Tour:Smart: And Break the Band [Paperback]

Martin Atkins (Author), Cynthia Plastercaster (Author), Suicide Girls (Author), Henry Rollins (Author), Jade Dellinger (Author), The Enigma (Author), Chris Connelly (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 1, 2007

From packing the right equipment to keeping enough gas in the tank to get home, every aspect of making a successful tour with a band is addressed in this comprehensive guide. More than 100 luminaries and leading organizations from the world of touring—among them Chris Connelly, Henry Rollins, the House of Blues, and the Vans Warped Tour, as well as club owners, tour managers, and even sex advisors—provide handy insider know-how along with insight on mistakes commonly made by novice bands. Chapters address the nitty-gritty of touring, with instructions on how to secure venues and publicity, how to stay healthy on the road, and how to keep the budget in the black. Loaded with hundreds of years' worth of collective hands-on experience from those steeped in the music business, this is a must-have resource for creating an unforgettable tour.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"An inveterate self-promoter, Martin Atkins is, as usual, talking a mile a minute. But it's hard to resist being charmed by his rapid-fire banter, because as always, he has plenty of impressive accomplishments to tout."  —Chicago Sun Times

"Tour:Smart functions as an uncensored companion text to [Martin Atkins'] classroom teachings."  —Chicago Tribune

"In my six years of college, Martin Atkins was the man to clarify all the other instructors' psychobabble! He prepped me for the industry in a single semester."  —Michelle Cho, PETA

"This is not advice. This is the Holy Grail."  —Kraze

"If you are a music business major at university, this should be on your syllabus.  —Blogcritics Magazine

"Atkins embodies the entrepreneurial spirit with a unique merger of creativity and business sense"—Dr. David Herrera, Belmont University

"Having been a part of seminal bands like Pigface, Nine Inch Nails, Ministry, Killing Joke, and Public Image Limited, when Atkins talked about the business of music, people listen."  —Richi Corelli, soundsect.com

"The ultimate touring manual. . . . Tackles every conceivable aspect of getting the show on the road in a highly readable style."  —Mojo

About the Author

Martin Atkins is the owner of the record label Invisible and has been organizing multiband tours since 1995. As a professional drummer he was a member of the bands Killing Joke, Nine Inch Nails, Pigface, and Public Image Ltd. He is a member of the Music & Entertainment Industry Educators Association and a professor at Columbia College Chicago where he teaches the seminar "The Business of Touring." He lives in Chicago.

Product Details

• Paperback: 592 pages
• Publisher: Soluble LLC; 1 edition (September 1, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0979731305
• ISBN-13: 978-0979731303
• Product Dimensions: 11 x 8.5 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (23 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #76,876 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #48 in Books > Arts & Photography > Music > Business
  • #74 in Books > Arts & Photography > Music > Theory, Composition & Performance > Sheet Music & Scores > Forms & Genres > Popular

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

11 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Where was this book 5 years ago??, August 21, 2007

By 

Mike - See all my reviews

This review is from: Tour:Smart: And Break the Band (Paperback)

After reading this book, it's almost painful to look back at some of the mistakes I've made and the money I've lost over the past several years, and to think about how many of them I could have easily avoided by using the advice and tips that are in this book. This book is enourmous, and every page seems to contain information that could have helped me out at least once. It's great to finally have this book available, and I can't wait to start using some of the strategies it outlines. Could not be more highly recommended for anyone in a band, with a label, or in any way involved in or interested in the music business.

35 of 46 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Probably great if your band is already big., January 22, 2008

By 

Jane Vincent (Baltimore, MD) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Tour:Smart: And Break the Band (Paperback)

Man, I wanted to like this book, but I was really disappointed.
I'm in a bad that tours the country about twice a year, and has for the last few years, and I'd hoped this book would have some good advice. However, this book is aimed at bands who already play to a few hundred people a night, rather than for someone at my level. Also, it doesn't give you much advice on doing things without a big team behind you: for example, it tells you that you could book a tour without a booking agent, but doesn't give you much advice on how to actually do that.
I also felt like this book was aimed at men, and assumed that the audience it was speaking to was male (lots of sections seemed uneccesarily gendered) and HATED HATED HATED a lot of the sections about being a woman on tour. Ugh. The advice was things like "Don't pack too much makeup" and "Don't lose your keys." Srsly?
I've been booking tours and in touring bands for about 5 years now, and I felt like this was an interesting read for a peek into the life of a big band on tour, but was pretty irrelevant to a small band, and kind of insulting to female musicians.

13 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Bad Language Alert, November 12, 2009

By 

Brian Skinness "Terrapin Station" (Nevis, MN) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Tour:Smart: And Break the Band (Paperback)

If you're leasing a tour bus and getting $1000+ a night for gigs, then the examples in this book might interest you. I found it beyond the practical level of most indie bands I know.
I was surprised and unappreciative of the level of profanity. It is possible to glean some good insights from the book, but it is more a compilation of several events and happenings in the authors life. The touring information was beyond the scope of 99% of indie bands wanting to book a tour...which is probably the audience for this book. So while it is interesting to read, it lacks continuity and misses the mark on practicality...in my opinion.