Brad Spurgeon's Blog

Last night at the Coolin open mic I had a fabulous lesson, or reminder, in the crucial role that an audience plays in the success and atmosphere of an open mic or concert. The musicians add their part, the locale or venue gives its part, but the actual real people that make up the crowd of spectators can make ALL the difference. On week after last week’s rather rowdy, uninterested soccer crowd on the eve of a French national holiday, I again attended the Coolin open mic on the even of another French national holiday. The crowd was just as big, but this time, it was a warm, music-loving, singalong crowd.

There was an incredible connection between the spectators and the musicians, and virtually all the musicians it seemed to me had a feeling of how they had to communicate with this particular crowd. Songs people could sing along with, but not entirely. Some were rocking wild, and got everyone going crazy, while others were more calm but still drew people in.

Most of the people gathered around the singers for more than half of the evening. There were some people who I think got up and sang despite not turning up to do that during the evening. I enjoyed my own sets, with “Father and Son” to start with, then “Year of the Cat,” which I did not expect would go down well, since it is not a singalong song, but it did. Then I did “What’s Up!” because it IS a singalong song. And finally, I closed off the evening with Etienne, with me doing guitar and backing vocals and guitar to his rich singing on “Knockin’ on Heaven’s Door.”

The owner of the bar was so happy with the evening that he wanted it to continue, it seemed. But it also seemed that it was better to stop leaving everyone wanting more – I know that I do! I will be back….