There have been some Welcome Messages on the CBA Website about humor in bluegrass. Mostly, it’s about the long tradition on bands folding some jokes or wit into their stage acts. When it’s done well, it really enhances the audience experience. When it comes off as forced, the results are less effective.
Humor, at its best, is not a deliberate act – or at least it shouldn’t seem deliberate. Throughout life, the funniest moments are spontaneous, and we’re all familiar with this. Something unexpected happens and someone says just the right thing, and everyone is paralyzed with laughter.
This happens often in jam sessions. By definition, they are spontaneous, and if everyone’s having fun, sooner or later something will happen that tickle the group’s funny bone, and then everyone’s holding their sides and wiping their eyes – ain’t that fun? Some of my fondest memories are from situations like that.
When you play out in public, things are generally more controlled – after all, you want to be in charge of how the show goes, and not have it control you. But Murphy’s Law will come into play – eventually. Then what was control become chaos, and that can be hilarious. The hilarity is heightened by the inherent pressure of playing onstage.
Here are three brief stories.
Band Photo Shoot – who doesn’t love those? In this case, the bluegrass band was to be photographed on railroad tracks. But not just any tracks – the photographer chose tracks up on a trestle, and we were to be photographed on the tracks just outside a train tunnel. He said he checked with the railroad, and there was a specific window of time when no trains would be coming through that line. So we dragged ourselves up to the trestle and began shooting. Five minutes into the shoot, the tracks began vibrating and the tunnel lit up. So we all lit out – running down the tracks, in our nice clothes, with our instruments. It was necessary to run a little ways down the tracks to get to a place to exit the railroad tracks. Who knew how fast I can run carrying a double bass? It was hairy, and scary, but no one got hurt, and I still laugh thinking about it.
Brain Failures – Face it – a lot of bluegrass songs are fairly similar, and this mishap seems inevitable, in retrospect. We’re singing along on a song we’ve played a million times before, then there’s an instrumental break. It was a beautiful day, we’re playing outside and I let my concentration lapse, just a little to enjoy the music. As the instrumental break comes to an end, I know a chorus. But which chorus? I’ve forgotten what song we’re playing! But even in the heat of the moment, I have an idea. When the chorus comes, I will wait to hear the other singer, and quickly join in, and all will be fine. So that part comes along, I prepare to do my pantomime, and…no one is singing! The other singer had the same lapse!
Equipment Fail – It was a Rock Festival, with some big names, and we were thrilled to be on the bill. Big band – 2 guitars, drums, bass, keyboard, horns, lead singer. If there was ever a gig we wanted to keep under control, this was it. We rehearsed diligently, and everyone was prepared – no brain lapses today. And we played well – we had energy, punch and verve. At one point, we were in full rock star mode and during a keyboard solo I look over to my right. It was a big stage – the guy on the keys was maybe 50 feet away, and he’s sinking into the stage! How could this be? What a showman! As I looked more carefully, I realized something had gone wrong with the keyboard stand, and it was slowly collapsing and the keyboard player was following it down until he was playing on his knees – it was hilarious, and I bet the audience just thought ir was part of the show.
So, if you maintain a sense of humor, when things go awry, you can make some unforgettable memories you never expected!
