In this episode of Let’s Talk Weddings, Your Scottish Wedding sits down with Del Cotton, founder of Hire A Band, to trace the agency’s journey from a one-man operation booked out of his kitchen in 1999 to a Scotland-wide roster of 30 to 40 exclusive musicians, ceilidh bands, DJs, and specialty acts, with a sister office covering England. Del explains how the business grew alongside his own wedding-band career, how his wife Lisa joined full time to run the roster, and why an agency model gives couples something a solo booking cannot: vetted, trusted talent, contingency cover if a musician falls ill or a venue’s access proves tricky, and a single point of contact who already knows the venue’s quirks. The pair also cover the practical side of the industry, from typical pricing (roughly £800 to £3,000+, with £1,800 a common mid-range figure for an established Scottish band) to why booking well in advance matters, since popular acts are already reserved years out.
Beyond the business mechanics, the conversation turns to what actually makes a wedding night work: reading the room, pacing a set list, timing the ceilidh, and rehearsing the first dance around eight weeks before the big day. Del offers couples down-to-earth advice on trusting their suppliers, steering clear of wedding-forum rabbit holes, and getting the bridal party up dancing early to set the tone for the evening. Throughout, the tone is warm and often funny, with personal stories about Del’s own daughter’s upcoming wedding (also booked through Hire A Band) and behind-the-scenes tales of agency staff going to extraordinary lengths, from ferry logistics to standby cover on Hogmanay, all in service of making sure the entertainment never lets a couple down.
In this episode of Let’s Talk Weddings, Your Scottish Wedding sits down with Del Cotton, founder of Hire A Band, to trace the agency’s journey from a one-man operation booked out of his kitchen in 1999 to a Scotland-wide roster of 30 to 40 exclusive musicians, ceilidh bands, DJs, and specialty acts, with a sister office covering England. Del explains how the business grew alongside his own wedding-band career, how his wife Lisa joined full time to run the roster, and why an agency model gives couples something a solo booking cannot: vetted, trusted talent, contingency cover if a musician falls ill or a venue’s access proves tricky, and a single point of contact who already knows the venue’s quirks. The pair also cover the practical side of the industry, from typical pricing (roughly £800 to £3,000+, with £1,800 a common mid-range figure for an established Scottish band) to why booking well in advance matters, since popular acts are already reserved years out.
Beyond the business mechanics, the conversation turns to what actually makes a wedding night work: reading the room, pacing a set list, timing the ceilidh, and rehearsing the first dance around eight weeks before the big day. Del offers couples down-to-earth advice on trusting their suppliers, steering clear of wedding-forum rabbit holes, and getting the bridal party up dancing early to set the tone for the evening. Throughout, the tone is warm and often funny, with personal stories about Del’s own daughter’s upcoming wedding (also booked through Hire A Band) and behind-the-scenes tales of agency staff going to extraordinary lengths, from ferry logistics to standby cover on Hogmanay, all in service of making sure the entertainment never lets a couple down.
Let’s Talk Weddings EP 5
Welcome to Let’s Talk Wedding with Your Scottish Wedding. I’ll be your host today, Lesley Trainer, and I am so excited. I’ve got the beautiful Gayle and Gary in the studio today. Hi, guys. Hi. Hey. Aw. This is very Oprah, isn’t it? Oh do you like it, this- It’s very posh. Oh it is. It is, very much. If nothing changes- Nothing changes.
It’s lovely. Thank you for having us. Uh-huh. No thank you for, for coming on. I’m so excited. We’re not used to posh places, are we? No no. I’m sure you are. ‘Cause yous have obviously led a very glamorous life, have you not? Oh that’s a lot of rubbish. Is it? What are you talking about? Well your acting careers and, like- Oh.
I paid her to say that. Did you, aye? Thanks. Thanks for that, Taylor. No bother. No bother. Not as glamorous as you would think. So is it just what we see then that, that looks very glamorous, whereas in the background it’s just not glamorous? Like- Les, I’ll have you know, it’s hard work. Oh I know it’s hard work, 100%.
Yeah. Like, 100%, I get that. No it, it’s, it’s lovely. I mean, being an actor is is not for the faint-hearted, put it that way. No. Especially when the world is a-changing, eh, Gary? It’s changing very much. No it’s, it’s, it’s tough. Mm. And you need to be well, you need to be thick-skinned at points- Mm. Yeah.. and be tough, ’cause, you know, you, there’s a lot of, lot of, uh, refusals- Told you’re shite sometimes
and knock-backs. Yeah. but we’ve been lucky enough. Oh listen, really, we’ve been very lucky. Uh-huh. Very lucky. Uh-huh. Maybe, I mean, you’ve been doing it a long.. You, child. Can I tell a story? So really quickly- Oh here we go. Shut up. So- See you. Right. Can I just say before you start the story- Yeah.. so just so that people know, so Gayle, you were in River City for a long time.
Yeah. And Gary, you were in Mrs. Brown’s Boys. Yes. Yes. Yes. So just so that people know that. So- He was also in Take the High Road. << Daew, naew, naew, naew >> Oh. But yes, that, that’s- So my very first-ever boyfriend’s wee brother was in Take the High Road. What’s his name? And I went to go on set. It was so my boyfriend’s name was Barry Brown.
I can’t remember his wee brother’s name. It made that much of an impact on you, Lesley. Ah, that was a- Little wee pest. Little wee pest. But do you know what? Take the High Road just was my school because I lived down in, I’m from Bredalbane. Uh-huh. Uh, and I live in the Vale. Yeah. And they would obviously film round about us- Yeah
and that was the kinda local school, the Vale. Yeah. And they came down to film, and we would do wee bits and bobs as extras. I mean, and I had to say a line. They were like, “Can you just say bye-bye to..” And it was your sister, the girl Shona, who were in the school. Oh and you were up on the season with her.
Yeah. And I was like, “See you later, Sarah.” Like, gave myself lines, right? But Gary was there, and I remember you were like that, “Hi. Hi.” You were dead nice, actually. I mean, and then you turned out to be- Well yeah, nice.. and then I turned out to be this. Yeah. Nice. Aye. But I remember it being, I was probably about 13, 14, Gary, when I first clapped eyes on you.
And then it was years, and years, and years later until we actually finally got together. Destiny brought youse together. Well and the color of her hair. But uh, the two gingers. But uh, no, I, as Gail said, I started when I was 12. Mm-hmm. Were you 12? 12. Right. And The early, uh- Child, child actor.. a child actor.
Uh-huh. Tell
the story about the audition and- I know, the audition. So I remember it was back in 1992, and what was happening was that STV were going around various schools looking for kids to, to go and audition, but it was blonde-headed boys they were looking for. Right. And my drama teacher, Terry, had.. and Mandy had said, “Oh I’ve got a blonde, but I’ve also, I’ve got a ginger.”
Uh-huh. And they said, “Oh well, send him anyway.” And I- You’re more strawberry blonde, to be fair. Yeah. I, no, I was lot, lot, lot ginger then. Right. Just gray now. And I was going, going white now. Tell no porkies. And uh, hanging about with you. And uh, so we, we went.. I remember saying to my mum, because I had never from a background of acting- Yeah
we were a working-class family, and- You’re a Pollok, aren’t you? Yeah fae the Pollok. Oh sorry, the Pollok. And uh, and I said to my mum, “I’ve got this, uh, chance,” and, uh, off we went. I remember it was at Goldbergs at the time. Yes. Do you remember Goldbergs? Off I went to get a new rig out. Aw. A style card, mum.
You had a style card. We had the style card. Well I’ll tell you this, that’ll tie in with what I’m gonna say. And off I went to the Pollok center, now Silverburn, get a new rig out- Yeah.. and jumped the 48 bus to Cowcaddens, and there I walked into a room of 50 children, all blonde, and me. Right. So the- So so the good thing is you stood out.
Yeah exactly. Oh I certainly- Exactly.. I certainly stood out. Cut a long story short, a couple of auditions, and they offered me the, the job. Amazing. And it changed my life. Yeah. It changed my family’s life. Wow. And uh, great memories. Martin McManus, James, and Blythe. It was a fantastic, uh, opportunity, uh, and a lovely time.
Yeah. From that job, I was able to pay my mum’s style card off. Yes. And that was- And that was the Taggart.. my proudest moment. And that was from Taggart. Absolutely. Yeah that was Taggart. Uh-huh. And I remember you saying- Aye, wee Betty was no longer in any debt. Uh-huh. She’d been.. I was the baby of the family.
Uh-huh. She’d been paying this card off for years. Forever, I know, because the interest on it was so high. It was. It was. Isn’t that so lovely? But no, and that was me, that was sort of me put on the road to, uh, uh, to acting, and that’s when I got the bug. How great is that though? so that’s, that’s the lad up.
And that’s a very proud moment, isn’t it? It was. To, to help your family. Aye, I was proud and, uh- You’re very giving.. the wee boy fae Pollok- Yeah doing a police drama He’s made good. He’s made good. He’s, he’s, he’s still doing the drama. Do you know, the m- the most I’ve kinda done for my parents is I’ve, I’ve, I have got them a couple of holidays to Tenerife.
Lovely. Not, I’ve not paid any cards off or anything like that. You could have bought them a couple of Vesta curries as well. I mean, come on, don’t be hard on yourself. But now I’m out of job, I’ve not got much to offer anymore. Oh no, you’re only having a rest. You’re gonna get snapped up- I’m having a rest, aye
so you’re not gonna be out of work for too long, lady. Oh good. So don’t, don’t. ‘Cause you’ve got lots of.. But so, and we always gonna touch obviously that, you know, River City’s now finished. So what’s next for you? Because are you now, am I right in saying that you’re training to be a celebrant? Is that right or is it wrong?
So- Oh she’s past that point now. She’s past that point. There’s no returning. She’s past that point. She has her wings and she’s flying. So I think- Amazing.. as a, as an actor I do a l- well, myself and Gary host Yes.. a lot. We, as we do for you- Yes yes.. at Your Scottish Wedding Awards- Yes.. which we had a total ball.
Last year was our first year. The best, the best. And it was great, wasn’t it? And uh, yeah, we are obviously, we do this and we’re obviously, yeah, we’re, we’re out there available. And I think as a, as an actor, you need to wear a lot of different hats. Of source. So Gary- It does, uh, celebrate funeral celebrancy Yes And I said, “I quite fancy that.
That’s a really nice thing to do for someone” Oh. So I got lumped with it. So from February I’ve been going out shadowing him, and let me tell you when I tell you he is the best in the business no, it’s- No you are. Shut up. So he’s really good- Uh-huh.. and he’s been such a great mentor. Yeah. And I’ve done maybe about 10 funerals now.
Have you? And I’ve enjoyed it immensely, just being for the families. What a special thing, though, to do for somebody because it’s one of those things, isn’t it, where you’ve lost a loved one and you just don’t really know who to reach out to. Uh-huh. And if you can get somebody- Aye.. who’s going to be incredible at telling that human being’s story.
Such an honor for a celebrant- Yes.. you know, for us to be given that role. Uh-huh. You know, I sort of fell into it. I’d lost my brother six years ago, and then my dad three years ago. Left Mrs. Brown. Yeah. Uh, I’d moved back to Glasgow, and I was just- And we’re glad to have you back.. well, thank you. Uh, but I was just lost.
And of course- Yeah.. when I look back now really, you know, we’re coming out of COVID. I’d just had a, a baby who was premature. I didn’t obviously have the baby, my wife did. Yes. Lost my brother then- Yeah.. you know, everything was just all- A lot.. on your plate. Yeah. Uh, then Dad passed, and it just something, you know, I had many people in my life that passed.
Yeah. And of course loved them and missed them. But something with a parent, it just- Yeah.. something dies with you. Yeah. Yeah. and it was a, a friend of mine, uh, my cousin’s, uh, husband who’s a funeral director, and he said, “You should possibly look into doing this.” Uh-huh. “I think you would be good- Uh-huh
because of Jared and your dad. You can be empathetic, et cetera.” Yeah. Or not find a public speaking. Absolutely. All this carry on. It’s using your skillset as well. Yeah. Like mostly- Absolutely.. and actually I remember saying to Gary a couple of months ago, “Gary, you’ve got such a good why you do this.” Yeah.
“And I don’t know what my why is. And- Then when I started, ’cause I’m quite an analytical person, right? And I thought about it, and when I go to a funeral, sometimes you don’t know any more about the person when you go in to when you, you leave. Yes. And it’s their last show, it’s their last send-off.
Absolutely, it has. It’s really a special thing. It’s, it’s their celebration of life, isn’t it? Yeah and it’s a big responsibility. Yeah. And actually, that’s where my why came from, ’cause I would, I would always be like, “That was shite.” Like, give the, give that person the best that they should- Yeah.. you know, work hard on the eulogy and writing it- Absolutely
and actually using your skillsets. Yeah. Public speaking- Yeah.. writing, being creative- Yeah.. with the stories that you’re fed from the family. Yeah. And you’re only given a short snippet of that person’s life. I know. Because you can’t fit it in- Of course you can’t.. to just one service. No of course. But it has been, it’s been an eye-opener.
It’s been quite a beautiful experience, actually. Yeah. And it’s lovely when you walk away as, as we do- Yeah.. and the family are so grateful. Yeah. And they’re so.. They can’t thank you enough. Absolutely. You get the wee message the next day. Yeah. That’s nice. “You made it so special.” I always wait on that, you know?
And you walk away, ah, you walk away, and you just think, “Okay that’s why.” I think it takes a special person, though, to do that job, whereas I couldn’t. I would just be a blubbering mess. I’d be reading everything. Well I am sometimes. And I would just be crying. I honestly would be crying. Like, if somebody cries- Yeah
in front of me- Yeah.. I immediately just cry. Actually, you’re emot- you’re emotional. Because I’m like, “Oh my goodness.” Like they’re, they’re hurting, or they’re sore. Yeah so I couldn’t do it, so hats off to you guys for, for going down that. No thank you. And- We, we need more people like you in the world.
No as they say- Yeah.. as I always say to families, you know, they say, “You enjoying it, Gary?” And I say, “If we can use the word enjoy, I enjoy giving back.” Of course. I enjoy making you walk away from your loved one- Yeah.. knowing that you have done your loved one proud- Yeah yeah.. just by the help of, of me.
Absolutely. We’re there to narrate their story. Yeah. and of course, as Gayle’s saying, the experiences and comedy may be pulling into that empa- Yeah.. being empathetic, all those little things. And here we are falling into that. Uh, will I ever act again? Never say never. Absolutely. But for me, and this- Door’s always open.
Uh-huh. For, for me, doing this journey was, it was, that’s what I found I had to do. That’s where you were, the place that you were at. Yeah yeah. and it’s turned into this is a, a new business. A career. Uh-huh, which is very exciting. Yeah. But you’ve also written plays, Gayle. Like, you’ve.. Was it just last year you did that?
Like, share. Last month. So well, last month, and actually I did, uh, an adult panto, so that was a bit more risky. Love it. It was very. So tell us, so where did the inspiration for that come from? Like- Well I think, uh, I mean, it’s just, it’s working class humor, isn’t it? I mean, sometimes it can be a bit smutty, but, uh, I don’t think anybody ever goes, wakes up in the morning and goes, “I’m a writer,” right?
Unless you’ve, you know, you’ve went to university. Yeah yeah. You’ve done a, kind of, writing course. Yeah. I’ve just, kind of, fallen into it. And I think, like, when I’ve spoken to production companies or maybe been in something- Uh-huh.. they’re like, “Gayle, do you have voices in your head?” And I’m like, “Well aye.”
You know, characters. Yeah yeah, yeah. That’s what I mean. And I think that- Beautiful.. yeah, I just I think, uh, yeah, just starting something, having a vision, having characters in your head, like really- Uh-huh.. analyzing people. Uh-huh. I enjoy that. Very creative though. Yeah. And I, I, it was actually the l- the one last month was in Aurum More.
Right. And I’d written it with a lovely guy, Mark Pye, and working class story about bingo, but it was about friendship, love, like, you know- Nice.. stakes are high. Like, you know, all the, the working class themes that we expect, and then the adult panto was an absolute godsend. It was a hoot. Yeah. And that was probably..
I’m really, really proud of that, ’cause it was good, wasn’t it? No it was very funny. It was funny. I, I got to see it. It was very good. Yeah. So will you resurrect that again this year, or- Yes. We’re doing, uh, Jack with a Big Beanstalk. Oh. Uh, that’ll be going out in February actually. I have no idea what you’re talking about.
Oh she, she needs to wash her mouth out. That’s what she needs to do. But do you know what? It’s like you can go anywhere with something like that, and actually the beauty of that was that when I f- first put that out and you do a table read, you’re like, “I don’t know how this is gonna go.” Yeah. And actually when the first night we went up, it was like bang, bang, bang, and then you would land a joke.
Yeah. And I thought, “Right okay. All of that’s working. It’s all right. You’ve learned as you’ve went along in your life.” Yeah. Because you don’t know. Yeah. And you did enjoy the audition process, finding Jack and the big beanstalk. The beanstalk and his big beanstalk. That was, kept you busy. But it was, it was actually the wizards were the big boss.
And we had Sanjeev Kohli in, uh, play the big boss. It was hysterical honestly, and it was really good, and everybody was really on board. Yeah. I, it was just a, it was actually just a lovely team to work with. Uh-huh. I think I would talk to Gary when I was writing the panto- And I was like, “Gary, it’s gonna be shit.
It’s gonna be this, it’s gonna be that,” and oh, and I’m walking in this park, walking the dogs, and he’s like, “Will you cop yourself on? I’m burying people every day. Go and see a ward of dying children and then you’ll know what the..” You know? Absolutely. That is nothing. And he does, he puts me in my place- Yeah
for that because you’re in- So that’s perspective, isn’t it? And you’re put, and you’re- Not very much.. you’re creating, you’re making people laugh. You’re- Yeah.. you’re giving back as well. Yeah. Yeah. That’s it. But you’re entertaining. Like, you’re having a laugh. Like, come on. Yeah. It’s not that deep. And- There’s a lot worse things going on
I know. And you also don’t know that what that laugh might do for somebody. Like, that might be the worst day of their life or, you know, maybe something, they’ve just had a crap day. They wish they hadn’t got out of bed. And then you’ve just made.. You’ve turned that around because you’ve made them laugh.
Well I do that for Gary every day. We speak every day. Oh the phone bills are increasing and increasing. Three, four times a day. And see if it goes straight on the answer phone, I just ping it right back. I go, “Oh no, he’s put it on DND so he doesn’t need to stop and talk to me. I’m just calling that again.”
You do. Do you do that? Short dial. No. Yes you are, pal. Boys. I know. Man talk. Love it. Oh. So obviously we’ve, we’ve touched obviously on your careers and stuff like that. Is there anything else? Like, if you could go back to, like, your sort of 16-year-old self.. Well you were 12, so you’d need to go back further than that.
I’ll go back to 16. Like, is there anything in life that yous would change? Is there anything that yous would have done differently? Or would you have gone into acting? Would you not have? Like- I mean, you know, the acting- What would you tell yourself? I would probably tell, you know, that 16-year-old to- Uh-huh
to not worry so much. Yeah. You know? I, I think with my kids now, I say, “Please don’t worry.” No. And especially the job I’m doing now. Uh-huh. That life is so short. It is, and it’s precious. Don’t worry. Yeah. Enjoy. And I wish I’d, you know, been more relaxed back then. It was always, I grew up so, so quickly- Yeah
within the acting world. Yeah. I, I, I.. Yeah I was, I wish I’d went on the boys’ holidays and just relaxed more. Uh-huh. and again, don’t be frightened about making mistakes, because you learn from mistakes. Of course. But at that time you don’t think that. And of course at 16- Yeah.. you, you thought you knew everything.
Yeah. and I, so I, I would say just enjoy and just don’t worry. Yeah. I always say there’s, you don’t fail at anything in life. It’s just a life lesson. Yeah. That’s lovely. Yeah. I don’t believe in like, you know, those losers and winners- No.. and, and all that kind of nonsense. I just think that- We’re on this planet for such a short period of time- No yeah
and you don’t know what tomorrow’s gonna bring. Yeah. So you’ve just got to- It’s so true.. ride out the storms and ride out the good times and- It’s so true. And even now, you know, the, the, since losing Dad and, and, and life has changed. Yeah. It’s, uh, changed me, uh, that my outlook is now I don’t people please the way I used to.
Yeah. I do things that suit me. Yeah. Uh, I look after my children and, and the timeframe. Yeah. I spend more time with them. I make them more priority. Yeah. I’m not chasing career. Yeah. I’m not chasing money. Because all of that really- It’s irrelevant.. yes. Isn’t it? The big grand scheme of thing. When you look at the big picture.
Yeah. And you just think, “Okay let’s slow down now- Uh-huh.. and enjoy time with friends- Yeah.. time with family- Yeah.. doing things for you.” ‘Cause it’s so precious, isn’t it? So precious. It really is. It really is. It really is. Life is precious. But I do think sometimes you get hung up with- You do.. “Oh I need to get the car.
I need to get the house. I need to do the..” Yeah. That’s it. So ’cause when I obviously started Your Scottish Wedding up- Yeah.. like, I sold my house. I sold my beautiful big house. That was huge though. It was, and we lived in a cara- we lived in a caravan for a year and a half. In a caravan. That’s it, in the caravan.
I know, I love them. is it- That’s right.. those thingy giants? What do they call it anyway? Yes. but yeah, so, so I did that, and I thought, do you know, like, we’ve had all that, but we started with nothing. Like, Ted and I genuinely started with nothing. I was 21, and we built everything up ourselves.
And I thought, do you know, you can always make money. Yeah. Like, I really, like, you really can. That outlook, because I think that, you know- Especially from somewhere like, like you’re asking would you change anything, and the worry is definitely something, or not people pleasing, or even chasing.
Now, I was always gonna act, but, uh, uh, but you chase a lot. And you possibly go into circles that you don’t actually feel you belong. Right. Okay. And that’s another thing about our industry as a whole. Whereas I’ve really stripped that back and I suit myself.. definitely. And there’s, there’s always that kind of, you have to be on on call for anyone or, like, you know, maybe be seen.
I’m not very good at that networking thing because it’s like you have to go to be seen. I, I could not. Thank you. No passed all that. I know. But I’m past it. I know. And I don’t want to be past anything. Like, I feel as if I’m quite a young-spirited person, but- Absolutely.. you know, talent doesn’t just speak for itself- Yeah
and hard work. Yeah. It’s so much more than that in our industry. Absolutely. Yeah. It’s not about that. Yeah. And especially nowadays, it’s about followers, shite like that, you know? Yeah. And that’s not to say that somebody isn’t talented that’s got all that. Yeah. Yeah. But it’s just not as simple. Yeah. And actually, do I think that if I just kinda rocked along and just kinda..
Maybe my life, I would’ve had more kids or you know, I’ve only got, uh, one wee girl. She’s amazing, and maybe that’s the way my life was meant to go. Yeah. But you know, maybe I would’ve lived a wee bit more of a family life, because I remember when I dec- when we were having Stevie, I remember saying to Jack, like, that, this is the only time we are gonna get the opportunity of a normal life- Yeah
if I’m in this career. Yeah. Because this is so, it, it, it’s beyond anything that my, my man could ever, you know, even go into, because he just didn’t understand it, right? Yeah. Yeah. So it was obviously my career would take away from him. Yeah. And actually, I didn’t never want to, I didn’t want to do that to him.
No of course. So so having Stevie really did give us a normal life- Uh-huh.. in this kinda crazy business- Uh-huh.. that you’re part of. Yeah. So would I change? I would probably just- I would probably just experience a wee bit more actually, and not pin all my stuff on- Yeah.. that career. Yeah yeah. Because you talk to people, Lesley, and they’ve had, like, five jobs.
I know. And like, I’ve had one job my whole life. No. And I go, like- Yeah.. I’ve maybe missed out on something else. So true. Yeah. Because you’ve been so like, “But I, I want the part, and I, and I forget this opportunity.” Yeah. And it’s like, but what have you left? Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Right? No it’s, uh, it’s so true. It’s funny, isn’t it, reflect, to reflect back and y- y- ’cause, yeah, ’cause I’d never, ever thought that I would own my own business.
I was just always brought up to, you buy a house. That’s, uh- If you buy a h- you’ve got to have a mortgage, you’ve got to be with the one company, ’cause my dad was with the same company for, like, 40 odd years. Yeah. Maybe even 50 years. And and I was just like, God, that sounds so boring. Yeah. I’ve always wanted more for myself.
Yeah yeah. Like, so so yeah, it’s funny looking back and you kinda go, gosh, I.. But here we are today, and, you know, we’re all doing the things that we want to do, and like- That’s it.. where, where we are. Happy. Uh-huh. Happy. Contented. I think it’s like we’re pivoting. Uh-huh. P- like, we’re, like, I suppose I, I’m really at a crossroads where I’ve, I’ve spoke to you about it.
Like, you’re, you’re pivoting all the time. Uh-huh. But does it really matter if you’ve got the big motor and the, the cad and- It’s only stuff. It’s only stuff. I know. Whether you drive a Micra or whether you drive a Maserati- Yeah.. it’s four wheels and it gets you from A to B. I think just not- No
catastrophizing life is a
really good thing. Uh-huh. So true. Just to go like- Uh.. you know what, it’ll come and it’ll go. Absolutely. In this job now, when you’re dealing with families, and when you meet families- Oh.. and it’s not a big, about the, the big house- No.. or the fancy cars. No. Do you know, the most touching thing is when you’re reading a eulogy or you’re meeting a family and you’re discussing the, the memories, it’s the caravan holidays.
Yeah. Absolutely. The camping trips. Yeah. The day to Largs. Yeah. Yes. The fish supper- Yeah.. and the pissing rain. Yeah yeah. And you think, wow. Yeah. That’s what everybody remembers. It’s things that cost no money. Not the Maldives. No it’s not the Maldives. It’s not, you know, look at my lovely, you know, marble kitchen.
Yeah. People don’t remember that. No they don’t. And and so by doing this, it’s, it’s just, it’s changed everything, my whole outlook on everything. Yeah. and, and I feel, and, uh, certainly my family, we’re much better for it. Uh-huh. And and we’ve, we’ve been so privileged to w- you know, I’ve worked for 36 years.
Yeah. You know, not unemployed, battered through it. Yeah. Chased a career. Yeah. Uh, finances, all this with it But when you took a step back, I thought, ah, I’ve missed out on that pissing rain with a fish supper with my boys on the beach. Yeah. Yeah. So that’s what we’re doing now. Doing now. Very true. Yeah. I love that.
I’ve I’ve got a friend who is a multimillionaire. And they say in order to keep ourselves grounded, we go back to when we just started dating and we’re going to the beach- Oh right.. with, you know, the wee disposable barbecues. Barbecues. And they have sausages and a can of beans- Mm-hmm
and that’s our dinner. I love that. Aye. It is. I love that because we’ve all started from somewhere. Yes, you, you grow into whoever it is you’re gonna be, but I do. I’m like, you’re a multimillionaire. You could literally have a chef in your kitchen, but you choose to go into the the beach- That’s quite humbling
and have- That’s special I, I think that is because they’ve never lost- No.. touch with where they started. Well as my mother and father say, “Don’t lose your old arse.” Aha. Aye. Don’t forget your old arse. Don’t forget your old arse. 100%. I’m not a multimillionaire by any means, but I mean, I remember in the days of, we called it poverty pasta.
Right. And jack- What was that?. tuna pasta. And I was like to Jack- Oh yeah, I’ve never heard of that.. “Do you, do you want tuna pasta?” Oh tuna pasta. And he’s, “Ah, nah, that reminds me.. That’s poverty pasta. That reminds me of the poverty days.” And I’m like, “All right. Okay. That’s what he calls it.” So we never have tuna pasta in our house.
I’m laughing. Do you not? But I’m like, I quite fancy- Oh God.. tuna pasta now. Are you? I mean, I quite fancy it. Wow, Ollie loves that. Aye. Me saying that, here’s Ollie- Poverty pasta.. and his poverty pasta. So aye, we’ve not quite went back to the poverty pasta, but yeah. So we call water council juice. Council juice.
Aha. Aye. Council juice wa- Yeah.. waters at the tap is council juice ’cause we buy bottled water now. But you know what? I was talking about, like, phones, and I’m really interested in that kinda like, you know, everyone’s, like, absolutely stuck in their phone. And even with, like, Stevie growing up, she’s 14 now, and- Yeah
and she went on a guide camp last year, and I said to her, “Right what’s your, uh, rose and what’s your thorns? What’s your peak and your whatever? Like, what’s your good thing and your bad thing?” Uh-huh. And uh, she said the good thing was that nobody was allowed their phones. That is good. And that we were outdoors because- Or were they all full of anxiety because they didn’t have their phones?
Well, ’cause they had enough to get on with- That’s good.. ’cause they were doing a lot of activities. That’s good. But she said, “You know, when you’re in a group of people, Mom, and they’re all on their phones- Yeah.. the only thing for you to do is go on your phone.” Yeah. True. Whereas everybody was in the same boat- Uh-huh
and they come off their phones. Yeah. So true. And I thought that, I don’t even know. Is that even relevant to what I was saying? Anyways, it doesn’t matter. Have you seen the ban, though, kids can on- Oh I can’t wait. I know. What’s this? Liv- The ban.. so they’ve banned, so, so kids under the age of 16- Yes.. are now not allowed to be on, like, TikTok, Facebook- Ooh
Instagram. They’re not allowed to have accounts. So you’re gonna be fine. No social media. I will be fine Yeah they are, you know But going back to the basics- I do.. that’s what I meant by that about obviously the, your friend on the beach with the beans and the- Yeah.. the sausages. Yeah. I mean, I’m not too keen on the sausages, the lips and lugs and that.
L- But I can, I can identify with the fact that there’s basic stuff- Yeah.. that makes you actually, that really you enjoy. Yeah. Yeah. And actually can’t wait for the ban. Yeah. Don’t know what they’re gonna do. There was a wee girl interviewed the other day, and the, she had her face on her like- Oh.. like smacked her.
No happy.. like she was raging. And the interviewer’s like, “So what was your screen time last year?” And she was like, uh, la, uh, yesterday, and she was like, uh, 12 hours. Oh. Something like that. 12 hours in a day, by the way. Hours. Mine’s about seven in a, in a week, right? So anyways, this wee girl was interviewed and she was like, “Oh my screen time was 12 hours in the one day.”
And the, the interviewer said- That’s a lot.. “And what are you gonna do then in place of that time?” And she went, “Stare at the four walls.” Like, she was raging. And I thought, “I get it.” But that worries me because- I know.. the youth, as we did in our days, not so much phones, but we always find a way around of- Uh-huh
that, so it worries me that, that things aren’t getting monitored. Yeah. That our kids are.. I mean, I try and say no. Well it’s like an ele- electronic babysitter, isn’t it? Yeah. Well it can be. I mean, we’re all, we’re all guilty of it. And we’re all guilty of it, of course we are. Yeah. Yeah. You want peace and quiet for your own kinda like- Well maybe so much that, but you know, like when we’d be traveling a lot when we lived abroad, we’d be s- the first thing we’d do is there’s an iPad- Yeah
for him to watch a movie- Yeah.. so that nobody else in the plane-.. was disturbed and that we could- Yeah yeah, yeah.. relax. Yeah yeah. Or in a restaurant. Yeah. I get all that. Yeah. But social media’s different because your, their attention spans are like that. ‘Cause they’re just flicking. I know. And I sound like an old- But you are Okay.
Yeah she’d be bottled up, honestly So that’s okay. I cannot work with him. Let me tell you, Lesley, that these, these awards are gonna be absolutely brilliant this year. I was just about to say, so we’re not doing the awards together then. Oh we’ll do it together. The two gingers have split. We’ll do it together.
Yeah they’ve split. Well sorry, what were you gonna say? No I’ve got nothing to say. Right. So that naturally just brings us onto the awards actually- Oh.. because Can’t wait.. you joined us last year, which- Yes.. I was, I was absolutely ecstatic when you guys said yes. I was like, “Oh my God, we’ve got them.”
’cause we needed a wee change. We always had Elaine C. Smith and then we just needed a wee change because you can’t, I think, keep using the same people- No.. time and time and time again. Yeah. ’cause people want to see a change. Aquavitae shelf life. Yeah. No of course. so yeah, so you joined us last year.
You’re here again this year. Yes. So the date is the 22nd of November. It’s at DoubleTree- DoubleTree.. by Hilton. Yes. in Cambridge Street again. so yeah, so do you want to tell us just a wee bit about who the opening act’s gonna be this year? ‘Cause I’m very, very- On you go. On you go.. excited. Oh it’s the super sexy, the super talented Callum Beattie.
Drum- Oh I was gonna say drum roll. Ah-ha. I mean, what, what a thrill. Callum Beattie’s, he’s- Yep. Callum Beattie. He’s a fallen sweetheart. He’s so- Yes.. brilliant. He is. And do you know what? He’s a cracking guy into the mix, isn’t he, Gary? What I love about.. I met him years ago, uh,
and his manager Dave. We became great friends. Yeah. What I love about him- Lovely.. is that in this industry you can be affected and you, you know, things can change. Yeah. He’s, he’s growing- Yeah.. and his popularity, his fame’s growing. Yeah. Yet he has not changed one bit. He doesn’t change. He’s gonna be out doing himself in schools.
Oh loves that. He’s just amazing. Isn’t he? They do so much for charity. I love that. He’s just a genuine guy. Yeah. Uh, and that’s what, uh, just makes him extra special and, uh- Yeah.. they’ve agreed to s- I know.. well, we’ve managed to tie the date down. Yeah. I’m so, so happy. I know. Thrilled. And just what an entertainer, though.
I know. And that’s such- Imagine that having your a- your, your opening act. But that’s the thing- Yeah.. because l- I mean, last year the entertainment was brilliant as well. It’s always, it’s always incredible. Such a great night. Yeah. I mean, before the dinner we had those light up things. We had everything.
Remember all of that? We were having a rave- As we was having the meal.. before we even had the chicken. It was brilliant. And actually the food was amazing. You had you’d chosen it all. What was it? It was a something Wellington. I think it was like chicken Wellington. The chicken Wellington. Yeah. It was a chicken Wellington.
Beautiful. Because usually you get your function chicken or your shin of beef, you know? Yeah. So- Whereas it was really different.. yeah, so we usually do a beef dish just because I always think beef is a wee bit more Like high-end than- Upmarket.. than chucking. But but yeah, so, and I thought we’ve done, we’ve done beef again, like for all these years- Yeah
so we’ll change it up. And chef said, “Look, don’t think that chicken’s a, a, a different or a bad option.” So he- he’s always.. Stuart, I’ve got to give Stuart a shout-out because h- he is the head chef at the DoubleTree. And he’s such an incredible human being. Like, I always go in every year and go, “I want something that nobody else has ever had.”
Yeah. And he goes, “Well here she comes.” And he’s like, “Oh no.” Absolutely. and he just always takes that brief and he just runs with it, so he’s incredible. So so yeah, I’m really excited for this year ’cause we’re, we’re five. Yes. This is- That is five years.. big year. Uh-huh And it’s been a, it’s been a big journey, but like what you’ve done- Oh it’s been a slope
in the last, like year as well. But I mean- It’s not been easy.. no, but I do think it’s all coming good.. and nothing is, but- And it’s actually such a great night. Like we had, we had a ball. No it was a genuinely a brilliant night. Uh-huh. Yeah. Everybody in the room- Yeah.. everybody knew why they were there. Yeah.
Uh-huh. They were there to enjoy. Yeah. Yeah. It was a big party. Yeah. It’s a posting awards ceremony. It went so quickly. Celebration. Yeah. When we, when we got all the papers through and looked at the scripts, it’s, “Oh my goodness, we’re gonna be here all, all, all night.” And it was like, yeah. It flew by. Yeah.
And then it just partied. And we took the cars last year. We’re not taking the cars this year. I was gonna say, you’re not bringing the cars this year. No. No. We’ll- No.. we’ll- We’ll all stay over.. maybe sh- I’m not allowed out. She gets two Proseccos and that’s her. No listen, I’m the same. I go and I say my speech, and then I come off.
The shoes are kicked off- Yeah.. and I had my flip, had my flip-flops on last year. But there’s, there’s a, there’s a, a reel of me in my flip-flops, and I was like, “I need to get nice wee sandals for this year.” Nice wee sandals this year. I’m not, I’m not doing flip-flops. Use the style card. Nice wee sand- I’ll get you a nice pair of sandals.
Oh do you know what though? It is such a great night, and it’s lovely for the whole industry to celebrate, isn’t it? ‘Cause it’s like where they let their hair down. Yeah. I think that having somebody like Calum Beaton, and we’ll obviously have a DJ and- Yeah.. that kind of thing. Yeah. And we, but that guy, that sax guy was brilliant as well.
I know, I know. He was- He was something.. Conrad. He was, he was- Conrad was great.. Conrad was amazing, yeah. he is.
The whole package was brilliant, and, and we’re so looking forward to it. Oh yeah. Yeah. So looking forward to it. Yeah so I think, like this year we are five, so we’re just pulling out all the stops for it. Yes. I’m thrilled that you guys are gonna be there again. We’ll have a couple of games as well flung in there.
We cannot wait-.. to absolutely mortify these guests. Yeah. How’s your donkey? Yes absolutely. Honest, we’re doing well. Sorry. yeah, and, and we might do a few wee competitions and stuff like
that. Yes. So so nice wee prizes- So much looking forward to it.. will be in there as well. So so yeah I’m so excited for this year. I, I genuinely am. Like, and also Like I started the awards because I’m so passionate about this industry. I genuinely am. Like, like You can see that. No you are. And I, you know, when we first met you, I couldn’t believe how passionate you are.
I could actually cry just now, you just talking about them, honestly. Like I came into this industry years and years ago started in venues and then went to Scottish Wedding Directory for 17 years. And I, that was my dream job, dream job. And then when it closed, devastated, which is obviously why we’re here now.
so for me it was important to To really have a voice for the industry because they work so hard. I mean, honestly, these people are up at, like, sometimes 4:00 in the morning, sometimes 2:00 in the morning to get to a venue or to set up or- For someone’s special day.. and then they’ve got to go back the next day- Yeah
and then collect all that stuff, and they maybe already got another wedding on that day. So I just think that’s all the things that people don’t see- Yeah.. the, the graft. They don’t. Ah. The amount of work that goes into it. Uh-huh. They just see the pound signs because obviously th- these things cost money.
Uh-huh. But it’s like the graft that goes into that- Uh-huh.. is phenomenal. Uh-huh. Yeah. And it really upsets me, like, when m- potentially wedding couples will say, “Oh why is a cake £600?” or, “Why is that £1,000 and why is that?” And I’m just like, “Because you don’t see what actually goes into it.” Yeah. No like- They’re not..
It’s just not just standing at a, you know, your kitchen sink whisking up a few- It’s not a Victoria sponge we’re talking about here, you know It’s not a Victoria sponge. These are- Lego cake. No. Ah, like, they’re making the flowers, they’re making the petals- Yeah.. they’re making- Yeah.. absolutely everything. so yeah, so I’m so passionate.
If I can give them a voice and show them, you know, like, they are genuinely.. You know, I want to look after them. It’s not my job to look after them, but I just want them to have- You’re appreciated. I want- Give them a pedestal to be seen. Uh-huh. I want them to have a night just for them. You know, get glammed up.
Yeah. It’s just for you. Let’s go, all go out, have fun. and win an award. But if you’re in that room, I genuinely.. Like, we do so many checks, like, so many checks, so if they are in that room, it’s because they’ve, they’ve ticked a lot of boxes. Yeah. You know, they deserve to be there. Yeah. So for me, this night is an incredible night just for, just for us to give back.
It’s a great honor. It really is. So important. And you can really see that, and they do really use it as their- Yeah.. their night out. It’s, it’s like a big Christmas night out, isn’t it? They go wild, and why not? And everybody’s lovely. You know- They’re like the like the-.. genuinely lovely people. Uh-huh. Oh they are.
They are. Like, this industry is incredible. Yeah. Incredible. Like, if someday, if something happens they will just swoop in to help. Yeah. Yeah. That’s kind. Like, you know, it’s everybody’s got everybody’s back, and I love that. That’s, that’s one of the things that I absolutely love. Yeah. And it’ll be here before we know it.
I know. November. And then after that’s Christmas, of course, you know. I know. Yeah. Oh I know. What you wearing that night, Gail? Oh I don’t know. Maybe something, you know, a wee skimpy number. Just- Oh.. couple of nipple tassels. Oh no. A wee, a wee thong. No again. No again.
Aw. It’s been an absolute pleasure. Thank you so much for being here. No thank you. And thank you so much for hosting again this year at Your Scottish Wedding Awards. No thank you. I really can’t wait for it. It’s like we cannot wait. We’ll have a fantastic night. We’re gonna have a great time. We certainly will.
Thank you. Yeah. And we cannot wait to see Calum and do all the The hosting and- I know.. and all, it’s all the carry on that we love, the carry on We do, and I can’t even see your new pair of sandals. They’re lovely. I know. They’re lovely. I’ll have my big heels on at the start, and then they’re getting chucked to the side.
They’re getting tossed. Ah, they’re getting chucked to the side- Good on you, Lesley.. as usual. Good on you. And then it’s just Prosecco all the way for me. I’m just like, “Right my job is done.” Whoop, whoop. My job is done. Yeah. I can’t do anything else. I’ve organized it. I’ve planned it to the, the Nth degree, so yeah.
That good on you. Yeah. And that’s not forgetting Ted either. Oh wee Ted. Wee Teddy. Poor Ted. I know. He’s the one, he’s sorting out the awards at the side. He’s my rock. Oh I know. He is your rock. Yeah. He’s amazing. Whenever I have a meltdown, he’s like, “Listen, you got this. You got this.” Aw. And I go, “Right okay.
Yeah I’ve got this. Right. Okay. That’s fine.” Jesus. He said it, so I’ve got it. Yeah. No you have got it. Amazing. Yeah yeah. Absolutely, Lesley. Yeah. You’ve done so well. Yeah. So you should be very proud, and we are so excited to see you at the five years as well. I know. Five years. Honestly, it has- Unbelievable
zipped by, zipped by. Yeah. It’s been an incredible journey. And it’s a huge achievement, so well done. Oh thank you so much. Big round of applause. Aw, thank you. Here’s to the next five years. I know. Yay. Here’s to the next five years. I’m so excited, yeah- On that note.. ’cause we got, we got big plans. So yeah thank you so much for coming on the journey with us.
No not at all. Thank you. Thank you. Really appreciate your time. Thank you. Thank you. No problem. Thank you. Take care.
Let’s Talk Weddings EP 8
And welcome to Let’s Talk Weddings with Your Scottish Wedding, and I’m so excited to introduce a wonderful human being. Oh. It’s the one and only Mr. Del Cotton from Hire a Band. Del. Morning, how are you? I’m great. How are you? Grand, grand. Super. Although I left better weather, actually, on the west coast to come up here.
It’s- Oh, really? Yeah, w- it was, sun was splitting the trees down in Largs. So just to make you aware, we’re in Glasgow. So you’ve come from the west coast- Should have mentioned that. Should have mentioned that… and you’re on the west coast. Aye, true. Oh, yeah, so, all right, so it was nice down there. Mm. It’s gonna be nice though later on this afternoon, I think.
Well, well it was lovely, as I said, when we left. Yeah. Hopefully it still is when we get there. It’ll be nice and bright by the time you leave. Yeah, of course. So Hire a Band, tell us all about it. Oh, how long have you got? Tell us your story. There’s not enough time. Tell us your story. Hire a Band started in, in 1999.
Was it? Yeah, that’s how old. So two years after I got married. Aye. There you go. Wow, okay. 19- 1999. It started because I was in a band at the time. I was in a wedding band. Right. In fact, several wedding bands. Uh-huh. And the business- Lead singer? You were lead singer? Yeah? Lead singer and terrible rhythm guitarist.
And nothing’s changed a little bit. So yeah, the, the band got really busy. Yeah. And we started to… Well, I started to phone guys up to say, “Look, I’ve been asked to do this wedding.” Uh-huh. “Can’t do it. We’re already booked.” Yeah. “Do you want to do the wedding?” Yeah. And of course, that made me quite popular with- Uh-huh
With a lot of the guys that I knew. Absolutely. And then I thought, hang on, you can’t sing forever. Mm-hmm. And as I got- I know… well, as you get fatter and balder- Phil Collins. Phil Collins was- True, true… was, was singing right up to- That, I’ll give you that. I’ll give you that. Aye. But I realized it was gonna be ridiculous jumping about doing, in those days, Robbie Williams tunes and stuff like that- Yeah.
As I, as I got more creaky and aged. So I spotted an income opportunity. I thought, okay, we could make some commission on those- Absolutely… bookings that we’re giving away. Uh-huh. And that’s basically how it started. Really? In a, in a, my kitchen, really, with my- That’s how they all start. That’s how they all start.
That’s how they all start. With a one-year-old daughter. I was, I was a house husband- Yeah… back then- Yeah… because I worked at the weekends, obviously- Uh-huh… in the bands. Uh-huh. And, my wife Lisa, who also runs the business with me, was what every musician needed back then- Yeah… a breadwinner. Absolutely. So- Yeah, absolutely
I looked after Rachel- Uh-huh… and there’s a story on the website, which is absolutely true, as she got a little bit older and I was trying to give the impression of a great big international entertainment agency- Uh-huh… but I had to beat Rachel to the phone, ’cause she would answer the phone before me. Did she really?
Aye, two or three-year-old gibberish. I know. That’s not changed. I still speak gibberish, but… and then Rachel eventually ended up, working for the business- I know… actually many years later for seven years. Which is incredible. And she’s getting married in September, so, now I’m seeing it from- This year?
Yeah. Aye. It’s something like 70 days or something. Why have we not got her in the magazine, Del? Oh, I don’t know. She’s shy like her mom, who’s outside the real- I know… force behind Hire a Band. I know. I’m merely the attractive figurehead. But yeah, that’s how Hire a Band started. Yeah. And it just grew and grew.
In 2002, we became a limited company. 2004,
Lisa left her job. She was a senior social worker, another thing every musician needs. Uh-huh. And she joined the business full time, and then we went from there- Yeah… and, and we flew. ‘Cause it makes such a difference though having a driving force, doesn’t it? Because you’re only one person, you can’t do everything.
You can’t. And- And I think if you’ve got somebody doing a designated job, whether it’s like going out and speaking to wedding couples or speaking to venues to get you guys in there, and then you can then concentrate on building the, your band and who you want to work with. Yeah, I looked after the roster.
Lisa was, is a very organized person. Yes. And I’m the opposite, so, You’re not org- you’re not organized? I am, because Lisa makes me organized. But, She keeps you in check… ah, she really does. Well, you know Lisa. So you do what you’re told. But my job still really is to… I look after the website. Yes. I look after the people that look after the website.
Yes. And I look after the, the roster, all the bands that we represent. Yeah. I know th- these guys, I’ve known them for years now. Some of the musicians that are on our roster have been with us from the very start. Wow. And they’re still doing their thing. That’s incredible. So, and I’m always looking for new bands.
There are so many bands out there. Uh-huh. So we try and- And new ones coming into the industry all the time. Totally. We did a little bit of research fairly… I’m going off the piste a bit, little bit here. No, that’s okay. But we did some research, and we spoke to some other agencies and stuff, and we reckon that in Scotland alone, there are around 2,000 bands and DJs who specialize or do weddings.
Seriously? Seriously. And- Wow… and if you think about how many, how few weddings actually there are- Mm… in, in, in Scotland these days- Yeah… there’s a lot of bands looking for your- Work… business. Yeah. And, it’s an overwhelm really for, for clients because there’s- Yeah… so many to choose from- Yeah, yeah
That, it, it can be really overwhelming, so. We were just saying earlier that there’s, there’s over 14,000 wedding suppliers- Wow… just in Scotland. Wow. So if 2,000 of them, or just over 2,000 of them are bands, DJs, et cetera- Mm. Mm… that’s massive. It is huge. Uh-huh. And l- like I said, there’s… it’s difficult to tell who’s good, who’s okay, who’s brilliant.
Yeah. But that’s where you come in. That’s where we come in. That’s where you come in. ‘Cause I’m kinda poacher turned gamekeeper, if you like. Yeah. And it, near the, the start of the business, I mean, venues have all… There’s some great new venues now that weren’t around when I was- Absolutely… performing.
Absolutely. But when I was, it was really handy from our point of view to be able to say to a band, “Okay, you’re playing in such and such a venue. This has got, s- particular challenges,” maybe what we call in the industry the get in. Right. Yeah. So getting the gear, this is things nobody sees. No, exactly.
But this is why it’s good to chat though, isn’t it? Aye. Of, of course. So- To explain everything… there’s all the time to get to the venue, then there’s getting the stuff in. Yes. And some venues- Set up, access. Exactly. Like, yep. And those are parts of it that the, the, the, the clients, the couples never see.
No, of course. But we- And, and neither they should… no, and they shouldn’t. They shouldn’t. And, and why should they? Yeah. Yeah. But, from our point of view, it’s, it’s good. We can then let a band know, “Well, this is a difficult access- Yeah… or it’s a straightforward access.” Exactly. That affects when they arrive.
Of course. That affects whether they need to bring in more people to help with heavy equipment. Yeah. And the other thing that, we know about are- The, you know, the, the challenges maybe for sound limiters or, earlier finishes. Yeah. All of these things we’re aware of. Uh-huh. We always have been. Uh-huh.
And now our bands feedback to us. Uh-huh. So although I’m no longer gigging due to- Yeah, yeah, yeah… popular demand. Absolutely. The, the bands always feedback to us and say, “Okay, that’s a great venue, but…” Yeah. Or, “There’s no issues with that venue at all.” Yeah. Or a dream venue, you know? Yeah. And to be fair, venues are getting much better at, considering- Yes
The access for all the vendors- Uh-huh… for all the people that are- Uh-huh… that are working there. Uh-huh. So there, there’s, it, the, the secret is, and we tell all our musicians this, is that if you’re nice and easy to work with, then you’ll be recommended by the venue. And- 100%. That’s what it, it, we’re all in the same- It’s all about building relationships, isn’t it?
Exactly. Exactly that. It’s, it’s about connections, relationships. That, that takes you far and wide, I think. Totally. If you’re a good human, I always speak about there’s good humans and there’s bad humans, but if you’re a good human being, you’ll do well. We’re all working on the day. Yeah. And we’re all working to the same purpose, which is to make the day- One goal
As good as we can. One goal. Exactly. Everybody’s got one goal, is to give the wedding couple the most memorable day of their lives. And you know- That’s it… it’s funny, the, the, the vendors who take that on board are the busiest, are the most popular- Uh-huh… and easiest to work with because everybody- Yeah… you know, enjoys it.
We, we, we, we come up against the, the sharp end of musicians turning up at, at venues. You’re dealing with videographers and photographers- Yes… and obviously the people who run the, the venue itself and- Uh-huh. And content creators now as well… and content creators, which is- Yeah… a massive new thing. Yeah, yeah, yeah.
And, yeah. It, it, so you… It, it helps to get on with everybody. Of course. We’ve all got our jobs to do. Mm-hmm. So there’s no point being divas or whatever. And, luck- over the years, we’ve developed our roster now that the musicians that we represent and the bands that we represent- Mm-hmm… they get it.
You know, they understand this. They’re good business people- Yeah… on the whole, and they’ve been doing it for a long time. Yeah. Even the, what we find now with new bands that come along, we just signed a new band, called Ultraviolet and they’re phenomenal. Have you not just signed, like, four new bands?
We have. There’s been a-… there’s been a, a lot of new bands, joined the roster. But all of them- Have the same thing in common. They, they’re new to the market- Yeah… in that format- Yes… but they’re not new to the business. Of course not. Yeah. So they’ve all come from, They’ve all experienced guys and girls.
So Ultraviolet, what kind of, style do they have? Like, what kind of music? They, they’re fairly unique. They, they do all the things you would expect- Yeah… but they do it slightly differently. Okay. And they, they wear kilts, which is a, the, the- Oh, I love that… that, that kind of thing’s important. Yeah, yeah.
You know, a lot of bands are playing similar songs. Yeah. There’s, there’s a, there’s a tried and tested set list that most bands do. Yeah, yeah. Scottish bands have to play a ceilidh set- Yeah… at some point, so everybody needs a little half-hour ceilidh, or longer if, if that’s what’s required. Yeah. And then, And is that kind of standard though for bands?
Like, is that- Sometimes… do wedding couples still want that nowadays, yeah? They’ll… If they want a full-on ceilidh, they’ll book- Yeah… a ceilidh band- Yeah, yeah… which is the right thing to do. Absolutely. Because a covers band will play a wide range of everything to make sure- Mm-hmm… everybody gets catered for.
Yeah. But every Scottish band will have a, a short ceilidh set. When I was performing, I did The Gay Gordons twice. That was it. That was as, that was as far as I could go. Job done. Job done. And it was normally sufficient. Yeah. But people, if they’re bringing up guests from overseas or from down south- Yeah
Then the, the ceilidh aspect’s good and you want a band that can do a bit of calling- Absolutely… that can explain the dances. And the best guys, Ultraviolet are included, can do that really, really well. Mm-hmm. There are, there are legends out there now that we represent. So proud of the roster- Yeah
We have. There are some- Yeah… fantastic acts. I was gonna say, how many bands do you represent? In Scotland, to put things in perspective, we have an English office as well, a London office. Yes. But in Scotland we’re, we’re focused. We don’t get involved in the English side of the business. Yeah, yeah.
There’s an office in London does that. Of course. There are probably 30 to 40, bands that we use- Wow… regularly. Wow. And they’re exclusive to us. Yes. They can only be booked through Hire A Band. Absolutely. And like I say, some of them have been with us from the very start. Yeah. Our most Popular band, the best-selling band probably in Scotland for weddings are a band called Sneaky Treacle.
Okay. Which, Oh, yes. Uh-huh. Like- These are the boys who have won awards and stuff. Yes, yes. And, they do their f- a phenomenal ceilidh set. Uh-huh. They’ve been with us- And how many band members are in Sneaky Treacle? Four? There’s four, four guys in Sneaky Treacle. Four. There’s Dougie, there’s Matt…
I’m saying this ’cause they’ll get in, get in touch with me. There’s Dougie, there’s Matt. We’re giving you a wee shout-out. There’s Stuart on drums and there’s Tommy on bass. Brilliant. And yeah, they’ve been with us for 10 years. Yes. And are just incredibly popular. Do well over 100 weddings every year.
Wow. And they are- That’s a lot… they’re, they’re legends. And there, you, th- there are other bands close, close to that. Yeah. But we have – we – and we do bring in new bands all the time. Uh-huh. But not as many as we used to. Uh-huh. We’re, we’re now probably more, we’re, we’re, we’re very choosy. It’s very difficult to get onto the Higher A Band roster.
Yeah, yeah, yeah. And I need to have seen the band. Mm-hmm. I need to know the musicians. Yep. Not to say that- ‘Cause it’s so important. Like, you’ve got to trust the people that you’re sending out to wedding couple- Absolutely… to wedding couples ’cause it’s their biggest day of their life. Absolutely. So you’ve got to be able to sleep at night knowing that who you’ve put out- That’s-
Or who they’ve booked- You know, there’s a, there’s a phrase-… is the right fit… there’s a phrase most agents have and it’s book and forget. And what that means- Yeah… is not that they forget about the event, but they forget- No, no… that the, there’s, there’s gonna be no comeback, no issues. Correct. Because you trust the people that you’re working with- Because you trust them
And you trust the people that you’re surrounded with. Absolutely. Yeah. When, when I first started the Higher A Band back in 1999, I couldn’t get bands to sign up with us because- Right… obviously we were the smallest agency in the world. And, it was different then. From your kitchen. Aye, from the kitchen.
With the baby answering the phone. Yeah, yeah. Please. And, and, you know, we, we, we learned very quickly- Yeah… that, a band can have good promo or they can sound good on paper. Yeah And you, they can be great musicians. Mm-hmm. But there’s much more to a wedding band than just being good at what they do- Absolutely
On stage. Yeah. All the off-stage stuff has to be taken into account. Yeah. And we know all about that. Yeah. And that’s where an agency is an advantage. Yeah. Ev- after every booking, we’ll send out, automatically we send out feedback. Yeah. So we can tell if there’s issues or whatever. They’re very, very, very rare.
But they- Yeah… you know, there are occasions when- Absolutely… no one’s perfect. Nope. And, We’re all human… and so we know and are, are made aware very quickly- Mm-hmm… if there’s anything that has to be looked at again. Yeah. But that’s one of the big advantages of, of using an agency is that we’ve been there.
In fact, most- Yeah… of our competitors, the guys that, that, that are out there, colleagues of mine that I got on really well with- Yeah, of course… are all ex-musicians. Yeah. In fact, two of them, were on our roster as musicians. Really? Yeah, yeah. So they learned from the inside out. Absolutely. But they’re good guys and know what they’re doing.
Learned from the best. Yeah. You say that-… Liz, they’re not me. But, that’s, that’s the advantage. Yeah, yeah. It’s, it’s useful for a client to know that we know what we’re talking about when it comes to the logistics of something. Yeah. But we know about the music as well. Yeah. And also about the lead up to the wedding.
Yeah. About communication. Yeah. That’s very important. Couples- ‘Cause wedding couples get… they get so anxious, don’t they? They do. Especially like two, three weeks before the wedding. They do. They just turn into these other people that it’s just like the anxiety levels are through the roof. Yeah. And you’ve got to be so patient with that though as well, haven’t you?
You have to understand why they’re like that. Which is where the lovely Lisa comes in, ’cause she’s brilliant. That’s Lisa- She’s just-… and Gay who, who look after our clients. Yeah, they’re just such great people… they, they’ve got massive empathy- Yes… with, with our couples. Yes. Yes. And it tends to be the brides they deal with.
But the grooms are m- are very heavily involved in the music side of things- Uh-huh… actually. They know what they’re doing. Yeah, yeah. And, and they can, they can keep… It’s important to, to make sure the bands get back- Uh-huh… to the clients. Yeah, yeah. There’s only so much we can- Of course… do to, to make a client happy- Yeah, yeah
Or, or relaxed. It’s important that the bands- Mm-hmm… speak and communicate- Yeah… with their couples. Yeah. And they, th- they’re very good at that now. They’re, you know… Some ba- like the Sneaky Treacle guys, they’re tremendous at keeping in touch with the brides- They’re just on it… despite the fact they’re doing…
In the summer they could be doing four weddings a week. I know. Oof. That’s a lot, isn’t it? A band we represent, Carlisle, last weekend did five weddings. Oof. Two of them were in England. Oh, gosh. Right. And three were up here. Right. So that’s five weddings. But- Wow… you know. Couples deserve- Communication, because they are uptight.
Absolutely. And although this is something that we’ve been doing for a long time- Mm-hmm… and, you know, tens of thousands of wedding bookings and, and- Yeah… and, over the years- Yeah… we never forget that it’s somebody’s first time. Exactly. You know? Yeah. And that their nerves are justified. Absolutely.
And there are tricks and advice you can give to- Absolutely… to calm people down, but- But that’s your experience, though, that, that, you know, from the longevity of you doing this, that allows you to then calm people down. You know exactly what to say, how to settle, that reassure them. Mm-hmm. You know, like, because that’s what people need, don’t they?
They just need- They do… that reassurance. They do. They, they, they want to enjoy the day. Yeah. And our job is to take away a, a lot of the stress- Yeah… that, that would naturally come. Yeah. I mean, we’re going through it ourselves just now with, with Rachel’s wedding- Absolutely… coming up. But it must be funny, though, you being on the other side- Of the events Aye, it, it really is It opens your eyes, doesn’t it?
It, it totally does. It totally does. Rachel’s very, very organized. She gets that from her mom. Absolutely. So she’s got a spreadsheet and all… Everything’s all worked out. Nice And, so it’ll go without a hitch. I won’t be involved in any of the organization of it, but, I’m assuming you organized the band, though.
Aye. We did. We did. Be rude not to. Funnelled off. Be rude not to. Aye. Is it just bands you have, or is it a whole other genre or? Anything that makes a noise. Yeah. We s- as entertainment agents- So people can book pipers back here. Yep, pipers. Even, we- String quartets… we’ve got magicians out this weekend.
Amazing. Caricaturists. There are string quartets. There are, there are solo guitar vocals. Yeah. Solo vocalists, choirs. We have a fantastic Sunday school choir out this weekend. Wow. We have basically any kind of entertainment that makes a noise, generally speaking. We don’t… The only thing we don’t know about is dancing, and if you’ve seen me dance, and you have seen me dancing-
You’ll know why. Although we do have a, we actually do have a, a, a dance group. But I wasn’t involved in the, the- Yeah. Any talking. No, no. They leave that. They don’t get me involved- Yeah, good on them… in that kind of thing. But aye, so from the… We can take over the whole day. Yeah. Increasingly, we’re even seeing, if a client takes over a venue for the whole weekend- Yeah
There might be pre-wedding entertainment- Yeah, yeah… post-wedding entertainment. Absolutely. But from the moment you wake up to the moment- Yeah… you go to bed, Hire A Band can be there with entertainment. Yeah. And with the rise that you mentioned earlier of content creators- Mm-hmm… what do content creators need?
They need content. Absolutely. So couples are now aware that there are… They want to have something happening at some- Yeah… at almost all stages of the day. Absolutely, yeah. And that’s good for those daytime entertainment- Yeah… providers. Yeah, ’cause as soon as you get your drinks reception, like, obviously, the wedding couple are away for an hour, two hours getting photographs taken.
Mm-hmm, yeah. So you do need something to keep them going. You do. You need something, yeah. You can’t just have, like, booze and canapes. Mill around. ‘Cause you never know what you’ll come back to. Absolutely. I left them and they were all fine, and now why are they all on the floor now? Aye, aye. So yeah, so you do, you do definitely need a wee something, I thought, always thinking there.
And 99.9% of the time, people are booking something. They are. So as you said, caricaturist, or whether it’s a string quartet or some sort of form of entertainment just to break it up. There, there’s a wide range available from- Yeah… from harpists to- Yeah… guitarists, solo piano. Yeah. You know, the, the string quartet, string trios.
Yeah. Solo violin. Saxophone’s massive at the moment. Yes. So- I love a sax player… it is the- Yeah… most in demand musical instrument you’ll find- Yeah… still- Yeah… in, in Scotland, in the UK in fact. Yeah. If you can play sax, you’re, you’re going to be busy. Your quid’s in. Yeah, your quid’s in. You’ll be, you’ll be gigging at night in a band- Yeah
And you’ll be playing during the day- Yeah… at these events. Not just for weddings either. Corporates love them. No, absolutely. Absolutely. And it- I also think it’s a great, icebreaker. It is. Like, so say if you’re at a corporate event or a wedding or whatever, like, soon as you hear that saxophone playing, you’re just like, your s- your toe naturally just starts tapping- It’s-
And you’re like, “Oh, we need to get up” It’s a great way to warm- Absolutely. Uh-huh… to warm things up. And you and I have been at the same corporate events many, many times. 100%, yeah. And the sax works every time. Does. And if it works at those- Yeah… it’s gonna work during the day. Absolutely. And it doesn’t have to be in your face.
It doesn’t have to be an Ibiza thing. Nope. It can be a, a, a quieter thing. Yeah, absolutely. Jazz is a, is a, is a popular daytime- Uh-huh… thing for, for weddings. Yeah. We look after, the, the Fairmont Trio, which is, a, a little guitar and, and sax- Nice… jazz trio. Nice. It’s phenomenally impressive.
Aye, that’d be great. One other thing that’s in, that w- we’re seeing a lot of now, in fact, it’s been the case for a while, are the band that you book at night- Uh-huh… quite often will do a daytime- Yes… acoustic set as well. Uh-huh. So we had that for Paul’s wedding. So, he used, I think it was The Jets they were called, and- Good band
They had, two people during the day. Right. So there was a singer during the day- Mm-hmm… for walking them down the aisle, and then they had, I think there was two for the drinks reception, and then they had the full band- Uh-huh, yeah… at nighttime. So it worked in really, really well. It’s quite, it’s quite easy on the budget as well because the band are coming anyway.
Yeah. So you’re not paying for, if you’re distant, if your, your venue is at any distance- Yeah… away from the central belt- Yeah… you don’t have to pay for separate daytime musicians- Yep… because the, the musicians from the band are coming in any case. Yep. So they’re, they can be there a little bit earlier and, and, Absolutely
Give you some afternoon- Just remember to feed and water them because it’s a long day. Feeding water them is always appreciated. It’s a long day. It’s always appreciated. It’s a long day. And, and somewhere for them to, you know, to, to get changed- Just chill out, uh-huh… and stuff, yeah. And, and to relax when they’re not performing.
Exactly. Exactly. Yeah. Yeah. And it’s a good way to warm up the crowd. Yeah. And also, it gives the, the musicians in the band a feel for what’s working. Mm-hmm. So if they respond, if the, if your, if your guests are responding to a particular kind of sound- Yeah… then when, they know later on. And, you know, it’s just nice.
They can get wee, wee asides, a, a word here and there with various guests- Yeah… and requests can get put in and that kind of thing. Yeah. So that’s a, a very popular option, and most of the big bands will, will do something similar. Yeah. Yeah. I should, I think we should also point out that booking through yourselves, it’s a security thing as well.
Mm-hmm. So worst-case scenario, like worst, and this doesn’t happen I don’t think probably often, but you’ll be able to tell us, like if somebody just couldn’t manage for whatever reason, maybe a death in the family, whatever, ’cause as we, as we said, we’re human. We’re human beings. Mm-hmm. Yeah. So worst-case scenario, that band can’t make it.
They then obviously tell you, “We can’t go tonight or today,” or- Yeah… and then you’re on tap to then refill that slot for them with somebody that’s either- Exactly… very similar or- Yeah… so there’s a security thing, and then the wedding couple don’t even need to know about the horrible situation that’s happened.
That’s right. That’s right. Uh-huh. But, the, the, the big benefit of using an agency is the contacts that- Absolutely… the agencies have. Uh-huh. And I can count really, I don’t want to, we don’t wanna scare people, so it happens may- No, it’s, I was-… in my 27 years of doing this- Yeah… maybe ha- can count on one hand- Absolutely
The times that’s happened. Uh-huh. And that’s what I was saying, like it doesn’t happen all the time. No. But there’s, there is that one time where- It’s very rare… it could happen. In fact, I don’t recall, maybe twice in, in my entire agency career- Uh-huh… that an entire band hasn’t- Yeah… been able to make it.
Yeah. But it does happen. What, what, couples need to realize, is
Worth remembering is- Most wedding entertainers aren’t full-time. There’s one band- Yeah… Sneeky Treekle, who are a full-time- Yeah, yeah… wedding band. Yep, yep. The rest have day jobs. Of course. So we’ve got lawyers in our bands. Oh, really? Police officers. That’s handy. It’s, it is handy. That’s handy. You know, bank managers.
Yeah. You name it. Yeah. Plumbers, joiners- I love that… the firemen. There’s a, there’s quite a few firemen in, in- Is there really? Yeah. Yeah, it’s, it must be the shifts thing, you know? Yeah, yeah. So th- they’ve got their day jobs. Sometimes they get in the way. Yeah. Teachers have a diff- if you’ve got teachers in your band and you’re getting married on a W- your wedding’s on a Friday, and the distance, you know, it’s a distance wedding, so away from the central belt or- Yep
Wherever the band you’ve chosen happens to be, it’s difficult for teachers to get away from work early enough- Of course… to get there, so those- ‘Cause they, they’re not entitled to holidays because- Exactly… they, they get that, you know, I think their, is it term time holidays, I think they get, so they’ve got to work around that and- However it works, yeah.
Yeah, yeah. So you, you’ve got to take, you’ve got to bear that in, in, in mind. Of course. And sometimes things at work come up- Mm-hmm… that are unexpected. Yeah. So… But that’s where we come in. Yeah. And, and more often than not, as you say, the, the, the, we don’t worry clients about things that are easily fixed. No.
We just fix it. 100%. That’s where our expertise comes in, Lesley. Absolutely, Del. Absolutely. It, it, that’s it. That’s exactly right. And it, it does happen, you know. But we are, it’s like a duck. You, we are sailing along serenely, but our- Yeah… feet are going under the water. So- Yeah… we are at, we are at work all over the weekend.
Uh-huh. You know, we are, we are available just in case. There’s- Absolutely… we, we take it in turns. We have a- And that’s it, 24/7. Mm-hmm, absolutely. So it, it, it means that you’ve got that level of protection. Mm-hmm. We can usually fix an issue- Yeah… fairly quickly. Yeah. And of course, the, the, the, our musicians are, they will do anything- Mm-hmm
To get to the event. They’ll do anything. Mm-hmm. They’ll get out of sick beds. They, they will do anything they can. But if it’s absolutely impossible, then we’re usually given enough notice so that we can offer our client an alternative if, you know- Yeah… and a, a choice of alternatives- Absolutely… if it comes to that.
Yep, absolutely. But as I say, and we, we both agree, that’s very rare that something like that happens. Yeah, no, 100%. There’s, there’s a scenario where, in fact, it wasn’t that long ago, there was a, a piper, who had phoned the venue and said, “Look, I’m really, really not feeling… I’m in the car, and I’m traveling.
But I really- Mm… actually don’t feel very well.” Yeah. And, you know, the venue was like, “Oh, well, I don’t have another piper. Like, you’re meant to be here,” and da-da. Anyways, she managed to fix it, but it turned out that poor guy was having a heart attack. Right. And he ended up in hospital- Yeah, yeah… that night.
So you just never know with the venue. We’re human beings. We are human beings. And, We’re not robots. No. We’re not like… So yeah, like sometimes just stuff happens. Well, we’re subject to fate and bad luck and, and stuff. Uh-huh. But again, an agency, so if you were just to book a band- And I’m not saying this for everything, but like if you were to book a band that wasn’t an agency, then the band is the band.
Whereas you hire a band, so they’re booking the band through you- Yeah… but then they have the security of obviously you’ve got a whole host of- It’s, it’s, it, it’s the rosters there at their disposal… you’ve got the security. There’s hundreds of musicians there. Yes. A l- to be fair to bands that don’t have agency representation, generally speaking, they’ve got good depths that they can j- they can use.
Absolutely. They’ll always have a ba- a, a plan B, won’t they? Exactly. Yeah. Quite often it’s those bands that contact us. Yes. So- Yes… we sort the problem out- Uh-huh… even though, they’re not perhaps re- represented by ourselves. Yeah. And that’s really good of you. Aye. Well, you know, we’re all in the- All working together
As I said at the start, we’re all in the same- Yeah… doing the same job, so. Yeah. One goal. It, it, it comes back to us usually in any case. Yeah. And if you take a week for the 25th of July is, is incredibly busy weekend. You always get one weekend, don’t you? And there’s always a weekend where you’re thinking, “Oh, blimey.”
You could fill it up like 25,000 times. Absolutely. And that’s when… What we generally do is identify those, Yeah… those weekends and have a kind of contingency. Yeah. And very rarely do we have to call on it, but- Mm-hmm… it happens. Yeah, of course. So we’re us- Hogmanay’s another one. We always have- Yes… a, a band kinda on standby- Right
In case of an issue on Hogmanay. Sure. And we pay the band- Yep… a, a, a, a standby fee basically. Okay, okay… if they don’t have a booking on that particular evening. That’s fair. And it means that there’s, in the event of an emergency- Mm-hmm… and it could be a travel thing- Yep… could be bad weather. Of course.
And no one can, predict that. Well, look at last year. Oh, aye. Mm. The weather last year at Hogmanay. Aye. It was absolutely shocking. That’s right. It was the storms, wasn’t it? That’s right. And, and- And everywhere flooded. Totally. And we’ve had guys getting themselves towed to events. We’ve, Oh, please. Yeah
You know, so they get there- Yeah… and as you said, the couple are none the wiser. No. And neither should be. Yeah. And the band turns up, and then worry about getting home after the event. Yeah. After the event’s finished. We’re sleeping in the van- Aye… in the car park. And it’s happened. It’s ha- I’ve done it myself.
I know. So, aye. It’s funny. You get to the gig- Yeah… is the thing. Yeah. And the best band in the world are no use if they’re not reliable. No, of course. So when people are looking for a, for the, for the band that, that they want for their wedding, and it’s… Everybody has their own personal taste.
Mm-hmm. But the things to check are the reliability of a band- Mm-hmm… and the, what’s there behind them- Uh-huh… to, to provide- Yeah… that kind of cover. I dare say there’ll be occasions, where just nothing can be done. Yep. But if that’s the case, if weather’s prevented a band getting to a gig- Yeah… it’s likely it’s prevented the whole thing going ahead in any case.
Yeah. Absolutely. And we’ve never known that. ‘Cause it wouldn’t just be a band that’s affected, it’ll be the whole sh- the, you know- That’s right… the whole show. That’s right. So say in terms of, like, a band, for example, like, what are your sort of price points, for- Great question. Yeah, good question. It r- So from Hire a Band, I can only speak for Hire a Band.
Of course. We have, bands available, live bands available from £800- Yep… up to and beyond £2,000 to £3,000. Yep. It really depends normally on how many people are involved in the band. Sure. Yeah. So that £800 band- Mm-hmm… have been with us from the start. Right. They’re a band called The Vil. Yeah. They are a phenomenal duo.
They are. Yeah. You know them. Yeah. And, yeah, you can have a band of that quality- Yeah… for £800. Wow. Yeah, I’ve got to take into account if they have to travel a bit further, that might increase the fee slightly- Absolutely, travel cost, yeah… especially with the cost of fuel now. Of course. Oh, let’s not.
It’s, it’s really sore. Well, let’s not. But, you know, the average, the average price certainly for higher band and I think probably for, for Scottish bands in general- Mm-hmm… is between 8- about £1,800- Yeah… will get you a really established- Yeah… band, maybe a bit more than that. Mm-hmm, mm-hmm. And the… As I said, the more people in the band, generally speaking, the more people there are to pay.
Yeah. But there’s a… You can go crazy. Well, of course. You know? Of course… but there’s really, there’s really no need. Yeah. We are aware now and again- Well, you, this is in the corporate world rather than in the wedding world, but we’ll hear of corporate events where they’ll bring a band up from London.
Uh-huh. Because they’re a London band. Yep. That are, they’re no better than the musicians in Scotland. We’ve got some of the best musicians- Absolutely… in the world- Yep… in this country. Yep. Wow. And there’s n- it makes no sense to me to ship a band up and all the costs involved- Yep… in that, Yep… up from London because they’re a London band.
Yep. They, believe me, we’ve got an office in London. There are some tremendous bands down there. Mm-hmm. But they don’t beat anything we have up here. Yeah, yeah. You know, the, the Scottish guys- Yeah… the s- the, the quality’s there. The other thing to remember, if you’re ever thinking, God forbid, to bring a band up from England for your wedding, is English bands have it easy.
They do two one hours maximum. So they’ll play a two one hour, two live sets. Do they really? One hours, yeah. Right. Scottish bands will play from 8:00 PM till midnight- Uh-huh… as standard with a half-hour break. I was gonna say, Scottish people, we’re just a bit unhinged, aren’t we? We’re just a bit- We like a party.
We do like a party. Aye. And, yeah. And we know how to party. Absolutely. Like, we absolutely know how to party. Yeah. Yeah. We do. So- Ask Boston. Ah. But, That was incredible. It’s amazing. That was- It’s amazing… absolutely incredible. Half our pipers were over there, Oh, really?… doing their thing, aye. Aw. So they were over there doing their, doing their thing.
Were you guys there? We weren’t there on this occasion. Right. I’m surprised yous weren’t there… I know, it is a surprise. Uh-huh. But, you know, I work for Lisa. Ah. So- Never gave you the time off. I think they did. Cracking that whip. Exactly. Yeah. But aye, so Scottish bands, you get some great, it’s great value for money.
Uh-huh. And you’re getting that Scottish personality as well. Totally. Yeah. You n- you need to know how a Scottish- The banter… wedding works. The humor. Yeah, yeah. You, you, you need to know about-
Yeah… Loch Lomond at the end, if that’s your- Yes… if that’s your choice. Yeah. And the songs that, some songs that you can play in s- i- in- Yeah… in Scotland, it’s, you need local knowledge. Yeah. You know? Absolutely. And the, the guys are already here. That’s my point. You know, it’s crazy to bring somebody up from, from down south when- Yeah
When such quality is here. Absolutely. And in terms of, like, booking a band or booking your entertainment for daytime, halfway through or, like, evening, like, what is the timescale of that? Like, how long actually should a couple be looking to book that? That’s a good question, too. The earlier, the better.
Yeah. Although there are so many bands out there- Mm-hmm… a handful of bands- They get scooped up quick if they’re really good… get, yeah, they really- Yeah… get booked f- so far in advance. Mm-hmm. We’ve got weddings booked for 2028. 2028,
Yeah. Yes, uh-huh. So- Gosh… and that’s very common. Uh-huh. So those, especially the big Sa- Saturdays in the summer- Yep, yep… they go like that. Right. So you have to be quick. If there’s a specific band you’re after or a, or a group of bands you’re after, then, then be fast- Yeah… and make a d- you know, decision quickly.
Because your entertainment kinda makes y- makes or breaks, I always think, makes or breaks your evening. You’re absolutely right I know It’s the- Because I’ve been to weddings- It’s a huge part of your day Uh-huh. I’ve been to weddings where, like, the bands are incredible, and as soon as, as soon as they’re on that stage, the dance floor’s just
It’s busy. Absolutely. It’s buzzing. Yeah. The atmosphere’s incredible. Yeah. I’ve also been where, like, the band or the DJ was just
A bit blah, and people are like, “I don’t like that song.” Yes. “Oh, I don’t like that song.” Yeah. You, you- “Oh, I don’t like that song.” And the dance floor’s empty. Aye. And people are just sitting at their tables, like, just chatting amongst themselves and you’re like, “Oh, it is dire.” Well, that’s where experience- You never want that
An experienced band knows what to play. 100%. Absolutely. Not only what to play, but when to play it. Yeah. You would never play Loch Lomond second song in- No… because it’s, you know, it’s pointless. Absolutely. And where the ceilidh set is placed, if there indeed is a ceilidh set. Some- Yeah… it’s not compulsory.
You don’t have to have a ceilidh set. Yeah, yeah. But, where, where it’s placed is important. Yeah. The, the last song you play before the break and the first song you play after the break- Yeah… super important. Yeah. The last half hour when everything’s building up to a crescendo- Yeah… super important. Yeah, yeah.
A band, any good band will read the room. Mm-hmm. And they’ll look at where the, the, the people who aren’t dancing. Yeah. And then they’ll think, “What do we need to do to get those people on the dance floor?” Yeah. That’s what a good band will do. Yeah, yeah. And that’s what you’re paying them for. Yeah, yeah.
And, and ex- some of these guys have done thousands of weddings. Of course. So there’s nothing they haven’t been faced with. Yeah, yeah. And that is… You’ve got your- Do they do requests on the night? They can. If they know the song, they’ll play it. Yeah. They have to know the song. Yeah, of course. And, Do they get that a lot?
Aye, it happens a lot. Do they? Yeah. Okay. And they’ll accommodate where they can. Yeah. You know, but sometimes they’re asked… I can say this from my own point of view. I’ll only speak from my point of view- Of course… because I’ve- Of course… I’ve played at an awful lot of weddings, so. 100%. Sometimes I was asked to play a song that was gonna
I knew was gonna clear the dance floor. Oh, really? Simply because I’d played it before and it had done it. Again, there’s experience. There’s experience. So you think, “Aye, that’s a great song.” And, and you might love- Yeah… that song. Yeah. And this is an important wee tip actually for- Yeah… for couples. Because you love a, a genre of music or a specific- Yeah, yeah, yeah
Song, it doesn’t mean that it’ll work on the dancefloor. Yeah. Ask the band. Absolutely. And check- ‘Cause they’ll know… they’ll know. Yeah. ‘Cause we’ll have done it. Uh-huh. And there are, there are, there are songs we c- well, we call them use in case of emergency. Yeah. There are songs that you can pretty much guarantee will fill a dancefloor.
Yeah. And that’s why people still play Brown Eyed Girl by Van Morrison. Absolutely. ‘Cause it’ll always work. Yeah. Mustang Sally. God, if I sang that song once. And I used to love it. And now- For the pound for every time I sang it. Absolutely. There was a reason. Yes. And the other one is, and th- this is a cracker.
We, we’ll sometimes be playing away, you’ve got your guitar on and you’re, you’re trying to do your best and somebody’s- Yeah… shouting at you. Whoa. Yeah. And you know what, one I remember was- It’s very distracting, eh? Totally. You’re trying to remember the words to that song. And it would be, “Do you know Sweet Caroline?”
It’s never Sweet Caroline. “Sweet Caroline.” “Aye, I know it. Aye, aye.” “Well, go on, you play it.” I will eventually, you know. Aye. So there are songs that musicians want a, a busy dancefloor. Yeah. They’ll play whatever they need to play- Yeah… to get the floor busy. Some bands have a, a style or a theme- Mm-hmm… maybe a bit rockier than others.
Yeah. We’ve got a band called Slam Dunk who are just tremendous. Mm-hmm. And they’ve got more of a almost punky feel. Yeah, yeah. But they’ll still do ABBA. Absolutely. They’ll still do Mustang Sally. Yep, yep. You’ll just get something a little bit more radical if that’s- Yeah… what floats your boat. Absolutely.
And that’s another top tip when you’re- ‘Cause everybody’s different, aren’t they? Totally. Like- Totally… every wedding’s different. You, you- Although it’s still a wedding day, like, there’s, there’s so many different things that are just different. People are different. Yeah. People have different tastes.
Absolutely. The, the makeup of the, the audience can be different too. Yes. Older, younger, whatever. Yes. So you need a… That’s what a wedding band is. It’s a, a band who are seasoned and professional and know when you need, you need to change this a little bit. Yeah. And then will play something else. And if it just accommodates one table of maybe, people with specific requirements.
Yeah. Tastes, maybe like a bit of jazz, bit of swing, something like that. Mm-hmm. I’m trying to be polite and say older guests, people my age. And mine. Maybe want a bit, you know, a bit of swing, some Sinatra, something like that. Yeah. A, a good band will accommodate that. Yeah. And then get back to the- Mm-hmm
To the bangers. Yeah. But that, and also knowing when to change tempo a little bit. So you, you don’t want too many slow songs. Although it’s a romantic occasion. Yeah, there’s t- A wedding… there’s times for that, isn’t there? But- It’s a party first and foremost… yeah, of course. It’s a celebration, isn’t it?
Totally. It’s a total celebration. So too many, too many slow songs can be a bit dirgey Generally speaking, and again from my own experience, we would play little clumps of styles. So a little s- a little soul set- Yep… and a little rock set- Yep… and some poppy stuff and- Yeah… that gives everybody a chance to, yeah- It breaks everything up, doesn’t it?
Totally. Yeah, and then you’re sort of, you’re, you’re going through the whole room to try and please everybody then, aren’t you? Ah, that’s the job. You’re sort of ticking all the boxes. Yeah. Yeah. And everybody deserves a chance to dance. 100%. So. Absolutely. Yeah. Even us oldies. Even us oldies. Wheel me onto the dance floor at my daughter’s wedding.
Absolutely. And I’ll, I’ll still be doing my dad moves. So, and… Dad dance. So where is Rachel having it? Sorn Castle. Oh, lovely. It’s gorgeous. Sorn’s beautiful. It’s stunning. It’s really beautiful. Yeah. And it’s, it’s, they don’t do a huge amount of weddings, actually, Sorn Castle. They don’t. They don’t. So it’s, it’s very exclusive.
Aye. That’s, that’s really lovely. It’s a beautiful location. Yeah. The River Ayr runs right past the, the castle itself. Yeah. Yeah. It’s just gorgeous. It, it is. It’s really beautiful. And is she all excited about it? Aye. It’s hard to tell- Nervous?… with Rachel. I know. ’cause she’s so calm. Yeah, she is. She- and she’s so- Yeah
Together. But it, yeah, she’s sh- they just had their, one of their, one of their hen weekends at the weekend- Absolutely… passed, yeah. So you don’t just have one. No. So, Not, not these days… that was a big success from, from what I could tell. Amazing. And, yeah, they’re the f- they’re on the home straight now.
Yeah. Have you had the stag do? There’s, there was, there’s been two of those. There was a crazy one, Andrew, who’s Rachel’s fiance, lovely boy. They went to, I think they were in Munich. Right. And that was the young guys. That was the- Yeah… the heavy berry section. Yep, absolutely. We’re all going, ap- apparently we’re going to Cumbria, to Millport in Cumbria.
Oh, nice. For some of the- Millport’s great… the old guard. So we’re going- Millport’s great… along to that. I think there’s, 30-odd people going. So I hope- It’ll never be the same again… I hope Millport’s prepared. I’m ready for you. So there’s the stag do. That’s fairly, That’s good… I forget when it is- Yeah
But it’s fairly soon. That’s exciting… and then, yeah, then the big day itself. Yeah. What sort of entertainment is she having? She has booked a band. She had the choice of all the bands on our roster. Of course. And she’ll know them all because she worked there for so long. She knows them all very well.
Yeah. And it says a lot for the band that she chose, and she was… It was a difficult-… really difficult decision. Oh, 100%. Like, it’s a bit like, yeah. I’d say she spent more time on that than she did with her dress. I know that for a fact. Ah, because the pressure, because she would, she’d want everybody. She would.
Yeah. We could have created a supergroup. We could have had 65 musicians- Yes… on that stage. I know. Bless. She’s gone with a band called The Shakers, who are, a- a- again, a tremendous band. Yeah. They’ve got a live sax. Hermes on sax. Yeah. And it’s just a, a, they’re a great party band. Yeah. So The Shakers will be doing it on the night.
Nice. In the big marquee at the side of the- Lovely… of the, of the castle itself. Yeah. And yeah, it’s gonna be a cracker. Yeah. It’s gonna be a cracker. That’s really exciting. Really exciting. September’s a great time to get married. I got married in September. So did I. Did you? Aye. In fact, so did her mum, ’cause we’re married.
So what date did yous get married? 11th, funnily enough. The 11th of September. I’m the 12th. No way. Yeah, way. There you are. Mm-hmm. There you are. Yeah. Brilliant. Wow. I know. And yous are still going strong. I’m still going strong. Like, yep. Absolutely. It’s a great, it’s a great month to get married. It’s, must be a lucky month.
It must be a lucky month. Must be. It was torrential rain when I got married. Oh, we had a… It was pretty windy. Yeah. But it was, it was dry. Yeah. It was dry. Yeah. It was nice. Stornoway Castle’s going to be incredible, ’cause the gardens and everything down there are just the, it’s, the whole place is just spectacular.
When you, when you drive into the grounds- Yeah… your, your jaw drops. Yeah. It’s, it’s beautiful. And it’s just exactly what Rachel and Andrew were, were looking for. Yeah. We… They picked it obviously. Yeah. And then we were told about it. And, Dad, get the checkbook out. Absolutely. You’re just the bank of Mom and Dad.
I need to get a part-time job. If you know of any- If anybody out there knows, I can- Lisa will be- I can work a bar… Lisa will be pimping you out- I sh-… doing your singing again. I would maybe have to break the- Yeah… the old glass box and get the mic back out. Although I don’t think I’d make any money. That’s great.
But, aye, it’s, it’s an expensive business, and we’re, we’re aware of that. Absolutely. And even more aware now that we’re… You, you’ve got one coming up, you know? Uh-huh. Yeah. So aye, it’s
Not, an inexpensive thing to get involved in. Yeah. It’s one day
And that’s
Why I, I think we will always say to, to our couples, “Look, try and, and be aware of every minute.” Relax and enjoy it. Uh-huh. Because, because that… So I always think saying, “Yes, let’s get married,” that’s the easy part. Mm-hmm. And then you’ve got the planning process- Mm-hmm… which is an exciting part. It’s a, it’s a thril- thrilling part.
It’s a, it’s a scary part. It’s, it’s an anxious part. It’s, it’s a whole rollercoaster of emotions. Totally. But especially, like, as we, we, we touched on it earlier, was about two or three weeks out from the wedding date. I think especially more a bride, I could be doing the grooms a disservice here, but I think just from my experience, like, brides tend to be like they’re trying to tick every single box, and they’re overthinking absolutely everything, which is totally- It’s natural
Understandable. It’s understandable. Totally. But it’s, it’s the, it’s the one way to drive yourself crazy. Yeah. Yeah… and- So just enjoy it on the day. The- All your planning… if you put your hands in, if you put your wedding plans in the hands of professionals- Uh-huh… you’re gonna be fine. Absolutely. And you do yourself no good at all Going over it and over and over things.
The bit of, the best bit of advice I could give any couple is once they’ve made the decisions, get off the forums. Yeah. Because you will end up… When you’re looking in the forums, and they’re useful in the, in the lead up to your wedding, when you’re making your decisions. Yeah. But once you’ve made your decisions- Yeah
Stick with those and get off the forums because forums are full of well-intended but terrifying stories- Yeah… that you don’t need. Yeah. And it, and you end up changing for the change’s sake- Mm-hmm… and thinking that… or second-guessing yourself. Yeah. And the closer you get to your wedding, that’s no good at all.
Yeah. It’s such an expensive day. It’s such an important day- It is… that it’ll go by, no matter what you do, it’ll go by in a flash. Yeah, yeah. And you want to remember every single minute of it. You do. You don’t want to be there… ‘Cause a wedding couple’s job is not to be, like, over five minutes late for dinner.
No. Doesn’t matter. No. That’s not your job. It, it- Your job is to look incredible, have the people that are nearest and dearest to you, and to celebrate- Totally… your big day. That’s it. If you’re looking for perfection, you’ll always be disappointed. Weddings- There’s no such thing… No. And there’s n- there’s never been a perfect wedding.
Yeah. Even Taylor Swift’s would’ve had its issues. Absolutely. With her six dresses and her Absolutely, yeah. But, you know, they’re… If you’re expecting perfection, you will be disappointed. Yeah. And if you’re going looking for problems and issues, you’ll find them. Yeah. And then you’re not doing what you should be doing- Yeah
Which is enjoying your- Absolutely… the, the most important day of your life. Yeah. So you’ve gotta not micromanage your wedding. Yeah. That’s another, useful thing that I would say to any couple. Yeah. Don’t micromanage it. Trust your suppliers. Absolutely. If there are issues, suppliers will sort it out.
Yeah. They’ll be dealt with. Yeah. And you can do what you’re supposed to do. Yeah. I think my, one of my bugbears is, like, we see quite a lot of, wedding couples going on to, like, Facebook pages, like wedding Facebook pages- Mm… and going like, “You know, I’ve been let down looking for a hair and makeup person.”
And I’m thinking, “Why are you asking people that don’t know the industry, aren’t in the industry?” You’re asking people that you don’t know- Mm-hmm… for advice for the biggest day of your life- Yeah… when there’s people like yourselves, maybe not for hair and makeup, but- Don’t know… you know what I mean? But it could be a band.
Right. You know, they might be asking for a band- Yeah… or whatever. Yeah. And I’m thinking like, “Hello, your Scottish wedding, like, has magazine, has, like, social media, has all this stuff. Like, you’re the professional in your, in your scenario.” Couldn’t agree more. And I’m just like, “Why are these people not reaching out direct to the suppliers and going onto these?”
That’s my bugbear. Well, they go into- It really is… panic mode. If, if, if a couple are having issues- I understand, yeah… with any kind of supplier, they go into panic mode. Yeah. And they think that by going on the forums and on the Facebook- Yeah… groups and stuff- Uh-huh… and they will get advice, but they’ll get 80, 90 people giving them- But they’ll-
Different advice… I was just about to say, because everybody’s, everything’s subjective. Absolutely. So you might… They might say, “Oh, this band’s great,” but it’s maybe not the band that that couple will particularly like because it’s maybe not the right- Probably not even available. Yeah. You know? So- And there’s that as well
So you’re running around, you’re maybe g- if… We see it often. We, we monitor the, the, the, the Facebook groups. Uh-huh, uh-huh. And, and if we’re, we can be helpful, we’ll be helpful. Absolutely. But if a couple or a, or a, a, someone who’s getting married puts up a question about a band- Yeah… “Can anybody recommend a band?”
Yeah. They will get… It is inundated. Yeah. So you’re overwhelmed. There’s just too much information. Absolutely. Which, do you have the time to filter it all out? Mm-hmm. Do you have the time to go and watch the videos? Yeah. Go and see the band live- Yeah… if you can. Yeah. Do you know the ins and outs? You can’t possibly.
No. And even though someone else might have had a brilliant experience with their band and then recommends them, which is lovely- Yeah… that band might not be available. Yeah. They might not be prepared to travel to that venue. Yeah, yeah. The lead singer might be on holiday that day. Absolutely. So there are so many things.
Yeah. And you’re left to run around trying to filter all this information. Yeah. Whereas if you pick an expert- Yeah… you go there- Absolutely… you’ll be given a solution. Yeah. We’ve got countless, testimonials where Gay and Lisa have helped out on really tricky situations. Yeah. There’s one that, that I refer to quite often, and it is, one…
It’s about Gay who sorted a problem out for a, for a couple, and I can’t remember the exact wording, but it’s like, “Gay- Gay Young is a, is a genius sort of- Aw… she’s a godsend. Yeah. And if you know Gay and you know Gay- I do, yeah. She’s lovely… as well as I do, she’s just a machine when it comes to- Yeah
There’s nothing she doesn’t know. Yeah. And she will do hours and- she once got a band on a ferry. The, the, the, the ferry was… There was an issue with the ferry. Yeah. She got a band on a ferry because she knew an ex-employee of ours who worked at CalMac. No way. And this band got their stuff onto this ferry.
O- on the ferry, in CalMac’s van. It was to go to, it was to go to Oranmore actually in Ireland. Oh, did they? Uh-huh. Gay sorted all that out. And the ferries there in particular are just a bit of a nightmare. A nightmare. Yeah. Gay fixed that, on the day. Did she really? Yeah, on the day. Wow. Her day off. Wow.
And, and Gay took care of that. Wow. It’s that level of dedication. Yeah. We don’t stop. I mean, we’ve had calls, and it happens. We’ve had calls when- Yeah… Lisa and I have been… We were up in, in Greenock once at the swimming pool, and the kids were in the swimming pool and we got a call. Yeah. We had to fix a, a situation there and then.
Yeah, yeah. But, you know, we were able to do it. Absolutely. And that’s why- It, it makes, it might seem a good idea to go and- Yeah… and go on in the forums and, and say, “Oh, for this, this issue.” Yeah. But it, it, you… That’s what, you know, your Scottish Wedding’s for. Yeah. That’s what Hire a Band’s for. Absolutely.
You, you ask the experts. Yeah. It’s experts… Funnily enough, when we’re doing… We do a lot of weddings, from the overseas clients- Yeah… from overseas couples. Yeah. More often than not, m- maybe 50% of the time, they’re using, wedding organizers. Yeah. And they come to us by default- Absolutely… because it gets the job done.
They’re not going backwards and forwards- Yeah… with all these different options. If we say a band are available, they’re available. Correct. If we say they’ve played the venue- Yeah… because we know the venues too. Of course. And that’s it. And it makes a big difference. It does. It’s better to send a band to a venue that have been there before.
Yes. And if you go on the Hire a Band website, hireaband.co.uk, you’ll see that many of the bands’ previous venues are listed there. Yeah. It’s a big job and we’re, we’re, we’re constantly updating the website. Yeah, yeah. But your venue’s likely there. Of course. And so the first thing we do is if someone comes to us and say, “I’m getting married in Briggadoon- Yeah
On such and such a date.” Great venue… fabulous. Bands love playing it. Yeah. They’re really switched on. Yeah. So it’s a easy access, beautiful room- Yeah… great acoustics, all the big benefits that you’d want. Yeah. The Briggadoon’s sensational. I’ve played it many a time m- myself. Yeah. But we on- we…
The first thing we’ll do is recommend bands that have played there before. Yeah. And that, for the Briggadoon being a very easy to access venue- Yeah… is not a big issue. But if it’s Oran Mor, for instance- Yes… which has got a very difficult access. I know. Fabulous venue. It is a great venue, and the acoustics in there are- Oh
Are tremendous. It’s beautiful. Yeah, it’s just the, it’s just the getting up the stairs. The get in- Yeah, yeah… is, is very… And the get out. But again, professionals is- You won’t know… you know, you- You won’t know… you know exactly how to get in and out. But there are some bands that won’t play in some venues because access is difficult.
Oh, right. Okay. And we know who they are too- Yeah, yeah… so we don’t even bother- Sure… recommending them. Yeah, yeah. But there are always bands that will be prepared to- Yeah… to go that wee bit extra and do what they have to do. And if people go onto your website, can they listen to wee snippets of bands?
They can listen. They can watch videos. Yeah. All of our bands have really high quality video, most of it’s shot live. Yeah. And yeah, they can listen to bands. Amazing. And in fact, if they really like a band, we’ve quite often got stuff taken live at weddings that we don’t put on the website because- Yeah
It, the quality isn’t good enough- Yeah… to be on the website. Yeah. And I mean, the picture quality. Yeah, yeah. But we’ll send clients any live shots, usually taken on a phone or something like that. Yeah. And that gives you the feel- Yeah… of the actual impact a band has- Yeah… on the, the dance floor.
Amazing. And that’s what you want. Of course. It’s, it’s all very well the band going up there looking great- Yeah… and, and handsome and, and- Yeah… windswept and whatnot, but you really want to see the dance floor. Of course. We, we know how dance floors respond to our bands Absolutely. You’ve done it for so long So we, we know who gets the floors busy.
Absolutely. And you see it, as I said, automatic, feedback requests go out. Yeah. And we get about 80% of those come back. Wow. And, and a good 79% of them are glowing. Amazing. And you’ll find that the, the main thing that people say is the dance floor was never empty. Yeah. And that’s all that matters. That- that’s all you have ever want.
Yeah. Like, that’s the dream. Well, you said earlier that the mu- the music’s such an important part of your day. It’s a four-hour slice of your day. Uh-huh. And- But it’s the part that you remember… it’s the on- well, people, you know- You remember food… they’ll love good food. They’ll love good food. You might, you might remember the venue.
Mm-hmm. I don’t mean you might. You will re- remember the venue. You will. You’ll remember certain aspects, but you’ll absolutely remember the dance floor. We’re always- The music… totally. We’re always- Yeah, the band… so the atmosphere that a band creates- Yes… is unbeatable. Yeah. And there are great DJs out there too, but I’m a live band guy.
Yeah. And the atmosphere they create, being able to sense what’s going on in the, the dance floor. Yeah. There are guys, a band called Wireless who film every first dance, and these guys, they’re just… I’m in awe. I mean, Yeah… compared to them, I’ve just got no, you know, no talent whatsoever. These guys are phenomenal.
Don’t sell yourself short. Oh, no, those days are long, those days are long gone. But if you look at the Wireless and what they do- Yeah… it’s so obvious how- Yeah… how at ease they are- Yeah… and, and how they, they come across. They’re s- so nice. They’re so easygoing with. They’re, they are j- they’re just such professionals.
Yeah. And they will take care of you. Mm-hmm. And so the thing I always say is- Your day might have issues. Mm-hmm. Your cars might be late, they might break down. Yeah. The weather might be terrible. Raining. Uh-huh. You might wake up in the morning with an enormous plook. Absolutely. Right? That might happen.
These are just things that you just have no control over. Aye, that’s right. And so y- your Uncle Peter might make an off-color remark at the speeches, something like that might happen. Absolutely. Aye. But your band will save the day. Yeah. They will save the day even if things have gone wrong earlier.
Yeah. The band will take everybody’s mind off of that- Yeah… and you’ll have a belt, and that’s the only thing they’re gonna remember. Yeah. They’re not gonna remember the plook or Uncle Peter. No. They’re gonna remember a great night. No, because the makeup artist is gonna do a great job. Of course, of course.
Like, Uncle Peter’s gonna get a slap in the wrist when you talk to him. He’ll get a slap on the wrist, that’s right. You’re getting cut off. But the band will do the thing. No, no drinks at
The bar. You’re, you’re on the Coca-Cola tonight. Totally. Totally. Well, we’ve seen it all. But, but equally, a bad band- Yeah… or a bad DJ- Yeah… can make a perfect day- Miserable… miserable at the end. At the end, yeah. So getting it wrong is just not an option. I know. It’s such a big part of your day, and compared to what you’re spending on the whole day- Yeah
It’s a fraction of what you’re spending. It really is. It really is. There- there’s no better value in my mind, and I’ll say- Yeah… this, to the day I die. There’s no better value at, on a wedding or, and your wedding expenses- Yeah… than, than what the band will cost you. Yeah. For what they do. Yeah. For the hours they spend getting to you.
Absolutely. The hours they spend getting home. Yep. You’re getting incredible value for money. Mm-hmm. And just remember as well that on that stage, there’ll be tens of thousands of pounds worth of equipment. Absolutely. Which weighs usually around about a ton, which has to be carried in- Wow… and carried out.
Yep, yep. You know, these are things you don’t see. And these are things that people don’t talk about. You don’t see, so this band’s like a four-piece band, and their kit is con- you know, it consists of X, Y, and Z- Aye. We don’t mention that… and it weighs this, and it’s gonna take them, you know, like an hour to, to get up the stairs- Right.
That’s right… or get into, into position and- and frankly, it’s not the couple’s problem. Correct. Correct. But it’s, it’s still something that’s good to be aware of. Absolutely. And there’s a rehearsal time as well. Yeah. So all of our bands will learn your first dance. Yeah. We, we get in, we, we pass on the contact details for our musicians if they haven’t already spoken to them- Yeah
Eight weeks before the event takes place. Mm-hmm. Not any sooner, because they’re dealing with other weddings at that time. Yeah. And you want your information to be fresh in their mind. Yeah. But eight weeks is enough time for a band to learn a first dance- Absolutely… if they don’t already know it. Mm-hmm.
Most do, but- Yeah… they will, that gives them that time. Of course. That needs to be rehearsed. Yep. The bands have to get along maybe to Birtley too or whatever. Yeah. Pay for rehearsal time, go in there, learn new songs anyway. Yeah. Learn your first dance, maybe a song they’ll never play again- Yep… and get it to the level that they’re satisfied- Yeah
’cause it’ll be on your video. Absolutely. You know. Absolutely. It’ll be on your video. So, that first dance is super important. It’s crucial. Yeah. And it’s right that your band should play it. Setting the tone, isn’t it? Totally. For the rest of the day, for the rest of the night. And here’s another wee musician’s advice I’ll give.
You can help your night go with a swing if you organize your best man and all your bridesmaids to make sure they’re up dancing from the start. Yeah. What you don’t want, especially in the summer, summer weddings are gorgeous, but it’s light. It’s, it’s quite bright. Yeah. And so people are a little bit nervous about getting up on the dance floor- Yeah
To begin with. Can be a bit intimidating- Yeah… can’t it? There may be seat- Being the first one on the dance floor… and if the cameras are there, too, you know. Yeah. So the, the best thing you can do is make sure that you as the couple are up dancing- Yeah… as much as possible at the early stage of the night.
Absolutely. And make sure your bridesmaids and your groomsmen- Yeah… are all doing the same thing. Yeah. Go and pick people and bring them on the floor. I also think if you’ve picked your, your, your groomsmen and your bridesmaids well, then they would just naturally do that anyway- Aye… as part of their role- Yeah
For that day. Yeah. Wouldn’t they? Absolutely. Yeah. And, you know, you can tell – this might be controversial, but I’m gonna say it anyway. That’s okay. You can tell a popular couple by how excited and happy to dance- Yeah… their guests are. Yeah. That tends to go hand-in-hand. Yeah. If there’s a loving atmosphere, if there’s a, if it’s a happy, happy occasion, and they should be.
Yeah. Most w- most weddings, this is the case. Absolutely. You can tell at the, the, the guests are keen to celebrate. Yeah. And a band loves that. Yeah. You, if you, if you- Makes their job easier as well- Totally… doesn’t it? Totally. Uh-huh. If you have a – you’ll be played – the band will bend over backwards- Yeah
To keep that dance floor busy. Yeah. Not because of, to show off their, their musical prowess- Yeah… because they love it. Yeah. And the atmosphere just feeds straight back to the band. Yeah. You’ll have a brilliant night. Yeah. You pick the right band, you’ll have a superb night, and they will take care of things you’ll never even be aware- Absolutely
Are, are going on. Del, it’s been an absolute pleasure- Pleasure was mine… having you t- on here today. So thank you so, so much for coming on the show. I did warn you I can talk for ages, so. Listen, so can I. I could keep you here for another five hours. I’ll come back in next week, Lesley. Absolutely.
Absolutely. Thank you so much, Del. Pleasure. Thanks for having me. Been a pleasure. Thank you. Thanks. Thank you
Host: Lesley Traynor
Guest: Del Cotton from Hireaband
Length: 55 minutes
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