Keeping track of your gigs?

bermuda

bermuda

Drummerworld Pro Drummer - Administrator
Staff member
Who keeps meticulous records of the gigs they've done, and is that list in a database? I've always logged my gigs including date, specific venue info, whether the gig was audio or video taped, any interesting notes, and of course the band info. By the mid-'80s, I was able to put everything into a database, compiled from annual datebooks (which I always kept and still have...) dates on tapes, and gig flyers. After that it was just a matter of updating the file after each gig.

My stats are 3,030 performances (+or- about 3) with over 90 bands/artists, from early 1971 through this weekend. Due to my being in college, then transitioning into a full-time job, I had zero gigs in 1976 (although day jobs never stopped me from gigging at any other time...)

I also have databases for my sessions, video shoots, etc. :)

Any other completists here?

Bermuda
 
I've logged and recorded every professional gig that I've played in the last decade as well ;-)

cough...


On a serious note, would love to see the data you've collected presented in some sort of interactive timeline.
 
I just keep a list so I know what to claim on taxes. Date, miles driven if a long one, and pay.
 
KamaK said:
I've logged and recorded every professional gig that I've played in the last decade as well ;-)

cough...


On a serious note, would love to see the data you've collected presented in some sort of interactive timeline.
Click to expand...

Not sure how to make it interactive, but it's obviously completely searchable locally. I don't know how many people would really be interested in my gigs, with the exception of the Al stuff, which appear in a laundry list at weirdal.com (I've done a total of 1,594 performances with him!)

Bermuda
 
Sure they'd be interested, Bermuda. Time to write a book. There'd be plenty of interest about the interesting stories and experiences you could tell, unique things you learned over 3,000 performances, things the stats would tell that someone without them wouldn't know, venue, sound-guy, roadie, musician generalizations, etc. Put me down for a copy when you're done.
 
Ya you really could write a book with your Al performances as the central theme! Though an amateur, I have an engineering background and I keep records. I keep track of all of my purchases and any money I make from gigs and selling equipment. It is not a pretty bottom line.

I also have a future purchase list and my estimated cost. Oh and I compare estimates to actuals. Ya I am that geeky.

I'd buy your book!
 
I do actually have a book in mind someday, and I already have the title:

E before I? That's Weird!
(The Story Behind the Man Behind the Drums Behind the Man Behind the Accordion.)



:)
 
When I gigged regularly I kept a ledger with dates, locations, mileage, pay, expenses, etc for tax purposes. I haven't kept them, though, once they were no longer needed for tax records.

I've had a couple of very transient periods in life, where I've pretty much gotten rid of everything except my drums and clothes. I won't leave behind much of a record! lol
 
I would love to see bermuda's notes.. "Al was weird again today...." or "It's winter and Al wants to do All about the penguins instead of pentiums..." :)
 
In about 2 weeks, I'll be going back to January '16 in my little monthly planner I use for band gigs. I find it really easy to use those "month at a glance" type calendars. All I do is add it up and put in a super secret file for posterity. Really, all I do is compare the last 19+ years of gigging for my own pleasure. It is certainly interesting to see what a 'hobby' has provided back to me. I always say, "playing golf will ALWAYS cost you money, but playing music is a hobby that pays you back".
 
Yep, I keep records. I gig twice, (sometimes thrice, sometimes once), every week and put every gig in my phone calendar. Mobile phones make it easy and ever since about 2011 when I bought a Samsung S2, I started logging every gig. Start/finish time, venue address, fee, and any notes. They get automatically saved forever to my Google account online.
 
I wish I had done that. I've been thinking of starting a gig journal actually but it's a little late in the game now.
 
I started keeping a spreadsheet since the beginning of 2006. I came back to playing in 2003, so I don't have records of gigs for the first 3 years. But I'm up to 625 gigs since 2006.

I'm probably at somewhere near 1,100 lifetime.

Doesn't sound like a lot.
 
Swiss Matthias said:
I've been recording 99% of my gigs for several years now. Lately my external
drive where I have all those files stored seems to be broken though, and I don't
know if and how I can save my recordings actually :(!
Click to expand...

It's worth taking it to a repair place for file recovery. If it's a mechanical problem, they can remove the disc inside and install it into a working drive, then transfer the files.

I'd recommend backing up your files a few different ways, and as redundantly as you are willing to invest in your legacy. I have everything on backup drives that are regenerated every year. That is, I currently have 10 years worth of hard drives with all of my files and documents, and all of that is additionally backed-up on M-Disc DVDs (more permanent than dye-based media.) The DVDs and drives are housed in fire safes, so they're pretty secure, short of a nuclear incident.

Bermuda
 
Bermuda this is the coolest drum thing i have heard in the last 10 years !!! Kudos to you for having this kind of discipline / vision and now data that no one can duplicate. I am AMAZED !!

no i dont except for google calendar & social media as the "documentation" (i try to do a pic of every gig on Instagram).
 
double_G said:
Bermuda this is the coolest drum thing i have heard in the last 10 years !!! Kudos to you for having this kind of discipline / vision and now data that no one can duplicate. I am AMAZED !!
Click to expand...

Thanks, I've always been part pack-rat, part historian with just about everything I do that's worth doing. Turns out that some of my documentation regarding Al's career has come in very handy for certain media, and for which I've been compensated. :)

I doubt I'll get a nickel for any of my personal info. :(

Bermuda
 
Yup - being in multiple bands I have to track all gigs played. Im also the band bookkeeper - so I know the amount the band made, disbursements/sub payments, etc. Lots of spreadsheets to keep track of it all.

F
 
Interesting! I got a blackberry in 2006 and synched the calendar to my Google Calendar at that time (which was in Beta).

I'm not sure if it keeps everything that far back, or if it purges some dates, but I keep everything I do inside that calendar, and have for just over 10 years!

At 3-4 gigs a week, that's about 1800 gigs in the last 10 years.


It's always funny when Facebook posts those "On This Day" things, and I'll see a picture from I played a gig 6 or 7 years ago, and had completely forgotten about... sometimes with players/bands that I'd forgotten about as well.
 
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