When is a band a tribute band?

PhilKing · August 2023

Went to see Foreigner last night. I was originally going to see them on the 2020 tour, but Covid hit and it was cancelled. The band was great but Mick Jones didn't play, so there was no-one from the original Foreigner line-up on stage. My wife said we could have gone to see a tribute band and saved a lot of money. I guess I did get the tour T-shirt.

blobb · August 2023

Try being a Soft Machine fan.

Philly_Q · August 2023

Are there any actual Foreigner tribute bands? I guess there must be.

BillDL · August 2023

Philly_Q said:

Are there any actual Foreigner tribute bands? I guess there must be.

Yes, at one of my employer's other larger depots down South a Hungarian, a Romanian, and two Polish guys that work in the warehouse have formed a Metallica tribute band and I am led to believe they are rather good

horse · August 2023

Philly_Q said:

Are there any actual Foreigner tribute bands? I guess there must be.

These seem to have been going a few years:

https://aforeignersjourney.co.uk/

bloodandtears · August 2023

horse said:

Philly_Q said:

Are there any actual Foreigner tribute bands? I guess there must be.

These seem to have been going a few years:

https://aforeignersjourney.co.uk/

and despite a few member changes along the way (3rd singer at least, 2nd lead guitarist), they are excellent.

Roland · August 2023

Face it, Jagger and Richards play in a Stones tribute band, and not a particularly good one at that.

axisus · August 2023

I kind of feel that you need Mick Jones or Lou Gramm in there to call yourself Foreigner. The rest could be anybody, I have never had a clue to any of their names.

PhilKing · August 2023

Roland said:

Face it, Jagger and Richards play in a Stones tribute band, and not a particularly good one at that.

At least they are original members. Ticketmaster must think that I like Foreigner tribute bands, they just sent me an email about "Head Games", a US Foreigner tribute band.

Philly_Q · August 2023

axisus said:

I kind of feel that you need Mick Jones or Lou Gramm in there to call yourself Foreigner. The rest could be anybody, I have never had a clue to any of their names.

The other original members might take exception to that. Although they all left years ago and at least two of them are dead.

Philly_Q · August 2023

@PhilKing was Jeff Pilson sitting down for the whole gig? I heard he hurt his knee, or something.

PhilKing · August 2023

Philly_Q said:

@PhilKing was Jeff Pilson sitting down for the whole gig? I heard he hurt his knee, or something.

Hi @Philly_Q, yes he was. When they moved the chair to the front for him to play piano, you could see how he was struggling to walk. I think it is a back injury that needs surgery.

Mind you when I saw Peter Frampton in June, he had the whole band seated, as he can't stand anymore and walks with a cane.

Musicwolf · August 2023

The recording contracts for most bands will include a 'key man clause'. This identifies which members of the band are key to the band's identity (usually front man / song writers) and therefore if these people leave / are fired / die the band is in breach or the contract terminated. In the Rolling Stones I believe that it's Jagger and Richards and I'm sure that I've read somewhere that Ronnie Wood has said that he has never had a contract.

The thing with these 'Trigger's Broom' bands is that there are also all sorts of claims as to who owns the name.

Philly_Q · August 2023

PhilKing said:

Philly_Q said:

@PhilKing was Jeff Pilson sitting down for the whole gig? I heard he hurt his knee, or something.

Hi @Philly_Q, yes he was. When they moved the chair to the front for him to play piano, you could see how he was struggling to walk. I think it is a back injury that needs surgery.

Mind you when I saw Peter Frampton in June, he had the whole band seated, as he can't stand anymore and walks with a cane.

God's way of telling them to retire...? Although I know Pilson has loads of projects which will continue after Foreigner. I hope he gets his back sorted out.

Blueingreen · August 2023

I saw the Hamish Stuart Band a few years back and Hamish pointed out that although they didn't have the rights to use the name Average White Band they had more original members (3) than the band touring under that name, who had 2.

Sporky · August 2023

As I recall, it was at one point possible to see a Sugababes tribute act composed entirely of the original members of Sugababes.

Litterick · August 2023

blobb said:

Try being a Soft Machine fan.

John Etheridge had better not retire.

hollywoodrox · August 2023

Musicwolf said:

The recording contracts for most bands will include a 'key man clause'. This identifies which members of the band are key to the band's identity (usually front man / song writers) and therefore if these people leave / are fired / die the band is in breach or the contract terminated. In the Rolling Stones I believe that it's Jagger and Richards and I'm sure that I've read somewhere that Ronnie Wood has said that he has never had a contract.

The thing with these 'Trigger's Broom' bands is that there are also all sorts of claims as to who owns the name.

Woody became an official stone quite a few years ago but for a long time he was a hired gun
Still the greatest rock n roll band in the world

Philly_Q · August 2023

Lynyrd Skynyrd has recently joined Molly Hatchet in having no original members in the current lineup (I know Rickey Medlocke was on Skynyrd's First and... Last, but he wasn't in the first lineup of the band). And in both cases none of the original members are still with us.

ICBM · August 2023

When I saw the Ink Spots some time in the late 80s, the band still featured the last *second* generation member - ie someone who joined when at least one of the founding members was still in it.... the original band was formed in 1934 and split up in 1954 - although since 1967, the name has apparently been ruled 'public domain' and it isn't actually necessary to have a connection with the original band anyway. I would guess some of the longer-running rock bands could end up going the same way.

Stuckfast · August 2023

There was something very apt about this.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Devo_2.0

PhilKing · August 2023

The sad news that I found out today is that Mick Jones doesn't play much any more due to health issues. Even if he does come on stage to play, he probably won't stay there long. I know it was billed as the Farewell tour, but it sounds like they really won't play without him. They just can't predict when he will actually play with the band.

chromatuna · August 2023

I have seen the ‘new’ Soft Machine and Gong several times each. I think it’s fair to say that both retain a goodly amount of the spirit of their ‘ancestors’ and are great bands to see in their own right. The former did evolve out of a lineup that was all Softs personnel from the 70s and in the latter everyone played in a late era Daevid Allen Gong lineup albeit quite briefly in two cases, Apparently Daevid (the absolute key to Gong for me) was keen for things to contine and trusted these guys. I think in these cases they are musicians making a living in an honourable way who would not be able to do so under less well known names, I also think that they are each ‘tribute’s in the original sense to the quite unique music that went before which lives and breathes in a live setting. It’s fine with me, they aren’t trying to fool anyone and it’s not a cash grab in the sense that either was a ‘hit’ band. Personally I miss Daevid too much to really like the ‘new’ Gong but as I say they are excellent in their own way.

p.s. related to this lot see also Hatfield and the Health if you are into that kind of thing

Funkfingers · August 2023

chromatuna said:

Hatfield and the Health

What about National North?

Reverend · August 2023

Napalm Death haven't had any original members since the first side of the first album

richardhomer · August 2023

Probably the Eagles, if I’m honest.

That said, I saw them at Hyde Park last Summer and they were fantastic.

ICBM · August 2023

richardhomer said:

Probably the Eagles, if I’m honest.

That said, I saw them at Hyde Park last Summer and they were fantastic.

Don Henley is still in the band, and Joe Walsh and Timothy Schmit count as well if you're talking about the 'classic era' even if they're not original members, so definitely still the Eagles.

That said, for me the *real* Eagles ended when they fired Don Felder...

scrumhalf · August 2023

I remember Gene Simmonds saying he wanted Kiss to continue with different musicians in the band, that it was the band and not the people who were important.

Fair point, but would the band's reputation ne tarnished when four, none of whom are Gene or Paul, put out a crap album?

EricTheWeary · August 2023

scrumhalf said:

I remember Gene Simmonds saying he wanted Kiss to continue with different musicians in the band, that it was the band and not the people who were important.

Fair point, but would the band's reputation ne tarnished when four, none of whom are Gene or Paul, put out a crap album?

I was listening to the Rick Beato interview with Bjorn Ulvaeus and they touched upon the avatars in the ABBA show in London.Even though I can’t remember what it’s actually called apparently it’s very good. Anyway, they were speculating on who else might do this and I thought Kiss. A virtual Kiss gig running in, let’s say, Las Vegas for eternity as a money spinner.

Here we go…

https://youtu.be/iEikjzZO2N8

blobb · August 2023

chromatuna said:

I have seen the ‘new’ Soft Machine and Gong several times each. I think it’s fair to say that both retain a goodly amount of the spirit of their ‘ancestors’ and are great bands to see in their own right. The former did evolve out of a lineup that was all Softs personnel from the 70s and in the latter everyone played in a late era Daevid Allen Gong lineup albeit quite briefly in two cases, Apparently Daevid (the absolute key to Gong for me) was keen for things to contine and trusted these guys. I think in these cases they are musicians making a living in an honourable way who would not be able to do so under less well known names, I also think that they are each ‘tribute’s in the original sense to the quite unique music that went before which lives and breathes in a live setting. It’s fine with me, they aren’t trying to fool anyone and it’s not a cash grab in the sense that either was a ‘hit’ band. Personally I miss Daevid too much to really like the ‘new’ Gong but as I say they are excellent in their own way.

p.s. related to this lot see also Hatfield and the Health if you are into that kind of thing

The Canterbury bands pretty much cross pollinated themselves. You can't really have a Canterbury tribute band, it would just take a slightly modified version of the original band name: Soft Machine, Soft Heap, Soft Head, SoftWorks, even National health were Hatfield without RS. The 'classic SM lineup isn't the original SM. Is PM's Gong still Gong?

Daevid was all about creating a family of groups. He was all about promoting a social movement to rally against big business bankers. e.g. Here & Now. So new Gong is just another version of this cross pollination idea.

Maybe you could call Hatfield and the Health a tribute band, but then again National Health did it themselevs on DS al Coda, which was an Alan Gowan tribute band consisting of members of the original band!

Love Canterbury scene. Full of inconsistencies, the biggest possibly being that Dave Stewart is from London. The Cow are from CAMBRIDGE and Camel are absolutley NOT Canterbury. You might disagree. Mmm, a Henry Cow triibute band, there's an idea - you don't see many of those do you? Wonder why......

hollywoodrox · August 2023

About a year ago I was going to pop down and see The Marmalade T a local venue but on looking up some info there were no original members

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When is a band a tribute band?

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