The Words and Wisdom of Big Joe Burrell

Our very own blues legend talks about how to take your band on the road and come back alive.

There's a lot to being out on the road as a musician.

Years ago, our contracts with clubs always read "two weeks, with option." At the end of the two weeks, if the band had gone over well with the audience, we stayed. One club liked us so much we stayed six to seven months.

Nowadays, bands just do one night at a time. Clubs book different bands every night. Bands don't get a chance to build a crowd.

At Hunt's we played three nights a week. We got pretty well known and built a good following that way. If you can get a club in your area to book you regularly, you can focus on building up your reputation and following. 

But then you still have to go out on the road, of course. The club scene around here is not all of what's happening, especially for a band that wants to get wider known.

So, when your band travels, the most difficult, but most important thing is making it easy for everyone to get along. For example, if you do not have roadies, everyone should pitch in carrying equipment, so it makes it easier.

Being on the road can be tiresome, especially if you're in a different place every night. You get tired riding there, going 500-600 miles, playing a club, then driving another 500-600 miles the next day to the next club. It's hard work. And it's hard on your body and your mind.

I remember the time we did that kind of constant traveling from Toronto to Florida. We played Saturday night in Toronto and then had to be in Miami on Monday. We stopped along the way to rest a little and watched The Birds by Alfred Hitchcock. In was getting dark by the time we got back on the road. So, just as we went to cross the bridge from Delaware to Virginia a big flock of seagulls flew up over the car like in the movie and scared us all so!

But, anyway, with dates set up like that today where we have to make that kind of trip, we might fly. Otherwise, it's just too tiring.

When we went to the Netherlands to play - just one night at the Blues Festival, we made a week long trip out of it. Sort of a vacation, you know. That was cool. We enjoyed it.

One of the important things to remember is when traveling you should be with people you are compatible with. Travel with people you want to be around. Find out who the band is made up of. If you know you are going to have difficulty with one person or another, deal with it before you go out. Traveling with the Unknown Blues Band is always pleasant because the people are good people. We all get along real well.

When we played for First Night, we hadn't seen each other in several months, but we played just like we hadn't been away from each other at all. That's possible with players you know well and get along with.

Another important thing to know about being out on the road is when you get to a club you haven't played before or there's a new club owner to deal with, be sure there is only one person who does the talking with the club owner. 

Otherwise, when you get too many people speaking you get too many thoughts coming from all different directions to the club owner and he's going to say, "Who's in charge?" Plus, then he knows your band isn't organized and he's going to start playing one band member against the other. Right then and there the band's lost credibility and the owner's respect, and it can all go down from there.

The next important thing about being on the road is you're going to want to take care of the sleeping arrangements. You need to know what people's sleeping habits are; what you can put up with and what you can't.

Personally, I have a pretty regular routine and I get up early everyday. I also do a fair amount of snoring. So, I need a room by myself. You are lucky if you can get a couple of people who get along so you can have a combination of two in a room, 'cause it can save money. This sort of thing needs to be coordinated ahead of time. If you can afford it, you may want everyone to have rooms alone. Have the booking agent get the rooms or hotel reservations ahead of time. Charles Eller takes care of that for us. He's a business man. He handles all the booking arrangements. If people call, I have them call Charles.

When we go out on the road to do a wedding, Charles gets things worked out usually with the groom. There are a whole lot of bases to cover, making preparations for a wedding or any booking; like when and where the band is going to eat. One person, generally the band manager takes care of all these arrangements.

Sometimes at a wedding we get treated like peasants or the caterers want to run us. So, it pays to have the manager handling things.

So, there you have it. You have this band, which nowadays is run like a corporation. Folks need to be congenial and compatible, leaving the egos aside when you talk. Otherwise you run the risk of the band wanting to break-up, 'cause the road is hard on the band.

Essentially, the band and the music needs to come first. Everyone wants to be a star. That's understandable. But instead, just be glad you're a player! That's actually when you begin to become a star!

While you're on the road, write some good tunes for the band, with each other - or write together, right on the bus. Play it out at the clubs on the road. Improve it. Play it every night. When you get back home, after you've had a little time to rest, go into the studio and record the tunes you've played together on the road. You've got it down by now, if you've been playing together every night; you've mastered it. So, go into the studio and get it recorded. You'll sound great on the first or second take!

The only other tricks or rules to follow while you're on the road are to: 1) eat properly, 2) stay clean and healthy, and, naturally, 3) have fun with each other creating great music. Otherwise, the road will take its toll on you and the music.

Big Joe Burrell is a Vermont blues legend who shares his years of wisdom with younger musicians every issue of Good Citizen. This is his ninth column for us.