Every year, I usually play at one or two Year 12 formals. I have played at the Marcellin College Year 12 formal for over twenty-five years. This year’s formal totally went off, so I expect to be doing their formal again next year.
The Year 12 Students Partying Hard
Great Test
Year 12 formals are a fantastic test for any band, especially because of the diverse range of age groups. Naturally, the people you want to connect with best of all are the students. They have just finished school, so you want to make their night one that they will look back at with the fondest of memories. But also, it’s a significant night for the parents. We need to make their night memorable, too. Then, there are the students’ teachers. They’ll probably be the ones responsible for re-booking the band for the following year, so they are also important to impress.
Crowd Surfing at Year 12 Formal
Connecting
The format of Year 12 Formals are like most Balls. There are pre-dinner drinks, followed by dinner service. During this time, there will be speeches and formalities. By interspersing live music (where possible) into these sections of the night, the band lays the foundation to building a rapport with the attendees. Obviously, the music needs to be restrained, but picking out the right songs creates the building blocks for getting people dancing later in the evening.
Boys just want to have fun!
Dance Music
With the advent of music streaming services, such as Spotify and Apple Music, many Year 12 students are well acquainted with the classics of pop and rock music. Add to this the phenomenon of retro music appearing in streamed television series, such as “Stranger Things” and “Guardians of the Galaxy”. 17 and 18 year olds know and love many of the songs that their parents also know and love.
Year 12 Formal at Doltone House, Darling Park
Rap and Classic Hip Hop
Throw into the mix my “rap” repertoire. This includes classic rap and hip-hop from the 80s and 90s. The kids all love Tupac’s “California Love”, Young MC’s “Bust a Move”, along with DJ Jazzy Jeff and Fresh Prince’s “Boom! Shake the Room”. Being able to spit out all these lyrics over the band’s groove gives the band credibility and builds rapport.
Guest Singers
Year 12 student gets up and sings with the band
Every year, inevitably one of the cohort’s music students will want to get up and sing with the band. This year, once we started “Eagle Rock”, a student jumped up on stage and asked if he could sing with us. I promptly gave him the microphone. This is another excellent opportunity to build rapport with the audience and his performance was a roaring success. This is a win/win. The students love to see their classmate up singing with the band, and it adds a bit of spice to our own performance.
Guest Singer at Year 12 Formal
We May Be Older But We Know How To Rock
When the students see us at the start of the evening, you can see the doubt in their eyes. But, by the end of the evening they are completely converted. They have danced furiously and had the times of their lives. In addition, their parents and teachers have had a fantastic night. All are left with wonderful memories of their last day of school.
Back in the 1990’s, it was common to be playing 4 – 6 gigs every week. I remember one week in December in around 1996, when my band played 12 gigs in one week. Doing two gigs back to back on a Saturday was common, and we were undaunted by the long hours of playing
Times have changed, but I’ll never forget one Saturday in the late 90’s when I did three gigs back to back.
Gig One
The first gig was 12 noon until 2pm in at The Rocks Square. In this era, the Sydney Harbour Foreshore Authority had a budget to put on live entertainment each weekend. There was a stage and seating, and usually two bands would play. Each band played for 2 hours. Sadly, those days are long gone. The Sydney Harbour Foreshore Authority now administer buskers to come and play for free. To be allowed to play for donations from the general public, you have to get their approval and purchase a busking license.
Slide McBride Band from the 1990’s
On this particular Saturday, I had my regular band with me, which consisted of Martin Cilia on guitar, Goby Catt on bass and Paul Carter on drums. We played a broad range of family friendly music.
Gig Two
The second gig was 3pm – 6pm at The Orient Hotel, which is within one hundred metres of the Rocks Square. This was in the days where the Orient Hotel hired jazz groups to play on Saturday afternoons. On this gig, I had with me Col Nolan on keys and Harry Rivers on drums. Both of these guys were once legends of the Sydney jazz scene. Sadly, they have both passed away and are remembered by few.
The Late Col Nolan
Gig Three
The third gig was out at Windsor at the Fitzroy Hotel, playing from 8pm until midnight. This was with the same line up as for the first gig, at the Rocks Square. At that time, the people of Windsor were fans of blues and classic rock, so that’s what we played.
The gig was fairly low key, with only a small crowd of people in attendance. As you’d expect, I was feeling pretty tired towards the end of the gig. At around 11:20pm, as we started our fourth and final set, I could see the finish line in sight. Then, at around 11:40pm, there was late influx of people. Apparently, one of the other pubs in Windsor had closed, so many of their patrons moved on to the Fitzroy Hotel, where we were playing.
The All-In-Brawl
Within five minutes of this late influx, two women started fighting. I remember watching a woman grab another by the hair, and then using this as leverage to swing her off her feet and onto the floor. Within a minute, this had escalated into an all-in-brawl. Everyone in the pub was engaged in fighting. This included men, women and bar staff. It was like something from a Wild West movie.
Bear in mind that these were the days before pubs hired security staff. Also, there were no “responsible service of alcohol” laws. Any incidences were typically handled by the pub’s licensee. And the licensee was punching-on with the rest of the rabble.
On the band’s stage, we “battened down the hatches”, trying to keep our equipment safe. The people fighting viewed a microphone stand as an advantageous weapon for bludgeoning their opponent. Several times we had to wrestle our equipment back off the drunken fighters.
All in pub brawl
The fighting continued, unabated for fifteen minutes, only stopping when the police showed up. Within a minute, the pub was empty. The licensee had a bleeding nose and a ripped, bloodied shirt. Apart from that, he was fine. He paid us, we packed up and we never played at the Fitzroy Hotel again.
Dealing with adversity is part of every occupation. Working as a musician, there are always things that can go wrong. But regardless of the challenges, the show must go on!
When Philippa rang me about playing at her wedding, I thought, “How sensible”. Getting married on Anzac Day makes so much sense because it means that every wedding anniversary is a holiday. Also, your guests can play two-up during pre-dinner drinks. I remember an Anzac Day wedding I once did at Athol Hall, Mosman. Daryl the photographer came up to me boasting about how he was cleaning up in the two-up game. Five minutes later, the bride came up to me asking if I’d seen Daryl the photographer. She was wanting to get on with the family photos.
Philippa was planning a “farm wedding” at Kimo Estate, about 15 minutes from Gundagai. To keep costs reasonable, I figured that the solution was to hire in musicians from Canberra. There are plenty of fine musicians there. I had a few numbers. If these initial contacts weren’t available, they would have other suggestions. Booking the band was quite easy. I was excited about working with some new guys.
Then Covid Hit
2020 and 2021 have been disastrous for musicians. Bookings were continually either cancelled or postponed. My optimism took a heavy beating. In one of the numerous lockdowns, I took a job delivering office furniture. Strangely, while the population of Sydney were discouraged from leaving their homes, I drove all over Sydney going into people’s houses, spending 40 minutes assembling their new home office workstations.
Phllippa postponed her wedding three times. Each time, I would call the musicians and try to re-book them for the new date. Some were available while some were not. My list of Canberra based musicians grew with each postponement. Nevertheless, I still managed to book a new band.
Fourth and Final Date
Philippa’s fourth and final date was Saturday, 11th December. I had my ‘Mark-4” band locked in. All was set. Then, ten days out from the wedding, the guitarist I had booked emailed me. He was no longer available. No phone call. No real explanation. “Something’s come up – a family matter. Sorry”.
December is a tough time to book musicians at late notice. Two days and fifteen phone calls later, I managed to locate a guitarist, Ben Hoare. He lives in Yass which isn’t too far from Gundagai. Someone had passed on his number. I searched him up on YouTube. He sounded pretty good and was available. “Lock it in!”
Then, seven days out, the drummer rang me. “Sorry, I’ve double booked myself. Can you get someone else?” Once again, back on the phone, but only to learn that every drummer in the area was already booked. I contacted drummers from Canberra, Wagga, Griffith, Albury, and Murrumbateman. The very last number I had was for a Canberra drummer by the name of Gavin Kelly. “Yes, I can do the gig. “
“Lock it in!”
Wedding Day
This was to be a long gig. I was booked to start playing at 4pm, with a two hour solo spot at the ceremony followed by drinks and canapes. After this, I would lead the band for five hours at the reception (6pm – 11pm). Then I would DJ the final hour, keeping the punters dancing until midnight. I’m used to long gigs such as this, so I was undaunted.
The Breakdown
I left Sydney nice and early, around 9am. My plan was to check into The Gundagai Motel around 1:30/2pm, have a little nap and then drive the fifteen minutes out to the venue. I was on the Hume Highway, about 90 kms out of Gundagai, when my radiator exploded. I pulled over immediately and thought, “This is it. There’s no way I can make Phillipa’s wedding.”
The first thing I did was to call the NRMA. After spending eight minutes on the phone being quizzed by a robotic voice and selecting options from my keypad, I finally spoke to a human. She asked, “Where are you?”. I was somewhere on the Hume Highway, but that’s a pretty long road. She was able to use my phone to access my GPS location. Help was on its way!
Can the Show Still Go On?
The next thing was to ring the band. “Hey guys, my car’s died about 15kms south of Yass. Got any ideas?”. Ben (my guitarist from Yass) suggested that I could possible travel down with him. He has a ute. As long as it didn’t rain, I’d be right to travel down with him. Despite a few clouds, I was prepared to take a risk on the weather staying dry.
Within half an hour, the NRMA patrolman arrived. After checking out my car, he said he’d return with a tow truck. He could take my car back to Yass. Then the car could be towed to Sydney on Monday. There are no radiator repairers in Yass. I really had no other options.
Sitting in the cabin of the tow truck, enroute to my guitarist’s house, I researched accommodation in Yass. I booked an expensive room at the Thunderbird Motel. Their “family suite” was the last available room. I didn’t need five beds, but I didn’t want to sleep in my car, either.
I met my guitarist under strained circumstances. It’s difficult to expect favours from a total stranger. Regardless, Ben was typical of rural spirit. “Yeah mate, she’ll be right”. Onto the back of Ben’s ute we loaded my P.A., stands, bags plus my trumpet and trombone. My Fender Stratocaster and ukulele luxuriously rode in the cabin with Ben’s equipment and us.
Thank Goodness for a Late Bride
We arrived on the site for the ceremony at 4:10pm. One of the bridesmaids was freaking out at my lateness, but then the bride was running late. This saved me. My first song was to be “Love Is In Air”, to be played at the conclusion of the ceremony. Then I learned that the reception was being held at a different location, about a kilometre up the road.
After dropping off my battery-powered set up, we drove to where the reception was to be held. I had two minutes to scope out the reception venue before getting a lift back to the ceremony site. When I arrived back, the ceremony had started. I surreptitiously set up behind the guests. Within ten minutes, the newlyweds were introduced by the celebrant and I launched into my rendition of the classic Vanda and Young love song.
I then continued on with singing and playing my ukulele while guests sipped on drinks and tapped their toes. At one stage, a guest came over to me and exclaimed, “I’m so sorry. I just want to apologise for not stopping”. Evidently, my plaid, straight legged trousers had made an impact on him as he sped past me and my broken down car. Apparently, he had remarked to his wife, “wow, that guy with the broken down car sure has some great fashion sense!” Too bad he didn’t stop to tell me.
At 6pm, I cadged I ride with one of the wait-staff across to the reception venue. My next task was to set up my PA and lights before the guests arrived by shuttle bus. The other band members were set up getting to know each other. None of these three guys had ever met before. I had worked previously with the bass player, Mick Malouf, but the other two guys were new to both of us. The next thing was to check out their ability as musicians.
Make Them Dance
We began to play as the guests disembarked from the shuttle buses. There was more drinking before guests took their seats and the food service began. We played throughout dinner before taking a break for speeches. After these, the moment of truth would be upon us.
Could this band made up of strangers thrown together less than ten days prior get this party ignited?
Would the band and I triumph against the adversities and obstacles that had stood before us on this day?
Could this band who had never played before, create the cohesion required to make dancing irresistible?
The proof of the pudding is in the tasting and answer to the three afore mentioned questions was a resounding, “yes!”
We ended up playing two, long dance sets and the dancefloor was never empty. When the band finished at 11pm, I switched roles and became the DJ. The dancefloor remained crowded right up until the last song. At midnight, the buses took guests back to Gundagai.
Dancing to Slide McBride in Gundagai
The Aftermath
With the venue now empty of guests, it was time to pack down the PA, lights and instruments. Despite having finished his part of the gig at 11pm, Ben had kindly stuck around to give me a lift back to Yass. Despite both of us feeling exhausted, we diligently loaded up his ute once more, before making the late-night drive back to Yass. We returned to Ben’s house at 1:45am. Then we had to unpack my equipment and instruments from his ute into my broken-down car, after which he dropped me down to my motel. I made it to bed just after 2am.
My Wife’s Rescue Mission
Sunday morning, my wife drove down to Yass to rescue me. I was pretty much unable to speak when she collected me from the motel. My voice was shot. Returning to Ben’s house, I unloaded my equipment from the broken-down vehicle into the working vehicle. Then we drove back to Sydney. The car was towed back to Sydney on Monday. The new radiator went in on Tuesday.
Have you considered adding Slide McBride to your playlist? There are now twenty-two tracks to choose from.
I have recently released a six track EP onto all digital music platforms. The title of the EP is “Rocking the 90’s”
This EP release is in addition to the previously released sixteen track album, “Slide McBride”. This album was originally released independently on CD in 1998, and was added to digital streaming formats in 2016.
Classic Slide McBride from the 1990’s
These six tracks were recorded live to DAT (digital audio tape). They capture the live sound of the band at that time. In that era, the band was doing over two hundred live performances per year. The band was on fire and this energy is captured in these recordings.
The Tracks
Life Is A Highway
Life Is A Highway performed by Slide McBride
This song was originally released by Tom Cochrane in 1991. I used to love playing this one. It’s a real screamer. Listen out for the trombone doubling the guitar riff. This is the perfect song for driving fast on the open road with all the windows down and the stereo cranking.
I Try
I Try performed by Slide McBride
This was originally released by Macy Gray in 1999. I had completely forgotten about this recording until I came across the sound file earlier this year. There’s no introduction and no tag to finish with. It’s straight in and straight out. The backing is sparse and my vocal interpretation captures the angst of the lyrics. Listen for the key modulation towards the end of the song.
I Can’t Get Enough of You Baby
I Can’t Get Enough Of You Baby performed by Slide McBride
This was released by the band, Smash Mouth in 1998. I didn’t realise until recently that their version was actually a cover version. The original goes back to 1967, when it was recorded by the now forgotten “? and the Mysterians”. (Yes, that was really the band’s name)! Our recording features trombone playing the riff, and then taking a short, punchy solo in the middle of the song.
I Can’t Help Falling In Love
I Can’t Help Falling In Love performed by Slide McBride
The band UB40 released a reggae version of this song in 1993, although Elvis Presley originally made this song famous in the early 1960’s. Our rendition is in a laid-back funk style. We used to play our version quite a bit for bridal dances at weddings.
Can’t Buy Me Love
Can’t Buy Me Love performed by Slide McBride
This is a classic Beatles song from 1964. We used to play quite a few of the early Beatles classics during the 1990’s. We did this one in the original key of C major. It pushes my vocal range all the way to the top. (I have an incredible amount of respect for Paul McCartney as a singer). Listen out for Martin’s accurate transcription of the original George Harrison guitar solo.
Great Balls of Fire
Great Ball of Fire performed by Slide McBride
This is the quintessential rock’n’roll song. It was originally recorded by Jerry Lee Lewis in 1957. His recording is iconic. Our version features two solo sections. The first is taken on guitar by Martin. I take the second solo break on harmonica.
The Band on this Recording
On guitar is Martin Cilia. Martin went on to be a leading exponent in the “Surf Guitar” genre.
For more on Martin Cilia, please refer to his website.
The full line-up of “Slide McBride” is a 4-piece band.
This consists of Slide McBride (the person) on vocals, trombone, trumpet, ukulele/guitar. The other three band members play (i) drums, (ii) bass, & (iii) guitar.
Slide McBride has the flexibility to add or subtract band members.
The band can be extended to a 5-piece by adding either (i) a female singer, or (ii) a saxophone player.
The band can also cut down to 3-piece or 2-piece. Slide McBride (the person) can also perform as a solo artist.
Pricing
Pricing is based on a “per player” basis.
On a Saturday night, a minimum booking is 4 hours, and then the booking can be extended on a “per player/per hour” basis.
At other times, a minimum booking is for 3 hours, with the option of extending the booking on a “per player/per hour” basis.
Below are shots taken by Karl Welsch. These were taken at a wedding we played at. I’m sure you’ll agree, these are fantastic images. For more on Welsch Photography, click on this link to go to their website – https://www.welsch.com.au/
Photo courtesy of Welsch PhotographyPhoto courtesy of Welsch PhotographyPhoto courtesy of Welsch PhotographyPhoto courtesy of Welsch PhotographyPhoto courtesy of Welsch PhotographyPhoto courtesy of Welsch Photography
