JPF Home Page Forums General Messages General Message Forum Humorous Things to Say Between Songs

As a performer who plays both solo and with a band I figured I'd chime in on this...

I have a tendency to have people come up to me and ask where I got something that I said, my usual response is: "what did I say?" I have intensions on saying something that may have been thought of prior to performance, but then I always end up improvising.

A large majority of the time it's apparently witty/funny/inciteful/etc... There are occassions though, when I know it's not working and I end up starting a song and shutting my mouth.

Now, when I'm performing solo, that's usually when more of a story nature comes out for songs. People seem to expect that in a solo setting. However, when I'm performing with a full band - the whole thing changes.

With the whole band, I'm less likely to spew tons of words about a song. I'm more likely to bring other members of the band to the mic to include them in the banter, but it's almost always short and to the point and the music tends to be the major priority.

So my observation is: when solo - talk as much as you can get away with, without boring the audience. When with a band - say something here or there then shut up and play.

I think one thing that really helps the banter is somehow tying it to your CD's or your merch, or the song. Random, non-related stuff doesn't work so well.

Jody
www.jodywhitesides.com