i know from the footage in shine a light they would have us believe a setlist is made seconds before hitting the stage...

but logistically, for something like the bigger bang tour where you have full sized crews working videos, lights, pyro etc. they know well in advanace what songs require what effects and what needs to happen.

how long before a show do you think the setlist is made?

even for when the band does rare tunes (i'm thinking bill wills is still the king)
how long before hand was that decided?

any thoughts you have i would love to hear them.


i once interviewed david wilcox (the canadian blues man, not the us adult contemporary guy) who said his band walked on stage and chose what they would open with on the spot based on the vibe from the crowd. from there they would play whatever felt right for the night.

I think for DVD shows it's decided a little while in advance - Mick says in SAL that he's conscious of not putting in "rare" songs that were also "rare" in the Austin show that was also filmed.

But for the other hundred or so shows on tour, Chuck and Mick decide the setlist in the early afternoon of the show day. On ABB it seemed like as much as 8 or 9 songs might be different show to show, but the basic shape of the show didn't change much, or if it did, it was the same for 20-30 shows at a time.

david wilcox rules. was he a nice guy, canadian.sway?

i don´t believe they decide it that late. first, i don´t think there is a reason to not decide it earlier maybe weeks in advance. and then maybe change one song for specific reasons. and also it would give the sound people and also the band not enough time to prepare some rare songs that one might want to go through or rehearse again.

Rehearsals. That's when they decide the bulk of it. There's a skeleton of a set list, call it the main set of songs. They take some out and put others in etc as the tour goes on, which, as it was pointed out, they decide the day of the show. As you'll notice, the set list doesn't really CHANGE, it stays pretty much the same order wise overall.

The whole whining by Marty for Shine A Light was a gigantic ball of bullshit.

hey bernard anderson, david wilcox was a very nice man to chat with. he was far more articulate than i would have expected.his stage show makes him seem really goofy and party lovin, but while talking he sounded eloquent and like a university professor.

great interview too.

i must agree with what others have said, i imagine setlists are more or less mapped out a few weeks in advance, even for the guitar techs and what not to have the proper guitars ready at the proper times. no doubt there is some kind of union or contractual agreement so that the light and sound guys don't have to hussle too much at the last minute because the band wanted to swap songs.