song.

"No, not that one," he says, slightly irked, "the OTHER one."

We went back to Jimmy Martin songs.