Author Topic: FunkeeStation (Detroit Area) (Read 279 times)

malthumb · « **on:** June 12, 2004, 05:36:55 PM »

Here's a link to our website. We will continue to post schedule info there. Right now we've got dates listed for June 19th, July 3rd, and July 24th.

http://www.funkeestation.com/

Peace,

James

palembic · « **Reply #1 on:** June 13, 2004, 01:33:29 PM »

Hey Brorther James,

things are really starting up for you and the gang!
How was the first trial concert??

Paul the bad one

malthumb · « **Reply #2 on:** June 13, 2004, 06:19:45 PM »

Paul - TBO,

The first gig was interesting. The intent was to do it as an outdoor event, private party on a fairly large deck. It decided to rain that day. Sort of a mini-monsoon. We relocated everything to the basement and did a set. That went okay. We took a break and came back for a 2nd set. For whatever reason, it got twisted into an amateur hour / open mic. People kept yelling out songs for us to do. Unfortunately, our keyboard player, who is phenomenal, seemed to know all of them. I say unfortunately because it was inevitable that someone in the band (usually me)didn't and would have to totally fake it.

Then people decide What the heck, give me the mic and I'll sing with you guys. Wouldn't have been too bad, but 1) it was almost always country music and 2) I ain't into country music.

Everybody had a good time, but I was totally out of my element. Our first paying gig is this coming Saturday. I'll post a recap.

Peace,

James

palembic · « **Reply #3 on:** June 13, 2004, 11:09:09 PM »

Chuckle-chuckle ...
I've been there before!!!
We don't play what people ask OR it has to be on our -raltively wide- playlist.

Story about that: after music school prom evening (for us adults) a coupe of years ago, the drum teacher come up to em and asked Paul ...can you bass chords? I answered that I did: I understood chords and can play a bass-line on them.
Great he answered consider yourself as our bassplayer for tomorrow!
Ooops!
So I ended up next evening with a drummer, 2 pianoplayers and 1 flute on an BBQ of the school playing ...well ....everything ....
A moment an old man of about 80 years stepped to me and asked with a trembling voice if we could play Blauw -hemelsblauw (Blue - heavenly blue - a major flemish tearjerker from a Flemish well known singer).
I knew the song -never played it- and asked the band-leader if we can do it.
He asked: how does it goes? and I started humming the song. He started to move his fingers searching over the keys of his piano and he yelled: YES WE CAN! and started 1 - 2 - ....
I just got the time to yell in between WHAT KEY???
He yelled back D - ...and 4
and hop we went!
***Sigh***

It was NOT my thing.
But the old man walked back to his table to kiss his old lady! I feld sooooooo good.
And ....what an adrenaline push!!!

Paul the bad one

malthumb · « **Reply #4 on:** June 20, 2004, 11:42:21 AM »

Played two gigs with FunkeeStation this weekend. For the most part, these were paid rehearsals. Small clubs, probably a different audience than our target audience. Our keyboard player (did I mention that he was phenomenal?)does an incredible Jerry Lee Lewis thing, complete with foot on the keyboards, etc. We could always go back to some of that when the crowd got restless.

By the time we finished (4 sets Friday, 3 Saturday) we had both venues asking if we'd be available for future dates and a manager from a 3rd club who was at the 2nd club will also be contacting us.

Our cover of Joe Cocker's Leave Your Hat On and Al Green's Take Me To The River went over real well, as well as our funked out version of the Beatles' Taxman. That bassline was made to be thumped and popped on an Alembic.

I was also able to toss the Alembic out front on an extended solo on our cover of Bruce Hornsby's The Way It Is and on our Skin Tight / Brick House medley.

Our drummer's wife took pictures at the Friday night gig, so if those come out right, I'll post later.

Peace,

James (the exhausted one)

(Message edited by malthumb on June 20, 2004)

David Houck · « **Reply #5 on:** June 20, 2004, 12:43:53 PM »

James; on The Way It Is, did you solo over the verse, or the chorus, or did you do something else? And was anyone comping behind you or was it just you and the drummer? Just curious; it's a great tune, and a great piano tune. Did you mention whether your piano player was any good?

malthumb · « **Reply #6 on:** June 20, 2004, 03:15:05 PM »

I placed my solo over the verse. Easy to do since it's in E. The guitar just played the chord straight. The piano pretty much just chorded the E - D - C, G - D - C piece in the background and I did my poor man's rendition of Louis Johnson.

As for the piano player, we're thinkin' about letting him stick around (see my earlier posts in this thread).

David Houck · « **Reply #7 on:** June 20, 2004, 08:22:21 PM »

James; that's a nice progression to solo over! Oh, and I did see your earlier posts .