I once had a client, let's call him Rebel for now, who was some kind of heavy metal musician. For that client I had to do the bookkeeping; meaning, I receive all receipts to figure out if that guy made any money at the end of the day - or not. At least, that's the concept in theory. After complaining to Rebel's manager about the quality of information and material I got, and most of all about the information and material I DIDN'T get, I received a description of the show biz:
... Those are rock musicians. While Rebel has at least started job training of some sort, nobody else of the band and crew ever learned a trade, most of them didn't even finish school. One should be happy that Rebel knows of and even embraces social manners when dealing with other people. Another advantage is that he doesn't drink on a daily basis or consumes other adjuvants.
On Rebel's U.S. tour the drummer is responsible for the planning and timing. And yes, he is nice and probably does his best, but that guy doesn't even have an apartment. After two divorces in the USA he couldn't afford a place to live, even if he wanted to.
Here a summary of a regular tour day:
After the show the musicians change and get on the bus. The crew follows as soon as the equipment is all packed up. The concert fees are paid in cash to the "tour manager" (aka drummer), he puts the money into his pockets and one just hopes that it's all still there by the time he gets on the bus. In the same pocket he collects receipts, chewing gum wrappers and phone numbers. Once on the bus he puts everything into a plastic bag. The merchandise girls are following the same procedure.
After the tour I receive a big plastic bag with everything in chaos - bills with beer smell and sometimes without, receipts with stains and sometimes without. Some calculations are made on paper, some on money bills, some not at all. Putting the receipts into logical order and connection is more a puzzle and documentation of a crazy lifestyle than anything else.
Here a couple more details:
The income for each show varies a lot and one hopes that the at the end of the day there is a black figure and not a red one. The money paid to the band for the show is reduced by the agency fees, if anything broke during the show, consumed food and beverages, if the show was cut short, started too late or didn't take place at all. Merchandise is not always sold; for example, if the show didn't take place, customs didn't allow the crew to import any merchandise, or the organizer's commission is so high that it doesn't even make sense to sell any. Or there are more embarrassing explanations like the merchandise girls are way too drunk to set up the stand or the boxes have been forgotten at the previous concert.
Believe me, forgotten merchandise boxes or guitars are the least of our problems. Worse is, if the crew realizes 400 miles away from the last venue, that they forgot the trailer with all the equipment. Or that one musician is not on the bus any more and was left behind at the last coffee stop - 3 hours ago. Or that the band is on a plane to Tokyo and 5 hours into the flight somebody wonders where the hell the bassist is. ...
Black Sabbath's "Paranoid", Iron Maiden's "2 Minutes to Midnight", and Metallica's "Fight Fire with Fire" suddenly all make much more sense!
... Those are rock musicians. While Rebel has at least started job training of some sort, nobody else of the band and crew ever learned a trade, most of them didn't even finish school. One should be happy that Rebel knows of and even embraces social manners when dealing with other people. Another advantage is that he doesn't drink on a daily basis or consumes other adjuvants.
On Rebel's U.S. tour the drummer is responsible for the planning and timing. And yes, he is nice and probably does his best, but that guy doesn't even have an apartment. After two divorces in the USA he couldn't afford a place to live, even if he wanted to.
Here a summary of a regular tour day:
After the show the musicians change and get on the bus. The crew follows as soon as the equipment is all packed up. The concert fees are paid in cash to the "tour manager" (aka drummer), he puts the money into his pockets and one just hopes that it's all still there by the time he gets on the bus. In the same pocket he collects receipts, chewing gum wrappers and phone numbers. Once on the bus he puts everything into a plastic bag. The merchandise girls are following the same procedure.
After the tour I receive a big plastic bag with everything in chaos - bills with beer smell and sometimes without, receipts with stains and sometimes without. Some calculations are made on paper, some on money bills, some not at all. Putting the receipts into logical order and connection is more a puzzle and documentation of a crazy lifestyle than anything else.
Here a couple more details:
The income for each show varies a lot and one hopes that the at the end of the day there is a black figure and not a red one. The money paid to the band for the show is reduced by the agency fees, if anything broke during the show, consumed food and beverages, if the show was cut short, started too late or didn't take place at all. Merchandise is not always sold; for example, if the show didn't take place, customs didn't allow the crew to import any merchandise, or the organizer's commission is so high that it doesn't even make sense to sell any. Or there are more embarrassing explanations like the merchandise girls are way too drunk to set up the stand or the boxes have been forgotten at the previous concert.
Believe me, forgotten merchandise boxes or guitars are the least of our problems. Worse is, if the crew realizes 400 miles away from the last venue, that they forgot the trailer with all the equipment. Or that one musician is not on the bus any more and was left behind at the last coffee stop - 3 hours ago. Or that the band is on a plane to Tokyo and 5 hours into the flight somebody wonders where the hell the bassist is. ...
Black Sabbath's "Paranoid", Iron Maiden's "2 Minutes to Midnight", and Metallica's "Fight Fire with Fire" suddenly all make much more sense!
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