JPF Home Page Forums General Messages Success Stories Forum Booked at the Hard Rock (no guts, no glory)

A couple of weeks ago my band (Running From Noah) was playing on the radio in Austin. The show went very well - we performed three acoustic songs and were interviewed.

Afterwards we decided to hang out a bit longer, and headed around the corner to the Hard Rock Cafe on sixth (really the only joint open on a Saturday afternoon).

With guitars in hand we walked over there. Right before we went in I joked to our horn player, Omar, that we should ask them "where we should set up."

"We should!" he laughed. "Let's do it. Do you want me to say it?"

"Nah, I will," I replied.

We walked through the front door and I said to the host, "Ok where do we set up?"

I was laughing as I said it, but my laugh turned to surprise when he answered "Ok I will get you guys up on the stage."

Omar and I looked at each other wondering, should we go with this? With a glance we decided not to say anything, to follow it through. We directed the rest of the band to follow us.

As we approached the stage the host had a word with a gentleman who appeared to be the manager. His boss told him to go ahead and put us up there, just to move a table out of the way that was on the platform.

We had a little band discussion and decided that we were going to do this. The worst that could happen would be for them to kick our asses out of there. There was a baseball game on, in the ninth, we decided to wait until it was finished and then just start playing. A waitress approached us and asked if we wanted her to turn the music down.

"Oh man we got balls to be doing this," I said to the band. We were all a little nervous but also excited. "Sometimes you just have to do ballsy things."

When the game ended she turned down the house music and we just stood up and started playing. There were no mics or anything, just us with our acoustic guitars and some percussion, belting out our original material. As we completed the first song there was silence - no applause or anything. So we just moved on to another tune, wondering when this fun experience was going to end.

As we continued playing the folks eating lunch and having drinks began to warm up to us, clapping after each song. Also, someone at the Hard Rock turned on the stage lights and the cameras, so our faces were now plastered on monitors throughout the restaurant. I spotted the manager walking around - he was definitely trying to figure out exactly what was going on.

Not wanting to push the envelope to far, I stopped us after seven songs. The crowd applauded warmly but I sort of hid my face as the manager approached the stage.

"Hey guys," he said. "You gotta help me out here - I have been asking everyone and I am not sure who you are or who asked you to play here."

"Well, to be honest..." I said.

He interrupted: "Let me guess, because I am a musician too. You just came in and took over the stage."

"Well," I answered nervously, "something like that." I explained how we had been playing on the radio around the corner and that we had jokingly asked the host where to set up. And when he put us on stage that we were not going to let the opportunity to play on stage at the Hard Rock pass us by.

"Well let me be honest with you, too," he said. "We have acoustic bands here every Saturday night, and you guys are by far the best band we have ever had."

Our jaws opened...I know I couldn't believe how this was going. "Wow! Thanks!" I said.

"I just left a voicemail for my GM," he said, "I would like to get you guys booked in here - and then you can actually get paid to play here!"

I just could not believe it - I was beaming. We had totally just done this gutsy(and wrong) thing and I couldn't ask for a better reaction. So we exchanged all of our contact info.

And we are now booked at the Hard Rock, we are playing there November 7th!

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New Web site, new music!
www.RunningFromNoah.com

Good For YOU, Amigo...WELL Done!!!

Believe it was Paul Williams who cornered Babs Streisand in a Ladies Restroom & made her listen to some of his songs, Originally....heh-heh!

You weren't THAT Far Over the Edge!

Glad your Gamble Paid Off...Chutzpah COUNTS--you just Proved It!

"BRAVO" &
Continued Best Wishes for More Success,
TampaStan

WOW! AWESOME STORY!! And, hey . . . you weren't just in any ole Hard Rock . . . Austin has some GREAT TALENT! Way to go!

You never know if you don't just go for it. TWO BIG successes in one day. Bet you're still smilin' from THAT coup!

Here's to many more bookings - Rock on : )

Dax,

Congrats. Success doesn't usually come and get you.. you have to go out and get success. What a perfect example of doing something positive that most people would have been too proper and fearful and programned against to try. And now your band, on top of the rest, has a great gig story to share a zillion times in the coming future that everyone will enjoy.

Thanks for sharing!

Brian

Clap! Clap! Clap! I was just crusisin' the boards and found your fun little story. It made my day!

Your band has one fine "pair"!! Way to use 'em!

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www.mp3.com/crisisrocks
www.mp3.com/dianatyler

Well well well, any band with that kind of guts is a winner in my book. Mucho props to you guys. Keep up the good work and I know someday you will be up there in front of thousands of fans playing your tunes. Sounds like u have what it takes to move on up to the next step of the music business.

Greg W./ASCAP

Thanks - we are prtty thrilled, and now the Austin American-statesman just featured this story...woo hoo!

I am, just too cool...!

Great
bump all the way
your friend in music Perry