What mode of transportation does the PMG use when on tour?

[Roger Carlson]

Hi. When the Pat Metheny Group goes on tour, how do they travel? Do they:

1. Travel like a young rock band, i.e. in a single tour bus
2. Travel like a well established rock band, i.e. in one tour bus per member
3. Travel like Paul McCartney/Sting/Michael Jackson/Madonna, i.e. by private jet

Just curious. Thanks, Roger.

[Steve2000indeja]

Post by Roger Carlson
1. Travel like a young rock band, i.e. in a single tour bus
2. Travel like a well established rock band, i.e., in one tour bus per member
3. Travel like Paul McCartney/Sting/Michael Jackson/Madonna, i.e. by private jet
Just curious. Thanks, Roger.

I think it's a combination of #1 and #2. I walked out past their busses after
their concert here last year. Looked like 2 or 3 busses.

If it's 2 busses, my guess is crew on one bus, band on one bus. If there are 3,
crew still on one and maybe the band splits up on 2 busses.

PMG is one of the most popular jazz groups in the world, but they are Jazz (or
whatever you want to call their music) as opposed to the frequently more
lucrative "rock."

PMG plays 'theater size' venues in the US. 2,000 -2500 maybe up to 3000+. But
they don't play to 15,000 people such as a popular arena rock act can, or
50,000 people such as stadium filling superstar act can.

Also the PMG don't charge outrageous ticket prices as some rock acts do.. I
think this is so loyal fans like us can afford to come see them everytime they
play our towns..and keep on going to the shows for the 20 years some of us
have....

All this stuff means that PMG can make a decent profit from touring- If they
watch expenses.

If you're a band/artist which earns as much as PMG does per show, you can have
a tour bus for every member or maybe even fly to every gig (only the very top
rock acts fly to every gig thesedays) - but you won't have any profit left at
the end of the tour. You might even Owe Money at the end of the tour - as
happens with some beginning acts or mismanaged ones.

At this point in their career (and with record royalties Always questionable) I
think the PMG goes on the road because they love to play - and because they do
it wisely and make good money from it.

Not many jazz or jazz-like artists make good money from either recordings or
touring. I don't know about their record deal, but I think PMG does ok on the
road by traveling responsibly and playing a hell of a lot of shows each week
they're on tour. Many bands do 4 or 5 shows a week on tour. PMG seems to do 5
or six shows a week.

They are truly road dogs:)

Also, even though PMG probably do most of their traveling by bus, it's not
uncommon for a major group (any genre) to get on a jet for a major leap in the
tour.

Say they are winding up a stretch in the Northeast and have to open 2000 miles
away on the West Coast a few days later. Most medium to big acts send their
gear/trucks and usually their busses on ahead, then fly all the band members
(and usually crew) to the distant city where the next leg of the tour begins.
------
These are just my guesses from seeing their tour busses waiting outside Flint
Center last year (with me knowing they had a concert the next night a few
hundred miles away). Also from noticing their itinerary which is usually listed
on the back of the T-shirts I buy at the shows. This band plays A Lot.

And also, my brother is a road manager for a major act - has been for years- so
I sorta have an idea how this stuff works.

Steve

[Vinyltap]

Post by Steve2000indeja
playing a hell of a lot of shows each week
they're on tour. Many bands do 4 or 5 shows a week on tour. PMG seems to do 5
or six shows a week.
They are truly road dogs:)

I dont see that many shows a week including travel. After a couple of weeks
you'd be a wreck.

[Steve2000indeja]

Post by Vinyltap

Post by Steve2000indeja
playing a hell of a lot of shows each week
they're on tour. Many bands do 4 or 5 shows a week on tour. PMG seems to do

5

Post by Steve2000indeja
or six shows a week.
They are truly road dogs:)

I dont see that many shows a week including travel. After a couple of weeks
you'd be a wreck.

Below is the intinerary from the just the first 6 weeks of the 'Speaking Of
Now" tour. I got it from a pre-tour interview with Pat at livedaily.com. In the
interview Pat comments from Pat about them 'cutting back' on their
touring...from the days when they played 300 shows a year ( ! )

Looking at this itinerary, you can see that the PMG averaged 6-7 nights per
week during this section of the tour. Many weeks, they played Every night in a
different town. From the itinerary info on the backs souvenir concert T-shirts
I bought at other tours, those tours had similarly heavy itineraries.

Much as we like to think that the concert an artist does in our city is
special, and a one night only thing, it's usually part of a national or
international tour...and thus it's an economic thing. The best artists make you
feel that their performance for in your city is something special.

I've seen the PMG group 7 or 8 times as well as Pat's "Secret Story" project
and every time it's been special. PMG and Pat come to play. Given their heavy
tour schedule, it appears they Live to play.
----
As far as touring in general, it costs a certain amount to keep an act on the
road per week. Assuming you sell enough tickets (which PMG does) the more shows
you play, the more efficient you are - the more money you make. In the case of
the PMG, I tend to think of them as having a jazz-like work ethic. They'd
rather be playing every night (while in tour mode...or maybe on Any given
night) than not.

As I mentioned in my other post, my brother is a tour manager who's done some
major tours - so I've paid a bit more attention to the whole tour deal than
most people might.

Ideally the tour is routed right, so that no (bus) drive between stops is more
than an overnight trip (from as little as 100 miles up to 4-600 miles. The band
plays then (after the equipment comes down) they and the crew sleep on the
busses as they drive to the next city.

If the act is popular/has a decent budget etc, motel/hotel rooms are booked in
most cities so the band has a place to chill while the crew sets up the gear
before soundcheck. But sometimes they aren't. In anycase the tour bus is the
center of the world for many/most acts on the road.

This is also 'show business', so once the they get into a town, the band - or
certain members- may also need to visit radio stations or do other local
promotion. They may give phone interviews to newspapers in cities they are set
to play in a few days...

As often as possible (ex: if the next concert is in a nearby city) they sleep
over in motel/hotel room..but many more nights than you'd think, they are
sleeping on the bus. If there's a long drive they may take 2 days to do it -
thus an "off night.'

Good tour planning gets them an occasional 'day/night off' without the long
drive- just so they can stay human.

I'm always checking out tour itineraries of acts my brother is working with and
acts who I'm a fan of and may be going to see (all types of music) at
pollstar.com.

There still are the very occasional superstar tours, where the artist/band
flies in to each date from a central hub city (which changes as the act moves
around the country). Paul McCartney and The Eagles do it this way. When they're
done with the show, they zip to the airport and have a short (private) jet
ride to wherever the base is - so they can sleep in the same bed every night.
These acts do 4 shows a week, maybe 5 -and are very much the exception to the
rule. They also are capable of selling out 15,000 seat arenas every night and
charging up to $150 per ticket..

Almost everyone else does the tour bus thing, with the occasional flight to get
them to a distant city or country, the occasional overnight in a hotel, the
occasional day off. Most acts average 5-6 concerts a week. The PMG knows how to
tour very well and seems to average even more nights per week, 6 or 7 ( ! ).

Here's the partial itinerary for PMG's 2002 Speaking of Now tour. That PMG can
deliver such high quality, inspired playing night after night is incredible.

Steve
[the views expressed in the post above are my own]
---------
"Speaking Of Now" Tour Itinerary

February
27 - Northampton MA - Calvin Theatre
28 - Torrington CT - Warner Theatre

March
1 - Burlington, VT - Flynn Theatre
2 - Rochester, NY - Auditorium Theatre
3 - Syracuse, NY - Landmark Theatre
5 - Toronto, Ontario - Hummingbird Center
6 - Cleveland, OH - Lakewood Civic Auditorium
7 - Detroit, MI - Detroit Opera House
8 - Chicago, IL - Ford Ctr. for Perf. Arts
9 - St. Louis, MO - The Pageant
10 - Milwaukee, WI - Riverside Theatre
11 - Minneapolis, MN - Orchestra Hall
13 - Denver, CO - Paramount Theatre
14 - Salt Lake City, UT - Kingsbury Hall
16 - Vancouver, British Columbia - Queen Elizabeth Theatre
17 - Seattle, WA - Paramount Theatre
18 - Portland, OR - Arlene Schnitzer Hall
20 - Santa Rosa, CA - Luther Burbank Center
21 - Santa Cruz, CA - Civic Auditorium
22 - Oakland, CA - Paramount Theatre
23 - Universal City, CA - Universal Amphitheatre
24 - San Diego, CA - Spreckels Theatre
25 - Phoenix, AZ - Orpheum Theatre
28 - Austin, TX - Bass Concert Hall
29 - Dallas, TX - McFarlin Memorial Auditorium
30 - Houston, TX - Aerial Theatre

April
1 - Greenville, SC - Peace Center
2 - Atlanta, GA - The Tabernacle
4 - Clearwater, FL - Ruth Eckerd Hall
5 - Ft. Lauderdale, FL - Broward Center
6 - Lake Buena Vista, FL - House of Blues
8, 9 - Washington, DC - Lisner Auditorium
10 - New Brunswick, NJ - State Theatre
11 - Upper Darby, PA - Tower Theatre
12, 13 - New York, NY - Beacon Theatre

[Roger Carlson]

Very interesting stuff. Very interesting. What would you estimate
for Pat's yearly salary? I'm just curious. If it's a lot, I wonder
when he gets time to spend it all?

Post by Steve2000indeja

Post by Vinyltap

Post by Steve2000indeja
playing a hell of a lot of shows each week
they're on tour. Many bands do 4 or 5 shows a week on tour. PMG seems to do

5

Post by Vinyltap

Post by Steve2000indeja
or six shows a week.
They are truly road dogs:)

I dont see that many shows a week including travel. After a couple of weeks
you'd be a wreck.

Below is the intinerary from the just the first 6 weeks of the 'Speaking Of
Now" tour. I got it from a pre-tour interview with Pat at livedaily.com. In the
interview Pat comments from Pat about them 'cutting back' on their
touring...from the days when they played 300 shows a year ( ! )
Looking at this itinerary, you can see that the PMG averaged 6-7 nights per
week during this section of the tour. Many weeks, they played Every night in a
different town. From the itinerary info on the backs souvenir concert T-shirts
I bought at other tours, those tours had similarly heavy itineraries.
Much as we like to think that the concert an artist does in our city is
special, and a one night only thing, it's usually part of a national or
international tour...and thus it's an economic thing. The best artists make you
feel that their performance for in your city is something special.
I've seen the PMG group 7 or 8 times as well as Pat's "Secret Story" project
and every time it's been special. PMG and Pat come to play. Given their heavy
tour schedule, it appears they Live to play.
----
As far as touring in general, it costs a certain amount to keep an act on the
road per week. Assuming you sell enough tickets (which PMG does) the more shows
you play, the more efficient you are - the more money you make. In the case of
the PMG, I tend to think of them as having a jazz-like work ethic. They'd
rather be playing every night (while in tour mode...or maybe on Any given
night) than not.
As I mentioned in my other post, my brother is a tour manager who's done some
major tours - so I've paid a bit more attention to the whole tour deal than
most people might.
Ideally the tour is routed right, so that no (bus) drive between stops is more
than an overnight trip (from as little as 100 miles up to 4-600 miles. The band
plays then (after the equipment comes down) they and the crew sleep on the
busses as they drive to the next city.
If the act is popular/has a decent budget etc, motel/hotel rooms are booked in
most cities so the band has a place to chill while the crew sets up the gear
before soundcheck. But sometimes they aren't. In anycase the tour bus is the
center of the world for many/most acts on the road.
This is also 'show business', so once the they get into a town, the band - or
certain members- may also need to visit radio stations or do other local
promotion. They may give phone interviews to newspapers in cities they are set
to play in a few days...
As often as possible (ex: if the next concert is in a nearby city) they sleep
over in motel/hotel room..but many more nights than you'd think, they are
sleeping on the bus. If there's a long drive they may take 2 days to do it -
thus an "off night.'
Good tour planning gets them an occasional 'day/night off' without the long
drive- just so they can stay human.
I'm always checking out tour itineraries of acts my brother is working with and
acts who I'm a fan of and may be going to see (all types of music) at
pollstar.com.
There still are the very occasional superstar tours, where the artist/band
flies in to each date from a central hub city (which changes as the act moves
around the country). Paul McCartney and The Eagles do it this way. When they're
done with the show, they zip to the airport and have a short (private) jet
ride to wherever the base is - so they can sleep in the same bed every night.
These acts do 4 shows a week, maybe 5 -and are very much the exception to the
rule. They also are capable of selling out 15,000 seat arenas every night and
charging up to $150 per ticket..
Almost everyone else does the tour bus thing, with the occasional flight to get
them to a distant city or country, the occasional overnight in a hotel, the
occasional day off. Most acts average 5-6 concerts a week. The PMG knows how to
tour very well and seems to average even more nights per week, 6 or 7 ( ! ).
Here's the partial itinerary for PMG's 2002 Speaking of Now tour. That PMG can
deliver such high quality, inspired playing night after night is incredible.
Steve
[the views expressed in the post above are my own]
---------
"Speaking Of Now" Tour Itinerary
February
27 - Northampton MA - Calvin Theatre
28 - Torrington CT - Warner Theatre
March
1 - Burlington, VT - Flynn Theatre
2 - Rochester, NY - Auditorium Theatre
3 - Syracuse, NY - Landmark Theatre
5 - Toronto, Ontario - Hummingbird Center
6 - Cleveland, OH - Lakewood Civic Auditorium
7 - Detroit, MI - Detroit Opera House
8 - Chicago, IL - Ford Ctr. for Perf. Arts
9 - St. Louis, MO - The Pageant
10 - Milwaukee, WI - Riverside Theatre
11 - Minneapolis, MN - Orchestra Hall
13 - Denver, CO - Paramount Theatre
14 - Salt Lake City, UT - Kingsbury Hall
16 - Vancouver, British Columbia - Queen Elizabeth Theatre
17 - Seattle, WA - Paramount Theatre
18 - Portland, OR - Arlene Schnitzer Hall
20 - Santa Rosa, CA - Luther Burbank Center
21 - Santa Cruz, CA - Civic Auditorium
22 - Oakland, CA - Paramount Theatre
23 - Universal City, CA - Universal Amphitheatre
24 - San Diego, CA - Spreckels Theatre
25 - Phoenix, AZ - Orpheum Theatre
28 - Austin, TX - Bass Concert Hall
29 - Dallas, TX - McFarlin Memorial Auditorium
30 - Houston, TX - Aerial Theatre
April
1 - Greenville, SC - Peace Center
2 - Atlanta, GA - The Tabernacle
4 - Clearwater, FL - Ruth Eckerd Hall
5 - Ft. Lauderdale, FL - Broward Center
6 - Lake Buena Vista, FL - House of Blues
8, 9 - Washington, DC - Lisner Auditorium
10 - New Brunswick, NJ - State Theatre
11 - Upper Darby, PA - Tower Theatre
12, 13 - New York, NY - Beacon Theatre

[Steve2000indeja]

Post by Roger Carlson
Very interesting stuff. Very interesting. What would you estimate
for Pat's yearly salary? I'm just curious. If it's a lot, I wonder
when he gets time to spend it all?<

I have no idea and wouldn't dare estimate (income). Hopefully he has the time
and has fun spending whatever money he makes. Pat has a pretty nice guitar
collection:) Many handmade/custom instruments....
----
Pat's been around a long time and I would assume he and the group partners have
a decent recording deal/royalty rate.

There are also music 'publishing' royalties which can be very lucrative
long-term for whomever holds/owns the rights to the songs. Pat and Lyle write
the majority of the PMG material, hopefully they've kept all or part of their
publishing rights.

It should be mentioned that publishing rights of (pop) songs which can be
successfully covered by many different artists are worth more- as more copies
of the song are sold/played on radio etc, regardless of the artist. PMG
generally doesn't write these types of tunes..

However I know I've heard "Last Train Home" on TV commercials and in other
'non-airplay' situations. Licensing this (or any PMG tune) for commercial use
is making someone some money. Hopefully it's Pat and/or the Group.
----
Since the Napster/downloading frenzy began a few years ago, close scrutiny of
many of the major record labels and publishing houses has revealed apparent
underpayment of the royalties due many many artists. I have no idea if this
applies to Pat and the Group.

In anycase, live touring and tour merchandising has long been a source of
immediate, (generally) undisputed income for popular artists in all genres of
music. It's considered the Main source of income by lots of acts now, as the
record business tries to reinvent itself in this digital/downloading age.

Dave Matthews recently said downloading doesn't bother him much as he's made
most of his considerable money from touring and fans can't 'download a DMB
concert experience.' (though they can-and do-download concert recordings).

As I've mentioned in the other posts on this thread, PMG seem to be very savvy
about their touring and manage to bring their magic to thousands of us nightly
on every tour- very efficiently.

In the 2002 interview with Pat on Livedaily.com, he mentions that from approx
1980-1992 he and/or the group were pretty much on 'one long tour' during those
years. Sure, there were some career building years but Pat and the Group have
been a popular live attraction for many many years now.

So I would hope that Pat- and all PMG core members- have been fairly
compensated along the way. Seems like all these guys would be playing no
matter what, somewhere. All great musicians Play, even if it's just locally.

If the PMG's touring/recording makes enough money, we fans benefit by having
fairly regular tours come through our cities around the world and new
recordings to enjoy every few years.. So something's apparently been working
right and hopefully will for continue to work for many years to come.

imo,

Steve