Set Lists

Ah, the set list. A musician's master plan. Architecture for a showcase of emotional waves. Outline of tension and resolution. A showcase of repertoire that we hope will become not so much of a run down of the known, but more of a catalyst for synergy and a path to something more magical, something more than the sum of it's parts. Even when it's not followed, it can become a lifesaving document.

Some folks don't even use them...who are those people anyway? Man, I've got to have it

The way it works for me is that sometimes I wind up pouring so much into the performance of a song, I don't really have much left over to contemplate what should happen next. It's best however, when the playing of one song suggests the next, and that's the best feeling. When the set list becomes more of a safety net than a master plan. Then we're riding on the coat tails of emotions and feelings, much like the improvisations included in a jazz arrangement.

Currently I'm trying to keep about a hundred tunes in my repertoire and I'm playing a steady restaurant gig once a week gig. When I started out with this gig I wasn't making set lists - I didn't want to work that hard. Then I started to notice how stressed out I was getting instead of having a nice time. Turns out the stress of deciding what songs to play was ruining the gig for me. It turned out to be much easier to plan ahead. Plus when I don't have one, I always find that I miss out on some songs I wish I would have played. This lead me to keeping track of what tunes out of my repertoire I perform each week. I'm occasionally surprised to see how many times I've played "I Can't Give You Anything But Love" or something like that over the course of a couple of months. Is there some deep meaning in that? I don't know about that, but I do know that keeping track of what's happening every week and having a planned set list makes for a more interesting and fun gig.

Set lists - you don't have to stick to 'em and it's great to have 'em.