I don’t even try to do set lists any more.  It’s just too hard.  Jenny has to carry that weight.

As a variety cover band, we know that the most important thing to our guests is the songs.  People want to hear songs they like and if they can sing along, all the better.  The problem is obvious: everybody likes different songs!  And, of course, we want to please everybody.

We have over 400 songs to choose from on our master list.  Many of those we rarely, if ever, plan to play at a gig, but if somebody requests a given song, or a song by a given artist, odds are pretty good we can pull it off passably.

Still, picking three or four hours of music for a given club or event is challenging.  We are trying to guess the general demographic makeup and musical tastes of the audience in advance – old vs. young, rock/pop vs. country, elites vs. folks, high-energy and loud vs. sweet and subdued, etc.

Fortunately, we find that in the Carolinas most people like all kinds of music, and even prefer as broad a mix as possible.  They don’t mind following a Nirvana song with a Willie Nelson.  Those who really do have a preference for a particular kind of music are usually gracious enough to wait their turn while we play somebody’s else’s favorite.  Carolina people are beautifully diverse, and that is a good thing for a “variety” cover band.

So how do we come up with set lists?

If we are playing a venue for the first time, we pick from a core group of about a hundred go-to selections.  These are songs that we play often and think are particularly strong for one reason or another.  Generally they are the tunes that have been well received at earlier gigs.  The list changes as we learn new material – stronger songs move to the top and weaker ones drop out.  Obviously, a bike night show will rock harder than a wine bar, but many of this core group of songs work well for either.

For venues that we play frequently, we make sure that at least half of our songs have not been played there previously, so repeat guests don’t get bored hearing the same songs they heard a month ago.  That’s when we deep-dive into that big pool of “reserve” songs, and that’s fun for us musically.  It is more satisfying to play fresh music than to “autopilot” the same tunes every night.

We really try to not be “self-indulgent”, playing songs that we like without regard for the audience.  Our job is to entertain the guests, and in the case of club work, hold them at our employer’s venue as long as possible.  We can entertain ourselves at home.  Just the same, we try not to play songs that are overplayed.  Of course we have to have the “standard” selections available for requests.  But our set lists are more likely to include songs that most guests know and like, but don’t hear as often.  And we like to “surprise” our guests with songs they wouldn’t expect us to play.

And, given a diverse audience, we try to really mix up the list.  We alternate vocals female vs. male, old vs. new, shuffling genre, tempo, and style.  At club gigs we adjust on the fly, picking “off list” alternatives aimed at individuals or groups, making a special effort to satisfy their tastes.

We also love to do requests.  I mean really love ’em!  It allows us to stretch musically, sometimes doing songs we have never played before.  Once in a while this results in a less-than-perfect rendition, but if you sincerely try to please a guest, and have fun doing it, the effort is appreciated and enjoyed.

Taking requests can be an adventure.  What’s the weirdest request ever?  One that comes to mind came from a lovely 90-year old grandmother of the bride at a wedding reception.  She asked me, “You are probably too young to know this song, but could you please play “Tiny Bubbles”?   I remembered hearing as a kid Don Ho’s satiny baritone on the TV variety shows.  And I knew the lyrics to one verse!  (Actually, I think there was only one verse in English, and one in Hawaiian).  So off we went to post-war musical Hawaii, singing “Tiny bubbles, in the wine, make me happy, make me feel fine . . .” as a frail, silver-haired Grandma put down her cane and danced at her granddaughter’s wedding with a huge smile and a tear in her eye.

It wasn’t on the set list.