It is very important to have drum parts and drum accessories available for gigs and recording studios. Have you ever shown up to a show or studio and misplaced, forgotten, or even broke an important drum set part or accessory? There is nothing more frustrating and can create a panic situation at performance time when you realize your drum set is not fully functional.
Make a checklist of drum set parts and accessories
You can never be too organized and making a list of items to transport gives you additional security. The checklist should be a priority in helping you acquire all the necessary pieces of the drum kit. The easiest way to make your list is to start with the drums such as the bass drum, floor tom, rack toms, and snare drum.
Next would be cymbals, cymbal stands, snare stand and other drum hardware. A rug for the drum set should definitely be on the list. This item can be easily overlooked but crucial to the venues that do not have carpet to prevent the kit from moving. You can also use the checklist to gather everything after your performance.
SOME INTERESTING FACTS ON HURST Trevor Hurst- English, Irish and Scottish decent (that’s where he gets his good looks!) Canadian born- but WORLD CLASS!
GENE SIMMONS of KISS taught him a thing or two when he was on the road- not what you think! HOWEVER – during Hurst performance I did see a flash of an incredibly long tongue on stage. Most of the crowd (ladies) did a double take!!!
Favourite Canadian Artists- The Trews, Sam Roberts, Leonard Cohen (not Matthew Good)
Favourite Songs – Wild Horses by The Rolling Stones and One by U2
INXS contacted him to be a part of INXS ROCKSTAR- he declined. In fact Trevor despised the entire concept of the show to start with. “INXS should be ashamed of themselves to think that they can replace Michael Hutchence! But I do wish JD FORTUNE well!”
Hurst is on an independent artist managed by Coalition Entertainment’s Julian Gruhl, but is being distributed by MAPLE and Nationwide through Universal Music. So, although he has opted not to sign again with a major record label, Hurst still relies on them for distribution. Trevor breathes deep and gives me his take on record labels, “ I compare the artist/record label relationship much to that of a pimp/prostitute. As an artist you have your talent and the record company packages it and gets you out there, but at the end of the day you only get a percentage of what that is, most times not even half. Like when a pimp sends a prostitute out in the dress that he bought for her, she works, comes back gives him his money and he hangs the dress back up and gives her a cut.” That may seem like an extreme comparison, but when you really look at it, it makes sense. Of course there are many factors that play into each scenario- they always do.
Away from the buzz of L.A., Trevor finds solstice in his Winnipeg roots. The steady grind and shallowness that often sets the tone in L.A. wore on him and he found that leaving was the best thing for him. Now he is back where he it all came from, living with his wife (yes, he IS married, no kids though and no sign of them) in Winnipeg, writing music and singing songs, doing exactly what “HE” wants!
Which is why I was left waiting for a phone call for 11 o’clock from Trevor Hurst from the band Hurst – it is now 1145am. Shame on me for not knowing better, but trust me the interview that follows was definitely worth every minute, not to mention his performance later that week! I can’t be too hard on Trevor since he has been touring, promoting and interviewing non-stop and when I finally speak to him, his voice has a slightly raspy sexy tone and is very apologetic, but still very charming even at his early hour!
Even though Econoline Crush has had some huge success in Canada with highly acclaimed albums Affliction, The Devil You Know and Brand New History- I was not one of the scores of fans they did gain. Econoline had too much technical wizardry and not enough vocal for my liking. Not so on Trevor’s new 7- song album called WANDERLUST. Trevor says, “ No sequencers or samplers were injured during the making of this record.” Why? Because there are none! This is just one of the many reasons why I love this album so much. Hursts vocals hold strong and carry the music, which is a mix of rock and melodic riffs. Trevor says, “ I wanted to go natural.” He goes on to say, “ The best music can come from a place in your life that belongs to the struggle, and although music comes from many places- sometimes it’s after you have been writing for hours!”
The beauty of Hurst is that they sound just as good live as the EP is recorded. Trevor explains, “ When I am on stage singing, that is when I feel I am at my best. I love being on the road, not so much the grueling hours of travel – just the stage, the crowds and most of all the music! But, performing on stage comes so “natural” to Trevor and it’s no doubt, he was involved in musical theatre as a kid and everything grew from there. Hurst is played a series of gigs opening for Canadian rock band THORNLEY. Take note, if another band of this stature thinks that Hurst has what it takes to hold the weight of opening act – are there any questions?
The Let It Be album was finally released on May 8th, 1970 – less than a month after Paul publicly announced he was no longer a member of the group.
Overall, The Beatles became true legends and their music and lives touched our lives in different ways. The Beatles wanted more than just to be ‘Beatles’. They wanted happiness that they once had back when they first became successful. The band members went their separate ways; John Lennon found happiness with his true love ‘Yoko’ and son ‘Sean’, Paul McCartney found happiness with ‘Linda’ his children and ‘Wings’, George Harrison found happiness with his solo career, ‘Olivia’ and his son ‘Dhani’ and Ringo Starr found happiness with his solo career, acting career and ‘Barbara’.
Many wished that a Beatles reunion was on the cards but John Lennon was murdered by a crazy fan in December 1980. However, a virtual reunion did occur in 1995 when 2 original Lennon recordings, which had the additional contributions of the remaining Beatles mixed in to create two hit singles, ‘Free as a Bird ’and‘ Real Love were released. Furthermore, 6 CD’s of unreleased material and studio outtakes were also released along with a documentary and TV miniseries in a Project known as ‘The Beatles Anthology’.
After Epstein’s death there started to be some friction between the band members when Paul McCartney tried to become the leader of the group. John Lennon was the main member in protest but ties between them were still strong. During this time Ringo left the group for a short period because he felt left out but soon returned to find his drum kit decorated in flowers and John, Paul and George tried to include him more.
After The White Album the band started on the ‘Let It Be’ project where they planned to rehearse and record a whole new album of songs and at the end of it all they would perform a concert from a fantastic venue. The band began rehearsals at the Twickenham Film Studios but one day George walked out on a session after a disagreement with Paul McCartney but came back to finish up the album. John later explained: “We couldn’t play the game anymore, we just couldn’t do it”.
At the beginning of the year in 1969 The Beatles played their final live performance on the rooftop of the ‘Apple’ building in ‘Saville Row’, London. The Beatles decided to get together to make one final album “Abbey Road” which would go on to become their biggest selling record in history. It was mainly Paul who kept the group together and encouraged them to make ‘Magical Mystery Tour’ back in 1967 after the death of Brian Epstein. In addition to this Paul tried hard to get them excited about recording and performing but the group were only interested in recording.
In the middle of 1962 Pete Best was replaced by Ringo Starr who had been playing with The Beatles on several dates when Pete Best was sick. Later that year their first single ‘Love Me Do’ was issued. In 1963 the ‘Beatlemania’ craze had started and many fans across the world were known to have Beatlemania, which hit the United States hard after The Beatles performed on the ‘Ed Sullivan Show’ in 1964.
That year the ‘Ed Sullivan Show’ received the highest ratings in the history of television due to The Beatles and following on from this they then went on to tour America for the first time and starred in their first motion picture ‘A Hard Day’s Night’.
Their biggest year was 1964 when they conquered the biggest record market in the world – America. In addition to this they also brought back rock ‘n’ roll to America and cheered those up who were still suffering the death of John F. Kennedy.
The Beatles’ second motion picture ‘HELP’ premiered later that year and they then went on to perform for a record live audience of 55,000 fans at the Shea Stadium in New York.
In 1966, The Beatles were under some heavy pressure from the press after John Lennon made a remark that The Beatles were more popular than Jesus and was made to apologise shortly after. During the 1960’s The Beatles affected not only the music scene but styles and fashions of the decade! They transformed the music and record industry and started the ‘Pop Promo Film’, what is known as ‘The Music Video’ today. Most of their albums from ‘Please Please Me’ to ‘Abbey Road’ were all massively popular and unique in their own way.
However, things started to go a bit pair shaped in the middle of the 60’s when their manager Brian Epstein died. A tragedy like this shook the band and things started to fall apart. On top of this, the group started to be introduced to drugs such as marijuana and LSD. The Beatles played their last concert at Candlestick Park in San Francisco on August 29th, 1966.
John Lennon was the founder of the group back in 1957 and laid the foundation to what was to become the most famous rock band in the world. Originally calling the band ‘The Blackjacks’ Lennon played guitar and done the vocals, Colin Hanton played drums, Eric Griffiths on guitar, Pete Shotton on washboard, Rod Davis on banjo and Bill Smith played tea chest bass.
After lasting only one week, the name ‘The Blackjacks’ was written off and Lennon came up with a new name of ‘The Quarry Men’ using his old school name as inspiration. Bill Smith left the band and was replaced by Ivan Vaughan.
When John Lennon became a huge fan of American rock ‘n’ roll in 57 he introduced a number of songs by Buddy Holly, Elvis Presley and Carl Perkins. Later that year on 6th July, Ivan Vaughan invited Paul McCartney to see their bands gig at ‘The Woolton Parish Church Fete’ where McCartney was introduced to John Lennon, to form a fantastic writing partnership that was one of a kind.
Guests will not remember the food that was served or the color of the flowers. The one thing your family and friends will remember most is if they had a great time or not. Wedding reception entertainment accounts for 80% or your weddings success! Whether you choose a live band or one of the DJs in London; when a reception is going well, guests stay long enough to enjoy the food and your photographer and videographer will capture excellent footage.
DJs in London or Live Bands in London
The wedding reception entertainment you hire can greatly affect the turnout of your big day, and a fun disc jockey will make the party more interactive. DJs in Michigan are not as costly as live bands and can offer a variety of music styles. Bands in Michigan typically take breaks every 45 minutes and a DJ will not stop the music. With those kinds of expectations and that kind of budget, it is never too early to begin planning your special event. The first thing you must ask yourself is what type of wedding you want, and what is most important. I hope this helpful advice helps you dance all the way to ‘I Do’.
Congratulations on your upcoming wedding! There are usually two kinds of music at receptions; the mood music is played during the meal, & the energetic music that keeps your guests dancing the night away. There are a variety of entertainment solutions including many live bands in Michigan & DJs in Michigan. Music sets a positive tone for the evening when you choose the right wedding reception entertainment.
Wedding receptions entertainment can be a combination of cellists’, harpists, and pianists for mood music. Also consider violinists, light jazz, or a mariachi group as well. These recommendations are what most newlyweds end up going with. Live bands, quartets, and DJs in Michigan can fit a cocktail music format, but those recommendations are usually hired for dance music. Also, besides DJs in Michigan consider a jazz band or orchestra for your upcoming wedding reception entertainment. Live entertainment will always add a distinguished flare to the evening. For your wedding reception, select a musical combination that is likely to delight your guests. Good music is the best ingredient for an all-around fun reception that will have your guests raving about the night.