TheDrummerFromAmsterdam
DFO Master
For those he don’t know, and even who do this video is a nice one.
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The anatomy of a tour
- Thread starter TheDrummerFromAmsterdam
- Start date
notINtheband
DFO Veteran
Fascinating.
Way more involved than the ‘touring’ I’ve been able to do.
Way more involved than the ‘touring’ I’ve been able to do.
tnsquint
Backline Rental Guru
I worked on a tour this past year where load-in started at 3:00am and load-concluded a scant 27 hours later at 6:00am. That means they were already three hours late to their next load-in before they finished their current load-out. Postponing shows right and left and just burning money day after day.
EyeByTwoMuchGeer
Very well Known Member
I'd imagine that for anyone at this level, where it is certainly possible to sell out a large arena, the margins are razor thin, and a ten million dollar profit can probably become a 10 million dollar loss in the drop of a hat. If there wasn't any money, no one would do it this big. But I agree, it is amazing that any tour turns a profit. Wow.
I watched that video, and it clearly made it seem like a non-sell-out was a possibility for whatever act was being demonstrated, and I guess it always is theoretically. But I'd have to think that anybody short of the Rolling Stones or somebody absolutely HUGE, its a tough life and a tough way to make money these days. I'd have to think that the band is probably among the last of the people to really get "paid" and if you're just a side-guy, or an opening act, you're lucky to clear more than a bar band would make per night.
I'm sure all this factors into the ticket prices, but a really good chuck is Ticketmaster and places like that.
The band is among the first paid, but the documentary "Hired Gun" revealed what a lot of the side-guys are paid by even major artists, and it's tough. I'm sure the filmmakers picked some of the worst cases to make the documentary, but still. Razor thin margins seem to be the reality of it. In first world countries, cheap imports and subsidized cheap food have masked the devaluation of our own currencies to the point that we are shocked at what it costs to pay for peoples' salaries through things like concert tickets.
EyeByTwoMuchGeer
Very well Known Member
Thats good to hear. I assumed that all the managers got theirs first, followed by all the insurance people, the venue, then the rigging and saftey people, etc. Maybe I meant that the band would be the first to get shorted money if things went south haha
I was an opening act for a 6-week European arena tour back in 2010.
We earned 150 euros and a catered dinner every show night (34 out of 45 nights)
We paid our sound crew 100 euros per show.
Our driver / tour manager got 200 euros a night (every night, not just tour nights)
We had to pay for hotels (4 rooms), gas, and driver's food.
We sold 500-1000 euros of merch a night, and got a few thousand in tour support from our label, and just baaaaarely dipped into the red for the overall tour (less than 200 euros)
We earned 150 euros and a catered dinner every show night (34 out of 45 nights)
We paid our sound crew 100 euros per show.
Our driver / tour manager got 200 euros a night (every night, not just tour nights)
We had to pay for hotels (4 rooms), gas, and driver's food.
We sold 500-1000 euros of merch a night, and got a few thousand in tour support from our label, and just baaaaarely dipped into the red for the overall tour (less than 200 euros)
Pat A Flafla
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Are bus timing belts external? Do bus drivers actually check timing belts every trip?
Pat A Flafla
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Sadly, that sounds about right.
That was also 2010 gas prices, plus the UK was still in the EU, so we didn’t have to deal with visas. Plus you could still get actual “tour support” money from a label, which is a lot harder to count on these days.
Glad I’m not trying to seriously do the original band thing anymore. It’s taken a historically difficult industry and made it even tougher.
I’m still playing in an original group, but our aspirations are solely local. We play music we want to play and if our friends like it, cool. It’s like playing adult rec league sports. Nobody is looking for scouts in the stands
Playing live was subsidised by record sales (or sessions if you are a sideman/woman) of course.
Not surprisingly I spent months arguing with free music advocates online in the mid-2000's, who claimed musicians would be better off after Napster/Spotify, with fans paying back to artists by seeing them live, plus buying merchandise etc.
Anyone who had toured at the time knew it was a myth.
Not surprisingly I spent months arguing with free music advocates online in the mid-2000's, who claimed musicians would be better off after Napster/Spotify, with fans paying back to artists by seeing them live, plus buying merchandise etc.
Anyone who had toured at the time knew it was a myth.
TheDrummerFromAmsterdam
DFO Master
Don’t forget ticketmaster/moj/ticketswap and venues that now take a part of the merch sales too.
It would still be more affordable for fans if they din’t want to take such a big chunk out of it.
Ticket sales are also a disaster. The problem is musicians are a disparate group, spread across the planet, with no single goal and no single union or collective.
The tech companies burned musicians, then the labels jumped on board with tech and at the same time online ticket sales consolidated so only two or three players have a monopoly. Despite everything Robert Smith of The Cure tried to put in place, fans are still paying more than double the face value ticket in fees to Ticketmaster. Two $20 tickets end up being $175 or something?
The tech companies burned musicians, then the labels jumped on board with tech and at the same time online ticket sales consolidated so only two or three players have a monopoly. Despite everything Robert Smith of The Cure tried to put in place, fans are still paying more than double the face value ticket in fees to Ticketmaster. Two $20 tickets end up being $175 or something?
notINtheband
DFO Veteran
I believe it was Kiss who at one time, probably in the 70’s, ran 2 full touring caravans so that while one gig was happening, the other was setting up in the next city.
Hard to fathom that working these days.
Hard to fathom that working these days.
Bun Carlos
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The price of success is indeed very high.
Touring facts...
Rod Stewart employs a guy just to blow up the footballs for him to kick into the audience. He also warms up on a traditional karaoke set-up in his dressing room.
Pete Townsend has a monitor console dedicated to just himself (as does Lauren Hill). Daltrey and the rest of the band share the main monitor console.
Jeff Lynne flys home to Chelsea (London) and sleeps in his own bed after every UK tour date he plays.
......and despite what that itinerary on the video says, no major tour loads-in any later than 8am nor would a touring stage position ever be decided on-the-day.
Rod Stewart employs a guy just to blow up the footballs for him to kick into the audience. He also warms up on a traditional karaoke set-up in his dressing room.
Pete Townsend has a monitor console dedicated to just himself (as does Lauren Hill). Daltrey and the rest of the band share the main monitor console.
Jeff Lynne flys home to Chelsea (London) and sleeps in his own bed after every UK tour date he plays.
......and despite what that itinerary on the video says, no major tour loads-in any later than 8am nor would a touring stage position ever be decided on-the-day.
What are you considering a “major tour”? The arena tour I was on _definitely_ had load-ins after 8am
I'm talking production load-in, the first thing after mark-out. And if you're in the US things might be different to here in the UK. Arenas here are smaller, crewing numbers may be a little less.
