Les H
Tele-Holic
And just as I had suspected the lead singer threw me under the bus for his firing... It was good to get a chance to explain to him the way I recall it all going down.
Our singer always thought he played too loud and there were times where I can't disagree. The last time I saw the drummer we were at band practice following our last gig in a small club. The singer was razzing the drummer about being too loud and I brought up the idea of a plexiglass shield. We looked them up and they were around $300. The drummer was in some financial hardships at the time so I suggested we pay for it out of our till at the next gig and he can either pay it back over time or it becomes band property, I didn't care either way. I was just looking for a way to make it work out for everyone. Myself, the bass player and lead singer as well as the drummer were all in agreement.
Later that same week the singer calls me and said the more he thought about it he didn't think it was fair for us to pitch in money on something he felt the drummer could control on his own. He said he was going to call him up, invite him over, fire him and have him pick up his drums. I just said "okay, it's your band anyway so if that's what you think is necessary it's your decision to make but I am willing to pitch in for a shield. The singer said he was done with him.
I always felt bad for him thinking we left that practice with a plan to help him and he ended up fired. I never saw him again for 7 years until a couple weeks ago. I had heard through the rumor mill I was the one he was mad at but I never understood why. Occasionally, the lead singer would say he bumped into him and talked to him a minute here and there. Which seemed even weirder to me knowing he would still talk to the guy who fired him after having heard I was the one the drummer was maddest at. Anyway, once we got through the awkward chit chat about the weather it came out and we talked about it for 30 minutes. The lead singer who fired him told him it was all my idea, that I would quit the band if we kept him blah blah blah, none of which was true.
I had also left that band a couple years ago because of issues I had had with the singer for a few years myself. The final straw for me was the singer's refusal to cancel a Shriners gig or find a replacement for me and insisted I play despite it being the same day of my father's funeral.
Anyway, we had a good talk, felt good to clear the air and we may even get together for a jam session after the holidays.
Our singer always thought he played too loud and there were times where I can't disagree. The last time I saw the drummer we were at band practice following our last gig in a small club. The singer was razzing the drummer about being too loud and I brought up the idea of a plexiglass shield. We looked them up and they were around $300. The drummer was in some financial hardships at the time so I suggested we pay for it out of our till at the next gig and he can either pay it back over time or it becomes band property, I didn't care either way. I was just looking for a way to make it work out for everyone. Myself, the bass player and lead singer as well as the drummer were all in agreement.
Later that same week the singer calls me and said the more he thought about it he didn't think it was fair for us to pitch in money on something he felt the drummer could control on his own. He said he was going to call him up, invite him over, fire him and have him pick up his drums. I just said "okay, it's your band anyway so if that's what you think is necessary it's your decision to make but I am willing to pitch in for a shield. The singer said he was done with him.
I always felt bad for him thinking we left that practice with a plan to help him and he ended up fired. I never saw him again for 7 years until a couple weeks ago. I had heard through the rumor mill I was the one he was mad at but I never understood why. Occasionally, the lead singer would say he bumped into him and talked to him a minute here and there. Which seemed even weirder to me knowing he would still talk to the guy who fired him after having heard I was the one the drummer was maddest at. Anyway, once we got through the awkward chit chat about the weather it came out and we talked about it for 30 minutes. The lead singer who fired him told him it was all my idea, that I would quit the band if we kept him blah blah blah, none of which was true.
I had also left that band a couple years ago because of issues I had had with the singer for a few years myself. The final straw for me was the singer's refusal to cancel a Shriners gig or find a replacement for me and insisted I play despite it being the same day of my father's funeral.
Anyway, we had a good talk, felt good to clear the air and we may even get together for a jam session after the holidays.
