Embarrassing moments and them dang capos!

**barney 59** · Mar-15-2011, 12:50pm

This has happened to me twice now. Playing in front of an audience we just finished playing one number and I go to kick the next song off. Were not making this up,we've practiced and the tune is in "G" ,at least that's the way we always played it. The previous song the guitar player(first time it was a banjo) used a capo and has forgotten to remove it. The resulting cacophony in front of an audience is really embarrassing to me. The first time after the shock and the moment or two that it took me to realize what was going on I changed up and played through in an unfamiliar key with the result of a completely awful performance. This more recent time I just stopped, asked the guitar player what key are we playing in and he sheepishly removed the capo. I tried to turn it into a comical moment ala "Smother's Bros." "Alright then lets try that again!"
Got some good embarrassing moments you would like to share?

**MikeEdgerton** · Mar-15-2011, 1:11pm

That's happened to me more than once. I simply stop and remove the capo from my guitar or turn to the offender and point it out to them. I'd rather have the embarassment last for a few seconds and make a joke out of it than to try and get through a song in a key we never rehearsed it in and leave a lasting impression.

I have more problems with age kicking in and me forgetting the words.

**allenhopkins** · Mar-15-2011, 1:29pm

Pulled a Bb harmonica instead of an A harp out of my belt pouch, backing up my friend Jim Clare on Folsom Prison Blues -- key of E, cross-harp. Only I was playing in F while he played and sang in E; total cacaphony.

Doing this stuff for 45+ years, and you'd think I'd learn to check and re-adjust. Still fallible, I guess.

**F-2 Dave** · Mar-15-2011, 1:44pm

My most memorable embarrassing moments are more lyric related than tonally. The worst was one night over twenty years ago, I was playing at a small show and was featured singing Ghost Riders in the Sky. The second verse begins, 'their brands were still on fire and their hooves were made of steel, their horns were black and shiny and their hot breath he could feel.' I started the second verse with
'Their horns were still on fire' , instantly picturing cows with flames shooting out of their heads. I got tickled, the way you do when you can't straighten up. The band vamped dutifully as I doubled over laughing, crying, snorting, etc. Finally, I regained my composure and finished the song. Not my finest hour.

**Rroyd** · Mar-15-2011, 2:05pm

Years ago I attended a Doc Watson concert, and he put his capo on at the 7th fret for the tune they were preparing to do. He told a story about the song and a bit of its history, and by the time they started, Doc had forgotten about the capo and kicked it off with his left hand in first position. They stopped and laughed, and he made a joke about not seeing that capo up there, so I guess it can happen to the best of the best.

**Ben Somerville** · Mar-15-2011, 2:40pm

Yep, this happened to me to...it all started when our banjo player totally forgot to take his capo off before he kicked off the next song! The rest of us were able to follow along (our banjo player didn't realize the problem), except our singer couldn't sing up in the new key! So she started to sing a verse but then just burst out laughing cause it was so high! I have to say even though it wasn't our best performance of that song it was pretty memorable for me!

**Malcolm G.** · Mar-15-2011, 2:46pm

I can't top any of the stories so far, but may just present the most irritating instance of capo error.
We were a three piece folk group and had worked out this wonderful, soft, Cotton-Picking/Travis-picking intro to Dylan's "Don't Think Twice It's Alright". I was to play on a Martin D35 12 string which had been tuned down a half step as we were wont to do in those days. While relatively tuning the beast, I'd parked the elastic type capo (remember them?) over the nut.
Well, about one minute into this lovely intro, it's my turn to come in a-strumin'.
Yup.........

**sbarnes** · Mar-15-2011, 3:06pm

i've been involved w/2 of these 'events'.....#1..i play piano/keyboards in a country/rock band....i had a new roland piano and it had a tranpose button...the song was in B and i can play in B fine but it was a new piano and i hit the transpose button and played the song in C....sounded great...but then i forgot to UN transpose and the next song started out horrible....when i realized my mistake i also realized that i did not know how to fix it....had to turn the piano off and turn it back on to reset the pitch.....#2 our bass player started a song w/several bar solo...and he started it in the wrong key....when everyone else came in it was awful....we just stopped and told him/and the audience that he needed to start it in the right key....so we started over and he started it in the wrong key again....fortunately once we got it together the song sounded great and the audience laughed w/us instead of at us.....

**EdSherry** · Mar-15-2011, 6:35pm

It happens to all of us. That's one reason I usually announce to everyone in the band the key we're in before we kick off the next tune.

I'll also look around and try to make sure that all of the capos (including mine) are in the right position, but sometimes that doesn't work (e.g., Allen's harmonica example).

**pglasse** · Mar-15-2011, 10:08pm

Here's one that almost happened:

Years back a group of us were backing up a singer in a medley that started in E (no capo on guitar) -- then as the singer narrated he was to place the capo on the second fret, strum 4 bars of an A chord and the band all enter on a strong A on beat one of the fifth bar. The singer, as he talked to the audience, missed his mark by one fret and came in strumming an up-tempo Ab chord. The bass player (having perfect pitch) caught the mistake in the first couple of beats. Warnings were whispered across the bandstand. The whole group, which included six harmonic instruments, entered flawlessly on Ab and played the whole song in that key.

The audience of over 1,000 people seemed none the wiser. In fact, the singer was unaware of what happened until a band member mentioned it to him after the show. He was pretty darn thankful though. It was one of those times where I was thankful to be surrounded by real pros -- and kind of fun that we pulled it off.

**pickloser** · Mar-16-2011, 7:18am

My most embarassing moment lately was at the monthly jam in the fellowship hall of the Lutheran church. I was singing "I Wish You Knew" and noticed that a few folks weren't following the progression. So I started calling out the chord a few beats before the change. Worked great until I got to "how hard I've tried to (F) you...." No one could continue, and I don't think those Lutherans will ever let me forget it.

**AlanN** · Mar-16-2011, 7:36am

That's (F)unny! I 'hate' having to call out chords, especially whilst I'm singing.

Mine is rather mundane: kicked off Leather Britches (with potatoes). It don't get no simpler than that. But, the guitar man was on the 'Um' when he should have been on the 'Pah'. We did the whole number that way, he never stopped to get right. It was bad.

**Bertram Henze** · Mar-16-2011, 7:41am

Lyrics used to be my ever-waiting trapdoor. Decades ago (so this is not an age issue), our band did the Fairport Convention version of "Matty Groves". In the middle section, where Matty is caught in bed with Lord Donald's wife and challenged by the lord to fight, I happened to mix in parts from another verse: "Oh, I can't get up, I won't get up, and sleep with you tonight..."

Our German audience was none the wiser, but the incredulous looks from some of my fellow band members and the cramped attempts of others to keep a straight face I will never forget.

**JeffD** · Mar-16-2011, 8:11am

Well this will make you all feel a lot better.

**John Duncan** · Mar-16-2011, 8:23am

Do not feel bad; it happens to the best of the best all the time. I was attending this set below from Aubrey Haynie and friends in Cleveland GA. The rest of the band was in F and Aubrey kicked off a singing number in E. What blew me away was that Aubrey fessed up to being in the wrong key. No capos there!

**Bertram Henze** · Mar-16-2011, 8:23am

Originally Posted by JeffD

Well this will make you all feel a lot better.

Apparently the organist was much more confident about what chord to play than the audience was about wether to applaude or not.

**Tim2723** · Mar-16-2011, 8:32am

Make all mistakes with absolute authority.

**AlanN** · Mar-16-2011, 8:52am

Hey jhduncan,

You sure you posted the right one? That sounds like in A, just perfect, great vid!

**JeffD** · Mar-16-2011, 9:20am

Originally Posted by Tim2723

Make all mistakes with absolute authority.

I had a speech and drama coach told me to mis-pronounce loudley and with confidence. He said, "Let them look it up."

**John Duncan** · Mar-16-2011, 9:22am

Originally Posted by AlanN

Hey jhduncan,

You sure you posted the right one? That sounds like in A, just perfect, great vid!

For some reason, I just can't find video of the goof up from that set.

It really was a great, memorable set of music from Aubrey and friends.
It was also the first time I had seen or heard David Harvey's pickin. His band Radiola opened up the night.
Jim Simpson sure did throw some good, free concerts at his car dealership in Cleveland GA. Not sure if he still does.

**AlanN** · Mar-16-2011, 9:32am

Agreed. Much better to hear the right than the wrong.

And, it's Mitch Simpson, I think.

**Laird** · Mar-16-2011, 9:38am

A few years ago in Colorado I was called onstage to sit in with a band for a number, and I guess it went well because the singer asked me to stay on for another. There was no monitor, so I couldn't hear myself, but I watched his fingers on the guitar and it looked like the next song was in C, so I played along gamely. It wasn't till my break that I noticed something was off: I was clearly playing in a different key! Finally I noticed that his capo, which had been on the nut, had somehow ended up on the first fret--not obvious enough a difference for me to notice till it was too late. Well, that was my last song with that band.

**John Duncan** · Mar-16-2011, 9:52am

Originally Posted by AlanN

And, it's Mitch Simpson, I think.

You're right; dang, work is REALLY messing me up these days.

**Mattg** · Mar-16-2011, 10:19am

Why embarrassed? As a frequent audience member, I've seen the capo goof on more than a few occasions. I thinks it's good for a laugh and really don't give it another thought. Stuff happens. That's what's fun about live music.