What’s In Your Gig Bag?
By Freddy Villano
The contents of your gig bag can be quite revealing. They may even allude to your personality. Are you fastidious, carrying all of the essentials, or eclectic, relying on trinkets to help conjure up your muse? Whether it’s a lucky charm or a practical tool, one thing is certain: if you’re heading out the door to a rehearsal, gig, or recording session and haven’t grabbed much more than your instrument, you’re destined to find yourself in a pickle.
Speaking from my own experience, I once went to a recording session with only one bass with an active preamp in it. It ran on a nine-volt battery. I decided to put a new battery in at the start of the session to freshen things up. Unfortunately, when I pulled the old battery out of the battery compartment, I also pulled out one of the little connection wires. The bass doesn’t emit sound without the battery, and I knew immediately it was going to require some soldering. With no way to fix it and the studio clock ticking (= $$$), I decided to try the local RadioShack. Lo and behold, I found a five-piece basic soldering set for $7.99. It goes everywhere with me now.
Another time, while walking to a gig in New York City, the sole of my shoe fell completely off. Since I didn’t pack an extra set of shoes, and didn’t have time to go shoe shopping, I decided to put my faith in gaffer’s tape. This is the MacGyver tool if ever there was one. You can’t really fix much with gaffer’s tape, but if something is coming apart, you’ll be able to hold it together long enough to find a permanent solution. And that was pretty much the premise of the TV show.
As soon as I got to the club I sought out the stage manager and asked him if he had gaffer’s tape, and he did. I wrapped the shoe and sole together a few times and was ready to rock. It even lasted until I got home later that evening. Gaffer’s tape is also good for taping down cables, set lists, and things like that, so you aren’t tripping over them or losing them on stage. I’ve also seen people use it to hold a strap on a guitar or bass after their straplock busted loose.
Here are what other people pack in their gig bags:
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Trace Davis, 45, Company President/Guitarist & Singer
“My gig bag always has the following: a tuner (a lot of people forget tuners), two 9V batteries (you never know when you need one or two), extra strings (I usually carry two sets), extra instrument cables (2), extra speaker cable (1), extra power/IEC cable (1) (The cables are not always for you, sometimes they are, but if another guy in the band forgets one at least the show can still go on!), cutters (you will need something to cut unwanted string length), an extra 12AX7 Preamp tube, if you use a tube amp, (I just helped a guy last Friday at a gig as his preamp tube in his bass amp died), a 9V DC power adapter, a power strip in case there are limited outlets available and an extension power cable (many times you have to use one to get power to the front of the stage).”
Steve Bello, 41, Music Industry
Sales Rep and Guitarist (Edison, NJ):
My Allen wrench kit is just as important as the guitars I carry in my gig bag. Since all of my Ibanez guitars have locking nut/tremolo systems, not having my wrenches would be like eating pizza without the cheese.”
Buford O’Sullivan, 48, Working Musician and Trombonist (Brooklyn, NY):
Trombone, trombone stand, umbrella, lightweight jacket, music books, pencil/pen, earplugs, slide spray bottle, slide cream, rag, demo CDs, seven-inch vinyl single.”
Peter Glanville, 35, Marketing Director, Guitarist, and Singer (Ithaca, NY):
I always bring an iPod cable, one-eighth-inch to RCA, just in case we need to synch an iPod to the soundboard. I also bring clothespins to outdoor performances. It keeps things like lyrics and set lists from blowing off my music stand. Also for outdoor performances, I bring a mike windscreen. There were times when the gig would’ve been useless had I not had that.”
Bo Matheson, 46, Painter and Drummer (Unidaville, NY):
For gigs, I bring my kit plus my mike. I don’t want nobody’s funk on my lips!! For the studio/rehearsal, I bring a snare drum, bass drum pedal, snare stand, and my throne. In my stick bag I carry extra felts, nuts, drum keys, and a Sharpie.”
David Easton, 40-ish, Piano Teacher, Keyboardist, and Singer (Maplewood, NJ):
My gig bag contains ... the most important thing: business cards. Also, band stickers, extra power adapter, two instrument cables, sustain pedal, and set list. Oh yeah, and a keyboard!”
David Campione, 39, Robotics/ROV Specialist and Guitarist (Ithaca, NY):
A small pair of pliers with a wire cutter, a nine-volt battery, and a Bic lighter. The lighter also makes for a decent bottle opener! How many times have you ever been jamming out somewhere and no one has a bottle opener or a lighter? It’s maddening! It can also be used for a slide if one were so inclined.”
Gil Rosado, 45, Guitar Tech and Bassist
(Staten Island, NY):
It’s forgetting the small stuff that can ruin your gig. I always pack a strap, Snark tuner, extra nine-volt batteries, an extra cable, a fresh pack of strings, a string winder, and a print out of the club’s address and phone number in case my cell phone dies.”
Andrea Asprelli, 25, Low Income Housing Specialist and Fiddler (New Haven, CT):
I try to remember to bring business cards. There’s likely to be people at the gig that approach me about taking lessons. People generally want to come up to you and say something, so it’s a good idea to give them a way to connect to you afterwards. Also, there might be other musicians in the crowd who want to get in touch with you for a project they’re working on or upcoming gigs. Business cards are a lot less likely to be thrown out than writing info on a napkin or the back of a receipt.”
Jerry Mirskin, 57, College Professor/Singer & Guitarist
“As an aging Blues wizard, I require a little something to get my mojo working. My gig bag is a charm purse, an essence kit. There’s a vial with Angelina’s blood, hair from Joan, and some stringy thing from Jewel. I think that’s all I’m revealing right now.”
Lou Watson, 40, Mother, Artist, Art Student, and Multi-instrumentalist (Portland, OR):
There was the time that I didn’t have a penny whistle in my gig bag, so I hummed into the mike and played air penny whistle instead. (That was when we did a version of “Jesse James,” so you can imagine that was a lot of air penny whistle; but truth be told, I play the air penny whistle a lot better than the real thing). Also, my gig bag contains hair grips, fake moustaches, glitter hair spray, and Goldfish crackers. I also always carry duct tape—got to tape the xylophone to the stand before going freak-out crazy on that thing.”
Andy Kahan, 47, Sales Executive/Guitarist
“I never leave home without an extra guitar strap. The last thing you want is to show up for a gig and have to use shoelaces for a strap! A few years back, I had a fill in gig for a metal cover band. I brought my Gibson Explorer and was ready to rock out. When I got to the show, I had no guitar strap. It was either sit on a chair or improvise something else. I ended up using a bunch of shoelaces that we tied together. It hurt like hell, but I was able to do the gig! Lesson learned, now I always carry an extra strap with me.”
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Andy Kahan, 47, Sales Executive/Guitarist
“I never leave home without an extra guitar strap. The last thing you want is to show up for a gig and have to use shoelaces for a strap! A few years back, I had a fill in gig for a metal cover band. I brought my Gibson Explorer and was ready to rock out. When I got to the show, I had no guitar strap. It was either sit on a chair or improvise something else. I ended up using a bunch of shoelaces that we tied together. It hurt like hell, but I was able to do the gig! Lesson learned, now I always carry an extra strap with me.”
Jerry Mirskin, 57, College Professor/Singer & Guitarist
“As an aging Blues wizard, I require a little something to get my mojo working. My gig bag is a charm purse, an essence kit. There’s a vial with Angelina's blood, hair from Joan, and some stringy thing from Jewel. I think that's all I'm revealing right now.”
Trace Davis, 45, Company President/Guitarist & Singer
“My gig bag always has the following: a tuner (a lot of people forget tuners), two 9V batteries (you never know when you need one or two), extra strings (I usually carry two sets), extra instrument cables (2), extra speaker cable (1), extra power/IEC cable (1) (The cables are not always for you, sometimes they are, but if another guy in the band forgets one at least the show can still go on!), cutters (you will need something to cut unwanted string length), an extra 12AX7 Preamp tube, if you use a tube amp, (I just helped a guy last Friday at a gig as his preamp tube in his bass amp died), a 9V DC power adapter, a power strip in case there are limited outlets available and an extension power cable (many times you have to use one to get power to the front of the stage).”
Steve Bello, 41, Music Industry
Sales Rep and Guitarist (Edison, NJ):
My Allen wrench kit is just as important as the guitars I carry in my gig bag. Since all of my Ibanez guitars have locking nut/tremolo systems, not having my wrenches would be like eating pizza without the cheese.”
Buford O’Sullivan, 48, Working Musician and Trombonist (Brooklyn, NY):
Trombone, trombone stand, umbrella, lightweight jacket, music books, pencil/pen, earplugs, slide spray bottle, slide cream, rag, demo CDs, seven-inch vinyl single.”
Peter Glanville, 35, Marketing Director, Guitarist, and Singer (Ithaca, NY):
I always bring an iPod cable, one-eighth-inch to RCA, just in case we need to synch an iPod to the soundboard. I also bring clothespins to outdoor performances. It keeps things like lyrics and set lists from blowing off my music stand. Also for outdoor performances, I bring a mike windscreen. There were times when the gig would’ve been useless had I not had that.”
Dave Wnorowski,45, Craftsman and Bassist (Queens, NY):
There is one thing in my gig bag that is important when gigging as an electric bassist: a spare guitar strap, and the cheapest one at that. It turns out many musicians have needed to borrow it. It can also be useful when someone is sitting in and you don’t want your instrument to smell like 1980s musk. Strap the guest in with the spare and leave that cologne alone! It saved me many times.”
Bo Matheson, 46, Painter and Drummer (Unidaville, NY):
For gigs, I bring my kit plus my mike. I don’t want nobody’s funk on my lips!! For the studio/rehearsal, I bring a snare drum, bass drum pedal, snare stand, and my throne. In my stick bag I carry extra felts, nuts, drum keys, and a Sharpie.”
David Easton, 40-ish, Piano Teacher, Keyboardist, and Singer (Maplewood, NJ):
My gig bag contains ... the most important thing: business cards. Also, band stickers, extra power adapter, two instrument cables, sustain pedal, and set list. Oh yeah, and a keyboard!”
David Campione, 39, Robotics/ROV Specialist and Guitarist (Ithaca, NY):
A small pair of pliers with a wire cutter, a nine-volt battery, and a Bic lighter. The lighter also makes for a decent bottle opener! How many times have you ever been jamming out somewhere and no one has a bottle opener or a lighter? It’s maddening! It can also be used for a slide if one were so inclined.”
Gil Rosado, 45, Guitar Tech and Bassist (Staten Island, NY):
It’s forgetting the small stuff that can ruin your gig. I always pack a strap, Snark tuner, extra nine-volt batteries, an extra cable, a fresh pack of strings, a string winder, and a print out of the club’s address and phone number in case my cell phone dies.”
Andrea Asprelli, 25, Low Income Housing Specialist and Fiddler (New Haven, CT):
I try to remember to bring business cards. There’s likely to be people at the gig that approach me about taking lessons. People generally want to come up to you and say something, so it’s a good idea to give them a way to connect to you afterwards. Also, there might be other musicians in the crowd who want to get in touch with you for a project they’re working on or upcoming gigs. Business cards are a lot less likely to be thrown out than writing info on a napkin or the back of a receipt.”
Lou Watson, 40, Mother, Artist, Art Student, and Multi-instrumentalist (Portland, OR):
There was the time that I didn’t have a penny whistle in my gig bag, so I hummed into the mike and played air penny whistle instead. (That was when we did a version of “Jesse James,” so you can imagine that was a lot of air penny whistle; but truth be told, I play the air penny whistle a lot better than the real thing). Also, my gig bag contains hair grips, fake moustaches, glitter hair spray, and Goldfish crackers. I also always carry duct tape—got to tape the xylophone to the stand before going freak-out crazy on that thing.”
