How to Lead a Pickup Band: EQ is Not An Amp Setting! Chat by Johnny Burgin

Lots of great players play with pick up bands-- Mose Allison, Chuck Berry, Johnny Rawls, RJ Mischo and on and on. Of course there's a lot to be said for having a great band of regular people who know all the bells and whistles of every song you can play and who you have a guaranteed chemistry with. But look at the examples of John Primer, Eddie C Campbell, Jimmy Burns, Lazy Lester, Tail Dragger, and heck, yours truly going to Europe, Canada, California , Mexico, or South America and use local bands all the time doing some of the best gigs in the world! I just finished playing the Notodden Blues Festival with not one but TWO great pickup bands (Jelly Roll Men and Håkon Høye & the Honeytones). Especially post-Covid, it's gone from being almost frowned upon to being recognized as practical and smart. Often, the audience wins by getting the hometown heroes they know together with someone they may not know.
This chat was recommended by lots of my great Patreon followers. I hope that any of you who lead bands at jams, or pros who are considering this step or would just like to tighten up their EQ game, will find it valuable. If you follow these suggestions you can give a good show with folks you've never played with, build new relationshiops and hopefully use the best players when you come back again!
This chat covers how to break down bass and drum parts to simple, singable concepts folks can follow and easily play; how to cue dynamics to maintain control as a leader; and how to adjust your own expectations to work with what you have! People often feel very vulnerable playing with someone they don't know, so don't forget to 'be a good hang' and show some empathy! (Eric Haugen's How to Play Rhythm Guitar in a Band talks about this. And Jason Ricci's blues jam videos are GREAT on this topic). I've definately made plenty of mistakes and learned a lot of this the hard way, and I'm still learning. Let me know your thoughts in the comments and thanks!
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