MEDIA
The Fayetteville Feed
Online Magazine
June 2009
Guide to Being a Rock Star: Paddy Gibney
By James Johnson
Photos by Raul Rubiera Jr.
Slideshow of All Shots From Paddy's Photoshoot w/Raul Rubiera
Guide to Being a Rock Star: Paddy Gibney
Making music pay the bills can seem like an impossible feat no matter what town you live in (there’s a reason pawn shops are never short of guitars), but making it work in Fayetteville can require a miracle. Fortunately, we have ol’ Saint Patrick himself on speed dial. Introducing, Paddy Gibney’s guide to rock.
The Man, the Myth, the Sloppy Drunk
For those who’ve found comfortable dwellings below a rock, Paddy Gibney is Fayetteville’s own Irish folk phenomenon, who along with classically trained violinist Bill Ayerbe, has managed to release five Cds and one audio cassette tape (yeah - they’ve been at this for a while).
Thanks to their success in garnering audiences, Gibney was able to open his own bar and music venue, appropriately named Paddy’s Pub, and as a result secure he and Ayerbe the cushy gig of “house band.”
“Paddy and Bill play every Friday and Thursday night, and every Friday and Thursday night his pub is jam packed,” said Gibney fan and webmaster Laura Harper.
Sadly, Gibney’s story is no where near typical - so what’s his secret? We sat down with him to find out just that.
TIP 1: Get off your arse.
It almost seems like “stop being lazy” should go without saying, but Gibney feels that most musicians lack a little thing he likes to refer to as “work ethic” … It sounds cooler in an Irish accent.
“They’re fucking lazy,” said Gibney. “Musicians need to get over themselves. Their work ethic leaves a lot to be desired. It is a business - and if you don’t look at it that way, then don’t expect to make any fucking money at it.”
Gibney points to bands who spend all of their time rehearsing as a prime example. “They get comfortable,” Ayerbe explained. “You have so many musicians who want to sit around and practice. It takes them so long to finally say ‘alright, I’m going to get a couple of other guys and do a show.’ But they don’t make phone calls - they don’t make plans. They just practice.”
“They practice and five years later they still haven’t done one show,” added Gibney.
Gibney suggests going the opposite rout - get out there, play music, and learn as you go along. “Just Do It” is more than a shoe company slogan, it’s sage advice.
TIP 2: Play first, party later
What qualifies Gibney and Ayerbe to offer advice on how not to screw up, is probably their lengthy resume of screw ups. You name it, they’ve done it.
“Oh yeah, we could never get out of Southern Pines sober,” said Ayerbe. “There was this one time we did a show pantsless. Paddy had a guitar to cover himself, but I’m playing a violin, so yeah, I could only get down to my underwear.”
“Bill requires a bigger fig leaf,” joked Gibney.
The moral of this story? Get your paycheck and -then- be an ass.
“Truly, musicians are the stupidest people in the entire world. Absolutely dumb as a bag of fucking rocks,” said Gibney. “It’s true. The thing about it is, if you do drugs, and you love vagina, which most of us do - why do you have to wave that flag? Can’t you wait until the show is over? Until you’ve done your job?”
TIP 3: Shag at your own risk.
True, sex and live music tend to go together like trailer parks and domestic violence, but once the music has faded and the hangover subsided, there still exists a little thing called consequences.
TIP 4: Get over yourself.
Lets just say you happened to assemble the greatest band on Earth. Your drums are nothing less than Godly, your guitarist can literally shoot electricity from his axe like in those 1980s music videos, and your bass player does what bass players do best - be chill. You‘ve got all
the makings for success, right? Well, even the Beatles got by with a little help from their friends. If you don’t step down from your giant spinning pedestal every now and then to shake hands with the mere mortals surrounding you, then who do you think is going to be holding that
pedestal up?
“It is about being personable,” said Gibney. “You have to have time for people … You make friends with your audience. All of our friends are people we’ve met at shows.”
“That is the only way, especially in a town like Fayetteville where people come in and leave all of the time,” agreed Ayerbe. “Too many musicians take themselves too seriously, they try to be rock stars. The people that know us, know that we’re down to earth. They know that we’re having fun then they can have fun with us..”
Very few things irk Gibney like a band who doesn’t talk to their audience after their show.
“You treat people good. It’s frustrating seeing musicians who show up and say shit to their audience. Say there is a real big overweight girl in the audience and she has been singing along all night - and they won’t say a word to her. You could at least thank her for coming to your show, ask her what her name is. For all you know, you could be meeting someone who is going to change your whole life.”
For all your Gibney related needs, look no further than www.paddygibney.com
