New Years Eve Gig?

[Dean Holman]

For about the past four years, I’ve been playing New Year’s Eve at the Eagles lodge in Cape Fair Missouri. I really enjoy doing it. They pay us pretty good and feed us a big breakfast afterwards. After doing a music show and playing the same thing over 300 days a year, it’s nice to get out and play a gig with a different band and different music. I’m only able to do it in the off season.

[Larry Dering]

Good for you Dean. Glad you got to do it. Decent gigs are getting harder to find. I was pleased to find folks dancing on country tunes and applause for the songs. Also good food was provided and drinks for the band. I stayed with water only. Fun gig at the local Eagles Lodge.

[Bobby D. Jones]

I played New Years Eve with Touch Of Country. Gig was No Alcohol, But Great Food and great crowd. At 12:10am we was packing up.
By 1:00am I was home and every thing in the living room.

[Dave Mudgett]

Yeah, that First Night gig we did in the Presby church was no alcohol. In fact, we were playing in the sanctuary. But we had a nice, listening, and appreciative crowd, and there were people dancing in the aisles. And there was no danger of anybody dumping a pitcher of beer or barfing on my steel. Believe me, I've had to fight them off on these "amateur hour drinker" nights over the years.

Now, I'm not a teetotaler. But I have to confess I have definitely come to prefer playing "amateur-hour" nights in this big University town like St. Patrick's day (not content with one on March 17, we also have a Penn State student "State Patty's Day" here, which is the first Saturday before Spring Break) and New Years Eve, to a dry crowd. Or at least, if they're drinking, they get it done before they come in.

[Larry Jamieson]

Like many members here, I have years and years of New Years Eve gigs under my belt, and I remember the time when they paid double. This makes the 2nd Dec. 31st I've not been out playing. BMI and ASCAP are responsible for the last restaurant we worked not having music any more. I was lucky to live through an era where lots of places offered live music on weekends and New Years Eve, allowing me to be a weekend warrior while working a day job that kept the family fed. Hope you all have a good new year and are able to work as often as you would like.

[Dave Hopping]

Been awhile.....Last one was 1999-Y2K at the Loveland, Colorado Elks. Played bass as a sub.I've had a lot of fun working there over the years,but that gig was distinctive only for being unmemorable.

[Jeremy Steele]

I hate NYE in general due to the forced gaiety, but used to play the gigs mostly for the dough. Haven't played since the turn of the Millennium when the payday for the band was well into five figures...don't miss it at all.

[Bill L. Wilson]

Had a great NYE gig, made decent money, ate biscuits and gravy afterward, and home before 1:00 am.

[Rich Upright]

Played a private gig in Zephyrhills;good $$,great food, & the 2nd time we played there on NYE. We are booked 3 years in advance.

[Len Ryder]

When I played "New Years" in Yuma we always did the "first" New Years at 9:00 local time (east coast time) after that we'd lose half the crowd while the "youngsters" would continue on till midnight local time and it time and was always the same.

[Mike Harris]

I had a NYE gig in Gonzales, Tx., alternating between guitar, bass and non-pedal steel. Old C&W, western swing and jazz standards. Nice people and good snacks. Other than the drive from Austin and back it was enjoyable.

[John Lacey]

For the last 3 years, I’ve been invited to play steel at a private get-together at Will Bird’s kwonset hut in Carstairs AB. The phone hadn’t been ringing for years for NYE so it seemed like a good alternative. Will has fixed his hut up to look like a small nite club with a stage, lights and privacy, being out in the country. There’s no fee paid, it’s just a party with various guests and being a steel player himself it’s very steel-friendly. This year, Snoof Neufeld showed up so we had a mini steel convention before the rest of the folks arrived. It’s potluck so there’s a variety of food and BYOB so the setup is perfect. He also has a spare bedroom for us so we don’t have to drive the 1.5 hr. home. A great time.

[Rich Upright]

Yep, I played my last new years gig on 12/31/2018.

I agree that it is a night when non drinkers decide to drink and it can get ugly.

In fact last year, our band leader, who is a non drinker, decided to down a few and it was not a pretty sight.
He began degrading our new drummer over the microphone, because he was not familiar with every song.
In fact, he even said that he would have been better off doing a solo. Go figure.
Now this is a guy that I had picked with for years and alcohol showed his true colors.
I decided to give my notice (we were moving anyway) and all I got from him was "It's been nice knowing you". No apology then or later.

But I stood up for the drummer, since I was the one that found him in the first place.

So I am done with NYE and probably any gigs where there is alcohol. It is an evil thing.

When I was reading this, I said "Sounds like Florida". Then looked at your location & sure enough...this is normal par for the course behavior in this state.

[Doug Hall]

We've been fortunate enough to play Fri/Sat steady, for years, at the same place. The gig has its advantages, one being no nightly equipment set-up / tear-down. In Jan, we played the mid-week NYE show between the regular weekend shows. The place is a No alcohol, no smoking dance hall with a small grill. It's mostly an older (like me) appreciative, fun crowd, and occasionally, youngsters (teens), too. I guess the crowd likes dancing as much as we like playing the music, because several of us (myself included) drive over 50 miles to get there. Life's good, feeling grateful. I started out in bars with chicken wire, almost 50 years ago, and played most of my life. I agree with other posts here--I don't miss the bar fights, puke on my shoes, stabbings on the dance floor, knives at my throat, or stolen equipment that seem to be inevitably tied to alcohol. Life's good.

[Terry Winter]

My buddy and have next years New Years Booked. We are so lucky because it is a dance club. They are so appreciative and not only love country dance but want pattern dancing also. Luckily we have a large number of them too.