Spare Strings

Yes, I realise it’s an obvious one to start with, but you’d be surprised how many times I’ve witnessed guitarists break a string on stage, realising that putting that trip off to the music shop to buy some spares wasn’t such a good idea after all.

Tuner

It has been said that we tune because we care and so doing the job quickly and under pressure means that a good digital tuner is absolutely vital as part of your on-stage armoury. You’re no less a musician if you don’t spend five minutes tuning your G string to absolute pitch perfection. Tuning rapidly – and preferably silently – is something your public will love you for.

Plug Board

These days plug boards are really cheap and so there’s not really any excuse for not having one in your box of tricks. It’s a fact that a lot of venues have hilariously few power sockets and your popularity rating with the rest of the band will positively soar when you whip one out and solve a spontaneous ‘unplugged’ situation.

Gaffer Tape

Not such an obvious one perhaps, but you’d possibly be shocked at just how handy and adaptable a simple roll of gaffer tape can be. I’ve been on gigs where Health and Safety regulations regarding wires trailing across the floor in public places have been quoted to me chapter and verse. But everything was solved with a few moments’ sticking and fixing.

Plectrums

We all know that there is a black hole into which plectrums disappear at gigs, never to be seen again. For this reason it’s advisable to arm yourself with not only one or two spares, but a whole box full if you can. Over the years I’ve seen some blindingly good ideas that were intent on overcoming the syndrome of dropping and losing a pick on a badly lit stage. I particularly liked the luminous ones – brilliant wheeze. I don’t know why they never caught on.

Fuses

Blowing a fuse at a gig is something that has happened to me personally a couple of times and has ensured that I now have a little packet of fuses in my gig bag at all times. Remember that it’s not only mains fuses you need, either; if you play through an amp (and I’m assuming that a lot of you do) then check the technical spec to find out where any internal fuses are lurking in its murky depths. If it’s a valve amp, there will almost certainly be some and you need to know what the ratings are so you can go and buy some spares.

Spare Leads

I know that it’s impossible to carry a spare for everything you use on stage, but leads break, go missing or have a sudden fit of the crackles and it’s much easier to swap them over than it is to try and work out why the world hates you so much that it hands out more than your fair share of hassle when all you want to do is entertain people with your wonderful guitar playing. And it doesn’t stop there, either… Remember that amps have mains leads that are also subject to yanking, twisting and coiling and they sometimes need a stunt double, too.

Spare Batteries

Let’s face it, there is never a good time for a battery to die on you. Whatever the manufacturer claims about their little powerhouse providing you with 1000 hours of nine volt bliss, you can bet that around 999.5 hours, you’ll be getting ready for that really important gig. Replacing batteries before every gig is something reserved for the elite classes – the rest of us go and buy a couple of spare Duracells and keep them close by.

On the other hand, it’s probably worth investigating mains adaptors, too, if your gear can take one.

Torch

You’ve all seen videos of live performances where the road crew hover in the twilight world of a stadium band’s backline with torches, checking that all is well before their employers take to the stage. Well, it’s something we can learn from because stages can be notoriously badly lit and when you’re trying to find which socket is the input and which is the out on that wonderful new gadget you’ve just re-mortgaged the house for, a torch is a really good piece of kit to have at hand. Pub car parks can be dark, too, and so loading out at the end of a night’s performance can be rendered a lot easier if you carry your own illumination.

Tool Kit:

• Screwdrivers (both slotted and Phillips head)
• Allan keys
• Pliers
• Wire Cutters
• String Winder

Acoustic players can, of course, revise and adapt the above list as necessary. A few suggestions for the fingerpicking folk would include the following:

String Pins

These are the pieces of plastic you wedge your string into the bridge with during a string change. They break/get lost under the sofa quite easily and if they do and you haven’t got a spare, you’re screwed.

Emery Board/Emergency Nails

If you play with your fingernails on steel strings then it’s inevitable that you’re going to experience the odd mishap. Ragged ends, tears and splits can sometimes be sorted out with an emery board or even a piece of finest grade wet and dry paper. For disasters like broken nails, some sort of replacement might be necessary. I’ve heard of everything from Super-glue to ping-pong balls being cut up and used to lash up an emergency fingernail.

Thumb Pick

If you break your thumb nail, a thumb pick might be a good resource to consider. Buy one, learn to be comfortable using it and, if the worst happens, you’re prepared. (I learnt this one the hard way – by shutting my thumb in a car door!)

Gloves

Finally, I guess it’s true that prevention is better than cure and gloves are a great way to protect your fingernails whilst you’re loading and unloading your kit.